The Devil's Daughter (Hidden Sins #1)(56)

“We’ll see.” He walked out of the room and closed the door softly behind him. “What do we know?”

It was Chase who spoke, his voice unnaturally hoarse. “Hakeem Ahmed’s team found her. She’s off Prairie Road, in the ditch. They almost stumbled over her.”

Just like Elouise, though she was a whole lot closer to town than the other girl had been. He hesitated when he drew even with Eden. “You’re not officially part of the investigation.”

“I know.” Her mouth was tight, but she didn’t show any other signs of distress. He wanted to reach out to her, to hug her, to tell her this wasn’t her fault, but he didn’t do anything. This wasn’t the time or place. She pulled at the end of her ponytail. “I’m going back out to Elysia. If Lee didn’t know I’m here, I’m just going to play dumb and see if anything comes of it.”

The last thing he wanted was her out there again, but short of locking her in her room or sending a deputy to escort her out of town, there wasn’t a damn thing he could do. Still, he stepped closer, closer than was strictly polite. “Be careful.”

“I always am.”

“Eden.”

She stopped in the middle of stepping back and raised her eyebrows. “I’ll keep my phone on me. I’m not planning on kicking any hornets’ nests while I’m out there.”

And yet it seemed like every time he turned around, shit was starting, always with her at the center. He couldn’t say that without sounding accusatory, so he didn’t say a damn thing. “Text me when you’re on your way back.”

“Sure.” She turned and strode down the hallway, every move filled with purpose. She seemed to do everything like that—with purpose, no wasted movements.

He braced himself and turned to Henry and Chase. “Henry, keep an eye on our suspect.” Lee was less a suspect than a potential source right now as far as Zach was concerned, but he wasn’t about to share that information. Depending on when the coroner placed Neveah’s time of death, Lee’s alibi might be Zach himself. Talk about ironclad.

He could be working with a partner . . . but what are the odds?

No use in speculating until he had more information, and he wouldn’t get that until he got a look at the crime scene. Shit. He pointed at Chase. “Call the coroner. Get him out there as soon as possible and meet him there. If Hakeem is still at the scene, he needs to make sure no one tampers with the evidence.” He hesitated, not liking the wild look in his deputy’s eyes. “If you’re not up to this—”

“I’m fine.”

There wasn’t time to argue. He nodded. “Okay. Do you know which search party the Smiths were part of?”

Chase’s brows lowered. “They’re out west. Just south of the compound.”

Of course they were. They’d want to keep as much of an eye on Martha’s people as possible. Even as the thought crossed his mind, he hated that it had occurred to him. They’d lost a daughter . . . and he was going to have to be the one to tell them. He grabbed his keys off his desk. “I’ll be out there as soon as possible.”

“I’ll get in contact with the other search parties and call it off. Then I’ll meet you out at the crime scene.”

“Do it.” Zach headed for his cruiser, wishing he could delegate this job. It wouldn’t be right to. The Smiths had come to him to find their daughter and bring her home safely, and he’d failed them. There was no recovering from that.

There was no forgiveness.

It took simultaneously too much and too little time to get out to the fields where a line of people worked their way east. They combed the area with efficiency, and even from the distance he could see the mask of concentration on their faces. There was no bracing for this, no preparing, so he got out of his cruiser and started for the couple in the middle of the line. He was ten feet away when Julie Smith glanced up, took one look at his face, and wailed, crumpling to the ground. Her husband was at her side instantly, gathering her to his chest. His eyes demanded Zach make this right, but nothing would.

Zach shook his head. “Robert. Julie. I’m so sorry.”

“No!” Julie covered her ears with her hands, shaking her head. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“I’m sorry.” He said it again, but it didn’t make their daughter any more alive. “You’re going to want to go home. I’ll have more information soon.”

By now the other search-party members had realized something was going on and had come to gather around. Zach turned to the rest of the group, picking out Lucas Winchester. “I need you to get them home. Call Julie’s sister and her mother.” He didn’t know that the two women would be much help, but at least there would be people there for support.

Julia thrust herself out of her husband’s arms and pointed a shaking finger to the west—in the direction of Elysia. “It was that woman, Zach. She took my baby away from me.”

“Julie—”

She spoke right over him. “You either make her pay, Zach Owens, or I’m going to.” With that, it was like all the fight went out of her, and she sank back to the ground. Robert scooped her into his arms, for once not having a single thing to say, and strode toward the parked cars.

Zach stood in the field and watched them go, waiting until the last car pulled out onto the road before he turned and looked in the direction of Elysia. Eden would be almost out there by now, walking right into the lion’s den with no backup to speak of. It made his skin twitch. They couldn’t keep going like this. Not without help.