Page 67 of Girl, Accused

2017: Misdemeanor trespassing (dismissed).

2018: Protesting at a medical clinic (dismissed).

2022: Failure to appear for jury duty.

Hardly the résumé of a monster. But monsters didn't advertise. They camouflaged. They dissolved into backgrounds and emerged only when hunger or mission dictated. They wore the skins of ordinary men the way Walsh wore his clerical collar. As disguise, as permission, as armor against suspicion.

But what Thomas Walsh's record didn't spit out was an address. His driver's license information showed he'd renewed his license two years ago, but used a P.O. Box as his mailing address. His employment records were noticeably empty, too. No tax returns for the past three years. No property ownership. No utilities in his name. Nothing that would anchor him to a physical location.

For a second, Ella almost forgot that Mia Ripley, aka the human sniffer dog, was only a phone call away. Ella grabbed her phone and dialed.

‘Dark,’ Ripley answered on the first ring. ‘Me and Westfall are just finishing up at the Harper scene. The body’s with-‘

‘Mia, I’ve got something.’

‘Yeah, a disease. What are you gonna tell me now?’

‘I’m going to tell you that Canton isn’t our killer. He just confessed everything to me. He was lying about killing Torres.’

‘A serial killer telling lies. What next? The wheel?’

‘No. Other people have access to his Wi-Fi network. Two other people.His workers.’

‘Right,’ Ripley sighed. ‘I’ll entertain this. Who are these people?’

‘One is Sister Mary. The other is Thomas Walsh – and he’s the one we want. Walsh has a criminal record going back seven years. And you remember that Lazarus guy that Jeremy Caldwell told us about? The one who led the support group? That’s Walsh. Canton said Walsh does the confessionals at their church.’

‘So?’

‘Didn’t you hear me? Confessionals. All of our people committed sins. How’d our unsub find out about these sins? The answer is that the victims told him directly. They just didn’t know.’

Ripley made a noncommittal sound. 'Canton told you this? Are you sure he's not just trying to save his own ass?'

‘There’s every possibility he is, but we need to cross every I and dot every T. We need to find Walsh and bring him in immediately.’

‘Okay. What’s stopping you doing that? Me and Westfall are all but ready to pack up and call this case closed.’

‘I can’t find Walsh’s address on the system. I’ve tried DMV, tax records, vehicle regs, everything.’

‘Then you’re looking in the wrong places.’

‘Enlighten me.’

Ripley's sigh carried across the line with crystal clarity. ‘Walsh is a former criminal, you say? Well, criminals avoid official records. Look between the cracks.’

‘Like where?’

‘Hmm. He works for First Light Assembly?’

'Yes, he does.'

‘Churches. Tax breaks. Have you tried FALCON?’

Ella slapped her forehead. Of course. FALCON was the Financial Analysis and Ledger Correlation Network, a database used by the FBI, CIA and Homeland Security to monitor tax data. If any people or companies made sizable donations to nonprofit organizations, FALCON logged it.

‘Mia, I could kiss you.’

‘Save it. It’s not a guarantee, but every church I know donates something for tax breaks.’

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