Page 281 of Cold Case, Warm Hearts

“After the case was settled Genevieve and I started seeing each other.”

“You were romantically involved?” Wade sighed.

The lawyer nodded.

“Do any of these other names ring a bell? Amanda Curtis?”

The attorney frowned. “She was the physician’s assistant in the lawsuit.”

“How about Stacy McGuire?”

“Never heard of her.” The man’s eyes widened. “Is this about that serial killer? Butcher of Boulder Field?”

“We don’t identify the killer by that name.”

“So, it is?”

“Sir, would you simply answer my questions?”

“Sure.” He tugged on his tie. “Sorry.”

“Do you know a Lorraine Moore?”

“The psychologist? I haven’t seen her in years, but my younger sister was hospitalized in a facility where she worked.”

“That ties you to four of the five victims.”

“You don’t think I had something to do with this, do you?”

“It’s a possibility I must consider. Another is that someone connected to you is targeting these women.”

“I think I need a lawyer.”

“Don’t you want to help me identify their killer?”

“I do, but I know enough to get a criminal attorney to offer me legal advice before we continue this conversation. I’ll see you out, Sergeant Brunner.”

Wade handed the man his card. “Contact me when you’re ready to cooperate.”

After drivingaround the park for twenty minutes looking for Emily, Wade finally spotted her SUV near the organized group tenting area. He pulled up behind the two DCNR vehicles. Voices were coming from down the trail, so he followed the sound and found Emily and Pete in a physical altercation.

“Get away from her,” he shouted.

Pete looked over his shoulder at him, and that’s when Wade noticed the buck between them. The deer had his antlers snagged on some type of material which was stuck under a massive rock.

Wade moved in to help. “Sorry, man. Didn’t notice the deer.”

While Wade and Emily held the buck still, Pete used his pocketknife to cut the fabric away from its antlers. Once he’d completed the task, Emily counted to three and they all stepped away from the deer.

“And he lives to see another day,” Pete said as he stuck his knife back into his pocket. “I’ll see you guys later. I have some reports to type up.”

Wade waved as the other guy sauntered away.

Emily stood there silently. She wasn’t going to make this conversation easy for him.

“I owe you an apology,” he said. “I shouldn’t have asked you to choose between me and your job.”

She didn’t respond.

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