Page 17 of Tears on Her Grave

SEVENTEEN

As she pushed her empty pie plate away from her, Jenna’s phone buzzed. It was Norrell. She passed one of her earbuds to Kane to join the conversation. “Hey, Norrell, have you discovered anything new?”

“Shane has organized a press conference in half an hour to discuss our findings in the bodies-in-the-river case. He mentioned he discussed it with you earlier about trying to flush out anyone involved by giving out small snippets of information to make them believe that we are onto them.”The sound of sugar being added to a cup of coffee and a spoon stirring the brew came through the speaker.“We do have more information than previously. I did find a few snippets of skin under Abby’s fingernails. The problem is, without a DNA specimen for comparison, it is practically useless. It doesn’t belong to Cole Peters. There’s something else that’s extremely unusual when you’re looking at a double homicide: Although Abby was likely positioned under Cole, as there are imprints of his outline on her skin, she isn’t soaked in his blood.”

Jenna shot a glance at Kane and raised one eyebrow. “What does Shane say about this?”

“He figures that it indicates that Cole Peters was attacked first, because he has Abby’s blood on the front of his jacket. If he’d died second, it would have made sense that he would have bled all over her. Shane also believes Cole Peters was moved, likely dragged some distance, as there are deep grazes to the flesh on his torso, which would indicate that his shirt was pulled up as he was dragged over a rough surface. There are no such injuries on Abby, which would make him believe that she was carried to her final resting place.”

“So this is a clear indication that more than two people were involved.” Kane rubbed his chin. “From what you are describing, Cole was dragged over rough ground by his feet. This would pull up his jacket and expose his back to the ground, whereas Abby was carried probably by two people holding her arms and legs. As her throat was cut, she would have been bleeding profusely. We know she was still alive, so her blood would have still been pumping from the wound. I believe this would have been the reason not to carry her any other way.”

“Then we have the Alpha Pi fraternity pin she was clutching in her hand. I know it’s hard to believe, but we actually took prints from that pin. There is half of a thumbprint on the front. Shane is running it through all the databases as we speak, but again, just like the DNA, it’s useless if we can’t get a match.”

Jenna listened intently, turning over the information in her mind. “The thumbprint could belong to anyone. Someone could have handed the pin to him just before he went out, or it belongs to the owner. I do think that Abby tore that pin from him to prove who was trying to kill her. She likely scratched him as well, but after twelve years we’re never going to discover who had scratches on them from that long ago.”

“There is something else of significance.”Norrell paused a beat. “The sand samples that we retrieved from Abby’s lungs are consistent with samples taken from the Whispering Caves.As you recall, Atohi Blackhawk is on my payroll, and I sent him to the mountains to hunt down anywhere where there’s been seismic activity that could have caused a cave to wash out. He found a group of caves with large new fissures above them where water had washed down into the caves and down the mountain. One of the caves he discovered forms part of a new river system that runs into Black Rock Falls. He considers that particular area is the most likely place where bodies could have been washed from caves and into the river. As the melt is almost over in that area, as soon as the rain stops I’ll be heading to the Whispering Caves to check out the area and see if there’s anything we can use to determine if that’s where the bodies were buried. The only problem I can envisage is that, for water to dig out enough sand to move the bodies into the river, it likely hasn’t left anything for us to discover. However, sand being heavy, and this particular sand carries a lot of gravel, there is a chance that there might be things left behind. Personal items, for instance. It’s worth the trouble to go and check it out.”

Jenna considered the risk. “Let me know when you’re going, and if Wolfe isn’t going with you, I’ll arrange for one of my deputies to escort you. Even though it’s been twelve years, you should never assume it’s safe in the mountains. It’s not only murderers you need to worry about. The bears will be waking up very hungry, so an escort or going armed in a group is essential.”

“I’ve been moving around the forest with my team since I arrived. I know they’re aware of the dangers. Three of them attend the dojo with Rowley four times a week. I’m now surrounded by very fit young men. I’m sure we’ll be fine, but I will inform you when we are heading up that way.”

“That’s good to know.” Kane wiggled his eyebrows at Jenna. “I’m glad my little talk with them about fitness gained results.”

Jenna smiled at him as they bent over the phone. “Do you want us at the press conference?”

“Yes, and the reason I’m calling is to discuss with you how much we’re actually going to reveal to the press. Shane suggested that we have reason to believe that Cole was murdered first. If it is a group of people, as you suggested, it might throw the cat among the pigeons. Whoever was with them would be only an accomplice, and maybe that is something you can use to get them to come forward and give information about the killer.”

Pushing her hair behind one ear, Jenna considered all the information. “Yeah, I figure that’s a good idea, especially as we’re homing in on a group of friends that were together that night and they all know the victims. Maybe you could mention that you have other evidence that you’re waiting to be confirmed and that you’ll be going to visit the crime scene in the next week.” She stared into space for a beat. “Tell them that we know they were buried in the Whispering Caves, and as they are fully preserved, all the evidence is intact. Maybe that will cause a ripple?”

“I hope so. Head on down. The press conference is being held in the medical examiner’s foyer. It’s too wet to hold it outside. It will be a squeeze, but Shane suggested we stay behind the counter.”

Nodding, Jenna glanced at Kane, who shrugged. “Okay, we’ll be by in a few minutes. We’re just finishing up at Aunt Betty’s. We’ll park round back and avoid the crush. Catch you later.” She disconnected. “This will be interesting. Wolfe has CCTV, doesn’t he? We need to have a record of who was there. The media conference was given out on the local news. Our killer might just show up to see if we have any evidence.” She stood and pulled on her slicker. “Let’s go. This is getting interesting.”

EIGHTEEN

Stomach churning, Marissa sat down in front of the TV waiting for the news conference to begin. After the visit from the sheriff and the phone calls received from the others, she’d started to wonder whether keeping silent was a good idea after all. She stared at the TV and listened in interest as the medical examiner and the forensic anthropologist explained all the details about the bodies they’d found. They’d discovered their identities and exactly when they went missing. The fact they had found evidence on the bodies disturbed her. What evidence had they found? She allowed her mind to drift back to that terrible night. The images of Cole and Abby pale and lifeless always sat in the recesses of her mind. Seeing her best friends dead wasn’t something she could forget. They’d all been around Cole and Abby that evening. Earlier that night she’d given Abby a hug. This would mean her DNA was probably all over her, some of her hair perhaps as she used to wear it long and flowing those days. It would be the same for the others. Every one of them touched the bodies. It was Josie and her who grabbed an arm each and helped two of the boys carry her deeper into the cave. They wanted to keep them as far away from the entrance as possible so no one would ever find them.

Her phone buzzed and she looked at the caller ID, surprised to see Josie on the line. They’d decided to cool their conversations of late rather than make it look like that they were discussing the murders. “I’m watching the press conference, are you?”

“Yes, of course I am. I want to know what’s going on.”Josie was breathing heavily down the line as if she’d been running a distance.“The medical examiner is going to speak now. Maybe he’ll let us know what he’s discovered.”

Dr. Shane Wolfe’s voice boomed out from the TV, and Marissa held her breath in anticipation.

“This is a very heinous crime. Not only were two young people slaughtered, but we have evidence to prove that they were buried alive. Whoever attacked these two young people in the Whispering Caves over Halloween twelve years ago needs to be brought to justice. I can assure you that my department will go to every length possible to determine who is responsible for this crime.”

“Do you have any suspects?”A reporter thrust a microphone into the sheriff’s face.

“We do have a list of possible suspects and we’ll be working through them over the coming weeks.”Sheriff Alton stared down the camera.“This may be a cold case, but for me it’s brand new. We were very fortunate that the bodies were mummified and so they carry a great deal of evidence. I do believe that we’ll have an arrest in this case very soon.”

“Dr. Wolfe, what type of evidence have you retrieved from the bodies so far?”A reporter moved their microphone back to the medical examiner.

“A great deal of evidence, and my colleague Dr. Norrell Lawson will be examining the gravesites as soon as the rain eases and it’s safe to go to the Whispering Caves. From the evidence we have discovered on the bodies, we believe we havelocated the gravesites. We’ll be looking for any personal items or other evidence we can use to prosecute the killer of these young people.”Dr. Wolfe held up a hand. “That’s all we have for you today. We’ll keep you updated as the information comes to hand.”

Marissa’s hand shook so hard the phone slipped from her palm. She grabbed it up and pressed it to her ear. “We didn’t kill anyone. I’m not going to prison for the rest of my life. We should tell them the truth so they know it wasn’t murder. It was self-defense.”

“It’s murder now.”Josie sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly.“We thought they were dead, didn’t we? The problem is they now have proof they were buried alive, and we buried them alive. So we’re all equally to blame for their deaths. Even though Cole injured Abby, what it really comes down to is the fact that it was us that dug the grave and us that buried them alive. We’re all murderers. Our only chance is if we stick together and don’t say anything to anyone.”

Horrified at what they had done, Marissa ran a hand down her face. “If we explained the situation, it might be okay. He was only stopping Cole from killing her, wasn’t he? What else could he have done? It was self-defense and we’ve kept his secret all these years because it was the right thing to do, but now we might have to consider saving our own necks. I know if someone is implicated in a crime, they can seek immunity for giving information. I figure we should think long and hard about what we’re going to do. Maybe we should speak to Lily as well? If we went in to see the sheriff as a united force, we might be able to broach a deal with the DA.”

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