by D. K. Hood
Kane leaned back in his seat and stretched out his legs. “Point taken. The only possible way I could see this idea working is if he lived in the mountains. He could see a couple heading for one of his trails but he’d still need to get there and hike or ride a horse to their position… unless he makes his choice out of couples who plan to camp overnight. The trail cams have audio, so he would be able to listen to their plans.”
“And if he was close by, he would have time to get there and set up an ambush.” Jenna chewed on her fingers then stared frowning at the whiteboard. “Leroy and Abel Finch live in the mountains near Bear Peak and they caught Ethan Woods prowling around their cabin at night. The three of them are volatile. Do any of them fit your profile?”
Kane considered her question. “The brothers are an unknown quantity: One is dominant and that alone would fit the profile of those who kill in pairs. They live in the forest, which could make them a possibility as well.” He thought for a moment. “Ethan Woods is a regular visitor and used to be a resident of Black Rock Falls, so he would know the area. He has money to purchase the best equipment so I find it hard to believe he slept in the Finches’ barn.” He looked at Jenna. “Yeah, he is a possibility as well, especially as he lawyered up the moment I arrived.”
“Hmm.” Jenna moved around her desk to the whiteboard. “I’ll add their names to the suspects list.”
Kane rubbed his chin. “I sure would like to take a look at their cellphones and see if they have a trail cam app and any recent footage.”
A rapping came on the door and Rowley’s face appeared. “The lawyer, Mr. Stone, is here, and here’s the arrest files on the Finch brothers.” He handed Jenna two folders.
“I’ll be there in a moment.” Jenna’s dislike for Stone was evident. “I should have stayed at home.”
29
“Ma’am.” Rowley’s voice came from behind Jenna. “I need a word with you before you speak to Mr. Stone.”
Jenna waved Kane toward the waiting lawyer and turned to Rowley. “Sure, what’s wrong?”
“It’s about his client, Ethan Woods.” Rowley’s voice had dropped to just above a whisper. “If you recall, I was asked to search for cases concerning violent crimes, especially against women?”
She stared at him, wishing she had a fast forward remote to aim at him. “Yeah, I recall asking Kane to initiate a search.”
“Well, Woods was red-flagged on the cases I looked at this morning. He was never charged but had an Order of Protection against him by his ex-wife for domestic violence and it came up in his divorce.”
The hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. “Thanks, that is very useful information. Does Kane know about this?”
“No, he went to the autopsy before I had time to inform him.” Rowley shuffled his feet. “We’ve been kinda busy since then, ma’am.”
“So I gather.” Jenna sighed. “We’ll need the information right away. Will you print up a copy of the file and bring it down to the interview room?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Jenna turned and met James Stone. Dressed in an Italian silk suit, he stuck out like a sore thumb in Back Rock Falls amidst the cowboys and hunters. She offered him a smile although he was the last person she wanted to deal with today. From the hostile look he sent her way, he was a changed man from the one who had pestered her for a date the previous year. “Good morning, Mr. Stone.”
“You used to call me James, and I’m sure we can continue to be civil to each other.” Stone moved close and she could smell his aftershave. “You make a point of avoiding me every time I come here and you’ve hardly said two words to me in ages. Am I so abhorrent to you?”
For goodness’ sake, she had only had dinner with him a couple of times and that was ages ago. “Not at all. I wasn’t looking for a relationship at the time and tried to explain but you refused to take no for an answer.”
“So you asked the Neanderthal to intervene.”
“I didn’t have to.” Jenna forced the smile to remain and tried to prevent it turning into a grimace. “It’s my deputy’s job to watch my back.” She changed the subject, wanting to remain on a professional standing with him. “I have your client in the interview room. We would like to speak with him today as he is facing charges of assaulting a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest. I gather from speaking to Deputy Kane, this might include criminal trespassing as well.”
“A $500 fine at best.” Stone gave her an annoyed look but moved closer, invading her personal space. “Can’t you make the call on these minor infringements rather than fill the court with such trivial matters?”
“Assaulting one of my deputies is not trivial, and I’m here to enforce the law, Mr. Stone.” Jenna lifted her chin and glared at him but stood her ground. If he thought he could intimidate her, he had sure picked the wrong person. “I let your client walk with a warning last time as the proprietor of the Triple Z agreed not to press charges once Mr. Woods agreed to pay restitution for the damages, but this is out of my hands. We have witnesses. He will be charged.”
“Do you want me to escort Mr. Stone to the interview room, ma’am?” Kane appeared behind her without a sound and dropped into his expressionless mode as he looked down at Stone.
He always has my back. Jenna straightened. “Yeah and I’ll speak with Mr. Stone’s client after I’ve interviewed the other parties in the case.”
Relieved, she turned away from Stone’s annoyed look to find the interview room holding one of the Finch brothers. After swiping her card on the reader, she moved into the room. As usual, Rowley had taken the precaution of attaching the prisoner’s handcuffs to the ring on the table. She placed the arrest file on the desk and took a seat. An odor of stale sweat crawled across the table toward her and she leaned back in her seat to gain a few inches of fresh air. The man before her sported an unkempt beard and long, shaggy, dirty-blond hair. The two brothers were like bookends and she could not tell them apart. “State your name for the record, please.”
“Leroy Finch, ma’am.”
Surprised by his courtesy, she opened the folder with his name on the front cover then took out her pen. “You have been read your Miranda rights and have waived the right to an attorney. You are aware I am planning to charge you with creating a public nuisance?”
“Yeah but we didn’t start the fight. It was self-defense.” Leroy slumped back in his seat and picked at his dirty fingernails. “I noticed Woods comin’ out of Guns and Ammo. He’s been trespassin’ on our property. I know for a fact he has been sleepin’ in our barn. I wanted to give him a warnin’. I told him the next time he trespassed on our land, I would shoot him.” He gave her a surly expression. “You know darn well I’m within my rights. That man figures because we live in the mountains we’re stupid or somethin’.”
Jenna understood he was referring to the ancient ‘castle law’ and the right to use force to protect home or property. “Why did you wait until now to call him out? And if you had a problem, why didn’t you inform us?”
“Nothin’ says we have to call in the law to deal with protectin’ our property.” He scraped his chair closer to the table. “You wouldn’t have done nothin’ anyways.”
Jenna made a few notes then lifted her gaze back to him. “The problem is, Mr. Finch, you do have the right to defend your property but the castle law does not apply to outside your property. You can’t brawl in the streets.”
“There you go again, blamin’ me.” He bent to his handcuffed hands and rubbed his nose. “I walked up to Woods, told him to keep off our land. He told me to get lost, that I had no proof.” He gave her a smile, displaying yellowing teeth. “When I said I had night-vision cameras he went real quiet. Then he offered me five grand to delete the files.” He snorted. “I laughed at him and he went ballistic and tried to steal my cellphone. Stupid man, I told him I had copies.”
Jenna could almost see his mind working on a scheme. She glared at him. “I hope you weren’t planning on blackmaili
ng him?”
“Woods?” Leroy’s black eyes searched her face. “Nope and I wouldn’t take money from him either. His lawyer would have found a way to have us sent to jail for life. No, I just wanted to see the rich boy squirm.”
She needed to see the footage on Woods. The Finches’ cabin was no more than a half-hour walk from the Canavar murder scene. “Okay. Is your footage date-stamped?”
“Sure is.”
“I’ll need to see it, and I want you to write down everything you told me and sign it.” She pushed a pad and pen toward him.
“It’s on my cellphone and you can make a copy.” Leroy smiled. “I’ll write that down too.”
“Thank you, it will help with your case.” She made a few more notes then stood. If his story checked out, she would not be pressing charges. “You’ll have to wait until I speak to the others involved. Would you like a drink?”
“I would, thank you, ma’am. Coffee, black.”
She walked into the hallway and went to bring Kane up to date. He was leaning against the wall waiting for Stone to finish speaking with his client. “I have written permission to access the footage from the Finches’ night-vision cams. If Woods was in the area at the time of the murders, he goes to the top of our list of suspects.” She glanced up at him. “We’ll have to sweet talk them into giving us access to their barn as well. Woods stayed there overnight.”
“If Woods is our killer, it would be a perfect place to wash up and change, maybe dispose of his bloody clothes.” Kane’s mouth turned down in disgust. “From the crime scene, the killer would have been soaked in blood; problem is, night-vision cameras aren’t likely to pick it up. We’ll have to hope he left trace evidence behind.”
Jenna thought for a moment, adding pieces to the puzzle. “We need to establish a timeline. I’ll grab a coffee for Leroy Finch then speak to his brother. I want in on the Woods interview—call me when Stone has finished.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “I want you to take the lead and see what information you can extract from Woods.”
“Yes, ma’am, but I don’t want a conflict of interest over the assaulting an officer charge. It might be better to drop that charge if you want me involved.” Kane smiled at her. “I hope Woods is our guy. It would be good to wrap this one up.”
“Sure.” Jenna chuckled. “I love an optimist but don’t forget this is Black Rock Falls.”
“Yeah, I know.” Kane’s brow crinkled. “Beautiful one day, crazy as hell the next.”
“Now you’re sounding like a Montanan.”
* * *
Jenna’s interview with Abel Finch was a duplicate of his brother’s account, and as they had separated them since the incident, she needed to hear Woods’ version. The footage on the cellphone proved without doubt Woods was on the Finches’ property on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. She entered the interview room with a certain amount of unease at the thought of dealing with James Stone again. She could see Kane had given both men a beverage and was reading through the file when she arrived. After sitting beside Kane, she turned to Stone. “This interview will be recorded.” She lifted the remote control from a desk drawer and switched on the camera.
After all parties had introduced themselves, she turned to Kane. “Deputy Kane will be conducting the interview.”
“That is a conflict of interest.” Stone glared at her. “He is the officer my client is accused of striking.”
Jenna leaned forward in her chair. “I am fully aware of the charges, Mr. Stone. Deputy Kane has withdrawn the assault charge and will be questioning your client about trespassing.”
“Mr. Woods, can you tell me why you found the need to sleep in the Finches’ barn on Tuesday and Wednesday nights?” Kane wore a bored expression as he twirled a pen in his fingers.
“I was in the forest, heading for a hunting area, when I got turned around.” Woods shrugged nonchalantly. “It was dark. I saw the barn and took shelter.”
“I see.” Kane scribbled on the file. “So twenty-four hours later, you were still lost?”
“Yes, I walked a complete circle and ended up back at the barn.” Woods glanced at Stone, who was glaring at Kane. “I slept there again and left the next morning. I heard voices and found a hunting party and went back to the road with them.”
“I gather you don’t own a cellphone?” Kane’s attention fixed on Woods’ face. “If you get lost, there are rangers all over to help you, or you can use the GPS app on the phone.”
“My battery needed recharging.”
“Why didn’t you ask the Finch brothers for assistance or directions back to the trail?” Kane lifted his gaze and one eyebrow rose in question. “After two nights’ sleeping rough, it would have been the sensible thing to do.”
“They had signs all over, no trespassing.” Woods glanced at Jenna. “You understand what these mountain men are like, Sheriff. They shoot first and ask questions later.”
“So you admit to entering a signposted property and sleeping in their barn?” Kane’s lips quirked up into a half smile.
“What can they do? Sue me?” Woods snorted. “They wouldn’t have the money to pay for a lawyer.”
“How far did you walk on Wednesday, and in what direction?” Kane leaned forward in his chair and Woods’ hands trembled slightly. “Do you remember any landmarks, for instance?”
“I was told there is an old trail that cuts along the bottom of Bear Peak; it is a shortcut to one of the hunting grounds. I took the trail from the road I was told ran into it but it wound around everywhere, split into so many different paths I lost my way.” Woods shrugged. “Real men don’t ask for directions and I found my way out in the end.”
“My client is happy to pay the Finches for accommodation.” Stone’s smile was like granite. “If they’ll drop the trespassing charges.”
“We’ll speak to them.” Kane’s stare remained on Woods. “Since you arrived in Black Rock Falls, you have been involved in two fights, and I see you have an Order of Protection against you. You have a history of violence against women as well.” His expression was menacing. “You admit to being in the vicinity of Bear Peak on Wednesday, which happens to coincide with a double murder.” He laid the graphic images of Bailey Canavar and John Doe on the table before Woods. “Did you murder this couple?”
“You don’t have to answer that question, Ethan.” Stone looked straight at Jenna. “My client has nothing further to say, Sheriff.”
Thrilled at how ruffled Kane had made both Woods and Stone, Jenna shrugged. “Very well, as we have video evidence of the trespassing, plus your client has admitted to being in the vicinity of two vicious murders and has a history of violence, we will be charging him and remanding him in custody.”
“James, get me out of here.” Woods’ eyes flitted to the images and back to Stone. “I’m not rotting in their stinking cells until I’m cleared in court.”
Jenna collected the photographs and slipped them back into the file. “All deals are off the table and we’ll be opposing bail.”
“You have a few minor infringements and circumstantial evidence at best.” Stone barked out a laugh then stood and patted Woods on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, we’ll play their game for now, but I’ll have you out of here before dinner.” He picked up his briefcase and glared at Jenna. “Let me out of here. I’ll wait in your office for the documents.”
Oh, will you now? Jenna stood and used her card to unlock the door. “There are seats out front. My office isn’t a waiting room.”
She noticed Rowley in the hallway supervising the Finch brothers. “Take Woods down to the cells. Did you get statements from the brothers?”
“Yes, ma’am, and they are the same.” Rowley followed her back into the room and collected Woods.
Jenna leaned against the door and smiled at Kane. “I like your style. Do you think he is our killer?”
“On body language when he looked at the images, no, but then killers are adept at hiding their true nature. The way Stone jumped in
to stop the questioning then didn’t bother to confer with his client would make me believe he is covering for him.” Kane rubbed his chin, making a rasping sound. “I believe we can deal with the Finch brothers. If they give us permission to send a forensics team to their barn, we could let them go with a warning. From what we know about Woods, it sure looks like an unprovoked attack on the Finches to me. Woods is a loose cannon and an idiot used to getting his own way.” He sighed. “You know as well as I do, Stone is correct—we have circumstantial evidence for Woods’ involvement in the murder. We need proof.”
Jenna considered his argument then nodded. “Okay, go and cut a deal with the Finches.” She pulled open the door. “I figure Woods ticks all the boxes for our murder suspect, and if he gets out of this on a technicality, we’ll be releasing a possible killer back into society.”
* * *
If Jenna’s stress level had gotten any higher, her head would explode. She sucked in a few deep breaths, which did nothing at all to calm her fury, and gaped at the document in her hand, rereading it for a third time. Not one hour after she had delivered Woods’ charge sheet to James Stone, his client was out on bail. She watched Woods’ smug expression as he followed his lawyer out of the building, then after listening to Rowley’s rendition of the meeting with the judge, she thrust the paperwork into Kane’s hands. “The judge said we can’t hold Woods without bail on misdemeanors, and any evidence we have against him may be brought up in a court hearing one week from Monday. Stone vouched for him, insisted he wasn’t a flight risk and would be staying at the Cattleman’s Hotel until his hearing.” She clenched her jaw and went into her office with the overpowering need to slam the door behind her, maybe three or four times.
Wolfe followed her inside and gave her a concerned look. “There’s another problem.”
Jenna wanted to tear out her hair and scream like a banshee. “What now?”
“We don’t have a sample of Woods’ DNA to make a comparison.”