Cold & Deadly (Cold Justice: Crossfire #1)(78)

“Gotta go.” Dominic hung up.

So, who had left the toy? Could he bag it for evidence? For what end? It wasn’t a crime to visit a grave, or to leave an offering.

The gravediggers and laborers had placed chains under the coffin. The earth moving equipment was now doing double duty as a winch. Four men steadied the casket as it came clear of the ground and eased it onto the grass beside the hole in the earth.

Dominic looked around impatiently for the ME. Where the hell was the guy? He was about to open the casket himself when a van rolled into place. Two men, both carrying heavy bags, trudged across the dried grass to meet them.

Dominic held back his irritation but obviously not well enough.

“What’s the hurry people? It’s not like our fellow is going anywhere.”

Dominic forced himself to smile and use his upbeat, friendly voice even though his angry voice wanted to tell them to hurry the fuck up. “It’s part of a current investigation that’s time sensitive.”

“Copycat?” the ME frowned.

Dominic was sure the last thing this man wanted on his table were raped and murdered girls.

“I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to discuss an active investigation at this time.”

The man grunted and scowled up at the sky. “Really want the tent up? It’ll take thirty minutes to erect.”

Dominic thought about it. All they needed was a photograph of the corpse in situ and to take a quick DNA sample. “You have any umbrellas in the car?” he asked Agent Pine and the ME’s assistant.

Both men nodded and trudged off to fetch them.

The man and woman in the churchyard were watching with interest.

“You guys can leave. We’ll call you when we need you again,” he told the gravediggers and laborers.

The remaining Feds formed a short wall. Pine handed over a golf umbrella and held a second one himself. Dominic opened the umbrella just as Ava slid up beside him to help form a barrier. The canopy was wide and blocked any viewers from seeing inside the casket from above or the side.

The ME and his assistant both donned masks and then lifted the top half of the coffin lid.

Sonofabitch.

Dominic stared into the box as the world spun around him. Brown stained satin lined the casket but no corpse filled it.

Someone cursed. Agent Pine.

Peter Galveston was dead. Dominic knew he was dead, but someone was trying to mess with his head.

“Can you tell if a body was removed? Or if there was even ever one in there?” Ava asked quietly making sure her voice didn’t carry.

“Judging from the stains and bodily fluids there was definitely a body in here,” the ME answered.

But it was gone now.

Dominic managed to swallow the huge lump that filled his throat. “Close it up. I want the casket transported to the nearest crime lab for processing. ASAP. Highest priority.” He looked at the men who’d assisted getting the coffin out of the ground.

“I need you to question all these people,” he told Pine and the other agents. “I don’t believe someone stole this body without help. The pastor too. Maybe someone made a donation to look the other way that he couldn’t refuse.” These people were the main suspects until the FBI figured out different. “Push them hard on accessory to murder of a federal agent. Bag the teddy bear and any visitor books inside the church. Get a warrant if the pastor resists—in fact get a warrant anyway. Courier everything except the coffin to the National Laboratory.” Dominic started striding away, Ava on his heels and Agent Pine catching up behind them to drive.

“Where will you be?” Pine asked.

Dominic checked his watch. “I’m going to check Galveston’s cabin. You know where that is?”

Pine shook his head. “But I can find out.”

“Don’t worry about it. Drive us into the nearest town with a rental office. I can find the way from there.” Dominic called the chopper pilot and told him to go home. He had the feeling they were going to be stuck here for some time.





Chapter Twenty-Three





From the car, Dominic had called Frazer who had then called the head of the task force about Peter Galveston’s missing body. The press were going to go ape. Now he stood outside the restaurant while waiting for their lunch to be delivered. Neither Dominic nor Ava had eaten anything since last night. Dominic didn’t even remember what it had been. He called his boss, who was thankfully distracted by the fact he was about to get on the plane to fly to Southeast Asia.

“I hear you had some unexpected help resolving the hostage crisis,” Savage said once Dominic had finished updating him on the Galveston situation.

Dominic scratched his head. He hadn’t confronted Ava about that yet. Since the siege ended, his focus had shifted straight back to this case and the fact someone wanted him and his colleagues dead. Everything had been a whirlwind of activity as they struggled to get one step ahead of this UNSUB. He was still trying to figure out whether to be impressed with Ava or furious. Or both.

“How is Frank Jacobs doing?”

“Alive. Doctors think he’ll make it. Knife missed his kidneys by an inch. Nicked a lung but didn’t do as much damage as first feared.”

“Any word about the warden?”

“She’s going to take some time off. All the inmates involved will be transferred.”