Just as we entered Briar Falls, I found a spot and pulled over. “Okay. I’m going to make a call.” I gave her a stern look. “You’re not here. No matter what.”
Hitting dial on Casper’s contact, I let it ring. It was a Sunday, but Casper had no social life, so I was pretty sure he’d answer. The guys always gave him shit about it, but Casper was a great cop.
“I thought you forgot my number,” he deadpanned.
“I thought you forgotmine.” It had been maybe two months since I invited him fishing, and he’d declined.
“Maybe I did. What’s up? Did you need help cutting down a tree?” Hattie looked like she was about to start laughing at any second.
“Why does everyone always think I just cut down trees because I mill my own damn lumber? It’s responsible forestry.” I threw a hand through my hair and rolled my eyes at Hattie. “I’m actually calling about work if you have a minute.”
“What you got?”
“Well, I have a tenant at my cabins now.” I let Casper give me the necessary ribbing while Hattie listened, a red flush creeping up the back of my neck. “Anyway … she’s the host ofThe J & J Hour, which is …”
“Oh? That’s Hattie Harper, right? I listened to a few of her podcasts a while ago. Not recently, since I’ve just been slammed. She’s here in Oregon?”
“Yep.” My eyebrows shot up. It was the last response I was expecting from Casper. I hadn’t had many chances to work on cases with him, but we clicked enough that we’d grab lunch together during training at the academy, and we’d maintained a steady, if casual, friendship since then. We respected each other, and I liked him. “She’s working on a cold case in the Briar Falls area. Allison Finch.”
“You think Hattie’s got something? Why?” There wasn’t any condemnation in Casper’s tone; it was his investigator voice. He wanted facts. “Tell me about this case.”
Starting with the basics, I reviewed Allison Finch’s disappearance and her relationship with her husband. Then I went over the bank account, the cam work, and her last known movements.
“Seems skimpy. What do the locals say?”
“Well, the local chief of police is Dale Galloway, and he doesn’t always color in the lines if you get my drift. Iwon’t be the first to throw stones, and generally he does his job, but this time around the car didn’t even get processed.” Casper gave a low whistle. “And he didn’t call in SAR.”
“Connection to the victim on the cam site?” he asked.
“I’m wondering, but there is some…” I cleared my throat. “Alleged information that the son did some chatting on the cam site behind a fake profile. Also, the son, Barry Galloway, is friends with the victim’s husband.”
This was a hot mess from a legal perspective. The information on the cam site all needed to go through proper channels. It wasn’t admissible. Casper went ahead to say as much, and then added, “But the car … the car is a starting point. If the podcast has started to open this can of worms, then let’s use that. She already kicked the hornet’s nest, so I’ll get a team to pick up the car. Where’s it at?”
I gave him the specifics for Kennard’s and let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “Thank you, Casper. I really appreciate it.”
“Man, isn’t that what we’re here for? If this woman’s case didn’t get the fair look it deserved, then it’s our job to make sure it does, even if it pisses some people off. Fuck this guy. If he didn’t do his paperwork, that’s too bad, and if he did worse, then he gets what he deserves.”
Hattie was practically vibrating in her seat next to me, joy glowing as she had an arm thrown over Fish and her eyesshining. I had wondered throughout the conversation if she would be upset that her investigation was being preempted by OSP, but she looked thrilled.
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”
“I’ll keep you posted, and hey. I want to meet her.”
I laughed. “You couldn’t even keep her away, but I’m guessing if you listened to her podcasts, you already know that. Talk to you later, man.”
CHAPTER 30
Hattie
The case wasn’t going to be mine anymore if OSP was going to step in, and as soon as Chief Galloway figured it out, everything was going to get complicated. I’d put Kipp into a bad position by even agreeing to have him with me, but he’d really helped. Bringing in his friend was the fast track to getting the car processed, and I believed with all my heart that something was missed there. Maybe they’d find something.
“Thank you for calling him. I know it wasn’t exactly an easy spot that I put you in.”
“I’m glad he was willing to step in, and he’s right. That’s what we do. Allison deserves justice. You’ve been working to get it for her. The least we can do is support that.”
Leaning toward me, he pressed his lips to mine and sank into me, reminding me of our earlier conversation. Heatblossomed between my thighs, and I shifted toward him, clutching his shirt.
“We could take this back home.” His lips drifted down my neck, tongue licking against my skin, sending sparks and giving me goosebumps in the best way. “But we are due for Sunday dinner.”
