The Silence (Columbia River #2)(44)

Ava leaned into Mason, appreciating the comfort of his arm around her shoulders. It’d been a long day of ups and downs. They sat on a bench in the park at the end of their street, with Bingo at Mason’s side, the dog’s head on his thigh. It was nearly 11:00 p.m., but neither of them wanted to go to bed, both still running on adrenaline from the last thirty-six hours. Instead, they’d taken a walk.

A few streetlights added a little light to the park, but where they sat it was almost pitch-dark. During the day a perfect view of Mount Hood was visible from the bench. Tonight there was only darkness, the air still warm from the day’s high temperatures. The park’s grass had been mowed recently, and the fresh scent added to the peace of the evening.

Peace?

The day had been full of turmoil. Right now they were avoiding it, pretending all was right in their lives. Jayne was fine. Ray was fine. No one had died at the courthouse.

Mason exhaled and shifted on the bench.

“Stop thinking,” Ava ordered.

“I can’t.”

“Clear your head.”

“I know you can do that mind-clearing meditation crap, but it’s never worked for me. Too much going on in my brain. Gotta stay on top of everything.”

Ava didn’t tell him her thoughts also intruded when she attempted to seek quiet for a few minutes. She’d learned to step back and watch thoughts flow by, letting her mind rest, but it was a constant struggle to keep them at bay when she was supposed to be relaxing and refocusing.

Sometimes the struggle to let go was more tiring than the constant bombardment of the million things she tried to keep track of.

“Then pet Bingo,” she said. “That might work better.”

“I haven’t stopped.” He scratched the dog’s head with renewed vigor. “How did the evidence collection go at the church?”

Ava had hoped to keep work away for a few hours. But she also wanted to talk about it. Mason was the best sounding board she had.

“One of them chewed out Zander for climbing into the dumpster.”

Mason snorted. “Seriously? How else was he to get the backpack?”

“This tech said they should have been called first.” Ava saw the point but also knew she’d have felt guilty if the evidence team had come out for a false lead.

“Ridiculous.” Mason tugged on one of Bingo’s ears. “You watched the suspect lift the lid and drop in the backpack. You knew exactly where to avoid what he’d touched.”

“I know.”

“Tell me about the weapon.”

Ava described the Ruger. One of the techs had removed each piece from the backpack, and Zander had explained how they went together.

“The ammunition in the magazines is the same that was found at the courthouse,” she said softly. The courthouse scene had plenty of ammunition evidence. Further tests would check to see if the rounds and shells found at the scene actually came from the Ruger. Ava had no doubts they did.

“The church video went to our team,” she continued. “They’ll try to get an image of his face.” She’d reviewed the video again. The man’s hat had shadowed his face the entire time. She didn’t know how it was possible to get a good image, but she’d been surprised by their work before.

“Did anyone check with the owner of the vehicle whose plates were stolen?” Mason asked.

“Turns out the plates came from two different vehicles. When we looked at the video again, we realized the fuzzy view of the rear plate didn’t match the clear front one. Both plates came from Medford.”

Mason was silent, mulling over the information. Ava had been surprised too. The city of Medford was nearly three hundred miles away. Someone had planned well ahead. “How much do you want to bet the car will turn out to be a rental?” he asked.

“I won’t take that bet because I suspect you’re right. Four-door nondescript sedan. Every rental agency uses them.” She thought for a moment. “Any leads on Reuben’s truck? Or the silver Mustang?”

“No. I’ve got BOLOs out for both vehicles. It bothers me that Reuben’s truck is missing. How did our killer get to Reuben’s house?”

“Maybe he took an Uber,” Ava suggested.

“Good point. I’ll check with Uber and Lyft. Cab companies too. Maybe someone had a drop-off in the area. Didn’t think of that until now.”

“Glad I could help.”

He tightened his arm around her shoulders and kissed her on the temple. “I swear my head isn’t completely in the game. I’ve got to step it up.”

Ava didn’t mention his worry about Ray as an excuse again. Mason had already heard it a dozen times. “What did the fingerprint evidence show?” she asked.

“One bloody set on the mallet and bathtub. Same bloody set on Reuben’s desk. This adds a point in the column for a single killer.”

“Doesn’t rule out that another person was there.”

“I’m keeping it in mind.” He paused. “Jill gave me a good report on Ray earlier,” he said. “He appears to be stable. She said a doctor actually smiled. That told her more about Ray’s condition than anything he said to her.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” A small weight lifted from Ava. “Was Nora helpful today?”