Bring Me Flowers (Detectives Kane and Alton #2)(52)
On closer inspection, he found a clear, small footprint in the disturbed soil. He pulled out his cellphone and took photographs using his boot beside the imprint to give a size comparison. If the footprint belonged to Kate, which he imagined it did, he had a clear sequence of events. He strolled back to the gate and after wrapping crime scene tape around the bars, he climbed back behind the wheel.
“Did you find something?” Jenna’s dark gaze fixed on his face.
“A flower. The killer took them with him, which proves intent; going on how he left flowers at the last two crime scenes, this has to be the same person. Somehow he knew she would be at the pool and at what time.”
“What makes you think he didn’t follow her?”
“There is a patch of disturbed earth where someone pulled out the flowers and a small footprint in the upturned soil. If the footprint matches Kate’s shoes, then she had to have walked through the woods after the killer collected the flowers. I wouldn’t mind betting she arrived at six thirty as originally planned.”
“I guess the time of death will give us a better idea but Chad did say he planned to meet her at eight thirty and found her minutes after.”
“What the killer did to her takes time and he wanted to savor every second.” Kane shook his head in disgust. “You mentioned Chad received a message via his online game room changing the meeting time from six thirty to eight thirty. How the hell did the killer have time to inflict so many injuries?”
“I have no idea.”
Kane drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and stared toward the woods. “We have proof the killer was close by because Chad heard the ringtone of Kate’s cellphone. When we arrived, there was no one else in the pool area. Trust me, I had a good look around and found zip. My guess is he watched Chad, then took off into the woods to take Chad’s call, then made his escape.”
“Just a minute.” Jenna turned and wrinkled her nose, something she did when sorting out a problem. “This all sounds reasonable but you have missed the main point. How did the killer know she would be at the campus in the first place?” She tapped her bottom lip. “We’ll need to ask Chad when and where he asked her on the date. Chad mentioned Aimee and Lucas knew about the date. The killer must have been near them at the time to have this information but we can rule out Lucas. He has an alibi for Felicity’s murder and Chad was in contact with him around the time of the murder.” Jenna let out a long sigh. “If the killer is the same person Helena Police Department is looking for, he is a very smart cookie.”
“If this lunatic is the same man, this changes everything. Up to now everything pointed to him being local. We have to think outside the box. Who works in a job that would get them close to young people in a short time and be privy to their private information?”
“Just about everyone on our list of suspects.” Jenna worried her bottom lip, making it cherry-red. “Rogers started at the school in January; both cowboys come and go; the computer guy, Lionel Provine, took over the store around December, I think. The only suspect who has lived in town all his life is Felicity’s boyfriend, Derick, but he moves around with the team playing football and they do stay at least two nights in each town.” She shrugged. “I’ll be interested to find out if they all have alibis for tonight.”
“Then there is the janitor.” Kane turned to look at her. “Kids of this age use Facebook and give out intimate details of their lives. I mean we have no idea if her friends told anyone else she was meeting Chad. It could be all over social media for all we know.” He sighed. “It looks as if we have a lot of work to do.”
He started the engine and headed toward the main road. On the corner of Stanton Road, the headlights picked up a blue sedan parked alongside the forest. He slowed his vehicle. “That’s a strange place to leave a vehicle. Did you notice it parked there when we arrived?”
“I’m not sure. You drove like a bat out of hell.”
Pulling to the curb beside the car, he slipped from behind the wheel and, using his flashlight, examined the vehicle. Something inside moved and his heart raced. He reached for his weapon. “Sheriff’s department. Put your hands where I can see them.”
Angling his Glock along the flashlight, he approached with caution and the beam of light fell on Steve Rogers’ face. “Get out of the car, hands on head.”
In his periphery, he noticed Jenna moving toward him, weapon drawn. He kicked Rogers’ feet apart and patted him down. Finding no weapons, he spun him around, noticing his disheveled appearance and the circles of sweat marking the underarms of his shirt. The top button of his mud-spattered jeans was unfastened and he was barefoot. He glanced inside the car and noticed a laptop on the passenger seat. “What brings you out at this time of night, Mr. Rogers?”
“I heard sirens and thought there might be something going on, so I came down here to take a look.” Rogers refused to meet his gaze. “No crime in sitting in my car is there?”
Kane flicked a glance at Jenna and shrugged. “No, but you appear to be a little hot and bothered. What else have you been doing tonight? Jogging in the forest perhaps? And do you usually run with bare feet?”
“I haven’t been doing anything. I heard gunshots and forgot my shoes when I dashed out to see what was happening. There’s no law about not wearing shoes is there?”