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Only there was a good fifteen-year difference between the sisters.
The two brothers had been born in between Ava and Tricia Zetter.
The first thing that Sylvie confirmed was Ava Zetter’s status. The woman was still alive, married with two children, and living near Houston. Those facts alone would have discounted Ava as being a person of interest in the case, but Sylvie couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe they were focused on the wrong sister.
Sylvie accessed Ava Zetter’s photographs on her social media site and began the tedious effort of going back twenty years. One post in particular was dated May 2003 and featured six individuals who had gone hiking one summer after graduation.
Six friends who had been excited to share their last summer together before starting a new chapter in their lives. Six hikers who set off to spend a week climbing the mountains and exploring the great beyond.
Unfortunately, only five had returned to Moonshine Valley.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Brooklyn Sloane
October 2023
Tuesday — 8:54pm
Theonlyinformationthathad appeared in Agent Russell Houser’s text message was a date, time, and address. It just so happened to be the address of Sarah Evanston’s mother. The federal agent had come through and convinced Sarah to meet with Brook. The fact that he hadn’t added any additional details told of his disproval of such a meeting.
Agent Houser had a very valid point.
What woman in her right mind would want to meet with the sister of the man who’d tried to kill her? The monster who had succeeded in disfiguring her to the point that she would probably never feel comfortable being seen out in public? From Brook’s understanding, Sarah still had many surgeries to undergo in an effort to look somewhat human, though she would never compare to the woman who had spent her entire career in front of a camera.
“Boss? Do you want me to go downstairs for you?”
“No, Bit,” Brook said as she stood up from her chair. She needed to stretch her legs, anyway. “I probably should have stayed downstairs to wait for Wyn to brew the coffee, but there were just too many people down there.”
“You mean reporters?”
“Yes.” Brook slid her phone in the back pocket of her jeans. She still had on her hiking boots, because they were surprisingly comfortable. “And locals. Trust me, the reporters hit the jackpot down there. They’ll know everything there is to know about Hiker’s Haven, Kirk Sampson, and Mauve Benson before the night is through. It won’t matter that we’ve already cleared Kirk with an alibi.”
“Not the way we’d hoped for things to go, but there should still be a good chance that the unsub tries to clean up the first crime scene, right?”
“Given the profile, I’m confident that the cabin that burned down a week after Carissa Norman went missing was the location of her death. Still, there is a margin for error that we need to take into account. It’s the reason that I don’t typically agree with setups like this one.” By this time, Brook had walked to the door. “It could backfire, and we’re right back to square one. I’ll be back with a full carafe in hand. Anything I can get you while I’m downstairs?”
“A bowl of peanuts.”
“I can make that happen,” Brook said as she wrapped her hand around the doorknob.
The satellite phone rang before she could walk out into the hallway, though the noise level of the bar was quite deafening with the numerous conversations attempting to be heard over the music blaring from the jukebox. She waited until Bit gave her a thumbs up that Theo’s check-in was no different than his last.
Brook carefully made her way down the wooden steps. The carafe full of coffee that Wyn had made for her had been set at the end of the bar. She only had to take a few steps from the staircase to reach it, but there wasn’t one bowl of peanuts in sight that hadn’t been half eaten.
Wyn was mixing what looked to be a rum and Coke. He would hook her up with a bowl of fresh peanuts, only she was running on a short supply patience. A reporter was already instructing her cameraman to grab his camera, which he’d set in a chair. They’d definitely taken the bait, but she didn’t have anything to add.
“Brook!”
She sought out the individual who had called her name. Dominic had stood from his chair to make his way over to the bar, but the direction he would have taken to reach her would have meant crossing paths with two of the reporters. She quickly held up a hand for him to remain near his table.
Truthfully, she’d rather not speak with him at the moment.
Brook hadn’t been pleased to discover that Erika and Dominic had kept their previous one-night stand under wraps. Dominic wouldn’t have given it a second thought, but Erika had seen the blogger’s name on their list of suspects. No one was ever removed unless a solid alibi was established during said timeline.
Taking the long way around, Brook kept close to the wall so that she could avoid the numerous members of the press. She wasn’t sure where they were all staying tonight. Hiker’s Haven wasn’t a viable option. Mauve was still in the hospital, and it was doubtful that Kirk would rent out rooms to the press. Their current guests wouldn’t want to be under that type of scrutiny. Given the distance to the next town over, the reporters and those individuals operating the cameras should be vacating the bar soon enough.
“Excuse me,” Brook murmured as she attempted to brush past someone. When the male subject didn’t move right away, she took a step back to maintain some personal space. “I apologize. I’m just trying to—”
