Page 62 of Corpse Roads

Walking down the corridor, I let myself into Hunter’s office. Several heads snap in my direction.

“Take a seat, Theo.”

Following Hunter’s order, I place my belongings down next to Enzo. Harlow is looking at me, on the very edge of her seat. I can already tell that she doesn’t like strangers, fear is written all over her.

I avoid her eyes, too socially anxious to make my own introduction. This is beyond my remit. I’m more accustomed to working behind the scenes than dealing with victims.

“This is Theo, head of intelligence,” Hunter explains. “He has been tracking your route here.”

She gives me a tiny nod in greeting. “Hi.”

“At Enzo’s request, we looked a little deeper into your last transportation and found something… unusual.”

There’s a flash of panic on Harlow’s face. “You did?”

“Show her,” Hunter instructs.

Without saying a word, I snap on a pair of latex gloves and reach for the evidence bag. Inside lies a bloodied, dirty lump of calcium—a bone, the femur, to be precise.

“You found her,” Harlow keens. “Laura.”

I place the item back in the bag. DNA evidence has already confirmed it belonged to the Whitcomb girl, but establishing Harlow’s involvement was important. Now, we know she is who she says she is.

“Care to explain why you had this in your possession?” Hunter quips.

“I just wanted to get out… I didn’t… I…”

Harlow drops Leighton’s hand to fist her hair so tight, I’m worried she’ll tear the whole lot from her scalp. Her eyes are blown wide and lit with fear as she rises.

The seat falls back with a bang, and Enzo follows, stalking her like an attentive predator. She’s breathing hard through clenched teeth.

“Hold it together, Harlow,” he advises.

“I had no other choice… I tried and tried, but the cage was locked. The only thing I could reach was… was… Laura’s skeleton.”

Stunned silence drapes over the room.

“I used it to break the door,” she finishes, trembling all over. “It took so long, but the hinges snapped. I took all I could of her with me and left the rest.”

Backing away from us all, Harlow retreats into the furthest corner. Enzo tries to approach, but each step in her direction increases her sobs, until he’s forced to fall back. She doesn’t respond to her name.

The door to the office slams open with a crash. Richards stalks in, his tweed coat flapping behind him, looking far angrier than I’ve seen him for a long time.

“I warned you about too much, too soon,” he shouts angrily. “This is unprofessional and, frankly, unethical!”

Hunter doesn’t flinch. “We have a job to do.”

“Not at the expense of those you are supposed to protect. Dammit! I won’t stand for this!”

Hunter looks away, rubbing a hand over his slicked-back ponytail. The silence is punctuated by Harlow’s cries as she curls into herself. She still won’t allow anyone to get close, completely unresponsive.

Leighton is frozen metres away from her, itching to move closer. Enzo looks ready to tear his own hair out at the root as he repeats her name, over and over.

Richards is right—she’s lost in her head. I recognise the signs. Guilt gut-punches me at the mess we’ve made. She isn’t a suspect here. Hunter’s letting the case cloud his judgement.

Before I know what I’m doing, I’ve eased past the others with the evidence bag. Harlow’s tear-filled eyes latch on to the plastic-wrapped body part in my hands.

“I think this is yours,” I whisper shamefully. “I’m sorry for taking her away, Harlow. She was your friend.”

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