Page 33 of Autopsy of a Fairytale

“What happened to the security system?” Bel asked, that fact bothering her more than most. Disrupting a local coffee shop’s surveillance and the police station’s were two vastly different things.

“You aren’t going to like this. Deputy Saltz disabled it.”

Bel froze. She had tripped over Saltz’s body on her way into the building. “Why?”

“No idea.” Griffin sighed. “From what footage we have, he stepped outside to smoke shortly after you and I left. He spoke to no one while he smoked. He received no calls, didn’t appear to be under duress, and then when he came inside, he walked over to the cameras and started cutting wires.”

“Cutting them?”

“Destroyed every camera, one after another.”

“And Marcus didn’t stop him?” Bel asked. The third victim, Deputy Marcus, had been very much alive when they left in the middle of the night.

“Didn’t even blink at what Saltz was doing,” Griffin confirmed.

“The killer’s profile suggests a police background and possibly multiple perpetrators due to the complexity of the scenes. Could Saltz and Marcus have been involved? Perhaps the killer wanted to tie up loose ends and killed them after they turned off the cameras.”

“God, I hate that idea, but I can’t understand why else they would have disabled the security unless they were bribed. Maybe they demanded more money, and the killer decided it was cleaner to remove all witnesses.”

Bel’s mind instantly pictured Eamon following her in the woods. He certainly possessed the funds to bribe police officers. He had been watching her yesterday morning while she talked to her father. Had he just come from murdering her partner? Was he there to gloat over her?

“Eamon Stone?” Bel asked, and Cerberus went to the front door and touched his leash with his nose. It had been a few hours since she’d taken him out. He was probably crossing his legs in desperation.

“We called him down to the station, but he arrived with his lawyer,” Griffin answered. “He explained he came looking for you last night. Said he had a concern he wished to discuss with you.”

“What concern?” Bel asked as she hooked Cerberus into his harness and opened the door.

“Wouldn’t say. He claimed he searched for paper to write you a note, which is how his print ended up on your desk. Explained his fingerprints are in the system because of his job for security purposes.”

“Did you find a note?”

“No.”

“Convenient.”

“I know, but unfortunately, without the surveillance footage, we can’t be certain.”

“Sheriff, he was at the scene.”

“Yes, but there was one print on your desk, which is in a different room than the cells. There was no evidence of him on either deputy or Cassidy. He explained his hands were dirty from the renovations, so it stands to reason there would be fingerprints elsewhere if he was involved.”

“He could have left the darker one on purpose.” If Eamon was smart enough to clean a crime scene, he would know how to plant misleading prints.

“I realize that, but with his lawyer present and no concrete proof of his involvement, there’s nothing I can do. My hands are tied, Emerson.” Griffin sighed. “I want to find who did this, but Stone came to the station willingly. We don’t have enough evidence to arrest him, so he left.”

Bel groaned, but her voice caught in her throat as the shadows moved in the woods bordering Vera’s garden.

“We’ll find something,” Griffin said. “Just promise me you won’t do anything stupid.”

“Sheriff—”

“I may not know you well, Emerson, but I understand that not working this is killing you. It would kill me too. So, I need you to trust that I’ll do everything I can.”

“I know you will.” Bel moved closer to the movement.Was that… blonde hair?

“I’ll call you when I have another update.”

“Thanks, Sheriff.” She pulled Cerberus across the yard.

---