He nudged my shoulder with his own as he came to a stop beside me. He was smaller than me in both height and width, but not by much. “You hear about that friend of yours?”
I frowned, watching as the skidder pulled the logs we’d bucked through the forest, heading toward the roadside, where they’d be picked up and taken back to the lumber mill. Johnny was in the skidder today, and we’d already said hello earlier, so he was focused hard on the job, moving the machinery with expertise.
“Who?” I didn’t have many friends, though I had a lot of acquaintances. To my left, the loader rumbled as it moved our bucked logs into a better spot for Johnny.
“The guy who used to visit you at the trailer. You said he was a buddy. Randy?”
My frown deepened as I glanced at him. “Roger?”
“Yeah, him.”
I grabbed Thorley’s arm and guided him back as Mitch moved through with the loader. We wore reflective vests to make sure everyone in the machinery could see us, but it was best to always keep an eye on our surroundings, unless we wanted to be crushed roadkill.
“What about him?” I rolled my shoulders again to get rid of the ache before I tugged out my phone to check the time. We could punch out for the day and I was ready to go. Zayn hadgiven me money for an Uber home and told me he was going to buy me a car. I’d argued because I was no sugar baby or whatever the fuck they were called, but he’d insisted it was better for me to have my own vehicle in case I needed to pick up Ginny. How was I supposed to argue with that?
“He’s dead.”
I froze as soon as the words left Thorley’s mouth. My heart punched against my sternum, leaving me breathless for a moment. I blinked at him. “Dead?”
He nodded eagerly, excited about the prospect of telling me. “Yeah. Shit, man, you need to check the news. It was gruesome.”
A loud whistle sliced through the air and the machinery’s engines cut for the day. Johnny and the newbie in the loader shoved open their doors and climbed down, heading toward us.
“Fuck yeah, homeward bound!” Thorley didn’t give me a chance to ask more questions. If the man loved anything, it was clock-out time. He was the first one to grab his shit and leave. I watched him, a thousand questions filling my head.
Roger was dead? How?
That was the last news I’d expected to hear.
Johnny slapped me on the shoulder as he reached me. “You ready to go, man? Another day done.”
I gave him a small smile and let him lead me to the transport vehicle. The driver, Ed, drove us toward the lumber mill. As desperate as I was to ask Thorley more questions, he sat at the front of the bus with another one of his buddies. The only seats left for me and Johnny were in the back. Johnny talked the entire way, but I barely heard a word he said. I pulled out my phone, searchingRoger Postman. A few articles came up, and the first link I clicked on gave me basic info. He’d been murdered, according to the report. Stabbed to death in his home last night. The next link had even less details.
Johnny leaned over me to look at my screen. “Oh, you into true crime? There’s a podcast I listen to.The Final Chapter with Riot Page. Pretty fucking awesome. If there’s a murder, he digs in right away. He gets more facts than the news does. Don’t know how.” He laughed. “It drives the cops crazy. He won’t tell them how he gets his info.”
“I don’t think he’d have much. The murder I’m interested in happened last night.” I shrugged. A sense of numbness swept through me as I stared down at my phone again. It was hard to believe Roger was dead and someone had gone into his house and killed him. I hated Roger. He’d made me feel stupid and worthless, and it shouldn’t be strange to me that someone wanted him dead, but it was.
Johnny elbowed me in the side, catching my ribs. “Just check it out. Page is on top of murders fast as fuck. And he’s in New Gothenburg. If there’s been a murder and it’s interesting, he’s got something out. Trust me. I swear the weird fuck doesn’t sleep.”
“Fine.” I opened Google and typed in the podcast name he’d given me. As soon as the right result came up, I clicked on it and went to Riot’s page. I froze as Roger’s name stared back at me on Riot’s newest podcast, which had only been uploaded two hours ago. My thumb hovered over the title before I sucked it up and tapped it. I yanked out my earbuds from my pants pocket and shoved them in my ears. The drive back to the lumber mill was about fifteen minutes, and then I had the Uber ride from work to Zayn’s house. That gave me ample time to listen.
“Hellooo, and welcome back to another momentous hour ofThe Final Chapter with Riot Page. I’m your host, the one and only Riot! And yes, that is my real name. Blame my father, who, after having seven children before me, ran out of ideas.”
I snorted. Eight children? Fuck that. Ginny was enough to handle and she was a single little girl. Settling into my seat, Ifocused on the soft yet confident tone of the podcaster. His voice was deep and soothing, and I could see why it was so easy to listen to him.
“Now, let’s start with our newest murder in New Gothenburg. It only happened last night, so why is this crime scene interesting? Because of how gruesome it was. This wasn’t a simple murder. No, friends, this was a message of anger and violence. I’m going to start by setting the scene.”
I swallowed, shifting uncomfortably.
“New Gothenburg. Despite being known for its criminal enterprises, it’s a beautiful city. Quiet and accepting. It has one of the country’s biggest LGBTQ plus populations. And on this quiet, late summer night, Roger Postman didn’t think he had anything to worry about. He was dressed in his bathrobe, fresh from a shower, lying on his bed watching his favorite movie—Love, John.”
I held back a snort. That didn’t sound like Roger at all. He hated romance movies. It would’ve made more sense if he was watching porn. If there was one thing he did love, it was getting off.
“Roger worked as a bank teller. He was single and had no love interests. According to his coworkers, he preferred a quiet night at home over anything more extravagant. He was a hard worker and a beloved family member. His parents spoke of his kind heart and gentle soul.”
Funny what people said about a man once he was dead. I didn’t see them telling the truth, what he wasreallylike. The bus came to a stop, and we filed out the door. I paused the podcast and gave Johnny a nod as I moved toward my locker. Once I had my personal gear, I ordered an Uber and went to sit out front of the lumber mill.
I hit Play.
