I ground my teeth. “That means our killer is probably still out there, looking for their next victim.”
“All too possible.” Dr. Stowe’s gaze drifted toward Boone. “Are you going to ask him to bring the victims’ souls back? I hate to say it, but that might be the quickest way to a resolution, and if this perpetrator is still active, then time is not on our side.” Sweeping a hand across the landscape, Dr. Stowe added, “Who knows if this is the only dump site. There could be more out there we don’t know about. Perhaps something fresher than this.”
Nausea bubbled up from deep within my chest. Dr. Stowe was right. “I’ll check with Captain Cicely, but I doubt she’ll have an issue about Boone doing his thing.”
“And Necromancer Boone?”
I tilted my head toward Dr. Stowe. “Boone won’t have an issue doing it either.” There was absolutely zero doubt in my mind.
“Okay.” Dr. Stowe offered me a tired smile. “I’m off to the morgue. I’ll drop off our latest customers and be back in thirty, maybe forty minutes.
“See you soon.”
Dr. Stowe patted my shoulder before walking away. She took her assistant and one officer with her. While we could use more help, I happily sent Officer Grayson as backup. While he hadn’t said anything else to Boone, I’d caught more than a few narrowed looks sent Boone’s way. I’d also seen Grayson back away, as if being in Boone’s general vicinity was toxic.
“Idiot,” I mumbled while happily watching Grayson’s taillights fade into the distance.
Carefully walking across the grassy weeds, I made my way to Boone. He was staring down at what appeared to be an undisturbed plot of weedy land.
“Is that our next one?” I asked, placing an arm across his shoulders and pulling him in tight. Boone leaned into my touch, and I felt a full-body shiver race through him.
“It is, but…”
“But what?”
“I’m not sure. This one feels different somehow. I haven’t reached out to them yet so I can’t tell you a lot more than that.”
“Different as in not human?”
“No. They’re human. I do get enough to know that. It’s just… There’s so much anger and fear emanating from the others, but this one is…I wouldn’t say peaceful, but they aren’t furious either. If I had to guess, I’d say they’re sad.”
“I’d be sad too if someone murdered me.”
Boone elbowed me in the gut. “Of course you would, but you’d be other things too, and those feelings would far outshine the sadness.”
I considered Boone’s words and found I couldn’t disagree. “I’d be pissed.”
“No doubt. And that’s the first and most overriding emotion I’d notice. That’s why this one is different.”
I was starting to understand. “I think I get it. I don’t know how that fits in or what it means.”
“Neither do I. I’m just saying it’s different from the others.”
“This where we’re digging next?” Johns asked. When I looked his way, the man appeared haggard and worn. Dirt covered every exposed piece of skin and coated his clothing.
I reached for the shovel. “This is where I’m digging next. You are going to go sit in your car and take a break.”
Johns kept the shovel just out of my reach. “I’m good. I can keep going.”
“I know youcan, but what I’m saying is you don’t have to. I can step in for a while. You’re not a machine. You need a break, Johns.” I knew the moment Johns gave in.
“You’re tired too.”
“I am, but not physically. You’ve been doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Reinforcements should be here in the next hour. Two at the most. You’ve done enough.” I reached for the shovel, and this time Johns didn’t pull it away.
Something akin to anger flashed across Johns’s deep brown eyes. “We’ve got six dead here. That makes me think I haven’t done nearly enough.”
Laying my hand on his shoulder, I squeezed, offering what support I could. “Trust me, I understand. We can’t go back in time. What we can do is stop this fucker now that we know.”
