Page 57 of Silent Ridge

She isn’t worried about Rader being found. Rylee has focused on Michael just like she knew she would. And while Rylee was running all over the state in search of the families of Alex’s victims, it gave her time to tweak her plan to take Rylee down. Monique Delmont was only a nudge to push Rylee along her current path. But it wasn’t needed in the end.

In fact, the snipe hunt she manufactured for Rylee is almost over. She will have to leave more clues for Rylee to find her prey. Michael was the perfect bait, the perfect scapegoat. A self-serving, greedy, murderous asshole. He only killed Kim Mock and Steve Jones in prison because, if Alex had been caught, the trail would have also led to Michael. Michael had partaken in some of the rapes and tortures. The brothers had shared everything. Even Alex’s wife, Marie. Of course, Alex wasn’t aware that Michael and Marie were having sex while Alex was at work. She found out because she and Marie became close friends. Marie knew about her arrangement with Alex. Knew he was sleeping with her. Marie didn’t really mind.

When Rylee killed Alex and Marie, it panicked Michael. He collected the evidence, the pictures from Delmont, but not to keep Alex’s name clean. In fact, he was going to plant the evidence in such a way that he himself wouldn’t be under any suspicion. But it was already too late for Michael. He was already under a magnifying glass by the prison internal affairs office for illegal use of force and one death. He’d gotten away with two others. He had a sadistic mean streak and took it out on a captive audience.

She kept track of him. She knew she would kill him, but she needed him until now. He unknowingly played his part and now Rylee will be blamed for his death.

She picks up the two severed fingers from the ground and puts them in her pocket. These will be her last message to Rylee and a nail in Rylee’s coffin.

But there is one last thing she has to take from Rylee. If she does this right, Rylee will be blamed for more than one killing.

Fifty

I pull into the office parking lot and my eyes are drawn to the woods. I can’t help it. Marley said the DNA I collected from the items out there had no bearing on the case. The DNA wasn’t in the database and there were no fingerprints. The Sheriff’s Office is a non-smoking area. So everyone goes outside to smoke. I saw Nan out there. I couldn’t imagine a reason for the women’s panties to be there, but in this day and age, anything goes.

Sheriff Gray’s car is still here and I know he’s waiting to see me. I don’t want to go in. I’m not ready for The Talk.

“I’m going to drop you here and head home,” I say to Ronnie. “I need to get a shower and change clothes.”

“You don’t have to dress up for dinner,” she says.

I’m not planning to. It’s hard to hide a shoulder holster under a dress. I know this is the point where I ask what she’s going to wear and make girl talk, but I don’t know how to pull that off with someone who really knows me. Someone who knows I have only one nice pair of jeans and a couple of nice blouses.

“Can I bring a gun?” I ask, and she giggles.

“Of course you can. I know you never leave home without it. I’ll have one too. That case last month taught me a lesson, believe me.”

“You just passed your first lesson, Red. By the way, what do you think of that for a nickname?”

“Honestly?” She cocks her head.

I nod.

“I hate it. But it makes Marley happy. I just hope it doesn’t catch on. I don’t want to get stuck with it. You know how cops can be.”

I know. “Do you want me to tell him it’s not appropriate to call you that?” I offer.

“Would you?”

“I’ll tell him nicely.”

I’ll say,Quit calling her Red, you dumb shit or the sheriff will have your ass. That’s sexual harassment.Marley is a by-the-book kind of guy. If he hears “sexual harassment,” his butt will pucker.

Ronnie gets out of the car and I roll down the window. “You still need to let me know where the party is and when.”

She comes back and leans in the window. “I’m going to make him take me to The Tides. How about seven?”

“Perfect.”

She walks toward her car, turns and waves. I wave back and smile like I mean it. I hang around to make sure Sheriff Gray doesn’t come out and stop her before she leaves. When she’s safely away, I take off. I’m halfway to Port Townsend when I call the sheriff’s cell phone.

“Megan. Where are you?”

“I’m at home,” I lie.

“Oh. Okay. We need to talk sometime. How are you feeling?”

I wonder why he’s asking this. Maybe he thinks I’m grieving over Monique. I am, but it’s not debilitating.

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