Page 106 of Line of Sight

Dan tapped the Phone app on his watch, and scrolled until he found Riley’s number before tapping the Phone button. “There are already men working here. I’m going in.”

“Affirmative.”

Dan got out of the car and walked up to the gates. He flashed his ID to the guy on the other side of them, and once he was through, he headed for the portable office building.

The man in charge of the site gazed at him with interest. “Can I help you?”

“I’m working with the police on a murder case. We have reason to believe our suspect has been in here and buried someone alive. We only learned this just over an hour ago, so we need to work fast.”

“You got it.”

“Wait!” Dan showed him King’s photo on his phone. “Have you seen this person here today?”

The man peered at it. “I was the first on site at six this morning. I haven’t seen this guy.” His eyes widened. “Hey, the chain on the gates was busted. I checked, but none of the vehicles were missing. Sometimes kids get in here and—”

Dan called Riley. “Get in here. They haven’t seen King.” Without waiting for a response, he hurried out of the building, accompanied by the foreman, who shouted to anyone in sight to come help them search.

“We’re looking for any piles of sand,” Dan told them. “Big enough to hide a body in.”

“Over there.” One of the men pointed to the far left of the site, and Dan charged over there, his heart pounding. Four huge mounds of building sand stood in a row, topped with snow, like mountain peaks. Something caught his eye.

There was a hand poking out of one of them.

Oh my God.

Dan fell to his knees in front of the mound and began scrabbling at the sand, clawing at it. Riley and Lomax arrived, and then there were four of them, pulling handfuls of sand away, moving as much as they could.

A body came into view, and pain spiked through Dan’s chest, until he got a good look at the face.

It wasn’t Gary.

The guy was clearly dead, and Dan had never seen him before in his life.

Riley gaped. “Who’sthisguy?”

Dan’s phone rang, and he pulled it from his pocket to answer it.

“Well done, Mr. Porter. I’m impressed. Unfortunately, you broke the rules. You didn’t come alone.”

Riley stared at him with wide eyes. “How the fuck does—”

“Smile, Detective Watson. You’re onCandid Camera. And who’s that behind you?”

Dan peered closely. The scarf around the dead guy’s neck had a tiny camera attached to it. He tore it free, ripping the fabric.

“Too late for that. Final warning, Mr. Porter. If you hurry, you might find Gary is still alive by the time you findme. But if you don’t come alone? He dies. And that’s a promise.”

“Come where?” Dan yelled.

“Back to where it all began. Now hurry. The clock is still ticking.” King disconnected.

Riley was on his phone a second later, speaking fast.

Dan stood, his chest aching. Lomax stared at the body. “I don’t think he was alive when King buried him. He looks as if he’s asleep. Let’s see who he is.” He began to search the dead man’s clothing. “That was considerate of King. He left the guy’s ID on him.” He peered closely at it. “Sorry, Deke Watkins. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

And someone somewhere is going to weep at your passing.

Riley finished his call. “They’ll be here to pick up the body. I’ve told Travers what’s happened. He said to call as soon as we get a clue where we’re going.” He frowned. “What did he mean,where it all began? The first murder was Scott McCarthy, and he was found in a condo in Boston. Are we being sent back to Boston?”