Page 6 of A Song for the Dead

Wolfe bent to his forensic kit and pulled out a notebook. It was a pad of death certificates. He issued them on the spot when necessary for relatives of the deceased. “I can’t issue a death certificate without a body, but I’ll write a note to the judge saying that, in my opinion, no one could have possibly survived the blood loss I’ve witnessed in the bathroom. Take this, it might be enough to sway him until we find the body as proof of death. The judge is tough, but he might issue a warrant. If he does, ask Bobby Kalo to trace the phone. What’s the use of having an FBI computer whiz kid at our disposal if we don’t use him?”

“I have Freya’s phone number. We can go from there.” Jenna smiled. “I’ll call Kalo now.” She headed out into the foyer.

“A phone in the grave and one missing here.” Kane rubbed his chin. “Murders seven years apart. I’m starting to get that gut feeling that they might be connected, but why the break in kills?”

Shaking his head, Wolfe looked at him in disbelief. “One coincidence doesn’t make a link, Dave.” He sighed. “On the other hand, there could be plenty of reasons for the gap. He might have been killing in other counties or even states. He might have been in jail or have moved away due to his work. Or it could be just a coincidence.” He slapped Kane on the back. “Bring me a body and I’ll find answers.”

“Has Norrell made any progress of the cause of death of the body in the grave?” Kane leaned against the wall.

Wolfe shrugged. “I’m not aware of any progress. As she works in a different building, we don’t stop for lunch as much and discuss things like before. I’m sure when she has information, she’ll call you. I’m guessing we’ll find more information on the phone. I’ll head on back to my office and see if the phone battery has taken the charge. If not, there are other ways of making it work.” He smiled at Kane. “I’ll know within the hour. Has anyone hunted down Freya’s next of kin? If she’s missing, or presumed dead, they should be informed.”

“I’ll give it priority.” Kane turned as Jenna walked down the corridor toward them. “How did it go?”

“Kalo has the details, but without a warrant, his hands are tied, although, he doesn’t always stick to the rules.” Jenna smiled. “If he can track the phone, maybe for once we’ll crack the case in one day.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s getting late and we need to go collect Tauri. I’ll follow up at home.”

Wolfe looked from one to the other and bent to pick up the forensic kit. “The one thing I admire about you is that y’all are optimistic.” He chuckled. “Unfortunately, it will take me at least forty-eight hours to process the material we collected from the scene… and I’ll need a body. There is no obvious trace evidence here to arrest anyone.”

“Trust me.” Jenna turned and headed for the door, shaking her head. “I’ll find her. It’s Halloween. With my luck, I’ll just need to give it a few days and her corpse will come knocking on my door.”

SEVEN

Wendy, the assistant manager of Aunt Betty’s Café arrived home late. She lived in a beautiful cabin down near the river that ran behind Maple. The neighbors were good people and had been there for her when someone tried to poison her little dog, Lola. Seeing the dog lying in her backyard, they’d rushed her to the vet in time to save her life. Wendy had been by the vets twice today to check on Lola, and she was doing just fine but would be there for a couple of days. Lola was the perfect companion for someone who worked odd hours. She was self-sufficient and could go in and out of the doggy door, had her feeder inside and a warm basket. Wendy missed hearing her cheerful bark as she climbed from her Jeep and headed for the front door. An owl hooted and a shadow passed over her. Suddenly afraid, she glanced around, peering into the darkness between the pools of orange streetlights. Her neighbors, an old couple, had left today to visit their grandchildren for the festival, and chills slid down her spine at seeing their house cold and empty. She stared at the deserted road and shivered as wisps of curling mist drifted along the blacktop like ghosts out for their nightly promenade.

Owning the end house before the river was a mixed blessing: beautiful in daytime, but at night around Halloween, not so. The fast-flowing river resembled a tar pit, crawling its way past maples and cottonwood trees, their branches hanging down and casting black witches-cloak-like shadows across the riverbank. Cold air brushed Wendy’s cheeks as the wind disturbed the trees, and all around them became animated. A silent movie flickered into action and sticklike creatures held their outstretched arms as if reaching for her. She backed away, heading for the door, when something moved in the shadows. Swallowing hard, she sprinted for the front door, slid her key into the lock, and fell inside, slamming the door behind her. She reached for the switch and leaned against the door, breathing heavily as the room flooded with light.

Unnerved, she turned the deadbolt, dumped her keys in a bowl by the front door, and headed for the bedroom. Had she imagined someone was out there, watching her? She shook her head, trying to dislodge the illogical ideas filling her mind just because it was Halloween. A shower and a hot drink before falling into bed would calm her nerves. She removed her coat and boots and slid on her slippers before heading to the kitchen. A scraping sound came from the front door and she stood paralyzed in the passageway following the sound as it moved around the house. Without a second thought, Wendy ran to the back door to check it was secure. Breathing a sigh of relief, she walked back into the kitchen to put on the kettle. Her imagination was getting the best of her. The scratching came again, as if someone was dragging a stick along the outside walls of the house. Eyes fixed to the window, she gasped in horror as a Halloween mask loomed out of the dark and then vanished.

Someone was out there and she’d left her Glock in the Jeep.

EIGHT

TUESDAY

After playing with Tauri before he went to bed, Jenna and Kane worked in the office at the ranch, spending the entire evening hunting down relatives of Freya Richardson. Jenna had come up empty and moved her investigation to the young woman’s friends. The few she had spoken to hadn’t given her any useful information. Freya was a workaholic, taking any odd jobs she could find, and saved every penny. This morning, she’d focused on the places Freya had worked. A very hard worker was the conclusion, but no one had seen her since Friday. She didn’t have a boyfriend and between jobs kept to herself. With absolutely no leads to follow, when Jenna arrived at the office, she’d issued a missing person report to the media, using the photograph from Freya’s ID. She’d also asked for anyone who’d been on Elm anytime on Friday evening to come forward. So far, the hotline had remained silent.

When Rio stepped into her office, she expected an update on Jacob Seemly, the man using his phone to record up women’s skirts. “How is the Seemly case going?”

“Oh, the DA charged him on the evidence on his phone. His office had Seemly in front of a judge by three, and now he’s out on bail awaiting a court hearing.” Rio frowned. “It all moved along really fast and we had him out of our hands before I left the office last night.” He shrugged. “That’s not why I’m here. Last night Wendy from Aunt Betty’s called about a possible prowler or prankster. Late last night, after eleven, someone was outside her house wearing a Halloween mask. Wendy said it sounded like nails being dragged along the outside of her house and then someone looked through her window.”

Raising both eyebrows, Jenna looked at him. “Wendy isn’t the hysterical type and she owns a weapon. What was the outcome?”

“I went to see her.” Rio shrugged. “I did a drive-by first and I didn’t see anyone lurking about, but if they were wearing a costume, they’d blend into anyone’s display. She has a walkway around her house and I didn’t see any footprints. I walked through her house to make sure everything was secure. She came with me to get her Glock from her Jeep and I waited until she was inside safe and sound. I called again this morning and she hadn’t been disturbed.”

Jenna nodded. “Okay, make a note about it for the records, just in case we have some idiot frightening people.” She sighed. “It’s Halloween and people behave strangely.” She stood. We’re heading down to the library to look at old newspapers. Hold the fort until we’re back.”

“Okay.” Rio headed for the door.

Grunt work was always boring, and Jenna wished Bobby Kalo worked in her office. Having someone who had the resources to hunt down people in seconds would save so much time and energy. She sat in the local library going through copies of old newspapers, each one scanned to file as far back as fifteen years ago. If people had gone missing, it should have been reported in the newspapers. What she found disturbed her. Seven to ten years previously, Montana had been terrorized by the Halloween Slasher. For two consecutive years, young women had been presumed murdered in their homes. No bodies had ever been discovered, but each scene was a bloodbath. She turned to Kane, seated at the next desk. “I figure I’ve found something.”

“Yeah, me too. Three young women vanished from here seven years ago, before those three went missing from Louan.” Kane blew out a sigh. “Apart from a bloody crime scene, they never found a trace of them.”

Jenna leaned back in her seat, wetting dry lips. “Yeah, and the crime scene sounds much the same as what we found in Freya’s apartment.” She blew out a long sigh. “I’ve made a note of their names. We’ll need case files from Louan’s sheriff’s department, and crime scene photos to use as a comparison.”

“If this is the Halloween Slasher, he killed in threes.” Kane’s mouth formed a flat line and a nerve in his cheek twitched. “If he’s decided to start up again here, it’s one down, two to go.”

Jenna’s phone chimed. It was Wolfe. “I’m in the library. We’re just leaving.”

“Okay, I’ll hang on until you’re in a better location. Kane will want to hear this too.”

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