Page 23 of Lana

“He’s got a weak pulse,” Mitch said as he kept his fingers on Johnny’s neck, making sure he didn’t need to resuscitate him.

When the paramedics arrived, Mitch stepped away, doing a quick search of the house to make sure nothing looked out of place. One large photo was hanging on the wall in the bedroom and Mitch wondered if the five people in it had been his family. It was definitely Johnny in the photo, but Mitch didn’t recognize anyone else.

The rest of the house looked undisturbed. Mitch noted a crack in one of the walls and a few repairs needing to be done, but nothing else of note.

He stood beside Tom as the paramedics wheeled him out and into the ambulance.

“I’ll lock up and meet you at Zoe’s,” Mitch said as he did one last sweep through the house, still not sure what to make of the situation. Shaun had said he’d just left the house, but judging by the look of Johnny’s skin and how clammy it was, he didn’t think he’d fallen in the few minutes it took for Mitch to get inside the house. He’d check with medics to be sure, but now he couldn’t stop thinking of the man in the truck. He’d looked familiar, which was why Mitch hadn’t been as suspicious as he would’ve been otherwise, but his story wasn’t lining up. Mitch shook his head. At least he’d noted the license plate.

Mitch locked the back door, spotting a set of keys on the dining table. He grabbed them and inserted one into the lock on the front door. When it turned, he knew he had the correct keys. He turned out the lights, locked the front door behind him, and tucked Johnny’s keys into his pocket. He’d keep them safe until the man needed them.

He sighed, walking back around to the front of the house and through the woods along the dirt road, grabbing his radio to inform his team of his location. “I’m walking toward Zoe’s house through the woods. If you see my light, don’t shoot me,” he said, deadly serious. A lack of communication with someone patrolling the area could end with fatal consequences.

“Noted, thanks for the heads-up,” an officer answered.

Mitch sighed heavily as he walked through the woods. He needed some decent leads on this case.

He called Jackson, who was on duty at the station tonight.

“Hey,” Jackson answered. “Any luck?”

“None,” Mitch said, hearing the disappointment in his own voice.

Jackson sighed. “I have more bad news for you. The hospital called—they said they tried to call your cell, but it wouldn’t go through—the service around there is patchy. But Camilla didn’t make it. She was declared deceased about ten minutes ago.”

Mitch squeezed his eyes shut, biting his lip. “Noted, thank you,” he said, controlling his frustration. “I’ll see you soon.”

He exhaled a long sigh as he walked.

Peter, who are you?

Mitch’s eyes were on Zoe’s house as he emerged from the woods. When the light turned off in the second bedroom, he wondered if she was sleeping in there instead of the main bedroom. He knew the floor plan from when he’d looked at buying the house.

The master suite was amazing though, so he couldn’t fathom why she wouldn’t sleep in there. He stood at the edge of the woods a few moments longer, but all the lights in the house remained off.

He shook his head, annoyed at himself. Where Zoe slept was none of his business and should be the least of his concerns right now. While some might see Zoe as broken, grief-stricken, he saw her as a fighter. She would be okay—he knew that in the depths of his soul.

“So much bad luck, eh?” Tom asked as he came to stand beside him.

“Sorry?” Mitch said, turning to look at him.

Tom nodded toward the house. “I was looking at Lana’s file today. Zoe’s parents, husband, and sister... all dead. Now this woman came barreling into her house half dead. I mean... how many coincidences can you get? You’re investigating her, right?”

“Yes. Her phone and bank records indicate she was in St. Louis when Lana was assumed to be missing and when she was murdered. I’m stationing three officers at her property for the next few days to keep an eye on things, but I don’t think she’s involved in this. I’ll make a call in the morning if any security is needed tomorrow.” He felt the urge to stay, just to make sure she was okay, but he knew the best thing he could do was go home and get some rest. He turned to leave, but an officer’s voice came through his radio, stopping him in his tracks.

“Mitch, you need to come and have a look at this,” he said. “We’re in the old shed on the far end—south side—of Graham Laube’s property. It sits on the back boundary of Zoe’s land.”

Mitch and Tom looked at each other.

“I’m on my way,” Mitch said. He looked to Tom. “Stay here and keep watch. I’ll go and look at this,” Mitch said as he all but ran to his car.

CHAPTER12

MITCH

He followed the rough path through the woods to the back corner of Graham’s land. The decent dirt road, lined with trees, apparently ended at the old church. From there it turned into this uneven, overgrown path. His fingers tapped anxiously on the steering wheel and he drove as fast as he could—which wasn’t that fast, considering how poor the road had become and it was pitch dark, save for his car headlights.

When he arrived, he all but jumped out of the car.

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