Page 14 of Girl, Unmasked (Ella Dark #28)

Drago LaChance was a ghost.

Ella had been chasing his digital trail for the past hour. She'd gone through every database and search engine she could think of and come up with nothing but cobwebs. No social media profiles, no wish lists, and not even a measly Twitter account chronicling his love of hentai, she assumed.

It was like the guy had been wiped from the face of the earth.

Or never existed in the first place.

She'd even stooped to scouring the scuzziest corners of the internet where incels gathered to swap manifestos, but even there, amongst the dregs of society, there was no sign of Drago LaChance.

The only hit was a geriatric in Wisconsin with a petty theft charge back in the eighties. Unless her unsub was in his seventies and lived ten states away, she was pretty sure she could rule this man out as a suspect.

Ella had devoured through every digital database at her disposal too; motor vehicle records, credit reports, criminal histories, ViCAP, AFIS, but this LaChance person remained elusive. For all intents and purposes, the man behind Halo of Blood was a figment of everyone's imagination.

She grabbed a section of her hair and scrunched it in frustration while she prayed for an intervention. It came in the form of Mia Ripley through the office door with the Halo of Blood manuscript clutched between her fingers.

‘Guess who just became the lab tech’s favorite ass-hat?’

Ella glanced up. ‘Either me or you.’

‘You. The lab found six different fingerprints on this thing. One was yours.’

‘They running them now?’

‘Yup. Results could take a day or two.’

Five potential suspects. Or four, assuming one of the sets of prints belonged to the victim. Either way, it tracked. Chances were that the manuscript went through a bunch of people – receptionists, office assistants – before it reached Sophie. Five sets of prints were reasonable.

‘Let’s hope our guy mailed this in, because if Sophie printed it off, then the author would never have touched it.’

Ripley dropped the manuscript on Ella’s desk and said, ‘Judging by the state it’s in, I’d say he mailed that thing for sure. Weren’t there any contact details on the thing?’

‘Not that I could see.’

‘Eagle Eye must have a record of someone sending it in. Submission database, something like that?’

‘My thoughts exactly.’ Ella jabbed a finger at her, the closest thing to a compliment she could muster. ‘I’ll get Blythe on them. See if he can get us access to Sophie’s emails, then we’ll get a tech guy to comb through them. Whoever submitted the book has to be in there somewhere.’

Ripley jerked her chin at Ella’s computer. ‘What about you? Any luck finding this guy?’

‘Nothing. No mention of him or his book online. Guy must have used a pseudonym.’

On cue, Detective Blythe peered his head around the door. 'Agents, the mortician processed the body. We fast-tracked it through. Do you want a lift to the examiner's?'

‘We’re good. We’ll find it. Did they find anything?’

‘Didn’t say, just asked for someone to get down there ASAP. You want me with you?’

Ella waved a hand. ‘No, it’s fine, but I do need someone to read this manuscript. Are you a big reader, detective??’

Blythe let out a hearty laugh. 'Me? Read? Words aren't my thing. Thank God for autocorrect, that's all I'm saying. I could maybe get one of my guys to read through it, or one of the admin staff.'

Ella gritted her teeth and said, 'Probably not a good idea. We don't want to involve too many people in this. You know why.'

‘Yeah. Look, I gotta run. If you’re desperate, I can have a crack at it, but…’

‘Don’t sweat it. I’ll find someone.’

Blythe scuttled away, leaving Ella and Ripley alone. Ella glanced over at her partner with a deer-in-the-headlights look. Ripley started backing away.

‘Dark, in no universe am I reading a stupid horror book.’

'Why not? You're always telling me you're just a consultant, and if memory serves me correctly, on our last case, you said that I was the boss now. Remember that?'

Ripley pursed her lips and looked like she was moments away from either slapping Ella or running away. 'Yes, I do remember that.'

Ella pointed to the manuscript. 'The lab has already run it, so we can get as many fingerprints as we want to now. How about we put a seventh set of prints on it?'

‘You want me to sit here and read? Seriously?’

‘Why not?’

‘You’re the bookworm, not me. Plus, something tells me that book sucks.’

'Yeah, it does.'

Ella didn't back down, and if Ripley was indeed going to stay true to her consultant title, then Ella's presence took priority out in the field. Ripley was here to do the brainwork, and in Ella's mind, that involved reading potential murder manuscripts.

‘Fine. I’ll read it.’

‘Excellent. And I want you to really read it. Note anything that stands out. Characters, settings, M.O. Pay attention to the victims and the places. If you notice any familiar names, note them down.’

Ripley rolled her eyes. ‘Whatever you say, captain. I’ll have your book report done within the hour.’

‘Perfect. I’m gonna see what the coroner’s found, and if you find anything useful, call me immediately.’