Chapter 47

CHAPTER 47

“ O h no,” Dan said. “Everyone loved Calvin and Mary. Everyone except Calvin’s brother.”

Those words got Duke’s attention. “You mean Tim?”

Dan nodded. “That man was nothing but trouble. He was always coming around asking for money. Couldn’t hold down a job. Drank too much.”

Andi shifted on the couch, her coffee seemingly forgotten. “Did things ever escalate between Calvin and his brother?”

“Escalate?” Dan scratched his head. “I can’t say if they did. But Tim always seemed to be giving Calvin and Mary trouble. He couldn’t ever stand on his own two feet, and he always came crawling back to his brother to ask for help.”

“But things never got violent, right?” Duke clarified.

“Not that I know of.” Dan sighed and shrugged. “But who knows what happened behind the scenes.”

Duke stored that information away. As Jan began to wander the room, Duke saw the weariness on Dan’s face and knew it was time for him and Andi to go.

“Thank you so much for everything you shared.” Duke rose and picked up his coffee mug. “And thanks for the coffee, of course.”

“No problem.” Dan’s expression tightened as he glanced at his wife.

“We should be hitting the road before the storm gets much worse.” He nodded toward the door.

Andi stood also and followed Duke’s lead.

“Come back and see us sometime,” Jan said. “Next time bring Calvin and Mary with you.”

“Of course.” Andi offered a tight smile.

After placing their cups in the kitchen sink, they exited the house.

Had Caleb moved out of first place on their suspect list? Maybe Tim was the one they should be looking at.

But, first, they’d need to find a connection between Tim and the other murder victims.

“So Tim disappears,” Duke talked through his thoughts. “It sounds as if he was pretty demanding of his brother and sister-in-law. Now he lives at the camp his brother started, and he seems to want to push Juniper out as owner and manager of the camp.”

Andi gave Duke a look. “It sounds like he’s the one we should be looking at.”

“I agree. What if he grabbed Caleb and did something to him? I wonder if he has an alibi for the moment Caleb disappeared.”

“It’s a possibility we should look into.” Andi shook her head. “What’s with all these secrets everyone seems to have?”

“I don’t know.” Duke shrugged. “Maybe everyone is trying to protect someone else.”

“Or maybe everyone is trying to protect themselves.” She shot him a look.

“Maybe.” He breathed out through his nose and then glanced out the window at the snow covering everything in sight. “I guess we should get back before it gets worse out here.”

“Let me check the weather first.” Andi quickly looked on an online app. “The storm is moving more slowly than forecasters predicted. But it is going to hit hard later. What do you say we swing by the hospital?”

“For what?”

“To see if Gibson has any updates on Emmett.”

Duke narrowed his eyes with thought. “Do you think Gibson is still there?”

She shrugged. “I think it’s a possibility. Besides, once we get back to camp, I don’t know when we’ll be able to leave again. Thankfully, Juniper is okay with us staying longer. I’d hate to leave now after everything that’s happened.”

“Same here. Let’s go to the hospital, and then we’ll head back to the camp . . . most likely.”

He knew what that meant: unless something else came up.

Duke eased away from their spot on the side of the street and headed toward the hospital.

Andi couldn’t stop thinking about whether or not Emmett’s death had been natural . . . or if someone else had caused it.

What if Tim had been monitoring Emmett because Emmett had seen the man do something? Would Tim have known how to make Emmett’s death look natural?

It was hard to say. But it was definitely a theory worth exploring.

Duke and Andi walked into the hospital and practically ran into Gibson as he headed out.

Gibson’s brow furrowed as he paused in front of them. “Duke and Andi? I wasn’t expecting to see you guys here. I’m surprised you came out in this weather.”

“When the weather cleared, we decided to drive into Fairbanks to question a few people,” Duke explained. “We’re heading back soon before the storm gets worse, but we thought we would stop by first.”

“To ask about Emmett?” Gibson raised an eyebrow, making it clear he wasn’t surprised.

“We’ve been anxious to hear about him,” Duke said. “Any updates you’re allowed to share?”

Gibson glanced from side to side before stepping closer. “Between us, the hospital did a quick blood test, and they did find something surprising. Potassium chloride.”

“What does potassium chloride do exactly?” Duke asked.

“To keep things simple, it can stop the heart.”

“So you think Emmett was murdered?” Andi whispered, keeping her voice low as a family with a young child walked by.

“That’s my guess. I think Emmett knew something about the killer, so the perpetrator ended Emmett’s life before he could share anything.”

Duke raised his eyebrows as he let that theory settle in his mind.

A second later, he asked, “Did anyone see anyone suspicious come to visit him?”

“Tim stayed with Emmett a while when he was first admitted. Then Emmett had other relatives come. But they weren’t here at the time he passed. With the snowstorm coming, they decided to hunker down in their hotel instead.”

“So where does that leave you?” Andi asked.

Gibson hesitated before saying, “There was one other person who came to see Emmett. We spotted this guy on the security footage, but we’re still trying to identify him.”

“You have that security footage handy?” Duke asked. “Maybe we can help.”

Gibson pulled out his phone and tapped the screen. Then he turned the device toward them as a video started to play.

Duke and Andi leaned in as they watched.

As soon as Duke saw the man’s face, he knew exactly who he was.

“That’s Jared,” Duke told Gibson. “Tim’s son.”

Maybe the man wasn’t as innocent as they’d thought. Maybe he’d made that snowman after all—maybe as a practice run for his big night.

The thought was chilling, but something worth exploring.