Page 48 of Among the Innocent

He noticed something peeking out of Eva’s apron and leaned closer. “What is that?” He removed the paper. Another note from the killer?

He opened it and read the four words written there.“His name is Jonathan.”

“The writing’s different,” Leah said. “Eva must have written it and stuck it in her pocket when he asked to meet her. She knew something was wrong. My guess is she wanted to make sure we had his name. Jonathan, John for short.”

He put the note into an evidence bag and slipped it into his pocket. “He’s stepping up his kills. He knows the area. Knows how to avoid the surveillance cameras, and enough about our procedures to be one step ahead of us. We have to assume his connection to this area goes beyond his desire to get to you.”

She didn’t blink. “So he wasn’t just passing through the area like he told me. He lived here for a while at one time, eitherbefore he met me or afterward. We could check high school photos from the past. If he lived here, chances are he attended school.”

Outside, sirens screamed through the night. Multiple police officers were headed their way. By now, the tribal police as well as the sheriff’s people would know about the victim.

“Chief, you copy?” It was the deputy stationed at the Zook place.

“Go ahead,” Dalton said. He rose and helped Leah to her feet.

“Josiah Zook has asked for Leah to stop by and speak with his daughter Katie. He said the girl may have seen something.”

Dalton shot Leah a look. “Any idea what he’s talking about?”

“Negative, sir. Whatever it is, he says the girl will only speak with Leah.”

“As soon as our people arrive, we’ll head that way.”

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Leah said once the transmission ended. “Why would she choose to go with him when she clearly suspected him of killing Beth?” She glanced at Eva’s lifeless body. “I should have done something more to protect her. Maybe I didn’t stress enough how truly dangerous John is.”

Dalton went over to where she stood and clasped her shoulders. “You did everything you could. Don’t go there, Leah.”

“How can I not? If I’d insisted Ellis check into John instead of going after Harrison, Beth and Eva wouldn’t be dead now.” Her voice cracked under the weight of guilt.

Dalton tugged her close. “That’s on Ellis—not you. For whatever reason, this guy chose to target you. It just as easily could have been another family.”

She sighed deeply. “I hate this.” She pulled away.

“I know. But he’s stepping up his attacks and getting morereckless, which means the chance of him making a mistake is strong. We’ll get him, Leah. For Harrison. For you and your family. For Beth and Eva and all the others who encountered this guy and lost their lives.”

She searched his face. “You speak about Harrison almost as if you knew him.”

As much as he would have liked to hide the truth, he couldn’t, and she saw it.

“You did know him. How? Dalton, tell me,” she insisted.

Dalton chose his answer carefully. “I know his family. They’re good people. So was Harrison.”

Her incredulous eyes held his. “Is that why you took this job? To prove Harrison wasn’t the one who killed my family? ”

He looked away. “I told the committee the truth. I came here because I’d grown tired of the big city life, but it wasn’t the only reason why I accepted the position. I wanted to find out why Ellis Petri targeted Harrison, because his family has a right to know.”

She put space between them. “Why haven’t you told me this before?”

Her eyes narrowed as she continued to watch him with a wintry look on her face. She didn’t trust him. That hurt, but he couldn’t blame her. There was something else she didn’t know. Something he wasn’t ready to share with her yet.

“She was likely killed between ten and midnight.” The medical examiner confirmed what Leah already believed. “It appears she was struck in the head several times by a wooden object.” He pointed to splinters of wood in the wound.

“Something went wrong.” Leah ran her theory by Daltonand the doctor. “Eva resisted. He had to silence her before she alerted the deputy at the Zooks’ place.” She looked around for the object used. “It’s not here.”

The medical examiner removed his gloves. “I’m guessing when you find the object, there won’t be any fingerprints. The killer is known to wear gloves.”

Sam entered the barn, spotted them, and came over. “We found something at the house. There’s blood.”

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