“Based on how upset she looked when she raced out of the bar, it’s possible she left the door unlocked,” Connor said.
A muscle ticked in Ethan’s jaw. Connor hadn’t said it to insinuate it was his fault, but fuck, it felt like it.
“So they followed her in?” Ethan guessed. “Then I knocked and they ran.”
“The back door was also unlocked,” Joel added.
Ryan unlocked his phone and passed it to Ethan. “This photo was on the floor.”
Ethan frowned. It was a photo that had been torn in half, and only Polly remained. He assumed, based on the arm around Polly, the woman who’d been torn out of the photo was Maggie.
“Why?” The question was more of a growl than anything else. “Why is someone stalking her? Why is someone out to get her?”
Connor gripped his shoulder. “We’re going to figure this out.”
Ryan looked at something down the hall and cursed.
Ethan followed his gaze. “Why the hell is he here and not at Maggie’s house?”
Ward stopped in front of them. “Evening, boys. I need to question Maggie Sinclair.” He moved around them.
Ethan stepped in front of him, blocking his way into the room. “She hasn’t woken up yet.”
“Huh. Okay. Guess I’ll get a Cinnabon and wait in the cafeteria.”
“Why aren’t you at her house looking for evidence that could tell us who did this?”
Ward almost looked amused. “It’s okay, son. My boys are there. We’re doing our job.”
“Shouldn’t the sheriff be leading that investigation?”
“I know how to run my station. Call me when she’s awake.” He started to turn.
“Have you found Priya Tan’s killer?” Ethan knew the answer. He asked anyway.
Ward paused for a moment, and for some goddamn reason, a sick feeling churned in Ethan’s gut.
“We’ve put it down as an accidental drowning.”
Ethan’s entire team was so silent, you could have heard a fucking pin drop.
“How the hell could that have gone down as an accidental drowning?” Ryan growled. “Someone holding a knife jumped out in front of her car and dragged her out.”
“We heard her scream over the line,” Ethan pushed, voice low and dangerous.
Ward rubbed his chin. “Tan was on some medication for her mental health. This isn’t the first time she’s had an…episode. Her family confirmed it. Blood tests show she took too much. Crashed her car. A head wound caused her to have some…delusions. She was disoriented. Injured. She fell into the river and drowned.”
“So that’s it?” Zac asked incredulously. “The investigation’s over?”
Ward lifted a shoulder. “Some people just shouldn’t be around water.”
Then the sheriff left. The asshole just walked away like he wasn’t the biggest piece of shit in Deep River.
Ryan shook his head. “How that asshole can put on the uniform and pretend to defend a town of people every day is beyond me.”
“What a scumbag.” Connor scowled, running his hand over his face.
“He doesn’t care,” Ethan said, almost under his breath. “He’ll never care.”
