Page 44 of Love Me Fierce

“I’ll see what I can do. Not sure it’s worth my time, though. My initial sweep turned up exactly nada.”

I frown. “Like it’s been wiped down?”

“Looks that way.”

In the footage Nate shared, the driver didn’t appear to be wearing gloves, but the image was grainy, and his hands weren’t clearly visible. If he wiped down the car, when did he have the time to do it? Certainly not at the boat ramp. So, before? Which would mean he knew he was going to ditch the Taurus ahead of time.

“Hey, the owner, Woody McGowan, called back,” Walker says. “You weren’t in yet, so I talked to him. Apparently, the clothes in those bags? They were donations for Goodwill. He hadn’t gotten around to dropping themoff.”

“Huh.” Could this case get any weirder?

“I’ll send you what I have so far, so you can run with it.”

“Thanks.” I tap the eraser end of my pencil on my desk. “Any chance you’ve got anything from the break in yesterday at the Meadows?”

“You’ve got a real bee in your bonnet today, don’t you?”

I rub my forehead. “A fingerprint would make my century.”

“I haven’t even broken the seals yet.”

Right. It’s too soon. My cases aren’t his only cases, etcetera.

“Thanks,” I say.

“You’re welcome,” he sings.

I decide to pay another visit to The Meadows and follow up with the rest of the neighbors. As I head to my vehicle, I think about the softness of Vivian’s hand in mine last night at the dinner table. Coupled with what I learned about her ex and how he treated her, it’s a wonder I’ve been able to focus this morning.

I now have even more reasons to keep her at a distance, yet when I think about kissing her, every cell in my body snaps to attention.

Chapter Thirteen

EVERETT

When I slipbehind the wheel, I send Zach a quick text.

69 @ the truck scale on HWY5?

He replies almost instantly.

Be there in 10

The old truck scale is just past the last service station west of town. The scale building has been boarded up for decades and the concrete is cracked and sun-bleached, with tumbleweeds trapped in the ancient barbed-wire fencing. It’s useful as a turnaround or a place to run speed checks, and when Marin went missing, it doubled as Search and Rescue’s HQ.

When I pull in, I don’t have to wait long. Zach turns in facing the opposite direction and lowers his window. I do the same, and the scents of sage and freshly turned earth fill my cab.

Zach raises an eyebrow. “What’s up?”

“Special Agent Ballard paid us a visit this morning.”

Zach’s look turns wary. “Okay.”

I give him the summary and the level of secrecy we’re expected to keep regarding a possible new murder victim linked to Marin and Michelle.

“Shit,” Zach says with a heavy sigh. He runs a hand through his hair. “If he’s right… my god.”

I rest the back of my head against my seat and run my thumb along the steering wheel. “Yeah.”

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