Page 75 of Seeking Evil

“Different in what way?” Hannah asked.

“They were empty.”

Empty. The word jumped out at him. Empty as in Sierra wasn’t in there.

“Those two women are still alive?” Hannah said loud enough to make sure Zeke heard.

“I think so. I remember hearing an explosion, but I wasn’t sure if it was real or just part of some hallucination.”

Patrick told them that Henry Postman owned the mine behind the ranch where Colleen had lived at one time.

“But Henry isn’t the name of the ranch’s owner.” Zeke remembered it was owned by George Underwood.

“Henry is sometimes a nickname for George,” Megan said. “Maybe Henry Postman is George Underwood’s alias.”

“Henry’s part of the killing team,” Patrick concluded. “I can’t believe that kind old man is a serial killer. Henry seems to be the nicest person. His wife recently passed away.”

“Maybe it triggered the urge to kill again?” Hannah had gone into profiler mode. “I’m guessing that Henry probably killed Colleen back then. Maybe he left the area and either continued killing or was dormant until he returned to Pinedale twenty-five years ago.”

It made sense. “So why would Henry use an alias . . . ?” The truth dawned quickly on Zeke. “He was afraid his name might be recognized from back in Colleen’s day.”

“Here you go, honey.” Deb came in and brought Lindsey a sandwich and chips along with water.

“Let’s step outside for a second to let Lindsey eat in peace,” Zeke said after the woman’s strange story was out.

“We’ll stay with her,” Megan told them. She and Hannah along with Deb remained with the frightened woman.

“We need to get over to the ranch right away,” Zeke announced as soon as they were out of hearing. “Sierra and Dawn could be trapped inside the mine.”

“He’s right,” Patrick said. “Henry’s been mining up there for years. He’d know how to block up the mine to prevent them from getting away. I’m calling Deputy Drake back as added protection against this unknown part of the killing team. We need to find Henry now. If he dropped off Lindsey, then it sounds like he’ll be cooperative. I’m hoping he will give us the name of his partner.”

“Let me tell Megan and Hannah what we’re doing. I’ll be right back.” Jack returned to the conference room. The rest of the team, along with Patrick, headed outside into a new day beginning to dawn. In the distance, the blaze Henry had set raged.

Once Jack stepped outside, they didn’t waste time getting on the road.

Zeke was in the passenger seat beside Patrick. “Is there much gold being recovered from the mountains?” He realized how little he knew about the gold-mining process.

Patrick turned onto the county road leading to Henry’s place. “Not so much anymore. In the old days, the miners who worked the mountain brought out a lot of gold.” Patrick shook his head. “I still can’t believe Henry is a killer. He’s the county coroner.”

Zeke jerked back. “You’re kidding?”

Patrick’s serious expression confirmed this was no joke. “I’ve worked with him many times. We attend the same church, for crying out loud.” His mouth thinned. “Just goes to show you never know where the devil will appear.”

As they neared the blaze, Patrick pointed behind the destruction of the house. “Henry created a tunnel leading from the house to the mountain.” He turned off the road and traveled down a dirt trail toward the mountain.

Zeke tried to get his bearings. “Where’s Flannigan’s place from here?”

Patrick pointed out Zeke’s window. “A couple of miles that way.”

They’d been so close to where Sierra and Dawn were held. Zeke felt as if he’d let Sierra down by not checking the rest of the houses along the road.

“Does Henry own a tow truck?” Jack asked.

Patrick glanced at him in the rearview. “Not to my knowledge. He may have known about Irv’s and hid it back behind Flannigan’s place in case we started asking him questions . . . Henry owns an older pickup truck. It’s green.”

The pieces were falling into place quickly. The only question now was were Sierra and Dawn safe? And where was Henry and the second member of his killing team?

Chapter Thirty-One

---