Pete shrugged, stretching his neck. “The medical examiner’s building burned down about ten years ago with all the records.”
That was too convenient. Ruby’s killing was too ritualistic—there might be similar crimes. They needed the old records. “Okay. So, it was the county medical examiner’s office—there had to be computer backups.”
Pete rubbed his whiskered chin. “No computers. Old Riley hated them, apparently.”
“Old Riley?”
“The county coroner. He died in the fire.”
Weird. Mia mulled over the issue. “If he hated computers, my guess is he kept a backup somewhere.”
Pete shrugged. “I guess it’s possible. There are boxes of manilla files in the basement here. It’s dirty and dusty, but we can go through them tomorrow. For now, I need to double-check the messages since Loraine has been out sick for a week. Be right back.” Stretching to his feet, he ambled from the room.
Mia kicked back to view the corkboard covering one wall. It held Ruby’s picture as well as photos of all three Volk men. Against her will, her gaze kept returning to Seth’s unreadable eyes. It was almost as if the picture watched her back.
A chill swept up her arm. “Who are you?” she whispered. She’d never underestimated an opponent. Doing so could get an agent killed. But she’d never overestimated one, either. Something about Seth seemed larger than life…and it related to the timing of the case. She was off her game after everything that had happened in DC. Seth was no tougher, no smarter, no more dangerous than any other human being out there.
Those blue eyes seemed to mock her.
She’d dated a Navy Seal before. At the time, she’d thought he was a dangerous man. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
The air swished as Pete loped back into the room. “I had two messages about cats getting caught in trees. Hopefully, the callers either got ahold of the voluntary fire department, or the damn cats jumped down. I’m not heading out for cats.” The leather chair fluffed out as Pete sat. “And you’re not going to believe this, but we’ve been invited to a ball.”
“Aball?” Mia wrinkled her nose.
“Yes. I was on the phone earlier with my friend Spike, the Seattle coroner, and he mentioned the mayor having a ball tomorrow night. I asked if we could get tickets, and he just left a message saying he got them for us. The Volk men should be there, and I figured we could get a bead on them away from their little fiefdom here.” Pete waggled his eyebrows up and down. “Whaddya say, Cinderella?”
She sat back in the chair. “Well, it’d be nice to observe the Volks in public and see how they interact. It’d also be really interesting to see their reaction to finding us on their turf.” She already knew they wouldn’t like seeing her or the sheriff in Seattle, where they no doubt let down their hair.
“Exactly.We’re watching you…” Pete snorted. “Rich assholes.”
Maybe Benjamin and Erik. But Seth seemed anything but wealthy. Lost, maybe. Though tickets to something like that usually cost a bundle. “How is Spike getting us tickets?”
“Spike’s granddaughter is the mayor’s social planner.” Pete scooted papers together into a nice pile, his thick hands wrinkling several pieces. “So? We goin’?”
“Yeah. We’re going.” The sudden rush of adrenaline she felt had nothing to do with the idea of seeing Seth in a social setting. What would the handsome man look like in a suit, anyway? Like a rough James Bond? “By the way, the waitress earlier thought I should leave you to do your job and basically told me to get out of town. Her name tag saidMandy. I guess you have a fan.”
Pete shook his head. “No kidding? You’d be talking about Mandy Fulsome, who was Ruby Redbird’s second cousin.”
Mia stilled. “Interesting that neither Mandy nor Seth mentioned that at lunch. In fact, when I asked Mandy if she knew Ruby, she said, ‘not really.’ The girl lied to me.” More importantly, Seth hadn’t corrected the girl. Why would he have let that lie stand? It was easy enough to find out the truth. “It’s odd she lied, right?”
Pete shrugged. “Not really, considering you’re an outsider here. So am I, but apparently, Mandy is thinking I can solve a crime—which is an improvement for me, at least. If you want, I could bring her in for questioning about why she lied to you. Maybe she knows something about Ruby’s murder. Or at least about Ruby’s life before she died.”
“No. She won’t break. She’s more loyal to this town or the Volks than she would be to you or me, and bringing her in formally would only make her angry or scared or both.” Mia bit her lip and glanced at her watch. “Tomorrow, I want to head over to that bar where Ruby was last seen and check things out. For now, I need to get going. Maybe I’ll try to track Mandy down first to talk to her in an informal setting. Where do the teenagers hang out in this town, anyway?”
“Same diner. They can’t go to the bar, so they hang out in the back room there. There are some dartboards and an air hockey table.” Pete stood and shifted his belly over his belt. “Want me to go with you?”
“No. I’ll approach her woman-to-woman.” Then Mia needed to get home to her mom. Darkness still scared the older woman. Standing, Mia glanced again at the photo of Ruby staked to the ground. “The handcuffs have significance.”
“Probably.” Pete reached into his back pocket and tossed a pair to her. “You’re on the payroll as a deputy—you’ll need cuffs. Just in case.” Then he opened a drawer and drew out the Glock 21. “You have a holster?”
“Yes.”
He handed it over.
“Thanks. I’ll let you know how it goes with Mandy.” Mia checked the weapon and then slid it into her waistband. Then she headed through the quiet office and outside to the deserted street. Thunder rolled in the distance as the wind scattered dead leaves around her boots. Fall was fading to winter too quickly. She drew her blazer tighter around her body. Sighing, she walked past dark storefronts for three blocks until she reached the diner, its neon blue sign glowing through the sudden murk. A storm was headed their way.
She ignored the cold and walked around the building to the rear exit. Several cars were parked on the dirt, their metal shining under a strong streetlight. A laundromat to the north and a bank to the south also backed up to the makeshift parking area. She glanced at the ATM and the bank building. Had Pete requested surveillance tapes? It was something to check out the next day.
