Chapter 38

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Dare was in a piss-poor mood by the time he got to the station. Ainsley’s words had played on repeat in his mind for the past hour, and his ire grew with each passing moment.

He strode inside, his gaze immediately landing on Cam. His eyes widened fractionally and he jumped up from his desk, moving quickly to catch up to Dare as he moved into his office and shut the door behind him.

“What’s wrong?”

Dare scrubbed a hand over his face. What wasn’t wrong?

He started at the beginning. “Someone broke into the suite last night.”

Cam’s eyes flew wide. “When? I never heard the call?—”

Dare held up a hand. “He was long gone by the time I got there.”

The lieutenant’s eyes narrowed to slits. “Parsons?”

“Possibly. Probably.” Dare growled. “It’s worse than I suspected.”

He relayed the story Ainsley had told him about locking her out of her account, then taking her phone and keys, effectively keeping her a prisoner in their home. He left out the rest. Cam didn’t need to know the other details.

Cam swore. “He’s getting brazen.”

That was good and bad, in Dare’s opinion. “Do you still have his schedule? I’d say we’re due for another visit.”

Dare followed Cam to his desk, where he scooped up the copy of the schedule Joel had given them last week. Cam checked his watch. “Looks like he went into surgery at eight, but we should be able to catch him as soon as he’s done.”

They climbed into the cruiser and headed toward Northwestern Memorial. Inside, they flashed their badges to the woman behind the desk and were escorted to a small office to await Joel.

The door swung inward twenty minutes later and Joel stepped inside, his expression shifting from curiosity to something darker as he recognized them. “Sheriff Jensen, Lt. McCoy.” False sincerity drenched his tone as he slid into the chair across from them. “What can I do for you?”

Dare didn’t waste any time. “Dr. Parsons, we need to talk about Ms. Layne. Her apartment was broken into last night.”

Joel’s eyes flickered, but his expression didn’t change. “That’s awful. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“I’m sure you are,” Dare said acidly. “Where were you last night?”

A muscle ticked in Parson’s jaw. “Are you accusing me of something, Sheriff?”

“Not at all. Just trying to figure out what’s going on. So I’ll ask you again—where were you last night?”

Joel crossed one leg over the other, settling deeper into his chair. “I was home, Sheriff. Alone. As you’re aware, I had surgery this morning, and I needed to be well-rested.”

“Understandable.” Dare glanced across his shoulder at Cam. “How long did it take us to get here? About an hour?” He glanced back at Parsons, whose face burned bright red.

“What, exactly, are you accusing me of?”

“We’re not here to accuse you, Dr. Parsons,” Cam interjected. “But you need to understand—Ainsley and Tess both have been victims of violent crimes. We need your help.”

“I’ve told you everything I know,” Parsons snapped. “I don’t have an alibi for the break-in because I wasn’t involved.”

Cam leaned his elbows on the desk, his tone calm but firm. “Dr. Parsons, you care for Ms. Layne, don’t you?”

Dare fought the urge to glare at Cam. What the fuck was he doing?

“Of course I do.” Joel’s angry gaze moved to Cam. “I think I’ve made that perfectly clear.”

“I would think that, in your position, a man like yourself would harbor a sense of… resentment.” Cam tipped his head.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Cam gestured around the room. “You’re successful. Respected by your colleagues and peers—everyone but Ainsley.” Joel’s hands clenched around the arms of the chair as Cam continued, “You have everything, yet she still doesn’t want you. You must have been furious when she left.”

Twin spots of color appeared high on Parson’s cheekbones. “How dare you? This is getting ridiculous. I’ve done nothing wrong, and I won’t be interrogated again.” Joel’s voice shook, his composure slipping further as he stood abruptly, causing the chair to jerk backward. “I’ve had enough of this. If you don’t have anything concrete, I suggest you leave.”

Dare nodded slowly as he followed suit and stood. “We’ll leave for now.”

As they walked back to the cruiser, Cam spoke up. “He’s starting to crack.”

Dare’s mouth pressed into a firm line. “He’s too calm. That bastard won’t break until he’s pushed up against a wall with nowhere to go.”

“Then let’s put a boot to his throat. We need to get a warrant to trace his phone. If we can place him at the scene, we can nail his ass to the wall.”

A heavy exhale filtered through Dare’s lips. “As much as I’d love to see that asshole squirm, he’s too smart for that. Even if we got a warrant, it probably wouldn’t do us any good. I’d wager he left it at home. Ensures reasonable doubt.”

“Then we’ll keep digging,” Cam said forcefully. “Joel might be careful, but everyone makes mistakes. There’s a connection here, and we’ll find it.”

Dare wished he were as confident. But Cam hadn’t seen the look on Ainsley’s face when she’d told him about everything. He hadn’t seen the fear, the shame. Joel was practiced at getting away with abuse of power. He was cold and calculated, and far too sure of himself. Dare could only hope that the man’s arrogance would eventually be his downfall.

Ten minutes outside of Brookhaven, Dare’s cell rang. Seeing the station’s number on the screen, he tapped the bluetooth function to answer the call.

“Jenson.”

“Sheriff, they found that car you’ve been looking for,” came Yvonne’s voice from the other end.

His hands tightened on the wheel. “Where?”

“Off Bixler Creek Road, in the woods.”

“Call Reed, get him over there. We need to print it and search for any evidence.”

“You got it, boss.”

Cam pointed to a road coming up on the right. “Cut across here. We’ll take the back way in.”

Less than a half hour later they stood on the edge of a secluded road, the thick canopy of trees overhead casting dappled shadows on the ground. The air was heavy with the scent of pine and earth, and in birds chirped merrily above them, a stark contrast to Dare’s mood.

Tucked into the weeds and partially obscured by the underbrush was the beige car they had been looking for.

Dare walked around the car, careful not to disturb anything. The car’s once-shiny exterior was now dull and covered in dirt, leaves, and branches. He noted a single set of tire tracks where the car had been driven off the road and hidden in the brush. Whoever had done this had intended for the car to remain hidden.

“Do you think this will give us what we need?” Cam asked, his eyes never leaving the car.

“I hope so,” Dare replied. “If we can find something in this car, it might be the piece of the puzzle we’ve been looking for.”

The moment Sawyer swung the door open, though, Dare’s stomach dropped to his toes. As dirty as the exterior was, the interior of the car was pristine. The scent of bleach wafted into the air, and he bit back a curse.

Sawyer and Cam traded knowing glances before silently moving forward to collect what they could. They worked diligently, dusting the car for fingerprints and taking photographs from every angle. Dare squatted next to the vehicle and examined an impression in the earth.

“Reed. Check this out.”

Sawyer moved next to him and studied the partial footprint and gently tested the solid ground. “When did it rain last?”

Dare mentally drew back. “A few days ago?”

Sawyer nodded. “Looks like this was left right around then, when the ground was still soft.”

He measured and photographed the impression, then continued to scour the surrounding area for evidence. After what felt like hours, Cam grimaced. “We’ve combed every inch of the car inside and out, but there’s not a damn thing here.”

Dare bit back a growl of frustration. “What about other evidence? Anything inside the car?”

“Not much,” he replied. “There are a few personal items, but nothing that looks out of place.”

Near the scene, they’d collected a faded candy wrapper, a rusty Coke can, and a few other bits of debris that appeared to have been there for far longer than the vehicle.

“Got this,” Forester said, holding up a bag as he approached. He handed the evidence bag to Dare, who inspected the cigarette butt. “Found it at the edge of the road.”

It wasn’t much, but it was more than they’d had before. “Send it to the lab for DNA testing, along with everything else.”

Forester dipped his chin. “I’ll request an expedite and let you know as soon as we have results.”

Dare nodded, disappointment and defeat churning in his gut. “Thanks. Catalogue every single thing, no matter how small.”

He would keep pushing, keep digging until they found the truth. And he would—no matter what it took.