Page 10 of Crossroads of Betrayal
The pieceof wood clutched in Zeke’s hand had morphed from a thick branch to a pointed shard. He used the pocketknife who always carried with him to whittle, something that usually calmed him. But nothing stopped the light tremor in his hands as he waited for the police officer—Officer Lincoln Sawyer—to make his way over to question him regarding his interactions with Tessa.
After he and Grace climbed back up the cliff and told everyone Tessa was dead, Grace had done her best to calm the guests while they’d waited for law enforcement to come and assess the scene. Neither had mentioned their suspicions about the woman’s death. No need to upset anyone further, or clue in the killer that the cover up of the murder hadn’t gone as planned.
At least, that’s what he assumed happened. Kill Tessa then throw her over the edge of a mountain to make it look like an accident. But the scene didn’t read like an accidental tumble over a cliff, at least not to him, and the scowl on Lincoln and Brooke’s faces told him they agreed.
Which increased the probability that one of the guests circled around the fire, waiting for word they could head back to the retreat, was a murderer.
Lincoln shook Darrin’s hand where they’d spoken a few feet away then made a beeline to Zeke.
His turn to talk. Standing, he folded his knife and stuffed it back in the front pocket of his jeans. He kept the now-smooth wood in his other hand and ran the pad of his thumb over it again and again.
“Zeke.” Officer Sawyer gave a brief nod in greeting.
He’d introduced himself earlier when he and Grace explained what they’d found at the base of the cliff. Officer Sawyer had taken his statement then asked him to wait with the others as he spoke with Brooke and Grace before he went down to study the death scene himself. Now, hours later, the knots tying up Zeke’s insides had doubled in size. “Officer.”
“Let’s take a step away.”
Zeke appreciated the space from the sad eyes and muffled sobs. Poor Joan hadn’t stopped crying since they’d confirmed Tessa’s death. He’d wanted to comfort her, to reassure her that grief may never leave but did fade with time. But he couldn’t bring himself to leave the sawed-off stump and speak meaningless words no one wanted to hear.
Under the shadows of a towering Maple, Lincoln ran his palm over the scruffy beard covering his jaw. Strain wrinkled the corners of his blue eyes. “How well did you know Tessa Evans?”
“Not well. Just met her yesterday when I showed up in the morning for the trip. We chatted a bit on the hike, and she was very…friendly once we set up for camp. She made her intentions clear that she was interested in me, and I made it equally clear that wasn’t an option.”
“Did she mention anything to you that was off? Was she afraid of anything or anyone? Was she upset?”
“I’ve replayed our conversations, especially the last one, a million times and nothing stands out. She was outgoing and seemed like a nice enough lady. Hell, I knew her a total of eight hours. I don’t have any answers for you.”
Lincoln scribbled in a notebook then took a step closer. “You and I’ve both seen the body. We understand what we’re really looking at here. Brooke and the coroner are working to get the body to the morgue, and we haven’t released any information to the group that would clue them in to this situation being more than a tragic accident. Has anyone acted suspicious? Given you any indication he or she might know more than they’re saying.”
Zeke studied the forlorn campers. “No. Like I said, I just got to the retreat yesterday morning. I don’t really know any of these people, and nothing screamed homicidal killer.”
“Did you hear anything? Arguing or a scuffle of any kind?”
“Man, I’m sorry, but I have nothing to tell you. Nothing to add that will help you figure this out. Trust me, I wish I did. She was so damn young. Whatever happened, she didn’t deserve this.”
The sound of approaching footsteps drew his attention to Grace. Dirt smeared on her cheek and strands of hair had slipped from her low ponytail. “We need to get back to the retreat. Everyone’s an emotional wreck, and we’re looking at three hours on the trail minimum. And that’s traveling fast with no breaks.”
“Okay,” Lincoln said. “I’ve talked to everyone here, but I’ll need to speak with some of them again. Things are going to get dicey. So far, people are chatty, but that might change.”
“They’re pretty shaken,” Grace said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them cut their visit to the retreat short and head home. Dealing with something like this isn’t easy.”
“Some of them will need to stay close.” Officer Sawyer squinted against the sun. “That includes you, Zeke.”
The statement snapped his attention back to the uniformed officer. “Me?”
“You’re the last known person who saw her. And several people mentioned you had a display of temper last night before you and Tessa went off alone.”
He stiffened. “Excuse me?”
“Did you not have a verbal altercation with one of the guests where you placed your hands on him?”
Grace frowned. “That wasn’t related to Tessa.”
“No?” Officer Sawyer hooked a brow and bounced his gaze between them. “I have several witnesses who say differently. I may have some more questions for you and need you available, that’s all I’m saying.”
Zeke’s jaw dropped.
“Linc, Zeke didn’t hurt that girl.”
