I want to tell her to stay gone, but the sheriff might really do something stupid like stage a break-in and go after her. Hell, for all I know this is part of his retaliation for his son coming up missing four hours ago.
His deranged mind believes I’m somehow involved. What if this is all a trap?
ME: Stay. Don’t go. I have a bad feeling.
LANA: Already on the road. Stow your bad feeling. Duke will be there, and I’ll deal with all the insurance stuff. Don’t focus on me. Worry about your case.
“Everything okay?” Leonard asks me.
“No. Lana is too fucking stubborn,” I groan, putting my phone away. I’ll call Duke later.
“Just curious, how much do you know about Lana?”
I arch an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”
He shrugs. “No reason.” His face changes as he looks at something in the dirt, and he kneels.
“Were there any cars parked over here tonight?” he asks.
“We taped this side up, not allowing cars to pass.”
His eyes dart up to the path between the trees. It’s big enough for a small car, but…
“The blood trail led into the woods,” Elise says, interrupting my thought. “All of it was blood from the two victims he killed, but that’s what happens when you saw a guy to pieces and stab another.”
“Kyle Perkins didn’t go into the woods. There’d be drag marks,” I say, finally getting my head on right.
“The killer went into the woods, but not Kyle,” Elise says, confused. “How?”
Leonard pales as he and I look at each other.
“Because our unsub has a partner.”
Chapter 12
Clever tyrants are never punished.
—Voltaire
LANA
“You sure you’ll be able to sit in on this?” I ask Jake as I walk in, pulling my sweatshirt off.
“Waited too long, and I’m pissed off enough to handle the gore tonight, Lana. Just looking at him makes me want to kill him. I’ll be fine.”
“It’ll be the worst,” I remind him.
He rolls his shoulders back. “I’ll let you know if I need a break. But I doubt I will for this one.” His jaw tics, and I nod, looking idly at the selection of shiny knives that are just waiting to turn red.
“What vehicle did you drive?” Jake asks me randomly.
“The Lexus you parked at Lindy’s old house.”
“No one saw you?”
I shake my head to answer his question.
“Logan?” he asks.