Page 94 of Last Seen

“All right. Sorry. Pivoting. I need to get in touch with some people. Your brother has my phone. And the house phone here is dead.”

“And? You want me to get it back?”

“Well, yes. But in the interim, I was hoping to look up a number?”

He pulls out his phone. “Tell me.”

“Chief of Police Baird Early. Marchburg, Virginia.” She holds her breath but Noah doesn’t hesitate. He searches for a minute.

“Main number okay?”

She nods, and he dials the phone. Puts it on speaker. Halley relaxes a touch. She is not a captive after all.

Early is on the line a minute later, anger simmering in his voice. “Brockton called me, told me what was happening. You okay?”

“He called you?”

“Yeah. Said you had yourself another close call. What exactly is going on, Halley? Where are you now?”

“I’m in a cabin in Brockville. Noah Brockton, the sheriff’s brother, is with me. I’m fine. I’m safe.”

“Not when there’s a murderer on the loose. Brockton tells me you spoke with the victim before her death?”

“Yes. Just like all the rest.”

“Halley. You need to come home.”

Noah clears his throat. “Sir, I think it’s better if she stays here for the time being. We’re in an isolated area, and now everyone’s on their guard. We can keep her safe. Much safer than if she headed out on the road.”

“Which I tried to do before my tires were slashed and my engine tampered with. I want out of here, too, Baird. I need—”

“Then I’ll come get you myself,” he says with finality.

“I appreciate that. But I was about to say I need to stay here for the time being. I’m close to figuring all of this out, and whoever is killing these women is trying to stop me from learning the truth.”

“Plenty of truth to be learned from right here in Marchburg. You’ll be safe here.”

“Kater wasn’t safe. Dr. Chowdhury wasn’t safe. I don’t think I’ll be safe no matter where I am, Baird. The killer is trying to get my attention. He has it.”

“So what, you’re going to sit there and wait for them to show up? It may not be a him, Halley. We know that now.”

“How?”

“How do you think?”

“You have DNA?” She turns away from Noah’s searching eyes. She can’t bear to watch him deflate with this reality. Noah seems too innocent by half. A chef, looking to create beautiful things, to evoke wonderful emotions. There is no darkness in him. At least not this kind.

“We do. From both scenes. Like the killer was cut during the attack. But here’s the part that is going to blow your mind.”

“What’s that?”

“There’s a match in CODIS.”

“A match? So you know who the killer is?”

“I can’t say that definitively. But I do know who the blood at the scenes belongs to.”

“Who?” she asks, dread building in her gut.