“So both of these men could have been killed and buried around the same time?” she said.
“It’s possible, yes.”
Voices were heard down the hallway.
Dr. Dean glanced at his watch. “If you don’t have any more questions at this time, I need to get to another appointment.”
“Of course. Thank you, Dr. Dean,” said Katie.
“Always lovely seeing you both,” he said as he left the room.
Katie was still reeling from the information the doctor had given them. At least they now had solid findings. She hoped the horrific details they’d learned would help fill in some of the blanks in the investigation.
Once they returned to the car, Katie asked her partner, “What do you think?”
“I think I won’t sleep for a week.”
Katie raised her eyebrows. “I’ve never heard of such a brutal murder. Three layers of torture! And it does raise questions.”
“I’ll say.”
“Like, how the different murders were of different types and level of force—one bullet to the skull as opposed to that awful torture.”
“Maybe the killer had a lifetime of hatred and rage for Bruce Collins,” said McGaven.
Katie nodded. “That would assist with the killer profile, but what about the others?”
“Collateral damage?”
“It’s a possibility.” Katie thought about the potential reasons for the murders. “Or there could be more than one killer,” she said.
“Or a family of killers.”
The detectives got in the car.
Katie paused before turning the engine over. “You may have something there.”
“What do you mean? Family of killers?”
“I can’t help but think about those photos of Meredith and Misty. They looked so happy and seemed like a typical mother and daughter. The interview Ventura had with Griffin about his niece was loving and caring. How could this family have been targeted by a murderer or murderers? How could one of them be a murderer?”
“Maybe someone snapped in the heat of the moment and someone else got revenge?” suggested McGaven.
Katie nodded. “So Bruce Collins killed his wife and daughter, and then Ian Griffin kills Collins for killing his sister? Maybe his rage got the better of him and could explain the torture? I know it sounds far-fetched but it could happen—and does…”
“So by that theory, who killed Griffin?” said McGaven.
“That’s the real and underlying question. I think it’s the person who has been following the investigation and who most likely rigged that trap.”
“We need to dig more.”
“Yep,” said Katie. “Just like Buck said, we need to trace the family tree beginning with Bruce Collins. The brutality of his death could be a key to all this.”
TWENTY-TWO
Wednesday 1600 hours
Katie and McGaven decided to go back to their office to regroup and update the murder board. Since they hadn’t heard from John yet, they wanted to make all the clues and information they had found count. McGaven was deep into checking backgrounds in more depth, while Katie updated the board with the information that Dr. Dean had given them. She also found photographs of people of interest and placed their pictures across the board. Looking at all the faces, eye to eye, helped to make her feel more connected to them, as if she and each person were in the same room.
