Page 50 of Cougar Point

Lucas rubs his eyelids and inhales through his nostrils, like he’s counting to ten. When he opens his eyes, to his disappointment, I’m still here, still waiting.

“Okay. Last year, we found a body in a creek. A woman. It took a while to identify her because of what was done to her. Do you want the graphic details?”

“Not yet. Continue.”

“We managed to ID her as an Olivia Greenwood. She was reported missing from an upscale hotel in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Her body turned up here a week after her disappearance. She’d been tortured and sexually abused. The husband was a person of interest. He’d been contacted by the kidnappers but refused to pay the ransom. By the time the police were informed of the ransom call, it was too late to do anything for her.”

I start to say something, and he holds a finger up. “I wasn’t through.”

I sit and listen as he continues. “There was no suspect information, no suspects except for the husband, but there was one interesting tidbit.”

He’s quiet, wanting me to drag it out of him. I want to choke it out of him but I wait him out.

“The husband had a girlfriend on the side. He and the victim have three children. The girlfriend is built like a model, younger and prettier than the wife. The girlfriend is a co-worker of the wife. The victim. The co-worker/girlfriend was recently divorced and has two children. According to the Ohio investigators, the husband was planning on getting a divorce and leaving his kids with his wife. She upset the plan when she found out about the girlfriend and promised a nasty divorce battle. He didn’t careabout his kids, but she wanted to keep his dogs and vintage cars. According to the detective I talked to, she probably would have gotten what she wanted and he would pay through the nose.”

“Did they arrest him?” I ask.

Lucas pauses before answering. “No. Turns out they couldn’t make the case.”

“So, no named suspects, and no arrests,” I say.

“I just told you no.”

“The body was transported from Cincinnati to Whatcom County. Why? What’s the connection?”

“None that anyone could find. The victim’s body has been sent back to the parents in Cincinnati. They couldn’t prove the husband did it. The girlfriend has an alibi. End of story.”

“Lucas, you can’t tell me it’s not eating you up to not know how she was kidnapped and how she was transported here?”

“It’s not eating me up. The case is closed. Ohio is done and so are we. Why? You want to reopen that case too?”

He has no idea how badly I want to do just that. Only on my own time. I’ll keep it in mind.

“Don’t you think it’s odd? The Ohio woman is taken from a hotel. Victoria is taken from a posh resort. Are we going to wait until her body turns up in a ditch outside of Cincinnati?”

He turns toward me. His eyes are burning like hot coals. I’ve hit a nerve.

“Don’t you ever accuse me of not doing my job,” he says trying to control his anger. “I was a detective when you were still shitting yellow. Don’t get on my wrong side.”

Sheesh!“I’m sorry. I didn’t intend it that way.” I really did. But I don’t want to walk back to Bellingham.

He watches the road for a couple of miles and we sit in uncomfortable silence. Eventually, he speaks again.

“The Greenwood murder is not connected to this case. You get distracted by shit like this and we could lose our chance to find Victoria Marsh.”

“But how do you know it’s not connected?” With an effort, I keep the exasperation out of my voice. Mostly.

He looks across at me, long enough that I get worried he’s not paying enough attention to the road.

“I don’t trust you enough to tell you how I know yet, Detective Carpenter. Maybe I’ll tell you another day.”

I hold his gaze until he looks back at the road. I know that’s all I’m getting from him right now. And I’m not holding my breath for him telling me in the future.

THIRTY-FIVE

FEBRUARY 2023

Cincinnati

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