“Go ahead,” Russ said. “Put him on speaker. Our future actions depend on them, so let’s find out if they want to play ball.”

  Ryleigh punched the speaker button on her phone and shared the names of everyone in the room with Blake before setting the phone on the table.

  “Blake Jenkins here.” His deep voice rumbled through the room, grabbing everyone’s attention. “We’ve decided to partner with you, pro bono of course, but I have a few logistics to work out before we can get started.”

  Ryleigh pumped her fist, but resisted shouting out her joy. “Thank you, Blake.”

  “Pretty hard to say no to helping stop a bomber.”

  “This is Sheriff Maddox.” Russ planted his hands on the table and leaned toward the phone. “I can’t thank you enough for helping. If I can ever repay, let me know.”

  “Will do, Sheriff,” Blake said. “Our team is packing up, and we’ll leave in time to arrive by eight a.m. tomorrow. We assume it will take more than a day to thoroughly process this scene, and we’ll need overnight accommodations. I’ll email a roster of staff who will be making the trip.”

  Russ scowled. “Lodging might be tough. This time of year, motels and cabins are booked up, but we can accommodate quite a few people at our family compound.”

  “We’re not opposed to roughing it in tents if that’s the only option.”

  “We can take the tents if needed.” Russ looked at Ryan, who nodded.

  “Okay, then next,” Blake said. “When I hang up, Sheriff, I’ll email a contract to you. If you want the other task force members to be privy to our findings, you’ll need to spell that out on the last page. What’s your email address?”

  Russ shared his email. “What else can we do?”

  “Lunch, snacks, and drinks provided at the jobsite are always appreciated. If we don’t have to leave the site, we can work faster.”

  “Of course.” Russ went to the board and noted the food needs but put Reid in charge of things.

  Ryleigh hadn’t wondered until now why Russ hadn’t included Reid on the team instead of her. As a former agent, Reid would have the same resources as she did. Maybe more, as he’d been an agent longer than her before he retired. But then her family connection made her hungry for a resolution to the investigation, and Reid might not have the same drive.

  “One last thing,” Blake said. “I’ll need a representative at the crime scene at all times in case we need to make snap decisions. We’ll work from sunup to sundown, so please make those assignments.”

  “Roger that,” Russ said.

  “That’s it for me,” Blake said. “If you don’t have any questions, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  No one spoke up.

  “We’re good to go. Thanks, Jenkins.” Russ looked at Ryleigh and sliced a hand in front of his neck to tell her to end the call, which she did.

  “I’ll give up my cabin to bunk in my brother’s cabin,” Colin said. “Gives you two extra bedrooms.”

  Ryleigh remembered Colin saying his brother, Devon, worked for Shadow Lake Survival too.

  Finn leaned forward. “Ryleigh will be staying at my place, but I have an extra room.”

  He would say that. She opened her mouth to correct him, but stopped. What was the point? If the Veritas team needed all the rooms at the Maddox compound, there wouldn’t be any space for her. She had no choice but to stay with Finn. Time to start accepting that.

  Russ turned to a different whiteboard. “Let’s note our potential suspects.”

  He wrote Uri Gates—Smokey—on the board. “The most obvious one to me. His place was tossed. Someone was looking for something. It’s possible he set the bomb, and it detonated before he could get away. But we have no motive at this time.”

  Ryleigh agreed completely with his assessment. “Did anyone find his phone?”

  Russ shook his head. “My deputy dialed the number while at Gates’s place. It didn’t ring or vibrate there. Maybe the anthropologist who recovers the body will find it on him, or it could be in his vehicle.”

  “Though I doubt Tobias is behind the bombing,” Ryleigh said. “We can’t rule him out. Could be an insurance scam, and we should search the business.”

  Russ nodded and jotted down Tobias’s name. “I’ve already declared his office a crime scene. Sent everyone home. Posted a deputy on site twenty-four/seven. Warrant for the search should come in at any time. We’ll need to get forensics over there too.”

  “Since you’ve posted a deputy at the mill office, I should call Tobias,” Ryleigh said. “He might not want to spend money on posting one of our guards there too. But I’d be glad to double our guys up at the bomb site to protect the Veritas staff when they arrive.”

  “Ask if he stored solvents or other chemicals at the mill,” Ryan said.

  “Yeah, go ahead and ask,” Russ said. “But forensics will give us a definitive answer. If you ask now and he lies to us about it, that’ll tell us something. If the warrant comes in by the time we wrap up, we can talk about completing our search first.”

  Finn looked at Russ. “Virgil Eckles should be on the suspect list. Not that we have a motive for him, but he had access to the company’s explosives and he was the only one on site—other than Gates and Ward—when the bomb detonated. I collected his key to the explosives’ depot. Means the only people who can access it now are Tobias and me.”

  Russ held out his hand. “I’ll take both of those keys. It’ll protect you from any suspicion of manipulating the inventory after the bombing.”

  Ryleigh thought Finn might hesitate, but he handed over two shiny brass keys. “I implemented a restricted key system when I started. Only one locksmith can duplicate keys, and Tobias and I are the only signers on the account. They won’t make keys for anyone else. I also inventoried all explosives at that time, and the inventory jived with deliveries and usage. So if anything is missing, it happened since then.”

  Ryleigh might not be happy with Finn, but she was impressed with his actions. “I had security cameras installed on the exterior at the office and depot. Maybe we’ll catch our suspect stealing the explosives.”

  “And I added a sign-in requirement for all visitors to the office,” Finn said. “So we can review that footage and compare them to the logs.”

  Ryan snapped his chair forward. “This isn’t an individual suspect, but Colin mentioned ecoterrorist groups protesting logging.”

  Russ added it to the board and turned. “Who else might gain from setting the bomb?”

  Yeah, who? That was the big question Ryleigh had asked since she’d taken on the account. “A competitor maybe who’s trying to put Shadow Lake Logging out of business or at least severely cripple them. I checked into that but didn’t find anyone who wanted to harm Tobias or his business. Or any competitors who’d received threats either.”

  “Still, it’s a possibility, and we’d be remiss if we didn’t consider it.” Russ made a quick note and then pointed his marker at the item. “What’s the fastest way to get a list of these competitors?”

  Colin tapped his laptop sitting in front of him. “I’m sure Ryleigh has one, but I can compile a thorough list online in a few minutes. I’ll have it to you before I leave today.”

  “Would be good to compare the two lists,” Ryleigh said.

  “Good.” Russ added Colin’s name as the point person.

  “This isn’t a suspect,” Ryleigh said. “But we should also have Colin look for bombers who specifically use photoelectric cells. That could point us to a prime suspect. At least for construction of the bomb.”

  Russ looked at Colin. “Is that something you can do?”

  “Absolutely. I can write a search algorithm that will find anything you want on the internet.” Colin leaned back. “But ViCAP might be a good resource too, and I don’t have access for that search.”

  The FBI’s Violent Crime Apprehension Program database held information about violent crimes, but was restricted to law enforcement officers.

  “I’ll take that.” Russ put his own name into the responsible person column then turned. “We’re speculating on the photoelectric cell, but it’s better than sitting around and waiting for forensics. Gates’s house needs to be searched too. See if we can find any bomb schematics or ties to an ecoterrorist group. Maybe information about Alabama. I already have a warrant for that search.”

  Ryleigh checked her watch. “Finn and I have time to do that right after this meeting.”

  “My deputy forced open the patio door for his welfare check, and you can get in that way, but make sure to secure it as a crime scene.” Russ added it to the board along with a note to search Eckles’s property too. “I’ll get a warrant for this, and then we can proceed.”

  “What about Gates’s truck?” Finn asked. “Has it been located?”

  “My deputies are looking for it.” Russ recorded the item on the To Do list. “Let’s take five so I can check my email from Veritas. Go ahead and give Allison your contact info while we break and review this info to see if there’s anything we missed.”

  He left the room, and they each shared their information. Colin opened his laptop, his fingers flying over the keyboard.

  Finn looked at Ryleigh. “You think we can do a thorough search before I have to pick Avery up?”

  “If Russ doesn’t keep us here much longer.”

  “We’ve covered all the basics,” Ryan said. “At this point, we’ll need Colin’s reports or forensics to give us further direction.”

  The room went quiet, save Colin’s fingers clicking on the keys, until Russ returned holding a stack of papers. “Contract signed and I asked that all reports be emailed to everyone.” He looked down the table. “Allison, please email a list of the team’s contact information to Jenkins ASAP.”

  He slid the stack of papers down the table. “Our guests are coming tomorrow.”

  Ryleigh took a page and read down the eleven experts’ names while Russ noted the rooms available by location on the third whiteboard. Impressed by the extent of the Veritas response, Ryleigh looked up to see Russ had completed housing assignments, filling every open space except for Finn’s spare room.

  Well then. It was official. She was stuck staying with him. Finn glanced at her. He had to know the implications, and she tried hard to hide her frustration.

  “Looks like we’re getting ousted.” Russ looked at his brother. “We can either pitch a tent or stay with Mom and Dad.”

  “Mom and Dad, for sure.” Ryan grinned. “Would give Mom an excuse to spoil us like she always wants to do.”

  “I’ll give her a call. Reid too, so he knows to expect guests and get meals ready for the Veritas team.” Russ didn’t add that to the board but glanced down the table. “Any conflicts with taking a turn babysitting the crime scene for the Veritas team?”

  “I’ll have to relieve my sitter or pick Avery up from daycare by six each day.” As if expecting a challenge from Russ, Finn lifted his chin.

  “Got it,” Russ said, no question at all.

  “And my car is in the shop so I’m dependent on Finn for a ride,” Ryleigh said. “But I hope it’s fixed tomorrow sometime. Or I could rent a car if there’s a local place.”

  “Nada around here,” Ryan said. “You’d have to go to Medford.”

  “I can keep you and Finn grouped together,” Russ said. “Won’t change the schedule much.” He faced the board and wrote out the four-and-a-half-hour time slots.

  “I need to get to the office at a reasonable time, so I’ll take the early shift.” Russ put his name next to the five a.m. slot. “Ryleigh and Finn after me, then Ryan, and finally Colin, our resident night owl, ends the day.”

  Ryleigh didn’t mind her midday shift, but she had a request and leaned forward. “Since I’m the one who called Veritas in, I’d like to be there to greet them when they arrive in the morning, if that’s okay?”

  “Sure thing,” Russ said.

  She looked at Finn. “Could we be there by eight?”

  “Can do,” he said.

  “Anything else we need to cover?” Russ asked.

  “I’m ready with that list of competitors,” Colin said.

  Russ grabbed a marker and crossed the assignment off the board then added a new item to investigate the list. He looked at Ryan. “You take this. Your experience with wildland fires makes you most familiar with logs and the best one to speak their language.”

  “You got it,” Ryan said. “We don’t have a group at Wilderness Ways, so I have time.”

  “Wilderness Ways?” Finn asked.

  Ryan’s eyes sparked. “An organization for troubled teens. I’m the director.”

  Finn scratched his cheek. “I thought you worked with Shadow Lake Survival.”

  “I work part-time for both. But if the family business keeps booming, I’ll soon need to go full-time there and find a director to replace me at Wilderness Ways.”

  Finn shifted to look at Russ. “You going to retire to work for the family too?”

  “Never.”

  “That’s what I said and look at me.” Ryleigh chuckled.

  “I won’t give in to pressure. I help out when I can, and that’s the best I can do right now.” He clapped his hands. “That’s it, people. I’ll assign a deputy to babysit the crime scene so we can meet again tomorrow. Time to be determined.”

  7

  Ryleigh studied Uri Gates’s two-story townhouse from the quiet treelined road, Finn by her side. Gates’s place was located in one of the few newer developments in town. Newer according to Shadow Lake standards, built in the past twenty years. The building’s crisp white paint with black trim stood out next to the neighboring unit covered in dingy yellow paint.

  She and Finn walked up to the side of the building and into a strong wind that buffeted her face. “No doorbell or security cameras on the property.”

  “Not a surprise since he basically just moved in,” Finn said. “Or maybe he’s not into that.”

  They entered the postage stamp-sized backyard through a squeaky gate to the sliding patio door in back. Both of them slipped into disposable gloves and booties, and Finn slid the door open. It grated along the track sending a horrific rasping sound into the air.

  “Hope the neighbors don’t think we’re breaking in and report us.” Finn gestured for her to go first.

  “Guess it’s good that Russ insisted on deputizing me before we left so I can flash my new shield at anyone who bothers to question us.” She grinned.

  He returned her smile with the one that got her heartbeat racing.

  Do not fall for that again.

  She stepped over the threshold and forced her attention to the dark family room, coming up short at its trashed state. Sure, Russ had said the townhouse had been tossed, but the extent exceeded her expectations. The intruder had sliced open the cushions on a small sofa and spilled the innards across the room. The coffee table was upended. The debris brushed against a glass-enclosed gas fireplace with sparkling crystals in the base.

  She picked her way through the mess to a modest-sized kitchen that butted up to the family room with two stools perched at the black granite counter. Stainless appliances gleamed as if recently polished. Maybe because his lease had been signed only a month prior. The contents from oak cupboards were swept onto black tile floors. A jug of vinegar had spilled, leaving the caustic odor radiating through the air.

  Finn came up beside her. “Wonder if they found what they were looking for.”

  “Who knows,” she said. “Let’s go upstairs and see if the mess continues. Remember this is a crime scene so watch where you walk.”

  She led the way down a short hallway that took them to the front door and a steep stairwell leading upstairs. On the second floor, she found two bedrooms and headed for the closest one.

  The mattress had succumbed to the same fate as the sofa, and the drawers had been yanked out of the nightstands, odds and ends salted across the faded beige carpet.

  She pointed at the far wall with two doors. “I’ll check the closet. You do the bathroom.”

  They separated, and she could barely get in the doorway with all the clothing scattered on the floor. Mostly heavy-duty work clothes but jeans and T-shirts too, and several pairs of work boots and sneakers, all with a built-in lift in the right shoe. A wooden organization system lined the closet walls, but stood empty. She squatted and dug through the items, carefully feeling clothing pockets for any hint of a lead. She came up empty.

  Finn returned.

  She stood. “Anything?”

  “I found antidepressants in the medicine cabinet, but that’s it.”

  “Interesting, but I don’t know how that helps. Unless he was suicidal and decided to take the company out with him.”

  “He seemed well-adjusted to me, and I don’t think he formed any grudges against the company in the short time he was there.”

  “Yeah, doesn’t make sense. But then do we really know the people we work with?”

  “I did. At least my SEAL team, but this guy was pretty new and likely on his best behavior at work, so if he was feeling down, he was hiding it well.”

  She nodded. “Let’s search the other bedroom.”

  They went down the hallway, but the second bedroom was devoid of any furnishings. Still, she ran her fingers over the walls and floor of the closet looking for any hidden doors before giving in. “Nothing.”

  “We still have his truck. If the deputies’ search turns it up.”

  Trying not to let her disappointment ruin her mood, she headed down the stairs and gave the family room another quick search. “Nothing, but I still want to get Sierra Rice over here. She could locate fingerprints from whoever broke in and trashed the place, giving us a solid lead to pursue.”

  “We should talk to the neighbors too,” he suggested. “Or at least I always found neighbors to be great sources of intel.”

  She nodded. She’d thought he would be helpful, and he was proving his worth.

  She pulled the door closed behind them and affixed the seal Russ had provided. “Wish I could lock it, but this will at least let us know if anyone tries to enter.”