He hadn’t done much.Just said what he could to reassure her, explaining base protocol during a rocket attack, and telling her repeatedly that Finn would be okay.“Yeah, of course.You know I’ll always be here for you.”The same way she was always there for him.He was a lucky man, and he knew it.
Twenty minutes later, he turned his SUV off the main highway and took the feeder route up into the hills south of town, his windshield wipers swishing back and forth to clear the steady rain falling from the leaden clouds.
Noah’s sheriff’s vehicle was parked on the street at the base of the driveway.Ryder found him waiting up top at the front steps, rain dripping off the brim of his sheriff’s hat.“Thanks for coming.Forensics are inside now, but I’m not going to be able to get down to the station for a while yet.”
So it was a murder then.“No problem.”He looked at the sagging, dilapidated cottage.“You ID the victim yet?”
“Michael Vanderbilt.From Nevada originally.We’re still trying to notify next of kin.Thing is, we found this inside.”He held out a bag of pale blue pills in a sealed evidence bag.
“They’re exactly the same as the ones planted in Cassie’s car.”
Noah nodded.“There’re more inside.Along with weed and cocaine.We don’t think he’s a dealer.There’s not enough product or cash here.Looks more like this was his personal stash.”
“Does he match the profile of the suspect who planted them in Cassie’s vehicle?”
“Our initial analysis indicates it could be him.We’ll need to verify that, but with our limited resources it’s gonna take a while.”
The look Noah was giving him made it plain enough to Ryder.He wanted CPS to run its own check on Michael Vanderbilt and see what they could find.“Got it.”
“Sir.”A female deputy exited the front door and came down the rotten wooden steps toward them.“We found this in the bedroom closet.”She handed over a cell phone.
Noah took it in his gloved hands and turned it on.“It’s not encrypted, but it’s definitely a burner.”He pulled up the text messages.Stopped and turned the screen to face Ryder.
He found himself looking at a picture of Cassie getting into her car in front of her house.His mouth tightened.Sonofabitch.“I’ll call her myself, have her go into the station.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Ryder got back into his vehicle, shot off a series of texts to Callum, Walker, and their IT department.This ended now.He wanted to know exactly who Michael Vanderbilt was, and rip his life apart so they could find out whoever was behind this bullshit.
Then he called Cassie.
Chapter Sixteen
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Cassie walked intothe far-too-familiar reception area of the Sheriff’s Office and found Ryder waiting there for her.He hadn’t told her why she needed to meet him here, just that it was something related to her case.
