Page 54 of Scent of Death

“Absolutely.” Paul frowned. “You think Maureen is still alive?”

“I hope so.” Griff tried not to think the worst.

“I have a computer in the squad,” Paul said. “We can check if Calvin Jenkins owns a cabin before you go.”

“Great.” He glanced at Alexis who stayed close to his side. “Can Denali wait a few more minutes for dinner?”

“Yes. There’s food in the back of the SUV.” She turned to look behind them. “It’s hard to stay out here, though, knowing he could be nearby.”

“I know.” He longed to pull her into his arms. To reassure her he wouldn’t let anything bad happen.

But that was a promise he couldn’t keep. The shooter had hit their SUV without his even knowing the guy was in the area. Griff imagined the killer had parked his Ram truck, maybe watching them with binoculars as they worked. Then took the opportunity to fire at them.

Why he hadn’t done that when they were walking outside in the open, he wasn’t sure.

Unless the shooter had only intended for them to crash so that he could take Alexis by force.

“Hey, Cam, would you start canvassing the neighbors around the location where we found the shell casing?” Paul asked. “I’m going to let Griff log into my computer. In the meantime, having a better description of the Ram truck would help. If we knew a specific color, we could ask all deputies to stop and question the drivers.”

“Sure.” Cam didn’t hesitate. “Join me as soon as you can.”

“Will do.” Paul opened his squad door and slid in behind the wheel. Then he punched the keys to the computer mounted inside. Griff waited until he was finished, then took his place.

He started with a background search on Calvin Jenkins. The guy was clean. He found the property listing for the house, then searched for additional properties owned by Jenkins.

Nothing popped up.

His heart sank. No cabin? He’d felt sure there had to be a connection. He looked for civil actions and found a marriage and divorce.

Calvin’s wife’s name was Elise Sanford. He searched for properties under her name but didn’t find anything.

He resisted the urge to smack the steering wheel. Paul leaned in. “No luck?”

“No.” He slid out of the squad. “I’m going to keep searching, though. I’ll dig into the backgrounds of all the owners of the other property too. And maybe see if there are grandparents involved.” Doing so would take time.

Time Maureen Kaufman didn’t have.

“Okay, keep us informed,” Paul said. “We’re working second shift and will be on duty until eleven tonight.”

“I will, thanks.” He turned toward Alexis. “Ready to grab that pizza and head back to the hotel?”

She nodded, her expression troubled. “I really hoped the cabin idea would have helped narrow our search.”

“It still might.” He strove to sound positive. “I feel like we’re getting close.”

They hurried back to the SUV. Once Denali was secure in the back and they were seated, he pulled away from the curb.

“We need to set a trap for him.” Alexis pinned him with a look. “If we don’t find a cabin to search, that has to be our next step.”

“I’m not?—”

“You have to,” she interrupted. “He has likely already killed Maureen, and that means other girls are at risk too. This must end, Griff. Now. Tonight.”

He wanted to argue. But there was no denying time was running out. “We’ll see. I think we’ll find a cabin connected to one of those two homes.”

“The double-wide?” She scoffed. “Doubtful.”

“You never know. Maybe the killer’s family moved from the double-wide to live in the cabin year-round. Or they’re spending the summer there.” He didn’t want to give up on the possibility of finding a cabin.

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