How would they find her?
If Beau had done something to Mila then they might never find her. He could have thrown her into a lake or a river tied to a rock so her body was never found. He could have buried her somewhere in a shallow grave. He could have burned her body till it was nothing but a pile of ash. He could have done anything to her. Literally anything. He wanted his kids and everything he and Mila had accumulated during their marriage, and getting Mila out of the picture certainly accomplished that.
And if the Fairytale Killer had her sister, Rylla didn't even want to think about that.
She knew what the killer was capable of, and she knew they had no solid leads.
If it was the Fairytale Killer who had taken Mila, then she knew she would never see her sister alive again.
* * * * *
8:16 A.M.
Matthew hadn’t wanted to leave Rylla alone, so he’d called Naomi and Sam and asked them to go and check up on her. She had wanted to come with him, but she couldn’t be part of this case now that her sister was a victim. And even if his partner couldn’t accept it yet they all knew that Mila was the Fairytale Killer’s next victim.
It was hard to believe this was happening. How had Rylla’s sister ended up on the killer’s hit list? So far, he hadn’t gone after anyone with children, and Mila wasn't even divorced yet, did the killer know that? It didn't seem like the kind of woman he would be interested in. If he was really after the perfect woman, wouldn’t that mean someone who was a good mother? And if he wanted a good mother then why would he take her and leave her children without their mother?
The killer was getting so desperate he wasn't thinking straight anymore. That could be a good or a bad thing. It made him more dangerous as he was likely to be less tolerant to the women failing and not meet his expectations. The flip side was hopefully the more desperate he got the more mistakes he would make, and one big mistake could be all it took to lead them straight to him.
“Naomi just texted to say she and Sam are at Rylla’s,” Jonathon announced.
“Good, I'm glad she’s not alone,” Matthew said. He’d wanted to stay at Rylla’s until Naomi and Sam arrived, but his partner had insisted she needed some time alone to try to wrap her head around the news.
“Mila Drake doesn’t seem to fit the killer’s profile,” Jonathon said.
Hopefully they would find out more about why the killer may have targeted her inside the house they had pulled up in front of.
“Do they know?” Allina asked.
“Yes, they were the ones who called it in. When Mila didn't call her kids to say goodnight, they were worried and insisted on getting their dad to take them around to their mom’s house to check on her. At the house they saw rose petals on the front path and no sign of Mila. The press had reported on the flower petal thing, so they immediately called the cops,” Matthew replied.
He knocked on the door and a moment later it was flung open by Mila’s soon to be ex-husband, Beau Drake.
“Do you know anything yet?” the man demanded immediately.
“No, nothing yet,” Matthew answered. “May we come in?”
Beau hesitated, his dark eyes uncertain. “Can we do this later?”
“No, we can't,” he said, gently but firmly. “We need to get as much information as we can as quickly as we can so that we can find Mila.” Although he didn't want to say it, Matthew didn't hold out much hope that they would find Mila Drake alive. They didn't know enough about the killer yet, and he’d kept Georgia Lars for only two days. He was devolving quickly and anything Mila did that angered him would likely lead to him killing her in a rage. Right now, her family didn't need to know that.
“I need to do what’s best for my kids,” Beau said.
“Isn’t what's best for your kids that we do whatever we can to find their mother?” Jonathon asked quietly.
“They’re upset, they’re scared, they haven't slept, maybe it would be better if you came back tomorrow,” Beau persisted, edging the door closed a little.
Matthew was surprised by the man’s attitude. While he didn't agree with Rylla’s theory that her sister’s almost ex was responsible for whatever happened to her—they knew it was the Fairytale Killer—Beau Drake certainly didn't seem particularly concerned about his wife’s fate. Whether their relationship was over or not, they had been married for over a decade and had two children together, but instead of being worried he seemed almost pleased to have Mila out of the way.
Before he could say again that time was of the essence if they wanted to have a hope of finding his children’s mother alive, a figure appeared in the hall behind Beau.
“It’s okay, Dad. We want to talk to them. We want to do anything we can to help them find Mom.”
Twelve-year-old Emmy Drake came up behind her father. The girl was tall and thin, with long dark hair that hung to her waist and dark soulful eyes. She looked just like her father, only unlike her father her expression was worried, and her eyes were red rimmed with dark circles underneath.
“You don’t have to talk to them, honey.” Beau put an arm around her shoulders.
“But I want to,” Emmy said firmly.