Page 128 of In Cold Blood
“No. Or if there was, they were hiding in the brush. I was scared. After I called it in, I just left. Well, you know how it would have looked. I didn’t want to do jail and I didn’t think anyone would believe me.”
“Did you see another vehicle drive off before you arrived?”
“No. No one. The road was….” She paused.
“What is it?”
“Um.” She hesitated. “I did pass a vehicle on my way out. I mean. It was heading northwest toward High Peaks when I was heading southeast.”
“Can you remember it?”
“I don’t know. It was dark. It flew by fast. I was panicking from having pulled out of the… the…” She struggled to find the words, her hands shaking now.
“It’s okay. Take your time.”
Trinity took another hit on her cigarette and Noah pulled upa chair. Axel was wandering the suite, smelling everything. “I didn’t get a good look. If I had to guess it was a… a… van. A large van.”
“The color?”
“Silver. I think.”
“And you’re sure it was coming from the direction of the scene?”
She nodded. “I don’t know if they passed the cruiser and were as freaked out as I was or if they were involved. I couldn’t tell you. I just know that all that was there was the cruiser.” Noah contemplated what Dax had told him about Cyrus. Could that have been him? Were both of them together that night? Had Cyrus wrangled Dax into helping? It would have been easy. Luke already had a vested interest in Dax and was using him as an informant. He probably didn’t want to be seen in High Peaks talking with him. Had they used Route 73 as a location to talk?
Still, from what Noah could recall, the photos and video footage of the cruiser placed it parked at an angle as if Luke had tried to stop someone from passing.
Noah had hoped Trinity had seen more.
“Nothing else stands out?”
“No. I mean nearby there was uh… glass. A lot of it.”
“Glass?”
“Yeah, like smashed glass. It was odd, there was liquid all over the ground near where your brother was.”
Noah tried to recall the photos he’d seen. The report hadn’t mentioned any glass. He rose from his seat and went over to the window and looked out.
“Will I have to testify in court?”
“Probably.”
“You can’t prove I was there.”
Noah looked back at her. “How do you think I found you?” He paused. “Not only do we have your voice on a dispatchrecording but we have your DNA on the radio that you called in on. That places you there. By the way, your sister sends her regards.”
“You spoke to her?”
“I did. Today.”
Trinity shook her head. “I didn’t kill your brother. I swear. I didn’t,” she said as if she needed to make that clear. “I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Noah studied her. “Maybe not. I noticed your truck has a dashboard camera inside.”
She nodded. “It points inward. I know it seems odd. I use it for my protection. You know, if I have to take someone to court and prove they beat me up. I got it after the last time a guy put me in the hospital. That’s when I got the pepper spray. I figured clients wouldn’t realize if I turned the camera around.”
“Do you still have that guy that attacked you on the SD card?”
