Page 34 of The Creekside Murder (Pacific Northwest Forensics #1)

Chapter One

The ringtone pealed persistently. With a muttered oath, Veda Campion snaked an arm from beneath the covers to grope for the phone on the nightstand. Shoving aside the quilt, she glanced at the screen. Her brother’s name shocked her awake, and she sprang up in bed.

“Nate? What’s wrong? Has something happened to Mom?”

His voice boomed back reassuringly. “Relax. She’s fine as far as I know. I had dinner with her early last evening.”

“Thank God.” They were all still on edge since their mother’s heart attack six months ago. Veda leaned back against the headboard and swiped tangles from her face as she frowned into the darkness. “Then, why are you calling at two in morning?”

“Did you forget you’re the acting coroner until Dr. Bader gets back from vacation?”

“No, of course I didn’t forget. I’m still half-asleep, is all.

” Actually, her temporary position really had slipped her mind.

She blamed the memory lapse on exhaustion and a lingering irritation that she’d been so easily manipulated by her former mentor.

Dr. Bader had been persistent about his future plans for her despite her objections to the contrary.

She had no interest in returning to her hometown on a permanent basis.

Yet somehow her unpaid leave from the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office had turned into a resignation, and the next thing she knew she’d signed a short-term lease on a furnished bungalow in Milton, Mississippi, while she contemplated her next career move.

“Veda? You still with me?”

The question dragged her back into the conversation. “Yes, I’m here. What’s going on?”

“A body was found in Cedarville Cemetery earlier tonight. A group of partying teenagers called it in.” His tone subtly shifted as tension hardened his delivery.

He was no longer her older brother but instead a seasoned police detective following protocol.

“We can’t finish processing the scene until you come out here and take charge of the body. ”

She swung her legs over the side of the bed, adrenaline already starting to pump. “You’ve kept the area clean?”

“Relatively speaking. The first responders set up a perimeter and established an entry point, and we’ve limited the number of personnel we’re letting through the gates.

Even so, forensics is going to be a bear on this one.

Those kids left footprints all over the damn place.

The more time goes by, the greater the chance for contamination. ”

“Did they touch the body?”

“They swear they didn’t, but those footprints tell a different story. I wouldn’t be surprised if they texted close-ups of the victim to some of their friends. We’ll be damn lucky if the images don’t turn up on social media.”

Veda nodded absently as she rose. With the phone pressed to her ear, she strode across the room and started pulling clothes from her closet with one hand. “You think it’s a homicide?”

“Officially, that’s for you to determine, but we’ve got a male Caucasian shot in the back of the head. So yeah, I’d say we’re definitely dealing with a homicide.” Nate lowered his voice as if wary of being overheard. “Brace yourself. The victim is Tony Redmond.”

Veda froze, one hand still grasping the phone, the other a clean pair of jeans. She let the jeans fall to the floor. “Are you sure?”

“Pretty damn sure, even though he’s lying facedown in the dirt.”

She closed her eyes and said on a breath, “My God, Nate.”

“I know. I wasn’t expecting to start my week like this.”

“Start your week?”

“Check the calendar. It’s officially Monday morning.”

“You say he was found prone?” Veda took a moment to collect her composure before asking the obvious questions. “ You didn’t touch him, did you? You didn’t roll him over?”

“Didn’t have to. I recognized his tattoos.”

She went back over to the bed and sat down on the edge as she tried to wrap her head around the news.

Her sister’s killer shot dead in the same cemetery where Lily had been laid to rest seventeen years ago.

Veda didn’t know how to react. She had an odd sense of relief—a lightness—that left her feeling ashamed.

They were talking about a human being, after all. A son, a brother.

Then dread descended. Justice might have been served, but by whom?

Her heart started to pound, and her mouth went suddenly dry. She swallowed and tried to calm her racing pulse. “You haven’t been alone with the body, have you, Nate?”

He sounded annoyed. “Do you even need to ask that question? Give me some credit.”

“I know. I know. I just don’t want anything coming back on you. On any of us. This is tricky, given our history with Tony Redmond.”

“You don’t need to worry about me. The officers who responded to the call were still on the scene when I arrived. As soon as I recognized the victim, I alerted the chief. He’s already assigned another detective to take lead.”

She noted his use of their uncle’s title rather than his first name.

Probably her brother’s way of trying to subvert any notion of favoritism within the police department.

He wouldn’t like having his credentials called into question.

“That’s for the best, I suppose, though I doubt the gesture will appease the Redmonds.

Conflict of interest in this town goes all the way to the top.

None of us should be anywhere near this case. You, me or Marcus.”

“It is what it is,” Nate said. “We’re small-town law enforcement. Our resources and manpower are limited. We don’t have the luxury of picking and choosing our cases. You’re the only coroner we’ve got until Dr. Bader returns from his trip.”

“He’ll be back first thing in the morning. This morning. You couldn’t have waited a few hours?” she added with a note of sarcasm.

“You’ll have to talk to the killer about his timing. If it’s any consolation, I did try Dr. Bader’s number. He’s not picking up.”

Veda took another breath, still with that anvil of dread hanging over her head. Her hand slipped to her throat as unwelcome images streamed from a dark corner of her subconscious. She didn’t want to think such thoughts, but she couldn’t seem to shut off the spigot. “Has his family been notified?”

“Not yet. We’re waiting for the official death pronouncement.”

She turned on the bed so that she could stare out the window. She had a sudden notion of red eyes watching her from the darkness. Nothing but fantasy, of course. There were no demons in downtown Milton, Mississippi. Only murderers.

“What a sad and sordid ending to Tony Redmond’s story,” she murmured.

“He’s been out of prison for only a few weeks, and now this.

In spite of everything, I can’t help feeling sorry for his mother.

She finally got her son back only to lose him for good this time.

I can only imagine how hard his death will hit her. ”

“You and I don’t have to imagine, do we?” Rather than an angry comeback, Nate’s response seemed measured. “We saw what Lily’s murder did to our own mother. She’ll never get over it. None of us will.”

Veda frowned at his tone. He sounded calm, yet she knew his emotions had to be in turmoil like hers.

Lily’s killer dead after all these years.

Shot in the back of the head by an as-yet unknown assailant.

Was it justice or revenge? Or completely unrelated to their sister’s murder, as Veda fervently hoped?

For some reason, Nate’s low-key delivery only deepened her unease.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

She was reluctant to explain her concern. “You’re saying all the right things, but you sound…odd. Almost too cool under the circumstances.”

She could imagine his shrug on the other end. “What do you expect? I’ve been doing this job for a long time. I know how to handle myself. I’m not about to let my emotions or personal animus toward the victim and his family get in the way of doing what has to be done. I’m better than that.”

“I know you are.”

“But between us? Between you and me?” He paused for a long moment as if debating on how much he would allow to slip through the cracks. “I won’t be losing any sleep over what happened out here tonight. As far as I’m concerned, Tony Redmond got what was coming to him.”

“You probably shouldn’t say that, even to me,” she cautioned. “The Redmonds will be looking for any excuse to point fingers.”

“I said what we’re both thinking. As for his family, they moved heaven and earth to get that creep out of prison.

Jon Redmond became an attorney for the sole purpose of working on his brother’s appeal.

Then he had the nerve to come back here and run for DA so that he could make sure the charges wouldn’t be refiled once he got Tony released.

He played the long game, and it backfired on him tonight.

I bet he’ll wish in hindsight he’d left well enough alone.

If Tony had been behind bars where he belonged, he’d still be alive. ”

“That’s harsh, Nate.”

“It’s the truth. Isn’t that what you wanted to hear?”

“Maybe, but let’s be honest. Would either of us have done any different in Jon Redmond’s shoes?”

“Luckily, we don’t need to wonder because our brother didn’t kill anyone.”

Veda found herself shivering despite the summer heat. She tried to ignore the suffocating chill, but an ugly premonition had been slithering closer and closer from the moment she’d answered Nate’s call.

She fell silent, loath to give credence to the terrible thoughts running through her head. But she needed to be candid with Nate so that he could dispel her doubts. “Speaking of our brother, when was the last time you spoke with Owen?”

Nate’s voice sharpened. “Why?”

“When did you last see him?” she pressed.

“Don’t go there,” he warned.

She tightened her grip on the phone. “I don’t want to, but how can I not after everything that’s happened?”

“Damn it, Veda Louise.”

“Don’t Veda Louise me. Whether you want to admit it or not, Owen could be in big trouble.”