Page 43 of Riding Danger

“What about Ethan?”

“We’ll deal with that. He’s a smart kid —”

Before he finished what he was saying his phone buzzed. He fished it out of his pocket, frowning as he looked at it.

My hackles went up at the look on his face. “What’s the matter?”

“It’s your dad.” He thumbed out a response while he spoke. “He wants to meet for a drink.”

“Yeah well, tell him that you’ve got Ethan.” I would prefer to be present when they have that conversation.

Ryder frowned up at me. “He already knew you were called out. There is something seriously wrong with this town.”

He turned the phone to me.

Harry:Seeing as Shiloh’s busy, why don’t you meet me for a drink. Jason will be there if you think you need back up.

Ryder:I have Ethan with me. Sorry

Harry:Tess will watch him. This way I can chat without being interrupted by my daughter.

He rolled his eyes at me. “If I don’t meet him, he’s going to think I’m afraid to meet him without you. Which, you know, is a legitimate thing to believe.”

“Fine. But if he threatens you, I will arrest him.”

“For what?”

“I’ll find a reason.”

Lilly pulled up just as he wanted to answer. Instead, he kissed me, not worrying that Lilly could see us. “If I’m going to need to state my intentions to your dad, I’m going to stake my claim to this town.” He looked over at Lilly and smiled. “I’m guessing by the time I get to the bar, everyone will know I kissed you goodbye.”

He wasn’t wrong. And even though Lilly said nothing on the drive over to Walker Lake, as soon as we arrived at our location, she was typing on her phone. Once we saw the body, though, she shoved it back in her pocket and was all business.

The body was, of course, again male. White. In his late forties.

Lilly turned to the two patrol officers who had called it in. “What do we know about the victim, Officers?”

“He’s not from around here.” The officer pointed to the wallet he had placed in a bag. “I did check his wallet. Driver’s license is Californian. He had some outstanding tickets but not much else. Only realized we needed to call you when the crime scene techs arrived and found some sort of trinket at the body. Said you may want to see the body before the ambulance took it away.”

Lilly nodded and walked toward the gurney. Agent Newton walked toward us. He narrowed his eyes between me and Lilly. “What is she doing here?”

“Special Agent Newton, you remember Shiloh Bauman.” She stepped to the side to make space for me. “She was the Officer who called us in for the body found in Marina De Ferrier.”

“I remember.” He was skeptical of me. And with good reason, too. “She’s the one who knew far too much about our investigation.”

“Officer Bauman has her sources.” Lilly’s smile was fake. We all knew I had information I was not supposed to. “I am not about to touch that apple cart.”

Yeah, she wouldn’t. Seeing as my hacking source was family. Sometimes mine, and sometimes hers. Though, none of my little helpers were in town.

I felt I needed to clarify. “I just know stuff. It's not like I pass on any information. I mean, I knew enough about the case to call you. You called Ms. Salinger. Besides, I’m…” I turned to Lilly. “What exactly am I doing here?”

“Officer Bauman is working with Salinger Security for now.” She dropped that fake smile and rolled her eyes at him. “That’s all you need to know. Now, why did the crime scene techs want us to look at the body?”

Agent Newton nodded. “There are no markings on the victim’s back. I mean there’s a tattoo that looks decades old, but no fresh slices or any other markings for that matter.”

Lilly frowned. “But the crime techs obviously found something to connect it to the other murders.”

“The cheap toy in the corner.” Special Agent Newton started walking away from the scene. Lily followed without question, and I assumed I needed to as well. “There was also a puncture wound to the neck. Let's get to the Walker Lake Police Station. They gave us a room there.”

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