Page 73 of Fatal Intent
Rayne leaned closer to see the screen. “What’s wrong?”
“According to this, Beau’s dead.”
She squeezed his forearm. “I’m sorry. How did it happen?”
Grant switched to another screen for the information. He was curious about the cause of death himself. Beau was one of the toughest men he ever met. He’d trained in four types of martial arts and practiced regularly, along with keeping himself in top shape. How could this happen to a man who seemed invincible?
When the information appeared on the screen, Grant scanned the police report. “According to this, he died from a shot to the back of the head at point-blank range.” That made little sense. How would anyone get the drop on Beau? His situational awareness had been eerily good even before the Rangers honed it with more intensive training.
Rayne’s eyes widened. “He was executed?”
“Sounds like it.”
“But you don’t believe that.”
“The facts support your conclusion, but Beau was a highly trained soldier who never once let his awareness slip in any situation. I don’t understand how the perp could slip up on him and pull that trigger.”
“Maybe he got caught by surprise.”
He shook his head, rejecting the idea instantly. “No way. Look here.” Grant pointed to a paragraph in the medical examiner’s report, which documented the lack of injuries on his friend’s body aside from the gunshot wound to the head. “Beau would have fought back. There should be bruises, cuts, scrapes, something, but there’s nothing except the gunshot wound.”
Grant pointed to another paragraph on the screen. “Look at this. The bullet followed a downward trajectory through his brain. Beau was well over six feet tall. His nickname in the military was Jolly.”
“Short for the Jolly Green Giant?”
“Yeah. Unless our perp was over seven feet tall, he wouldn’t have been able to shoot Beau in the back of the head by sneaking up on him. Beau knew what was coming and instead of fighting back to survive, knelt in the field and let the killer shoot him.”
He turned to Rayne. “I know of only two things that would have coerced Beau into giving up his life without a fight. His wife, Eileen, and his children, Anthony and Blaze.”
She flinched. “They threatened his wife and children.”
“They had his wife and children and gave Beau proof so he’d cooperate.”
“Okay. Next question. Is Beau’s death connected to Red Dawn, or had he gotten involved in something dangerous that backfired on him?”
Grant switched to another screen and checked the date of death. A ball of ice formed in his stomach. “It has to be connected, Rayne. Beau was murdered four weeks ago in California, which is where he was born and raised. According to this, he moved back home as soon as he separated from the military.”
“What about his family? Are they alive?”
Shifting back to the police report, he scanned through the file until he found the information he wanted. Thank God. “They’re safe.”
“Did Eileen report being kidnapped or held at gunpoint?”
“No, nothing like that. In fact, she said she and the kids were bowling and she got lost on the way home since the bowling alley was in another town and she was unfamiliar with the area.”
“Why didn’t she use her GPS?”
“That’s what I want to know,” he muttered. “This makes little sense. From what Beau said, Eileen always depended on the GPS on her phone to get anywhere outside of their small town. According to him, she couldn’t find her way out of a wet paper bag without help.”
“What was the time of death?”
“That’s another oddity. He died between midnight and four a.m. I can’t see Eileen staying out after midnight to bowl with her elementary-age children on a school night.”
“That is weird. The police didn’t question it?”
“Not according to the report.” He scowled at the screen. “This isn’t adding up. I don’t understand why the cops didn’t question her further. I would have.”
“Perhaps we should follow up with the detectives assigned to the case to see if they’re willing to share anything.”
