Twelve

POLICE WAS STILL COMBING the area for clues over an an hour later, and Rule was in full support of this. The only thing he cared about was finding out who it was behind the attack, and the sooner that person was behind bars, the better.

Pastor Ryder had offered one of the private rooms in the church for the police's use, and it was now Riley's turn to be questioned.

"I thought I was seeing a ghost at first," Riley revealed shakily.

"Can you describe her appearance?"

"Tall. Thin. Like a model. But she had her hood up and a face mask."

"And her clothes?"

"A plain gray hoodie. And jeans."

"Anything else?"

His daughter turned to him, and the pain that clouded her gaze spoke volumes. It was easy to tell they were both thinking the same thing.

Rule asked for a private moment with the detective in charge after his daughter's interview and grimly shared his suspicions.

"I did hear about your ex coming to town." Detective Sterne's brisk and business-like tone perfectly matched her appearance. "And based on what you've just told us, you and your daughter believe the suspect has a similar build to your ex?"

"Yes."

"Would she have any motive for wanting to harm Vixen?"

Rule provided the details of Beatriz's last conversation with Vixen.

"And do you know where she is now?"

"Vixen and I haven't had any contact with Beatriz since the night I asked her to leave. She hasn't been answering my daughter's texts either."

"We'll look into this," Detective Sterne informed him. "But in the meantime...look after each other."