I’ve been dismissing her as a suspect because she wasn’t around. Yet she was close enough to commit the crimes.
Cypher said Jen presumably left yesterday morning. He himself had been up and gone before dawn. If he saw a Jen-size lump in the blankets, he might have just left. Either way, she’d have had time to hurry back to Jolene, dig her up, realize what happened, and get her to her final resting spot before dawn.
Storm whines, and I look up to see the spot where we found Gloria and the wolf-dog. I curse under my breath and kneel to rub Storm’s ears.
“I’m so sorry, girl. I’m distracted, and I’m not doing my job. One more time, and I promise I’ll pay attention.”
We start back the way we came, and I fully focus on the task. Twice I must have walked right past the burial site. I won’t do it again. I keep my eyes open, scanning the ground for any sign of disturbance.
A crashing sounds in the forest. My hand falls to my gun, and I glance at Storm, who growls softly, only to whine at the end, as if apologizing for the growl. It’s a person, then. Someone she doesn’t care for.
“Who’s there?” I say.
“The big bad wolf,” a voice calls. It’s familiar, yet I still tighten my grip on my gun, starting to pull it from its holster.
“Jen?” I say. “What are you doing out here?”
She appears, tramping through the undergrowth. “Looking for you, obviously.”
I slide my gun from the holster, as quietly as possible, and keep it down, so when she catches up, she barely glances at it, presuming I had it out all along.
“Looking for me?” I say.
“Uh, yeah. You wanted me, right? Eric said you’d headed this way.”
“And you came out on your own?”
“Do I look stupid? I came with Ty, obviously. He’s the one who said you needed me.”
“Where is he?”
She throws up her hands. “Nearby, I presume. He was with me until a few minutes ago and then he saw a moose track. Damn idiot and his damned moose. How the hell is he supposed to bring it down without a gun?”
“So he’s within shouting distance?”
“I presume so. He wandered off, and I said I thought I heard you and he just kind of…” She waves her hand. “I’m not even sure he heard me. Obsessed with that moose.”
“If I shout for him, he’ll come?”
She shrugs. “He should. Why? You need him? Go ahead and shout. Better make it loud, though. His hearing’s going.”
When she takes a step toward me, Storm growls.
“Yeah, yeah,” she says. “Never going to forgive me for that, are you?” Another step. Storm growls louder and that stops Jen short.
“What’s with the pooch?” she says. “I know I’m not her favorite person, but that sounds serious.”
“Where were you last night?”
“What time?”
“Around eight.”
She eases back, thinking. “Talking to Will. I caught up with him just after eight. Been trying to talk to him all day.”
“Trying to talk to Will about what?”
“The town closing.” She looks at me. “No one who knows Eric is ever going to think you guys are throwing in the towel that easily. If you aren’t fighting to keep Rockton open, it’s because you have a backup plan. It’s all hands on deck shutting down, not even the slightest show of resistance. You have other plans. I want to know what they are.”
“So you asked Will.”
“Yeah, and he said he”—she air-quotes—“isn’t ‘at liberty to discuss that.’ Which means there’s a plan. He said if I wanted, I could join the cleanup crew. Stay and help tear down Rockton. I said hell, yeah. Not exactly my idea of fun, but I figure the people who are sticking around are the people who have a shot at a seat on the ark. You guys just want to make sure we’re prepared to row our asses off first.”
“Will offered you a spot on the cleanup crew?”
“That’s what I said. The conversation lasted from about eight ten until close to nine.”
“He never mentioned it to me.”
She leans against a tree. “I got the feeling you were a bit busy, solving that so-called misadventure Jolene suffered.” She snorts. “Obviously she was murdered. Point is, you’re busy. Do you even know who’s on the cleanup crew? Who all has been asked to stay?”
I don’t. Not beyond those who are part of our plans for a new Rockton. I do remember Dalton saying they’d fill the crew with residents they might want to invite to join us. I hadn’t been part of any further conversations. I’d been caught up in my investigation and happy to let Dalton make decisions.
“I can see where you’re heading,” she says. “I didn’t kill Jolene. Didn’t bury Gloria alive. I’m not sure what you think my motive is, but I’m sure you have one, because ‘just pissing Jen off’ isn’t really your style. Sadly. Grudge matches are so much more fun when the other person fights back.”
“Are they?” I arch my brows.
Her eyes roll up in thought. “Nope, I lied. It’s fun to needle you, Butler. You’re like one of those carnival games, where you throw balls at the clowns, and they bounce back up. The trick is to hit them just right so they fall down and stay down. I haven’t quite found the right spot on you yet, but I will.”
“Go back to Rockton, Jen. I’m working here.”
“I was joking, Butler. You have no sense of humor.”
“No, you need to improve your jokes. Also improve your tactics. That one’s old and stale. If someone takes offense?” I pitch my voice up. “‘I’m just kidding. Is it my fault you can’t take a joke?’” I shake my head. “Go on. I’m busy here.”
“And I’m here to watch your back. Also, I can’t just mosey off to Rockton and leave Ty looking for me out here. I’m not sure I could find my way back either. Do your work. I’ll keep quiet.”
When I don’t answer, she says, “You’re supposed to tell me not to strain myself.”
“Sorry, my jabs are a little fresher than that.”
“Ouch.” She waves me on. “Go. I’ll follow.”
THIRTY-FIVE
I do not like having Jen behind me. I keep my gun in hand, as if that’s just what I do in the forest. I also make her stay ten paces back. I don’t disbelieve her story, but I don’t completely buy it either.
I’m walking behind Storm, surveying the area, when Jen says, “Mind telling me what I’m looking for?”
I’m about to snap that she isn’t looking for anything. She’s supposed to be watching my back. Instead, I pause and then say, “Storm is following Gloria’s trail. We found her over there. Her captor led her through water. There’s about a hundred and fifty feet between those points where it must have happened.”
“Where she was buried.”
“Right.”
“She didn’t tell you where it was?”
“She gave me a few landmarks—a dead tree, a boulder—but I’ve found three dead trees and two rocks she could have considered boulders. Storm and I were just following her trail, looking for a hole.”
“And you can’t find one?”