Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

T wo hours later, Andi and the gang watched as the medical examiner took Pepper’s body away.

Juniper stood outside on the porch with them, still grief-stricken.

But as the ME pulled away with Pepper, Juniper turned to them, something changing in her gaze.

Her grief now had flares of anger.

“I want to go on with the interview,” she announced.

Simmy stepped closer, her gaze soft with compassion and concern. “Are you sure you don’t want some time to process what happened first?”

Juniper nodded a little too adamantly. “I’m positive. I need the person who killed my parents to be found. I need the person who killed Pepper to be found also.”

Andi nodded slowly. “If you’re sure . . .”

“I am.”

“Okay then,” Andi said. “Then let’s get started.”

Andi hoped she could concentrate. Not only was she thinking about Pepper and the note left in the dead woman’s hands, but Duke had also told her what Emmett said.

He’d implied that someone had killed Pepper.

Had Emmett seen something? Before he could share whatever that was, he’d had a heart attack. What had he been about to say?

The man knew something.

She prayed he pulled through—for the sake of those who cared about him, but also so they could figure out what happened to Pepper.

At Juniper’s direction, they headed back inside the cabin. Gibson and his crew were wrapping up outside and getting ready to leave. The state trooper had already dismissed them and said he’d be in touch.

The gang took their places around the fire. Juniper sat in the front where they could all see her. The woman was still visibly shaken with her pale face and dazed expression.

At least the fire was warm. Ranger had been adding wood each time it started to die down.

Andi tried to shift back into podcast mode.

The Arctic Circle Murder Club had covered a lot of cases. But this one . . .

What kind of killer cut various body parts off his victims and left thus-said parts on a snowman? What kind of killer struck so close to Christmas? What kind of killer seemingly had no rhyme or reason to his murderous schedule?

The families and friends of these victims needed closure. Andi didn’t take on these cases for the glory or because she liked learning more about the horrible things that happened to people. Not at all.

She participated in these true crime podcasts because she craved justice and closure. That was what she tried to give others. That was where her satisfaction came from.

She felt as if this were her God-given calling in life to do this—as well as being an attorney. She’d just gotten back her license to practice law in Texas and had passed the bar exam here in Alaska also.

She did these podcasts for the sake of Robin Carson, the first victim. He’d been a utility worker who lived near Eielson Air Force Base.

For the sake of Kaine Smith, the second victim. He’d worked for the planetarium in Fairbanks and had lived in Moose Creek.

For the sake of Robert Elon, who’d owned a gift shop in North Pole.

For the sake of Brianna Jenson, a nurse who worked the NICU and lived in Badger.

For the sake of Anderson Carswell, a gardener in Chena.

And finally, for the sake of Calvin and Mary, who’d owned the Borealis Reindeer Camp.

Duke leaned closer, watching Juniper as Andi began her interview.

He had the distinct feeling the woman was hiding something. But what?

Andi shifted in her chair and glanced at the paper in front of her. “Can you tell us a little about your parents?”

“They were wonderful people.” Juniper clasped her hands together in her lap. “They had a lot of friends. Even when they were homesteading, my parents believed in the importance of community. So they would go back into Fairbanks pretty often, and they were involved with a church, as well as the local Caribou Club.”

“Caribou Club?” Andi asked.

“It’s a community-oriented service club, much like the Moose Lodge or the Rotary Club,” Juniper explained.

Duke took a mental note of that. Anyone Calvin and Mary had interacted with could be a suspect, so they would need to check out the couple’s connections with the club.

Their podcast team only needed to link one person to all the victims. Then they could figure out who this killer was.

Then, in theory, they could stop him before he struck again. That was Duke’s prayer at least.

“My dad was more of the quiet, no-nonsense type, but over the years he learned to be much better in the customer service space,” Juniper continued. “Still, his preference was to work behind the scenes.”

“What did he do here at the camp?” Duke asked.

“He basically designed and built this place. He was an amazing handyman and good at everything—electricity, plumbing, woodwork, car repair. I never quite trust anyone to fix things like my dad could.” Her voice caught. “That’s the thing with this place. When it was a family operation, we all pitched in. But now it’s just me, and I have trouble doing everything by myself.”

“How about Tim?” Duke continued, remembering his earlier conversation with the man. “What’s his role here?”

“He’s my dad’s younger brother, and he’s the director of operations here. In other words, he oversees our UTV tours and other excursions. He and my father were never especially close. Truthfully, Uncle Tim got into quite a bit of trouble when he was younger. Nothing violent or anything. But he did some drugs and hung with the wrong crowd. It created some bad blood between them.”

Duke made a mental note to check out this guy’s background.

“How has this place been holding up since your parents died?” Andi continued.

“We’ve been very blessed with a lot of business. I can’t complain in that regard. Of course, I wish my mom and dad were here to see it.” Her eyes misted.

Andi leaned forward, her expression turning more serious. “Could you tell us what happened on the day your parents died?”

Juniper’s hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

Then she started the next part of her story.