Page 12 of Cold Threat

He sighed and bent over again. Another burned-out house. This one in better shape than the other but still a total loss. There were no trees in this yard, but there were several bushes close to the house that were singed but still standing. Again, it was snowing so it made it a little difficult to see much. But then his eye caught something. A familiar feeling made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

“It’s ... it’s the same ornament. Exactly the same.”

Behind them, River heard Ray come back into the room, but she was too absorbed in what she was seeing to turn away and break her concentration.

She nodded. “There’s no ornament at the third house even though there are two trees in the yard. And of course, it wasn’t snowing. The copycat committed his crime in April. The other two murders were in the paper, but there weren’t any details. The copycat got some of it right but missed some important facts. For one thing, he didn’t realize the significance of the season. The police suspected the first two murders were related, and he knew that, but no one mentioned the ornament. He obviously hoped the police would lump these homicides in with the others.” She turned to look at Ray, who had set down a tray with coffee cups on his desk. “It’s possible he had some kind of connection to thepolice or the fire department. Or relatives of the victims of the other homicides, right?”

Ray nodded. “He worked with the nephew of a victim from the second killings. He told him about the way his aunt had died—and he knew the couple in the first attack died the same way. A police officer let the details slip when they talked to the family. That shouldn’t have happened, but by the second murders, we knew we could have a serial killer on our hands. When we caught the guy from the third homicides, my chief decided he was responsible for all of them. The suspect, Arlen Thacker, had no alibis for the other murders. I tried to tell Chief Watts that he had it wrong, but neither he nor his detectives would listen to me. Thacker was only charged with those April murders because they couldn’t concretely connect him to the first two. To the department, the case was closed.” He sighed. “I was so frustrated. I understood that the police were overwhelmed with other cases. The crime rate in Des Moines was beginning to skyrocket. Closing out the Snowman case was the easy way out.”

“Wait a minute,” Tony said. “So, they called the killer the Snowman, yet the last killing happened in April? That doesn’t make sense.”

“Exactly. This guy likes to strike in December and only when it’s snowing. It’s weird. Don’t get me wrong, Thacker was responsible for two deaths and deserved to go to prison. But I’m convinced he had nothing to do with the first two attacks.” Ray shrugged. “My chief ignored everything we already knew about the Snowman since it was clear Thacker was guilty of the third double-homicide. Seems he knew the couple that died. They went to the same church. The woman had some very expensive jewelry, and the husband didn’t believe in banks. Kept a boatload of cash in the house. Unfortunately, they shared this information with Thacker. When the police stopped him a few blocks from thehouse, the cash and jewelry were found in his car. Pretty open and shut.”

“How did they know who they were looking for?” River asked.

“A sharp-eyed neighbor who ran the neighborhood watch called the police. She noticed a strange car in front of the couple’s house late at night and saw Thacker go around to the back of the house. She thought it was suspicious. It took the police a while to get there, and by then Thacker had left. But the neighbor had gotten his license number. Thacker’s life of crime came to an abrupt end.” Ray shook his head. “That poor couple died trying to get out of their bedroom. But they didn’t make it. It wasn’t like the Snowman’s victims. They were always found in their beds.”

“Are you absolutely certain the first two killings aren’t a coincidence?” Tony said slowly. “I mean, basing a case on two similar Christmas decorations...”

“Not similar. Exactly the same. And they look homemade. This is one of the reasons I was so frustrated,” Ray said. “We dropped the ball. Completely. I’m sure the lack of any evidence in the first two incidents had something to do with the Snowman getting away with murder.”

River moved over to the other side of the board. “Here’s a picture of the homicides that happened here two years ago in December,” she told him. She handed Tony the magnifying glass.

He took it from her with a feeling of dread. Then he put it in front of the photo of the most recent murders and fire. Through the falling snow he saw it. The prickly feeling on his neck turned into something else. Something colder and much more malevolent.

“The same ornament on the tree,” he said. “And the same manner of death. Okay, this isn’t a coincidence.” He turned toward his father. “It’s December. Is this why you’re concerned it’s getting ready to happen again? Maybe he’ll take a breather.”

“I just feel it in my bones,” Ray said. “I think he’s preparing tokill again. It’s been two years since the last one. But even if I’m wrong, we still need to find this UNSUB.” He picked up two coffee cups and brought them over to Tony and River.

“I understand that,” Tony said, “but what I don’t get is why your chief doesn’t see the connection we do.”

Ray stood in front of the board, his eyes scanning the pictures and the reports as Tony and River sipped their coffee. “I wish I could explain it, but I can’t. He’s friends with the police chief in Des Moines. I’m wondering if Chief Munson feels as though a suggestion from us to reopen the case will put Chief Watts on the defensive. I hate to think that’s the reason, but I can’t get him to listen. He’s made it clear that he’s not interested in hearing any more about it. If I go to him again, it has to be with something solid. That’s why you’re here.”

“I’ve glanced at the reports, but I’d like more time to go through everything,” River said. “So far, it certainly seems as if the MO is the same at each crime scene.” She paused for a moment before saying, “I’m sure you’ve looked for any connection the victims have. What they have in common.”

“I have,” Ray said. “I’ve spent hours and hours trying to figure it out. But so far there’s nothing.” He shook his head. “Maybe you can find it, but except for the victims’ ages, nothing connects them.”

“I doubt the UNSUB is just killing elderly people,” Tony said. “There has to be another reason. He’s punishing these people for something.” He looked at River. “We need to find it.”

“If we can,” she said. “If you couldn’t figure it out, Ray, I’m not sure we’ll be able to.”

“I’m hoping you’ll see something I missed. Something that will make my chief sit up and take notice.” He smiled at them. “You both have training that I don’t. You’re my last hope. Just do your best. That’s all anyone can do. I don’t want to say anything else right now. I don’t want my opinions to influence you.”

Tony almost laughed. River Ryland wasn’t someone who could be influenced by anyone when it came to her job. She was deliberate, imperturbable, and laser focused. And right now, that’s exactly what they needed. He was ready to get to work. He and River would do everything they could to bring another vicious killer to justice. He just hoped it would be in time.

CHAPTER

SEVEN

River enjoyed dinner with Tony’s parents. They were personable and fun to be around. They made her feel accepted. Ray had taken the rest of the week off work but was still on call. Tony had promised to take her for a tour of Burlington in the morning so she could see the town. From what she’d seen so far, it appeared to be a charming place to live. She looked forward to experiencing more of its allure.

Tony’s sister was taking them out to lunch tomorrow. After that, most of their time would be spent working the profile. River had asked if she could take the murder book to bed with her tonight. She wanted to go through it more before tomorrow afternoon. Ray had left the file on her nightstand. As much as she was enjoying dinner, she longed to be alone so she could scour through the reports.

“Did you hear me, River?”

Beth’s voice broke River out of her reverie. “I ... I’m sorry,” she said, feeling her face grow hot. “I was thinking about something else.”

To her relief, Beth laughed. “Oh, honey. I understand. If I hada nickel for every time these two have tuned me out because they were thinking about work, I’d be richer than Solomon.”

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