“It gets worse.” Olivia sighed. “The chief had the visitors log, and my name was on it. Now, he thinks I played a part in his escape.”
“You went to see your dad?” Jake’s voice softened.
“I was going to. After Aunt Evie died, I thought…” She blew out a loud breath. “I don’t know what I was thinking. I guess I wanted some answers, so I went to see him. I signed in and got as far as the first lot of security checks before I freaked out. Had a massive panic attack and ran the other way. I never saw or spoke with him. I don’t even think he knew I was there.”
“This isn’t good.” Erica bit her lip. “What else did the chief say?”
“He told me that there was a string of murders just before my mom died and that they stopped after my dad was arrested.”
“Was your dad a suspect in the original investigation?” Erica asked, glancing across at Jake, who remained silent.
“That’s just it, I don’t think he was. But, according to Chief Walcott, Adam Miller was murdered in exactly the same way as the first victim from the original crime. There are details from Adam’s murder that mirror the first one that were never made public and I can think of only three possible explanations.” Olivia began to tick the items off on her fingers. “One, the murderer has access to the police files. Two, it’s the same murderer. Or three, the new murderer is either a partner or protégé of the original murderer.”
Erica grimaced. “It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Walcott has done the math on this one.”
“Yeah, except he’s putting two and two together and getting thirteen,” Jake interjected. “There’s nothing concrete to tie Charles Connell to the original murders, and he was still at Morley Ridge when Adam was killed.”
“Why has he got it so bad for Olivia, then?” Erica murmured. “I’ve never known him to be so fixated on one person, to the point where he’s ignoring all other evidence.”
“I don’t know.” Jake’s eyes narrowed as he noted Olivia’s expression. “What? What are you not telling us?”
“My father may be tied to Adam’s murder, but I’m not sure. The security footage shows a man helping to break my father out of Morley Ridge. He’s distinctive, probably not older than his mid-thirties, but with hair so blond it’s almost white. I’ve seen him before. The first time was outside the pub on the night Adam was abducted. Then I could’ve sworn I saw him outside the hospital. It was almost like he’s watching me, and he wants me to know it.”
“Christ, Olive.” Jake slowly let out his breath.
“What if my father was involved in the murders and this white-haired man is his partner?”
“We don’t know that for sure.” Jake rubbed the pad of his thumb across his bottom lip. “We need to get a look at the original case files from that first investigation.”
“How?” Erica interrupted. “It’s not like the chief is just going to hand over copies.”
“Chief Walcott won’t,” Jake replied, “but Chief Grady might.”
“Who’s Chief Grady?” Olivia asked.
“The former chief of police. He’s retired now, but he headed up the original investigation. He should be able to tell us what happened and who they were looking at, even suspects that didn’t make it into the case file.”
“You seem to have given this some thought,” Olivia muttered.
“The truth is, I’ve known for a couple of days about the earlier murders. Doc Hughes mentioned it when I went by to pick up Adam’s autopsy report. I’ve been trying to get a look at the files, but Walcott has them locked up in his desk. He’s already taken me off the investigation into Adam’s murder, and he’s sending me on the shittiest jobs to keep me tied up and out of the station. So I had to figure out another way to get my hands on the information.”
Olivia tilted her head slightly as she studied him. “And you came up with Chief Grady.”
“Yeah.”
“Fine.” She pulled the throw off her legs and stood up. “Then I’m going with you.”
“The hell you are.”
“Jake, whether you like it or not, I seem to be caught in the middle of all this. I have to know how my dad is involved. After all these years, I deserve the truth.”
“Olivia.” He huffed in exasperation, torn between the desperate desire to protect her and the knowledge that she was right. “Okay, fine. As far as the department is concerned, I’m not due back from Salem for another couple of hours, so we should go now.”
“Alright then.” Erica stood up and reached for her coat. “I have to head back into the office now, but call me later and let me know what you find out.”
“We will,” Jake promised.
“Good. I’m really sorry, but I have to run.”
