Page 9

9

E than was dead from a drug overdose? Jessica couldn’t imagine the guy she’d known doing something like this. Ethan had been so upset over Ella’s death, railing at his sister’s use of drugs.

Maybe Jess was being na?ve, but she couldn’t believe Ethan had gone down that same path. Not the Ethan she’d known. “There’s no way Ethan used drugs.”

Wayne arched a brow. “I can assure you he died of an overdose.”

“Okay, so maybe that’s true, but I’m telling you he wasn’t a user.” She narrowed her eyes at the cop. “Maybe someone used drugs to kill him specifically to make it look like an overdose.”

“And why would anyone do that?” Wayne did not shy away from her gaze. “Did Ethan have any enemies that you’re aware of?”

“No.” She glanced at Logan, who looked thoughtful. “I just think it’s too much of a coincidence. We’re looking for a guy who may have transported drugs on Logan’s plane, followed by several attempts to kill us, then suddenly Ethan Dover is found dead of a drug overdose.” A thought occurred to her. “What sort of drugs? Fentanyl?”

“Yes,” Wayne acknowledged. “Fentanyl. Same as his sister.”

No one spoke for a long minute. Their server brought their food, then asked Wayne what he wanted. He ordered a burger.

Jessica gave a silent prayer before taking a bite of her chicken sandwich. Logan’s cheeseburger looked good too.

“I agree with Jess,” Logan said between bites. “Something’s not right.”

Wayne sat back in his seat. “It’s interesting that you both had connections to the Dover siblings.”

“Most of our classmates knew the Dover siblings.” Logan waved a hand toward the window and the people milling about outside. “This town isn’t that big. Everyone knows everyone else around here.”

Another long silence. She had the impression Wayne was waiting for them to fill in additional details, which was ridiculous because they didn’t know anything.

At least, she didn’t. She shot another quick look at Logan.

“Tell me about those classmates of yours.” Wayne pulled a small notebook from his pocket. “Start with those closest to the Dover siblings.”

“Ella, Julie Plumber, Cindy Deets, and I were all relatively close,” Jessica said when Logan didn’t immediately respond. “I knew Ethan because he was in Chase’s class.” She winced, belatedly realizing she’d added another connection between the Sullivans and the Dovers.

“Go on,” Wayne said when she fell silent.

She swallowed hard. It was too late to go back. And as Logan said, everyone knew everyone else here. “Ethan was also friends with Julie’s older brother, Greg Plumber.” She tried to think about who else to include. “I believe Matt Salvatore was another friend of theirs. To be honest, I’ve lost touch with many of my former classmates. First, I moved away to work in Cheyenne, then more recently as we’ve started taking on more and more search and rescue missions.” She figured it wouldn’t hurt to reinforce the good things her family had done for the community, especially over these past five years. “Living on the ranch can be isolating.”

“What about you?” Wayne shifted to look at Logan.

“Greg served time in the army,” Logan said. “I didn’t know Matt very well. But Ella dated Andy Tolliver before me.”

“Andy was another friend of ours. He was super smart; he got a full ride to Montana State University.” Jess smiled at the memory. Andy was deemed the most successful of their senior class. “But like the others, I don’t know where he is now.”

Wayne continued scribbling in his notebook. When their server brought his hamburger, he nodded in thanks, tried a french fry, then stared back down at his notebook. “I’m sure I can find out where these kids are now.” He looked up. “Any of them involved in drugs? Or were there other kids that were known to use?”

“Sure, there were kids that smoked pot,” Logan said. “I don’t know of anyone doing major drugs like cocaine, heroin, meth, or fentanyl.”

“Me either,” Jess agreed. “Could be the potheads did other stuff too, but if so, they kept it quiet.”

“Ella would have had to get drugs from someone,” Wayne pointed out. He pushed his notebook aside to take a bite of his burger.

“The cops asked me about that back when she died.” Logan’s tone had a hard edge to it. “I told them the same thing I’m telling you now. Ella may have gone to the potheads for information related to buying drugs. That seems the most logical avenue. But I have no knowledge of that. She never used drugs with me. And I never saw her impaired from drugs.” He grimaced, and added, “I did see her drinking one night at a party. But that was the extent of the illegal activity I was aware of.”

“What party?” Jess stared at Logan. “I don’t know anything about that.”

“It was after one of the football games.” He shifted in his seat and sighed. “We argued that night. I wanted to leave; she didn’t. I felt obligated to stay to make sure she got home safely.”

“Which game?” She was trying to figure out why she hadn’t been there. Then she remembered. “It must have been the one I missed because of my sprained my knee. I remember having to sit home all weekend alternating ice and heat.”

“Yep.” Logan nodded. “I remember you weren’t around. That guy you used to date, Jerrod, was at the party, though. He seemed to be quite cozy with Nina Jenson.”

She shrugged. “Jerrod was free to cozy up to whomever he wanted. Didn’t matter to me. We were broken up by then.” She frowned, then added, “I remember that my knee was still sore at Ella’s funeral, so the party must have been what, two weeks before her death?”

“Yes, about that,” Logan agreed. “Which is exactly what I told the police back then.”

“I reviewed the police reports, and I was struck by the way you mentioned that you only saw Ella drinking that one time at the party. Not at any other after-school event.” Wayne eyed them skeptically. “Give me a break. I know high school kids, and I am convinced there must have been other parties where kids were drinking.”

“Oh, there were plenty of parties,” Jess said with a nod. “And sure, there were lots of kids who drank and smoked pot. But I wasn’t one of them. I didn’t like to get drunk.”

“And why was that?” Wayne asked.

“For me, it was a control thing.” She glanced at Logan. “I seem to remember you didn’t do much partying either.”

“You’re right, I didn’t.” Logan shrugged. “To be honest, the one time I got drunk, I was so sick the next day I thought I was going to die. Avoiding alcohol was easy after that. Just smelling it made me nauseous. And I never liked the smell of pot either. Since my goal was to fly planes, I told everyone I had to stay sober to keep my pilot’s license.” He offered a wry smile. “I preferred taking on the role of designated driver.”

Jess hadn’t known about his hangover, but it made sense.

“Lots of kids drink or do drugs to release their inhibitions.” Wayne looked from her to Logan and back. “It stands to reason that could be why Ella sought out some drugs after that night of partying.”

Logan sighed and shook his head. “That’s not the Ella I remember.”

She understood his frustration. Anything was possible, but speculating wasn’t helpful. She turned her attention to Wayne. “From what Ethan told me, Ella didn’t have the physical signs of long-term drug use.”

“I know she didn’t have needle marks or anything like that,” Logan said. “Not while we were together.”

“That’s true. I read her autopsy report,” Wayne agreed. “No needle marks or other physical evidence to indicate she used drugs. And to be honest, her brother’s death is very similar in that way, at least from what I can tell. We’ll have to wait on the autopsy results to know that for sure.”

“Are you suggesting they were murdered?” Logan’s expression was shocked.

“No.” Wayne shook his head and munched another fry. “There’s no evidence they were drugged against their will. Especially in Ella’s case, as she was at home when she overdosed. But it could be that their one and only attempt to get high resulted in the overdose that led to their deaths. Fentanyl is a hundred times stronger than heroin or meth. The reason these drug dealers are mixing fentanyl with other drugs to primarily to get people hooked so they buy more and more.” Wayne shook his head and sighed. “My theory at this point is that Ella and Ethan must have tried some pot laced with fentanyl. If the drug dealer was high himself, he may not have realized the impact fentanyl could have on someone who was a first-time user.”

“So you think this was an accidental overdose, then,” Logan said grimly. “Because a drug dealer would know that dead drug addicts don’t continue to buy product.”

“Exactly,” Wayne agreed.

“No way. I just can’t see Ethan doing that.” She couldn’t say the same about Ella. During the time her friend had been seeing Logan, their friendship had been a bit strained. She’d always thought it was strange that Ella had died at home in her own bed. “He would never touch drugs after the way he lost his sister.”

“Eight years is a long time. Ethan may have changed his mind on that front.” Wayne finished his burger, then tucked his notebook back in his breast pocket. “Thanks for meeting with me to go over these things. I appreciate your insight.”

To Jess’s mind, this had been more of an interrogation than a conversation. She and Logan had clearly been in the hot seat, forced to prove their innocence. Her appetite had faded as they’d talked.

Drugs and death.

And murder?

Wayne pulled cash from his pocket and dropped it on the table. Then he rose to his feet. His movement startled Teddy, making him scramble out from beneath the table.

“Thanks for lunch,” Logan said as the cop turned away.

“Yes, thank you.” She turned to Teddy. “Lie down. We’ll be leaving soon.”

“What do you make of that?” Logan gestured toward Wayne’s retreating figure. “He acted as if we were keeping secrets from him or something.”

“I know. Especially since he could have gotten those names of our respective classmates from the police reports that were submitted back when Ella died.” She forced herself to finish her meal since she had no idea when they’d get a chance to eat again. “I know they interviewed everyone who was close to Ella.”

“Tell me about it,” Logan muttered. “I was their prime suspect for a long time. In fact, Ethan accused me of helping Ella get the drugs.”

She winced and nodded. “I know.”

“There’s something fishy about his death,” Logan continued. “I find it hard to believe he just up and decided to try drugs. Especially something like fentanyl.”

She leaned forward, propping her elbows on the table. “Do you think Ethan was digging into something drug related and was killed to shut him up?”

“It sounds kinda crazy when you say it out loud.” He finished his burger and pushed his empty plate away. “But yeah, I do.”

She thought about that for a long moment. “Wouldn’t Ethan go to the police if he suspected drugs were being made or sold here in Cody?”

“Maybe he was looking for proof before going to the cops.” Logan frowned. “What was Ethan doing for work these days?”

“He works, or rather, worked for the general store. I saw him there a couple of weeks ago.” She abruptly stood. Teddy also scrambled to his feet as if ready to go. “Stay, Teddy.” Then to Logan, she added, “I need to use the restroom. When I’m finished, we should head over to the general store.”

“Why would we do that?” Logan frowned. “I doubt we’ll learn anything, as the police likely already questioned Ethan’s coworkers. Besides that, we’re supposed to be staying off-grid.”

He was right on both counts. Yet hearing about Ethan’s death bothered her. She totally agreed there was something off about his alleged drug overdose. “I don’t care. We’re here and the store is only a few blocks away. We can make a quick stop there before returning to the hotel.”

Logan stood. “I need to take a quick break, too, so take Teddy with you. I’ll meet you at the front door.”

“Sounds good. Come, Teddy.” She led the way to the restrooms, where they went their separate ways. She and Teddy waited near the front door for Logan. She eyed the street, hoping the gunman wasn’t lurking nearby.

There was no sign of Wayne or any other cops patrolling the streets. The Cody police department was small, and she knew full well there were only four cops on duty during the daytime. Two officers covered the night shift and weekends. The group of officers rotated between the day and night shifts, alternating every third weekend. They had some help from the state police who patrolled the highways. This wasn’t exactly a high crime area, which made her realize the four officers on duty were likely still dealing with Ethan’s death.

She wished she’d thought to ask Wayne where Ethan’s body was found.

At work? At home? Someplace else?

It made her wonder if their small police presence was the reason Benton had chosen this location for their illegal drug trade. It seemed counterintuitive, as small towns were far more aware of outsiders. It would be easier to get lost in the crowd of a big city.

But at times like this, one major crime scene could suck up the police resources, leaving the rest of the city vulnerable. Accidental or murder? It was troubling that Ethan had died so young.

And his passing made it all the more imperative that they find Benton and soon. Before anyone else suffered the same fate.

Logan joined Jess and Teddy at the main entrance to the restaurant. He didn’t like the plan of heading to the general store. “Let’s just go back to the hotel.”

“We practically have to walk by the store to get there.” She shot him a questioning glance. “What can it hurt?”

“If you ask me, there would be more information to be gained from checking out Ethan’s home than stopping by the store.” He swept his gaze over the area, then turned and led the way to the back of the restaurant to avoid the main street through town.

“He lived in his parents’ old house.” Jess grimaced. “They moved down to Arizona after Ella’s death.”

“If I remember correctly, that’s not far from here.” He eyed Teddy, knowing the dog was the best early alert system they had. “Are you up for a walk?”

“Why not?” She grinned. “Piece of cake considering how far we hiked yesterday and earlier today.”

“I’m sure the police have already searched the place, but I wouldn’t mind checking it out.” He fell in behind her.

Jess eagerly set out, with Teddy trotting alongside. She threw an arched glance at him over her shoulder. “Better than sitting and staring at each other in the hotel room.”

He flushed, silently admitting that was exactly why he’d suggested this detour. Which was ridiculous as they both deserved some downtime.

Yet here they were, heading to the home of his dead girlfriend and her now also deceased brother.

They walked in silence, taking several shortcuts the same way they had earlier. Thankfully, nobody seemed to notice.

When they reached the small neighborhood to the north, Jess stayed on the street. Teddy sniffed and occasionally lifted his leg to mark his territory.

The Dover home was on Baker Street, the second house from the corner. Seeing it after all these years was a bit of a shock. For some reason, the white cape cod–style home looked much smaller than he remembered.

“I don’t see a police officer,” Jess said in a low voice. “That’s odd, isn’t it?”

He nodded. “I expected there to be someone here. Makes me think Ethan’s body was found someplace else.”

“We should have asked Wayne about that.” Jess stood at the end of the driveway. “It looks more rundown than I remember.”

“Yeah. Doesn’t look like Ethan put much money into upkeep. At least, not on the exterior. Could be he spent his money on the inside.”

Jess glanced around, then started up the driveway. “Let’s look through the window.”

They had no business being there, but he followed her and Teddy up the driveway to the front of the small home. When Jess headed to a window, he followed. Teddy sniffed along the ground without alerting.

He took that as a good sign.

The window revealed a living room that looked exactly the way he remembered. Whatever Ethan was spending his money on, it wasn’t remodeling the house. It was creepy that Ethan had chosen to stay and live there without doing anything to change the place, knowing his sister had died in her room.

“Nothing has changed,” Jessica whispered.

“Nope.” He stepped back. “Let’s get out of here. It’s only a matter of time until the cops show up. Wayne will be more suspicious of our motives if he finds us standing here, gawking like this.”

“I haven’t been here since Ella’s passing.” Jess stepped back, bumping into Teddy who scrambled out of the way. “I can’t imagine why Ethan didn’t sell the place so he could start over someplace new.”

He thought about how he’d sold his mother’s place. He’d felt a little guilty but had known it was for the best. “Maybe we’re wrong about Ethan not doing drugs. Living here with the constant memories of Ella’s death could have changed him, and not for the better.”

“I don’t know. He seemed normal when I ran into him a few weeks ago.” She turned and stepped up to try the front door. “It’s locked.”

“Like I said, the cops will likely be here soon.” He watched as Teddy sniffed along the base of the door. “Maybe we should call Wayne and offer to use Teddy’s nose to see if there are drugs inside?”

Jess’s blue eyes widened with interest. “That’s a great idea.”

He quickly pulled out his phone and found Wayne’s number. The sergeant didn’t answer, so he left a brief message. “It’s Logan. Jess and Teddy would like to help you search Ethan’s house for drugs. Call me back.”

“Let’s start now,” Jess suggested. “Teddy can search the outside while we wait to hear from Wayne.”

“Okay.” He swept another glance around the neighborhood. It was rather quiet, maybe because it was the middle of the day during the middle of the week when most people were working.

Jess bent over Teddy. “Are you ready to work? Are you?” She injected excitement into her tone. “I need you to search. Search, Teddy. Peppers! Search for peppers!”

Teddy’s tail wagged with enthusiasm at the idea of playing the search game. The K9 made a quick circle and began to sniff along the edge of the front yard where patches of snow had melted revealing brown grass. Teddy sniffed long and hard before trotting across the yard toward the side of the house.

He and Jess followed. Logan figured the only way Teddy would alert on drugs outside the home was if a drug dealer had dropped off his product in person.

An unlikely scenario.

Still, he trailed along behind Jess and Teddy, watching with admiration as Teddy worked. The K9 was eager to please, and he wondered how the dog would handle the disappointment of not winning at the game.

Teddy spent a little extra time at the back door, clearly sifting through various scents before moving on. The dog seemed to be following some invisible trail that only he could follow.

When Teddy abruptly veered off toward the detached two-car garage, Logan’s pulse kicked up.

If they were wrong about Ethan, and the guy was buying drugs, maybe he had decided to keep them in the garage? He quickened his pace to keep up.

“Search! Search for peppers,” Jess called. Although from what Logan could tell, the K9 didn’t need extra encouragement. The way Teddy’s nose was tracking along the ground, the dog was clearly in work mode.

The dog stopped in front of the garage, sniffing along the bottom of the garage door. He was about to cross over to peer through the service door window when Teddy abruptly lifted his head to look around.

“What is it, boy?” Jess asked.

The dog’s ears pricked forward as he sniffed the air. Then he began to growl, his eyes seemingly focused on something to the left of the garage.

The gunman?

“Jess, get down!” Logan reached into his pocket for his gun as he frantically searched the area for a sign of Benton or whomever had caught Teddy’s attention. He trusted the dog’s instincts over his own. When he didn’t see anything alarming, he darted over to where Jessica and Teddy were huddled up against the right side of the garage.

Teddy’s low growling grew louder. Then he let out a series of sharp barks. The dog made such a racket he imagined any neighbors that might be home would be looking out their windows to find the source of the annoying noise.

“Where is he?” Jessica asked in a hushed tone.

“I’m not sure.” He’d expected to hear gunfire, but there was nothing above Teddy’s barking. He didn’t like the way they were out in the open. The garage didn’t offer that much protection. “Maybe Teddy scared him off.”

“I hope so,” Jess murmured.

He didn’t bother to point out that the dog hadn’t stopped the gunman from trying to kill them earlier. Before he could say anything more, the sound of police sirens filled the air. He stayed where he was, intending to protect Jessica and Teddy until he knew for sure the threat was neutralized.

Yet his thoughts whirled. This was another near miss. One of these times, they wouldn’t escape unscathed.

Was it possible one of the neighbors had spotted them snooping and had called the police?

If so, the simple act may have saved their lives.