“Maybe he put it together himself.” Levi articulates his theory like it's a question.
Placing my hands on the island countertop across from Levi and Santiago, I drop my head forward. “He’d have to have figured out on his own that Derek is the arsonist.”
“Which isn’t possible,” Levi opposes.
“Unless…” Santiago adds.
“He looked through the fire station reports after we did.” Levi sighs. “But that’s also a criminal investigation.”
“Meaning he doesn’t have access,” Santiago finishes for him.
Levi voices another theory. “Maybe Emmett has listening devices at the station.”
My head snaps up, and my hands clench into fists. “He better fucking not.”
“There’s another possibility.” Levi’s focus bounces between Santiago and me as his thought hits us.
Santiago’s mouth morphs with contempt. “There’s no way this killer is that stupid.”
My index finger points to the crime scene photos. “But he isthatnarcissistic.”
Santiago tilts his head back, gazing up at the ceiling. “How do we even check something like this? Emmett isn’t going to give up his source.”
Having given up on his food, Levi takes his dishes to the sink. “Before we get a warrant for his phone records and computer, we should just ask him.”
“Ask him if he’s been in contact with a killer that he deems to be a hero? Yeah. That’ll go over well,” I answer my own rhetorical question.
Santiago scratches the side of his neck as he studies the pictures of the two crime scenes. “Do we evenwantto catch this guy?”
Levi turns to face us, leans against the sink, and sways his head from side to side, weighing Santiago’s question. “He’s kind of doing our job for us.”
“Yes,” I state firmly.
Santiago gestures to Levi and me, his indication clear. “You don’t see the hypocrisy here?”
I raise my chin. “We’re different.”
“How?” Santiago asks, exasperated.
Copying Santiago’s gesture, I argue my point. “We don’t make a spectacle of ourselves. We work in the shadows. We don’twave a big red flag saying, ‘Look at me! Look at me!’ This guy does.” I hold up a photo from each crime scene for emphasis, then slide them to Santiago across from me. “There are easier and quieter ways of getting rid of a body. This guy chooses to set them on fire. He wants to be seen. He wants our attention.”
Levi’s brows furrow. “Us specifically?”
Pushing off the counter, I straighten my spine. “I don’t know. I doubt it. He wants recognition though. It could be from us or the town in general.” My hand massages my eyes as a thought occurs to me. “Narcissists aren’t selfless. They’re self-serving by definition. This ‘vigilante,’ as Emmett calls him, is going to step outside the gray area and into the black at some point.”
Levi shrugs. “Then how do we catch him?”
“I have an idea.”
They won’t like my plan, but it may be our only chance.
CHAPTER 21
BLAKE
Plotting through the half-melted snow covering the parking lot of Main Street diner, I make my way inside. The mouth-watering aroma of all-day breakfast mixed with lunch gives me just enough energy to make it to my usual booth.
After I finished the sketch with Mrs. Talbot, Jolene called Ridge and told him I needed a ride back to my car. It's past lunchtime now, and all I want to do is sleep, but I found myself turning to the diner parking lot I drove by.
