Below the Bones (Widow's Island #5) - Kendra Elliot Page 0,10
going to get along wonderfully, Jane. I can tell already. There’s nothing better than being around other women with similar souls.” Her gaze went to the pastry case. “Tell me about that amazing-looking bun with the caramel.”
“She can be a bit much at first,” Bruce said softly as he stepped next to Cate. Jane and Patsy started to chat as if they’d known each other for decades. “I’m not surprised those two have hit it off. Jane’s reminded me of my mother since I first met her.”
“Patsy is wonderful,” said Cate. She was one of those people who emitted positive energy. It was palpable.
“We’re supposed to meet Chris here. He has the rental keys,” Bruce said. “I love my mother, but she and Julie are both strong personalities, and our home is too small for both of them. She’s only been here a few hours, and I swear my place has shrunk to half its size.”
Cate grinned at the exasperation in his voice, watching as Patsy whipped out a cell phone and showed pictures to Jane.
“Two grandbabies. Aren’t they beautiful!”
Jane enthusiastically agreed as Patsy shot a side-eye at Bruce.
“Stop it, Mom,” he ordered. “We’re not even married yet.” He snorted and turned to Cate. “Ever since both my sisters had babies, she won’t let up on me and Julie. Another reason to put some space between those two.”
The doorbells jingled as a tall bald man with a goatee came in.
“Hey, Chris,” Bruce greeted the real estate agent. He shook the man’s hand and led him to meet his mother.
Chris lifted a hand at Cate, and she returned the gesture, wondering how the mellow and reserved man would get along with Patsy Taylor. Cate suspected Patsy would overwhelm him within two minutes. Bruce excused himself, and Patsy immediately started chatting with Chris, whose eyes went wide at the ambush of her friendly energy.
He can handle it.
Cate’s phone vibrated in her apron’s pocket, and Mike’s name popped up on her screen. Cate strode behind the counter, through the kitchen, and out the back door, her phone clenched in her hand, subtle excitement vibrating in her bones.
“Mike?” she answered as she stepped into the quiet alley behind the bakery. “What’d you find out?”
“Good afternoon to you too,” he said.
Cate rolled her eyes.
“I knew you were invested in this case,” Mike told her. “You can’t resist a puzzle.”
“Just tell me what’s going on.”
“You were right about there being three graves. We’ve looked extensively, and I’m sure there’s no more . . . at least not at this exact site. Those three were in a perfect line—like we found at the original site—and we can’t see a hint of others beyond those.”
“Do we—do you need to bring in GPR?” she asked, referring to ground-penetrating radar.
“Not right now. Maybe later.”
“What was in them?”
Mike cleared his throat. “All three victims are female, and their remains are fully skeletal. The forensic anthropologist says they’re younger adults. Probably twenties and thirties. He’ll tighten up an age range later.”
“Any indication of cause of death?”
“Not yet, but he did notice knife marks on the ribs of one and a cracked skull on another.”
Cate nodded as Mike spoke. Jeff Lamb had done a variety of things to kill his victims on the stone altar. Cut throats, stabbings, blows to the head, asphyxiation.
“Lockets?”
“Yep. Two more. The faces are blurry as usual, but they’re clearly young women. Tessa is trying to compare them to some missing person photos, but it will take dental records to identify them.”
“Lamb did this, didn’t he?” asked Cate.
“No, I don’t think he did.”
“What? Why not?” It sounded exactly like Jeff Lamb to her.
“I saved the best for last. We found two quarters in one of the graves near the hip bones.”
“Where a pocket might have been . . .” Cate held her breath.
“The year on one of them is from five years ago.”
“And Jeff has been locked up for eight. We have an accomplice . . . or a fan,” said Cate. Her mind raced. Bryan Sowle was an option they needed to investigate.
No. Mike needs to investigate. Not me.
“We do. And I think while Tessa and our forensics expert work with the remains, you and I need to go to the Stafford Creek prison and talk with both Lamb and Sowle.”
Cate leaned against the rear wall of the bakery and looked up at the blue sky. At that very second she wanted more than anything to dive headfirst into the case. She wanted to match wits again with