“That would be good. I’m sure Bryn has enough bad stuff in his head already.”
“I’m right here, guys,” Bryn spoke from the back seat.
“You should be sleeping,” Gunnar snapped. “And he’s not wrong.”
“True. Are we there yet?”
“You did not just say that!”
Bryn chuckled. “What can I say? I live to make your world a better place.”
Chapter Seventeen
It was four days before the team heard any news about Dave Frederics. Agent Bell visited the GRC in person to give them an update so they convened in the conference room. Bryn’s ripped black jeans and scuffed boots contrasted with Emmett’s latest ensemble of navy chinos paired with a pale blue, diamond-patterned sweater-vest, blue shirt and a fancy yellow bowtie. Gunnar had on his usual faded jeans and a checked flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He’d forgone his bun for a loose ponytail. Bryn found it hard to look at him without drooling. So far, there had been no repeat of the kiss in the hospital parking lot and Bryn was on the verge of drastic action.Maybe I should walk out of my room naked with a sign around my neck saying ‘horny and desperate’, that might work.He held back a sigh and switched his focus to the room.
“Ooh, pastries!” Refreshments had arrived and he hadn’t noticed. He reached for a cherry Danish and Emmett circled the table pouring coffee for everyone. “You should visit more often, Bell. They’ve rolled out the good stuff for you,” Bryn said, munching happily.
“Glad to be of service.” Bell took a seat. “I have news. Dave Frederics’ body was recovered from a car wreck this morning. It happened near Wareham and he appears to have driven off a bridge into the Agawam River near Route 25. We don’t know exactly when, but the ME estimates time of death being the night after we interviewed the Walmart suspects. The car was discovered submerged and overturned in the river. A dive team had to recover the body.”
“Did the crash kill him or the water?” Gunnar asked.
“He had head injuries but suspected cause of death is drowning. We’ll know for sure after the postmortem.”
“So he made a run for it,” Bryn said.
“We found his DNA all over the kill site,” Bell said. “Though not on any weapons. There weren’t any knives there so he could have removed them. We’ll keep looking. The only other traces were from three of the victims. Obviously, Betty-Jo was never taken there. I would have preferred to take him to trial.”
Bryn nodded. “On to new things then, I suppose.”
“Just the paperwork to clear on this one now.”
“It’s a bit of a letdown, isn’t it?” Bryn said. “All that work and we never actually caught him. He caught himself.”
“It happens,” Gunnar said. “At least we know he won’t be hurting anyone else. Is there any news on Everard Templeton, Bell?”
“I’m afraid not. He’s vanished into thin air. He was one step ahead of us from the start. I’m convinced he had help, possibly from inside the FBI. You didn’t hear that from me.”
“He’ll show himself eventually,” Gunnar said. “He’s too arrogant to stay hidden for long.”
“Maybe he’ll drive off a bridge too.” Bryn grabbed another pastry. “That would work for me.”
“We’ll do our best to find him, Bryn.”
“I know you will.”Doesn’t mean you’ll catch him, though.
“In the meantime, we have work to do so we’d better get back to it.” Gunnar shoved his chair back. “Nice to see you, Bell. Thanks for coming over in person.”
Once they were back in the office, Bryn found it hard to settle. “You were quiet down there, Emmett. Anything wrong?”
“Oh…no. It’s not my place to say.”
“Of course it is,” Gunnar said. “What’s on your mind?”
“Well, I’m probably being silly because I’m not a detective and I don’t have much experience with these things but…don’t you think Dave Frederics’ death was a bit too convenient?”
That piqued Bryn’s interest. “What do you mean?”
“Well, it all seems a bit easy for a killer who was so complex. All the history stuff…wouldn’t you have thought someone like that would have an escape plan if he thought the net was closing in on him?”
