We had just eaten dinner and were now relaxing. My phone buzzed on the table beside us, bringing me out of my peaceful thoughts.
“Son of a…” I muttered at seeing Jennings’s name on the screen.
“What’s wrong?” I answered the call.
I was off the clock, so there had to be a good reason for them to call, and it better be, because I was enjoying myself right now.
“Boss, someone called in a report that there was a person digging near the former crime scene of the body, so Lewis and I went to check it out,” Jennings started. “Sure enough we found someone doing exactly that. I’ve got him in cuffs, but the guy claims he will only speak to you.”
“You got a name?” I asked, though I had a feeling I knew exactly who it was.
“Yeah, it’s Diden’s stupid podcast dude,” he grumbled.
Bingo.
While I hated having to leave Iris, I had hoped this would happen so we could bring him in for questioning and get some information out of him. The trespassing charge he was about to get would allow me to question him.
“I’ll call the ISB and meet you over there,” I told him. “Do not do anything or say anything else to him until I get there.”
“He’s cuffed in the back of my vehicle, so he’s not going anywhere,” Jennings added, and I could hear the slight smile in his voice. “And Lewis went to block the gated entrance so no one else can get in.”
I hung up and turned to Iris, but she spoke before I had the chance to.
“It’s okay. I’ll hold down the fort and keep Sarge company.” She smiled and waved her hands to shoo me away.
I stood from my chair before putting my hands on either side of her chair and leaning down to kiss her.
“I’m sorry, but thank you,” I told her. “Hopefully, this won’t take long.”
She put her hands on each side of my face and pulled me back for another kiss, and once again, I hated that I had to leave.
“Even if it does, I’ll still be here when you get back. Don’t worry about Sarge and me. We’ll have a great time snuggling on the couch or maybe go for a quick walk.”
I gave her one last kiss, a longer one this time to hold me over, and then reluctantly left her, grabbing my keys, badge, and gun, before heading out.
On my drive there, I realized how much my life had changed since Iris became a part of it.
A month ago, I never would have minded leaving home to do work-related stuff, even after hours. Now, though, with Iris in my life, I found myself looking for every excuse possible to come home earlier to see her.
By the time I pulled into the lot, I was growing moreagitated by the minute, simply because I had to be here. However, I also knew this was what Agent Andrews and I had hoped for, which was why I’d called her on my way here to let her know.
She planned to meet me there as soon as she could, though it would take longer since she lived farther away. She’d told me I had until she arrived to continue with our plan, and then she would take him into custody.
I waved to Lewis, and he let me in. Lewis was semi-retired and only worked part-time for us, but he was great.
“Hey, man,” I said as I pulled up next to him.
“Hey, Madeira,” he replied. “Found him knee-deep in the water with some digging tools. He claims you told him he could be here and that digging for scientific samples is allowed. However, he conveniently left his permits at home.”
It was true that you could collect samples from a national park as a scientist for research, but you had to have very specific permits for that, and generally the permits only allowed you to collect from a particular area. There was no way in hell I would approve a permit for digging in the area near a former crime scene, so this man didn’tforgethis permits—he didn’t have any.
“Thanks, man,” I told him. “The ISB will be here soon, so they’ll want your statement too.”
He nodded, and I continued my way through the gravel lot until I pulled up to the other two Park Service SUVs.
When I pulled up, it was to see Diden and Jennings verbally sparring.
Jesus, I did not need this.
