Page 37 of Once Marked
“Exactly,” Riley affirmed.“And the drownings, the posing of the bodies on the beach—it’s all tied to Elaine Winters’ death.”
Sheriff Beeler folded his arms across his chest, looking skeptical.“That’s quite a leap, Agent Paige.It could just be a coincidence.Some people look alike.Our victims weren’t exact matches, even though they did have similar coloring.”His voice was steeped in the caution of experience, one that had seen too many false leads and dead ends.
“That’s why the crude haircuts—to enhance the resemblance,” Ann Marie observed.those were attempts to enhance that resemblance.“But why?Why an obsession in the first place?”
“That’s what we have to find out,” Riley admitted.
Beeler still looked unconvinced about the whole theory, and Riley understood his hesitation.The patterns she saw were woven from both instinct and analysis, and they wouldn’t make sense to everyone.But time was a luxury they didn’t have, and she couldn’t ignore the scream of her intuition.“I’ve learned to trust these instincts, Sheriff.They’ve led me down dark paths before, but they’ve also brought me face to face with things I needed to see.”
They got into the cruiser, and Riley pulled out the business card with Harry Winters’ details.“I know it seems far-fetched, Sheriff, but this is significant.We need to talk to Harry Winters before we go anywhere else.”Her words were laced with the authority.
Beeler grumbled, but settled into his seat without objection and Riley dialed the number on her cellphone.
“Hello, Winters Tourist Services.How may I help you?”The receptionist’s voice crackled over the speakerphone, a distant link to the man who might hold the answers they desperately sought.
“This is Special Agent Riley Paige with the FBI.I need to speak with Harry Winters immediately.It’s urgent.”Her tone left no room for uncertainty or delay.
“Mr.Winters is currently out on the golf course,” the receptionist’s voice was apologetic but firm, a barrier between Riley and the man she needed to reach.“He’s not available at the moment.Mr.Winters does not take his cell phone with him when he’s playing a game.“
“Listen,” Riley said, urgency sharpening her words, “this is extremely important.The moment he’s available, I need him to call me back.”She rattled off her number, her eyes fixed Beeler’s expression, which reflected impatience and concern.
“Understood, Agent Paige.I will pass along the message as soon as possible,” came the clipped response before the line went dead.
“So what do we do now?”Beeler’s deep voice broke the silence that had settled in the cruiser.
Riley opened her mouth to reply, but the sudden blare of the police radio cut her off.
The Sheriff reached for the radio.“Beeler here, go ahead,” he said, and the voice on the other end crackled through the speaker, each word sounding urgent.
“Sir, we’ve got a report of a missing woman near Darnley.Given the recent pattern, we’re worried she might have been abducted.”
“Tell me more,” Beeler said.
“The woman’s name is Rachel Brennan.She was reported missing by her boss, Grace Mitchell, owner of Mitchell Realtors.”
Riley remembered Grace Mitchell from this morning—the kindly woman who took such care to comfort two traumatized women.
She’s having a terrible day,Riley thought with a pang of sympathy.
“We need to talk to Grace Mitchell,” Riley said into the microphone.“Where can we find her?”
“She should be at her place of business in Darnley.She told us she’d be there, available to talk with us.”
“Understood,” Beeler replied.“We’re on our way there.”
As Beeler revved up the cruiser, Riley sensed the puzzle pieces starting to shift, coming together to form a picture that was both terrifying and intriguing.However, the image was still blurry, and she knew that seeing it clearly was a crucial matter of life or death.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Sheriff Beeler’s cruiser sped through the Outer Banks roads like a bullet, red-blue lights flashing urgently and sirens wailing.As Riley braced her body against the sharp turns that threw her against the seat belt, her mind was sifting through a tangle of questions.
Had the new missing woman, Rachel Brennan, been taken by the killer they had been working to track?If so, was there a chance that the newest missing woman was still alive?
Riley calculated that the first two victims hadn’t been killed right away.Hours had passed between their abduction and the discovery of their bodies on the beach.And because the bodies could only have been posed as they were before rigor mortis set in, it seemed likely that they were actually drowned in fresh water a short time before they were posed in the beach chairs.
It followed that their abductor had held the victims prisoner somewhere, trapped but alive until close to the time each body would be placed in a beach chair, making them easier to position as though simply reclining, enjoying the sun even though it hadn’t yet risen.
The sheriff’s cruiser came to an unceremonious halt in front of the Mitchell Realtors office, and Riley leaped out before the vehicle had fully stilled.The air was thick with the salty tang of the ocean, and she could see that the quaint town of Darnley was a natural backdrop for serene coastal living.
