Page 42 of Scent of Death

Customers turned and stared, making Griff wince. He moved to stand next to Alexis and Denali so those behind him could pay for their purchases.

“FBI?” An older man came over, his expression alarmed. “Why do you want to talk?”

“You’re not in trouble, but I’d like to know if anyone purchased toxic rat poison today.” Griff tried to look reassuring. “We’re following up on some poison found at a nearby campsite.”

Tony frowned. “I’m surprised something like that would bring the FBI here. To be honest, I had some rat poison stolen early this morning. I was in the back when I heard the door open. Less than a minute later, I heard the door again. I didn’t think much about it, but when I went through the aisles straightening items, I noticed the empty space and realized a box was missing.”

Griff ground his teeth in frustration. He hadn’t anticipated the killer would have stolen the poison. “What time was that?”

“Like five minutes past nine.” Tony looked from Griff to Alexis. “I still don’t understand why the FBI is involved.”

“Did you notice a truck or some other vehicle in the parking lot?” Griff pressed, avoiding his question. “Anything that might help us find him?”

“I didn’t call the local police to report the theft.” Tony frowned. “I hate to say it, but shoplifting isn’t uncommon. And no, I didn’t see a car. I don’t have cameras either.”

Griff tried not to show his disappointment. “Here’s my card. If you think of anything else, please call me. We appreciate your time.”

“Sure.” Tony still looked perplexed as they left.

“Another dead end,” Alexis murmured as they climbed back into the SUV.

“Yeah.” His phone rang again, and his boss’s name flashed on the screen. Were they having trouble getting the list of trucks from the DMV? He quickly answered. “Flannery.”

“I just got a report of another missing girl. We’ve issued an Amber alert.” As his boss spoke, his phone buzzed with the emergency alert. “Her name is Maureen Kaufman, seventeen years old, taken from the campground in Greybull.” A pause, then, “That’s where you are, right?”

“Yes, I’m very close to the campground in Greybull. Send me her information and a way to contact her parents. I’ll get right on it.” Griff lowered the phone, feeling sick as he looked at the photo of the girl who’d gone missing. Or more likely had been taken against her will.

His theory of the killer being focused on Alexis had been proven wrong. The killer had struck again.

And he couldn’t bear the thought of being too late to save Maureen the way he’d failed Wendy Evers.

10

“What happened?” Alexis stared at Griff in concern. He’d gone pale and his expression was grim. “You look upset.”

“There’s a missing seventeen-year-old girl from the Greybull campground. Maureen Kaufman.” He raked his hand through his hair, then reached over to start the engine. “I can’t believe the killer struck so close to where he left the poisoned dog food.”

“He wants our attention.” The burger she’d eaten earlier roiled in her stomach. She hadn’t anticipated this. She’d mentally prepared herself to be used as bait to draw him out. Now some other young girl was in danger. “Maybe he’s goading us into tracking him down.”

“If that’s the case, he’ll get his wish.” His phone dinged. He glanced at the screen, enlarging the photo that had come through via a text message. He turned it so she could see Maureen’s picture. She was a pretty girl, reddish hair and freckles that made her look younger than seventeen. Interestingly, Maureen didn’t look anything like his previous victims. Then again, they’d all been physically different.

“I’m sure he grabbed Maureen as a crime of opportunity.” She held Griff’s gaze. “But I thought most serial killers had some sort of pattern to their victims. Either they looked alike or had a similar profession. I don’t understand how his victims are related.”

“I don’t either. That’s something the FBI profiler is supposed to help us understand.” Griff backed out of the parking lot and drove toward the campground practically across the street. “I can’t believe this,” he muttered as he saw a couple hugging each other and another teenage girl huddling beside them. “Those must be her parents, Beth and Nate Kaufman. The information from my boss didn’t include a sibling.”

“Open the back hatch. I’m coming with you.” Alexis would use Denali to track the bad guy’s scent. She wished now that Joel and his K9 Royal were here to track Maureen’s scent. But she didn’t bother to call him. In theory, the two scents would be on the same path.

Was it possible Maureen hadn’t been taken by their killer?

She grabbed the backpack from the floorboards of the rear seat. She wasn’t sure how far this guy had taken Maureen, but it was always better to be prepared.

Griff crossed to the upset couple and showed them his badge. Shouldering the pack, she hurried over to listen to the conversation. Denali jumped out of the back, stretched, then trotted over to stand beside her.

“I don’t know what time she went missing,” Nate Kaufman was saying. “The girls have their own tent, and we have ours. Lindsey didn’t realize Maureen had gotten up.”

Griff turned toward Lindsey. “Did your sister often get up in the middle of the night? Or was this a first-time thing?”

“I don’t know.” Lindsey sniffed and her red, puffy eyes indicated she’d been crying. “I don’t think she did that before. She’s always been there when I woke up except for today. I crawled out of bed and walked around trying to find her. I figured she was hanging out with some of the other kids, so I walked the entire campsite looking for her. I was afraid to tell Mom and Dad at first, but then I was really worried.” Lindsey swiped at her face. “Maureen was eating one of the cinnamon buns Dad picked up yesterday, though. There’s a partially squashed one near the picnic table that wasn’t there before.” Fresh tears welled in Lindsey’s eyes. “I didn’t know she woke up and left the tent. I didn’t know!”

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