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Next thing I know, I wake up to bright daylight, my cheek pressed to the pillows of my couch, and one hand still hanging on to my phone.

I never got around to eating.

Chapter 12

Rick

* * *

I’m in the office early, hoping to follow up on some of our discoveries at the quarry yesterday.

First on my list is getting a search warrant drawn up because I never got around to asking Brenda last night. Then I need to find a judge to sign it, in case Crombie is still out of commission.

“Morning.”

Tessa plops down at her desk across from me.

“I thought you were going to sleep in this morning?” I ask her.

With this investigation finally getting some traction, it makes sense to have at least one of us around to keep the wheels moving. I’d called her on my way home last night and mentioned I had somewhere to be at eleven today, so she said she’d take a lazy morning and come in to take over when I leave.

“So did I,” she grumbles, taking a drink from the travel mug she carried in. “But Clem had a call come in at three thirty this morning from the State Patrol. They wanted him to come clear a two-vehicle accident on County Road 17. Bunch of fool kids playing chicken, joyriding on the back roads in the middle of the night. One dead, two airlifted to Spokane. As a mom of boys that age that kinda stuff scares the shit out of me, so I told Clem to take Remi on the call so he could see the results of street racing firsthand. Then I spent the rest of the night lying awake, alternating between worrying whether maybe that was too harsh a lesson to teach my kid, and thinking about those poor parents getting a knock on their door, being told their child was in an accident.”

I make sympathetic noises as she vents, remembering the few times I did boneheaded shit that could’ve easily landed me in the hospital or worse. But my chest hurts as the thought of those poor parents tugs at some tender wounds.

“Sounds like a rough night.”

“It was.” She slams her mug on the desk and boots up her computer. “This case will make for a welcome distraction. What are you working on?”

“Warrant. Any ideas where to find a judge to sign it?”

“I’ll find one. But I also had too much time to think this morning and it occurred to me we should maybe check with Saunders Realty. I know they do some property management. Maybe they have keys for the quarry buildings in case of an emergency, I don’t know, but it’s worth checking in to.”

“Go for it.”

We work steadily through the morning, and by the time I get ready to head over to Dana’s, Tessa is already on her way to get our search warrant signed by a district judge in Lutton. I was able to light a fire under our contact at the State Lab to make sure someone would have a look at the evidence Ziggy dropped off last night, while Tessa was able to get a hold of Rowan Harlow, an agent for Saunders Realty. She wasn’t aware of any arrangement but mentioned Tim Saunders had historically dealt with the Gentry family and Lizzard Creek Quarry himself. Of course, he hadn’t been available, but Rowan promised to track him down.

“Off for the day?” Hugo asks when I pass by his office.

I poke my head inside. “Yeah, I have some stuff to do, but Tessa should be back soon. Anything urgent comes up, I’ll have my phone on me.”

I move to continue down the hall when I hear him say, “Sounds good. Say hi to Dana for me.”

I duck my head back into his office to find him grinning ear to ear.

“Buddy, this is Silence; people talk.”

I don’t bother responding. What is there to say? With the jury still out on whether this is more than just a friendly relationship with Dana, it’s clear how the town around us is viewing it.

Shaking my head, I continue out the door.

“Go ahead, I’ll be right behind you. I’m gonna do one last check and lock up.”

Nate already took off with his second load, my truck is filled to the brim too, and we just finished loading the last of the boxes in Dana’s little hatchback.

After our first run up the mountain, she tried to brush us off, saying she had until December first to vacate the apartment, but we managed to convince her to pack it all up now and be done with it. Nate’s winning argument was the landlord might be able to rent it in the next two weeks, which could save Dana November’s rent.

That means she’s heading back into the apartment, where she lived most of her adult life, for the last time. I’m not sure, but I’m guessing for someone like Dana, saying goodbye may not be that easy.