Page 29 of Inside Silence

“Be that as it may, but I still feel responsible.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry too. For what I put you through then, and laid on you last night. But, this is all water under the bridge at this point,” he insists. “I suggest we move on.”

I’m silenced by that comment. Unsure of the meaning behind it, I’m suddenly unsure how to react.

KC comes to my rescue when he stops in my doorway.

“I’m sorry to cut this short, but I have to go. Duty calls,” I add lamely.

“Sure thing. Talk to you later.”

“Sorry, Sheriff. Brenda said you were looking for me?”

“Yes, I was looking for an update. What have you got for me?”

He scoffs, “Not a whole hell of a lot. No sign of a David Trotter or his shiny luxury car. Mind you, for all we know he used a fake name and rented a car.”

He’s right. If this was a premeditated murder, he may have done exactly that.

“But he would’ve had to use his driver’s license and credit card to rent that car,” I point out. “Call all?—”

“Car rental places in Coeur d’Alene,” KC finishes for me. “I’m on it.”

As I watch him walk out of my office, I’m starting to feel a little better about my day. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still spitting angry with Sanchuk and have a big bone to pick with him, but it’ll have to wait.

I have a killer to catch and that has to have priority because, God forbid, my uneasy feeling turns out to be accurate.

Nate

* * *

“Can we make pizza?”

I barely have my foot in the door when Tatum comes barreling down the stairs with an enthusiasm I haven’t seen in a long time.

“How about hi, Dad?”

“Hi, Dad,” she echoes, rolling her eyes like any self-respecting fourteen-year-old would, before she repeats the question. “Can we make pizza? Because I saw this TikTok where they stuffed the crust with cheese and bacon bits, and they used salsa, taco meat, and more cheese for the topping. It looked so good!”

“It sounds like a heart attack,” I return in defiance of my mouth watering at her description. It does sound good, but I’m trying to be a good parent. “Where are the vegetables?” I want to know.

“Da-ad, come on. We can make that cucumber salad you did the other day. The one with the cherry tomatoes and the sliced radish? That wasn’t too gross.”

I bite off a smile. I suppose that was as much of a compliment as I’m going to get. Like a lot of kids, Tate is not too hot on vegetables, but maybe this pizza idea is a negotiating opportunity.

“I’ll tell you what; we’ll do the cucumber salad on the side, and we can make the pizza, but…you need to pick one vegetable to go on the pizza.”

“Cucumber,” she says immediately.

“We’re already having the salad, and besides, cucumber is like ninety-five percent water. You can’t bake that; it’ll make the pizza soggy.”

“Is not. How can it be crunchy if it’s mostly water?” she challenges me.

I shrug and walk over to the fridge to grab a beer. Today was demolition day and I’m dusty and dirty, but I can have a quick shower when the pizza is in the oven.

The work on Brenda’s bathroom is more of a renovation than the makeover she first suggested. She wants the tub out and a walk-in shower installed. She also wants to replace the old tile flooring and install a new toilet. The vanity is still in good condition, but I’m putting in a new counter and sink, and replacing the hardware. It’ll keep me busy for a bit.

“Google it,” I instruct Tate.