“Forensic palynologists analyze pollen, grains, spores, etcetera from crime scenes. They can use this data to determine what’s out of place or unusual in the scene.” Sierra started back up the stairs. “An example might be finding pollen at a scene that isn’t normally found in this area of the country. That would tell us that whoever was present brought it in from another place, giving you something to go on.”

  “Most interesting.” Ryleigh toured the upstairs with Sierra until her phone rang. She didn’t want an interruption right now, but the call was from Russ. “It’s the sheriff. I have to take this.”

  She stopped at the door to the main bedroom and answered.

  “One of my deputies found Gates’s truck,” Russ said without a hello.

  Her heart started beating harder. “Where?”

  “On an abandoned logging road about a mile from the mill. I hear Sierra Rice is with you. I need to know what she wants us to do with it.”

  “Hold on.” Ryleigh put the call on speaker and asked.

  Sierra frowned. “Don’t touch it until after I can give it a quick assessment.”

  “Did you hear that, Russ?” Ryleigh asked.

  “Roger that. How soon do you think you can get over there?”

  “I’m about done here.” Sierra looked at Ryleigh. “Give me the address, and I’ll head out from here.”

  Russ rattled off directions. “I want you to accompany her, Steele.”

  Ryleigh didn’t have to be told twice. “Of course.”

  “Call me the minute you’re done, and we’ll go interview Eckles and his wife.”

  The call went dead.

  “The team I brought is too small to handle multiple scenes.” Sierra got out her phone. “I need reinforcements.”

  She made the call and ordered three additional techs to make the drive down to the site, then hung up and looked at Ryleigh. “They’ll leave as soon as they can.”

  “Just like that?” Ryleigh blinked at Sierra. “They’ll drop everything and race down here.”

  “We get callouts all the time. It’s part of the job that we all accept when we take it on.” Sierra started down the stairs. “Not too much different than your life was as an agent, I assume.”

  She had a point. So many people in law enforcement gave up much of their private lives to do their jobs. Not only the sworn officers but all the people behind the scenes. Analysts. Crime scene staff. Forensic technicians. And on and on. She’d seen the cost in her family with her dad, grandad, and uncle missing family events. Then her generation dealt with the same thing. But the loving support of others brought them through.

  She prayed that the Veritas staff had such understanding and loving support.

  They reached the patio door, and Chad looked up from where he was swirling black powder on the glass.

  “Pay attention to the third step for particulates to mark for Winter’s review,” Sierra said. “Other than the Roomba, we have a straightforward B&E evidence collection.”

  “Will do.” He stowed his brush and got out a long strip of wide tape.

  Sierra told him about Uri’s vehicle and the other team members that would be coming. “I’ll find a local garage to have the truck towed. I’d like you to take charge and tear it apart.”

  “Sounds good.” Again no questions asked as he pressed the tape over the powder to lift a clean fingerprint.

  “I’ll want our van at my disposal at the bomb scene,” she continued. “Do you have everything you think you’ll need here?”

  “I should have.” He placed the prints on a white card and got out a pen.

  “Call me if anything comes up and when you’re ready for pickup.”

  He nodded and started noting things on the back of the card. Sierra had been right. Her assistant pretty much read her mind and didn’t have to stop working to take directions.

  Out in the fresh air, Sierra ripped off her gloves, and at the van, she balanced on one foot to climb free of her protective suit and booties. “I’ll follow you if you don’t mind.”

  “Don’t mind at all.” Ryleigh climbed into the truck and got on the road, her mind going on autopilot and wishing Finn was with her.

  As much as she hated to admit it, she had to say she’d enjoyed his company. And seeing him with Avery last night allowed her to see a whole new side to the man. She still didn’t like the way he’d ended things back in the day, but he’d had good intentions, and it would be churlish not to forgive him. And unchristian. Not something she wanted to be.

  Honestly, it felt good to let it go. She’d carried it too long, when she knew God always meant for her to forgive. Now she had peace. About that, at least.

  She turned onto the rutted and winding logging road. Many of the trees abutting the gravel were about chest high but others towered over them. The smaller ones, she suspected, were replanted by Tobias’s men at some point. A deputy had parked his patrol car next to the lime green vehicle with Oregon plates sitting cockeyed on the edge of the old road. The midsized pickup looked more to her like a large SUV with the back roof cut off for a pickup bed. Thick mud coated the bottom and a heavy layer of dust covered the remainder of the body.

  She stopped short and pulled off to the side of the road to give the deputy space to leave if he needed to. Sierra parked behind her, and they both started for the young deputy who was climbing out of his car. He was short and stocky and looked to be in his twenties, but he had a confident stride as he marched their way.

  Ryleigh introduced herself and Sierra.

  Sierra slipped on gloves. “We need a garage where my team can dismantle the vehicle and process it for evidence. Can you arrange a location while I take a good look at it?”

  He ran a hand through glossy black hair. “I can make some calls and see what I can do.”

  “We’ll also need it towed there on a flatbed.”

  The deputy scratched his neck. “Only one garage I know of in the area with a flatbed truck. Their availability might be a problem.”

  Sierra raised her shoulders and gave the deputy a no-nonsense look. “I’m sure you can impress upon them the importance of getting this vehicle under cover as quickly as possible.”

  “Sure thing, ma’am.” He spun and charged back toward his car.

  Ryleigh stepped up to the truck. “It’s clear you’re used to dealing with law enforcement.”

  “I come from a family of them just like you, so yeah. Learned at an early age.” She chuckled and walked around the outside of the truck. “Nothing unusual at first blush, but a closer look will be needed. Maybe I’ll have Winter come down too.”

  “You’ll soon have everyone from Veritas on the scene.”

  “Not everyone by a long shot, but most of the department heads for sure.”

  “I can’t imagine how much this must be costing your company.”

  “Tax write off.” She met Ryleigh’s gaze. “And even if it wasn’t, you can’t put a price on catching a bomber who has no regard for human life and could strike again.”

  Ryleigh left Sierra to arrange Gates’s vehicle towing and drove Finn’s truck down the long driveway toward Eckles’s home to meet Russ. She wasn’t surprised that the guy lived in the country. A lot of people did in these parts, but he also seemed as if he liked to be in charge of his life and not have to deal with other people. Made country living perfect for him. And a perfect place to construct bombs without anyone looking over his shoulder.

  She found Russ leaning against his patrol car outside the four-car garage, tapping his foot. So he was antsy and impatient. Not new. His behavior could be irritating, but was a bonus for an investigator. He worked quickly and got results, so she couldn’t fault him.

  She quickly parked and got out to join him.

  “Eckles owns three acres,” he said. “It’ll take some time to properly search the property. After we talk to Eckles and his wife, I’ll call in a couple of deputies to help out.”

  She looked at the house with the curtains drawn. A red flag at this time of day. “You think we’ll find her home?”

  “She’s a stay-at-home mom, which makes our odds better.”

  “But she’s also pregnant, and she thought she was going into labor yesterday.”

  “She didn’t check into the hospital. I called before I came to confirm.”

  Of course he did. The guy was thorough.

  Ryleigh walked through the sunny morning. The temperature had warmed in the past hour, and she didn’t doubt they would hit the predicted ninety-five-degree day. Far warmer in southern Oregon than in the Willamette Valley today, and not a pleasant day to have to recover a body burned beyond recognition. But then the team worked in all conditions, and they would persevere.

  She led the way up the stone steps to a narrow porch and rang the doorbell. Russ stopped next to her and started tapping his foot again. He wore the same basic uniform as yesterday. Tactical pants. Boots. County shirt and badge clipped to his belt. Sidearm at his side.

  She was free to openly carry too, as Oregon law didn’t prohibit it. But her gun was concealed under her suit coat. It was one thing to go around carrying in full view when you wore a uniform, another when in plain clothes. A special permit was needed to carry a concealed weapon in the state, which she’d applied for long before she’d even become an agent. Still, in her deputy role, she could carry any way she saw fit.

  A dog barked behind the door, and a man told it to pipe down. The door opened, and Virgil Eckles stood looking at them. “Sheriff. Ms. Steele. What’s going on?”

  “Can we come in?”

  “Someone hurt?”

  “No,” Russ said quickly. “Nothing like that. We just want to talk about yesterday.”

  “Sure. Okay. Come in.” He stood back. “Seems odd that none of us can go by the site to check it out, but Tobias said we aren’t allowed on the property until you give us the all-clear. What with the baby coming and all, if I have to be off for any time, being short on pay will hurt.”

  “Your wife didn’t have the baby, then?” Ryleigh asked.

  Eckles shook his head and closed the door behind them. “Was just those false contractions. Braxton something.”

  “Is Pauline here?” Russ asked.

  “Yeah, why?”

  “We’d like to talk to her too.”

  Eckles squinted at them. “Why in the world would you want to do that?”

  “I have a few questions,” Russ said, his wording vague enough not to worry Eckles.

  “Oh, I get it. You need to confirm my story of why I didn’t go to lunch.”

  Not really, but…

  Eckles pointed at the old blue plaid couch. “Have a seat, and I’ll get her.”

  Ryleigh sat next to Russ and tried to ignore the overflowing laundry baskets, the dusty tabletops, and the carpet that could use a good vacuum. The place was otherwise organized, and the mess could simply be from being too pregnant to care or even comfortably do the tasks.

  “He doesn’t seem worried about our visit,” Russ said. “But then some people can lie easily and don’t get nervous, even around law enforcement.”

  “I’ve met my share of people like that. I don’t think Eckles is involved. And his wife, as pregnant as she is? Also doesn’t seem likely, but then I’ve seen stranger things on the job.”

  Pauline lumbered into the room resting her hands over her distended belly. She had dishwater blond hair that fell straight to her shoulders and dark circles hung below her eyes.

  Russ introduced himself and Ryleigh.

  “Please sit,” Russ said.

  She plopped down in an armchair. “You want me to tell you I called Virg yesterday to come home?” Her soft southern accent flowed like honey. “Well, I did. Can I get back to the laundry now? Got so much to do before this one comes, and I have two kids to take care of.”

  “We appreciate you confirming that,” Russ said, seeming unusually polite for his gruff nature. “But we really wanted to talk to you about Sovereign Earth.”

  “Oh, interesting.” She blinked long lashes in rapid succession. “What about them?”

  “You’re a member.”

  “Was a member way back in the day. Before Virg. Before becoming a mom.”

  “And you’ve cut ties with them?” Russ asked.

  “I mean not officially cut like resigning or anything, but I just sort of drifted away.”

  “Why’s that?” Ryleigh asked.

  “I inherited this place from my uncle, and when I got here, I tried to kick Virg’s logging crew off the property.” Pauline looked up at Eckles. “But he explained logging to me. Told me how companies are now logging responsibly. I could see the issue from both sides, and when the group turned more radical, I just couldn’t get behind the cause anymore.”

  She smiled at her husband. “And maybe it was a little bit about meeting this guy and falling out with the guy I was dating. He was the group leader, and I ended it when I got serious about Virg.”

  “Did things end amiably?” Ryleigh asked.

  “Mostly.” She arched an eyebrow. “Does that matter?”

  Ryleigh ignored her question. “Have you communicated with group members lately?”

  “No.”

  “So if I look at your phone I won’t see any calls or texts to members?” Russ asked.

  Pauline twisted her hands and chewed on her lip.

  Eckles placed a hand on his wife’s shoulder. “You’d need a warrant to do that.”

  Russ took the warrant from a cargo pocket. “Just so happens I have one. For electronic devices and the entire property.”

  “This is ridiculous.” Eckles breathed deeply, flaring his nostrils. “You have no basis to get a warrant. What do you expect to find anyway?”

  “Maybe you should sit down and tell me what I am going to find,” Russ said.

  Eckles crossed his arms. “Nothing to do with bombs if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  “You were at the site at the time of the explosion,” Russ stated.

  “Just a coincidence.”

  “I don’t believe in coincidences,” Russ said firmly.

  “Well, I do.” Eckles waved his hand over the room. “Go ahead and search. We have nothing to hide.”

  “But Virg.” Pauline shot him a pointed look.

  “Doesn’t matter. We did nothing wrong.”

  Russ honed his gaze on Pauline. “What don’t you want us to find?”

  “My phone. I—”

  Eckles came around the chair and squatted by his wife. “Don’t say another word, Pauline. Make them work for everything they find.”

  “I don’t know you well, Mr. Eckles,” Ryleigh said. “But you seem to be a decent man. Your coworker was murdered. Don’t you want to help find the killer?”

  “Find the killer, yes, but that’s not either one of us. You’re wasting your time here.”

  “And if you have something we might question and have to research it, you’re wasting more of our time,” Ryleigh quickly said. “Telling us everything you know will help us eliminate you and turn our efforts in the right direction.”

  He didn’t move, the old grandfather clock on the wall ticking down. “Fine. Pauline kept in contact with a woman named Carla Nye. She married the guy Pauline broke up with but didn’t take his name. A Dean Keenan. He’s a big wig in the group in Alabama, where she’s from. He got abusive and Carla ran. Came here to stay with us for a month or so until she could get on her feet.”

  Russ shot forward on the cushion. “When was this?”

  “She left on Wednesday,” Pauline said. “But she didn’t set a bomb. She was never really one for the group’s cause. She only got involved after she met Dean at a bar.”

  So she’d been gone for three days and could still be in the area. But more importantly, she could be involved with the bombing.

  Ryleigh needed more details. “Do you know where she went?”

  Pauline shook her head hard. “We didn’t want to know. That way if Dean came looking for her, he couldn’t get it out of us.”

  “But she’s on foot,” Eckles said. “So I doubt she’s gone far by now.”

  Pauline looked at her husband. “Unless she hitched a ride, which she’s been known to do.”

  “What about her phone number?” Ryleigh asked, feeling as if she was pouncing like a salivating dog.

  “I can give it to you,” Pauline said. “But she buried her phone out in the pasture so it won’t do you any good. She replaced it with one of those prepaid ones. Didn’t give us the number for the new one either.”

  “Do you know the location where she buried the old one?” Ryleigh asked, her hope fading.

  The couple shook their heads.

  “Again, we didn’t want to know,” Eckles said.

  “When’s the last time you saw this Keenan guy?” Russ asked.

  “Dean?” Pauline shrugged, but cut her gaze to her husband. “It’s been years.”

  “I need you both to come into the office,” Russ said. “To file an official statement.”

  Pauline nodded. “Does that mean you’re done here and won’t search?”

  “Oh no.” Russ stood. “We’ll be searching. Make no mistake. I don’t intend to stop until I find Carla’s buried cell phone and other pieces of evidence you might be hiding.”

  13

  Russ’s deputy arrived to keep tabs on the couple, and he tasked Ryleigh with searching the spare bedroom where Carla had stayed during her visit. Pauline claimed she didn’t have the energy to clean the space after Carla had departed, but Carla had left the room neat and tidy, and Ryleigh had struck out so far.

  She made her way to the deep closet and ran her fingers over the floor in the back. The lip of a board protruded a fraction of an inch above the others. Ryleigh got out a small penknife she kept in her jacket pocket and poked the blade between the boards. A section lifted.

  Yes! A secret compartment.

  She slid into the closet on her belly and pried it completely open, then focused her flashlight into the hole. A shoebox sat in the small space. Her stomach fluttered with excitement.

  Calm down. Record the location.