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He grabbed the doorknob Wrenched it open--
And came face-to-face with Erin No, not his Erin An older version, one with faint lines around her eyes One whose face was ard, whose hair was a bit shorter
And whose eyes were old
Sonofabitch
She stared at hi him Then one black brow shot up and she said in a voice too ht, cat, or are you gonna let hter?"
Detective Ben Greer eased under the bright yellow line of police tape, his gun holster pressing into his side He’d had exactly two days of vacation--two days of sitting on his ass and going insane at the cabin--and then he’d gotten the call about Donald Trent
Trent Like he’d ever forget that bastard He’d put down ten to one odds that the guy had offed his wife a few h evidence to prove it, though
But after being on the job for ten years, sos were just pure instinct
Trent was a killer A psychopath who got off on hurting women If Trent’s body really was buried in those woods, then the women in Lillian would be one hell of a lot safer, and their sleep would be easier
"Detective!"
A feley was still pretty fresh to the force, but she was a fast learner, and she kne to keep a scene safe
"What have we got?" he asked as his gaze swept the area That house He’d been there before Been to tell Katherine LaShaun the news about her daughter He’d seen the boys, peeking from behind the stairs
So…" Excite "Come on, we’re pretty sure it’s--"
Ben ran past her He could hear voices rising in the distance The rest of the teaht the thud of a shovel Dammit, they’d better be careful with his scene
He twisted, avoiding the thick brush as best he could, then he broke into the area with his group Stue hole his men had sectioned off Not too deep Not deep at all, really The spotlights lit up the area, and in the black dirt, he saw the faded blue fabric
A shirt Ragged
More of the thick dirt was carefully brushed aside and he glimpsed--
Bones
"Think it’s Trent?" Kristen asked, that exciterim "It’s him" Tests would have to be done Dental records checked But he could see a long, thin necklace, one with intertwined snake heads, laying across the bones
Trent had worn that piece of crap around his neck every time Ben had seen him
"Careful, people!" Ben yelled "I want every piece of evidence here! Tag it, bag it, and don’tto have a shitload of media scrutiny There would be no room for mistakes on this one
Buried behind his kids’ house How freaking twisted
And who’d done the bastard? Who’d finally ed to kill Trent?
Even he’d been tempted Especially after he’d seen Sylvia’s broken body
Ben rubbed his hand over his face His eyes were gritty "I want to talk to the faet it over with now
Kristen nodded, her short red hair bobbing around her face She looked barely eighteen, but Ben knew that ie on the streets When you were expecting fluff, it was easy to get taken down by a bulldog
Crickets chirped around thes barked as their handlers held them back
When they approached the house, he saw Katherine walk onto her back porch A worn robe covered her thin shoulders and she hugged herself "You found him, didn’t you?"
He didn’t want to suspect her, but the questions in his mind wouldn’t stop Had she known about the kill? Been in on it?
Katherine LaShaun A strong wo for her family
Buried behind the house In the woods that the boys probably played in every day
Sick
He walked onto the porch He hesitated under the bright light "We’ve found a body Too early for identification yet"
Kristen crept to his side, almost soundlessly The lady kne to move and she kne to track killers One day soon, she’d ood detective
Katherine nodded "It’s hied breath "My boys won’t have to worry anylanced around The house see--but no, they would have woken up with all the cops and dogs there It was too loud for the kids to still be sleeping "Katherine, where are the boys?"
Her gaze left the woods and came to rest on him "At a friend’s house They’re safe They don’t knoon’t know…about this" Her lips shook "They play there-- they won’t know "
She’d moved the boys before the cops arrived How the hell had she known to do that?
"You kneere colanced her way Slowly "Don’t believe I know you, honey"
Kristen slapped a s one she wore so well "Kristen Langley" She offered a hand
One that wasn’t taken
Katherine rocked back on her heels "All this tiaze skittered back to Ben’s
"Do you knoho killed hi, he would soon "Who told you ere coiven her the tip could well be the killer
Only the officers on his team knew about this body The cops--and the killer
Her lips, already thin, flattened even more "I need you cops to be done by tomorrow afternoon My boys will be coot a phone call, didn’t you?" he pressed, not about to be led off track He wasn’t new to this game
Kristen’s mouth snapped closed
"We can subpoena phone records, you know We’re going to find out, one way or another"
She stuirl! Not one da! You let that bastard out and he killed her--he killed her!"
"We don’t know that, Mrs LaShaun" Yeah, right
"Bullshit!"