Chương 11
“You know what they appeared to show when you downloaded them.”
“That’s the same thing.”
“No.”
Rusk said, “Logan is right.”
Amelia looked offended by the alliance.
“Copies can be challenged.”
“Then what good are they?”
“They establish a point in time, especially if the email provider has timestamps and headers that can later be authenticated.”
“Finally, something useful.”
“Do not forward them to Logan.”
“Why?”
“Because I enjoy preventing unnecessary complications.”
Amelia rubbed her forehead.
The house phone rang again.
Everyone stopped.
Logan reached for it.
Rusk said, “Answer normally.”
“Hello?”
A man spoke.
“Mr. Mercer?”
“Yes.”
“This is Deputy Krall.”
Logan’s eyes met Amelia’s.
Rusk’s line remained connected on speaker.
Krall continued.
“Sheriff’s office.”
“I know who you are.”
“We need to ask you and your wife a few questions.”
“About?”
“A complaint involving county property.”
Amelia went still.
Logan’s grip tightened on the handset.
“What complaint?”
“I’d rather discuss it in person.”
“I’d rather know what it concerns.”
There was a pause.
“Some county financial records may have been improperly removed.”
Amelia closed her eyes.
Logan kept his voice even.
“Are you asking us to come to the station?”
“I’m asking if we can stop by.”
“No.”
Krall went quiet.
“Excuse me?”
“We’re represented by counsel.”
Another pause.
Longer this time.
“Both of you?”
“Do you have a warrant?”
“No.”
“Then contact counsel.”
Krall’s tone hardened.
“You don’t need a lawyer to answer basic questions.”
“That’s your opinion.”
“I’m trying to keep this informal.”
Logan glanced at Rusk’s phone connection.
Rusk had not spoken.
“Then keep it informal somewhere else.”
Krall exhaled through his nose.
“You know, Sheriff Vance tried to give you every chance to be reasonable today.”
Amelia’s head snapped up.
There it was.
A mistake.
Small, but real.
Logan said nothing.
Krall continued.
“People are getting tired of you making this harder than it needs to be.”
“Who is getting tired?”
Another silence.
“Mr. Mercer, I’m advising you not to leave the county.”
Logan looked at Rusk.
The attorney immediately shook his head.
Logan asked, “Is that a legal order?”
“No.”
“Then good night.”
He hung up.
Amelia stared at him.
“You just hung up on a deputy.”
“Yes.”
“You enjoyed that one.”
“A little.”
For a second she almost laughed.
Then the moment disappeared.
Rusk spoke.
“Important point.”
Logan set the landline down.
“Krall referenced Vance trying to make you reasonable today.”
“Yes.”
“That suggests he knows about the diner incident.”
“Or Vance told him.”
“Correct.”
“Does it matter?”
“Context matters.”
Amelia sat down again.
“He said county records were improperly removed.”
Rusk answered.
“Yes.”
“So they’re starting.”
“Possibly.”
“There’s that word again.”
“It keeps me employed.”
She looked exhausted now.
Rusk said, “I am emailing you both instructions for preserving your devices.”
“Do we power them off?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I am not going to give generic digital-forensics advice without knowing the devices and accounts involved.”
Amelia nodded slowly.
“Fine.”
“Also, do not consent to any search.”
Logan said, “Understood.”
“If officers arrive, be polite, do not obstruct, do not lie, and call me.”
“Understood.”
“Mrs. Mercer?”
“Yes.”
“Same instruction.”
“I heard you.”
“I need you to say you understand.”
She closed her eyes.
“I understand.”
The attorney ended the call.
For several seconds, Logan and Amelia sat in silence.
The kitchen clock clicked louder than it had any right to.
Then Amelia said, “Cal is part of it.”
“Yes.”
“But he tried to warn us.”
“Yes.”
“You don’t trust him.”
“No.”
“You believe him about Dominic.”
“Some of it.”
She looked frustrated.
“How can you live like that?”
“Like what?”
“Believing three things at once.”
Logan leaned back.
“I don’t believe them.”
“What?”
“I keep them possible.”
“That sounds exhausting.”
“It is.”
She looked at him differently.
Not admiringly.
Not yet.
But some piece of the story she had built around his silence had shifted.
“What were you like before?”
“Before what?”
“Before you retired.”
He considered the question.
“Worse.”
“That isn’t very specific.”
“I was impatient.”
“You’re still impatient.”
“More.”
“You were scary?”
“Sometimes.”
“Did people like you?”
“Some.”
“Did you like them?”
“Some.”
She stared at him.
“You’re impossible.”
“So I’ve been told.”
Her phone buzzed again.
Both of them flinched this time.
Not Vance.
An unknown number.
The text contained only an address.
Amelia frowned.
“Do you know it?”
“No.”
She typed the address into the map search without opening any links.
The result appeared.
An industrial lot near the old grain elevator on the south edge of town.
A second message arrived.
Cal’s truck is here.
Amelia’s face went white.
Logan took a screenshot with his old phone.
“Who sent it?”
“I don’t know.”
The number had no contact name.
A third message appeared.
Come alone if you want him to talk.
Logan’s expression did not change.
Amelia looked at him.
“That’s bait.”
“Yes.”
“You said that like you’re disappointed.”
“I’m disappointed they made it obvious.”
“Who is they?”
“I don’t know.”
She gripped the phone.
“What if Cal really is there?”
“Then whoever sent this wants us to believe that.”
“What if he needs help?”
“Then we call someone.”
“Who?”
Logan looked toward the driveway.
Not Vance.
Not Krall.
Rusk could advise, but he could not put boots at an industrial lot.
The federal contact might be hours from acting.
Amelia stood.
“Logan.”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what I was going to say.”
“You were going to say we should go.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“What if he’s hurt?”
“What if this is designed to put my truck at that location?”
She froze.
Logan continued.
“What if stolen county property appears there?”
Her face changed.
“What if Cal’s body does?”
The words came out quiet.
Neither of them moved.
Amelia looked sick.
“That’s where your mind goes?”
“When somebody tells me to come alone after warning they’re framing us, yes.”
She pressed both palms onto the table.
“I hate that this makes sense.”
“So do I.”
Another message arrived.
Time stamped 4:56 p.m.
May you like
Ten minutes.
Amelia whispered, “They’re trying to rush us.”
