Page 43 of Dead Man's List

All of this was captured by Ace’s camera but hidden from street view by the Ford truck. Shelley’s muffled cries could be heard, but she couldn’t be seen.

She wouldn’t be seen again until Kit, Connor, and Sam discovered her body five days later.

The man closed the garage door with the trailer still inside, then drove away at seven thirty-five p.m., only to return forty-five minutes later.

“Time of Shelley and her mother’s death was sometime between seven thirty-five and eight twenty,” Connor murmured.

The man used the keys he’d taken from Shelley to open the garage door. He hooked the finished trailer to the hitch of his truck and drove it out of the garage before closing the garage door. And then he drove away.

“We requested street cam footage around Jennifer’s Body Shop,” Detective Marshall said. “It was one of the first thingswe did when we checked out the scene. We hoped he’d stop somewhere and get out so that we could get another look at his face, but he simply disappeared. It’s like he knew where the cams were and took back roads, because we lost him. Didn’t pick him up again until he drove into Munro’s community early Wednesday morning.”

“He has a working knowledge of the city,” Navarro murmured. “And of its street cams.”

Kit had thought of that. It was definitely something they could use to narrow their search.

“We can ask the public to come forward if anyone saw the trailer,” Detective Ashton said, “but we’d be showing our hand.”

“I want to know where he stayed Tuesday night,” Navarro said. “That might be where he took Munro to do all the things he did. All the torture.”

“And,” Kit said, “if there was more than one person involved in the little stab fest, we might be able to identify them if we know where they went to do their littleOrient Express. But Ashton’s right. We’ll show our hand. Your call, boss.”

“We’ve already planned a press conference for tomorrow at ten a.m.,” Navarro said. “We could make the announcement then. Are we sure that David Norton didn’t have anything to do with this?”

Kit shook her head. “We aren’t sure of anything except that Munro, Shelley, and her mother are dead, all were killed the same exact way, and that we have this hockey-mask guy on video twice—here and at Munro’s.”

“How did the boyfriend react to seeing this recording?” Navarro asked.

“He threw up,” Connor said. “Barely made it to the toilet. It was not pleasant. I preferred the stink of stale booze to puke.”

“I think he cared for her,” Kit said. “I believed his story.”

Navarro sighed. “What next?”

“We try to find out where the trailer spent Tuesday night,” Kit said. “And we start investigating all our suspects. I think we start with William Weaver, the guy whose reputation Munro destroyed during the last election. Accused Weaver of pedophilia, which led to him losing his marriage, his family, his job, and his home. Of everyone on the list, he’s got the most personal reason for revenge.”

“And Ronald Tasker, the guy who’s serving time now for chopping up his wife,” Connor added.

Navarro nodded. “Tasker’s the guy Munro wanted Sam to evaluate as being mentally unfit for trial.”

“That’s him,” Connor said. “He couldn’t have been the killer because he’s behind bars, but he could have paid someone to do it.”

“We’ll visit William Weaver tonight,” Kit said. “Then go to the prison tomorrow for Tasker. I also want to revisit Wilhelmina, see if her story’s changed at all.”

“It won’t,” Connor said confidently. “She had it down pat before we even got there. True or false, she’ll stick with it.”

Kit shrugged. “You’re probably right. I’m kind of hoping to provoke Rafferty into spilling some tea. He seems to have a trigger temper.”

“Can I be bad cop again?” Connor asked, looking so eager that Kit laughed.

“Knock yourself out,” she said. “But I can be bad cop even when I’m being sweet.”

Connor exaggerated a shudder. “You make grown men fear you.”

“Damn straight.”

Navarro just shook his head. “I have a raging headache, so I’m going home. Call me if you need me.”

“Will do,” Kit assured him. “We started at seven this morning with Sam, so we’ll clock out after we speak to William Weaver.”

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