Anton grinned. “Got another itch, huh?"
"Just a suspicion.” In truth, the only thing he was positive of was the fact that Nelle James was involved somewhere in all this. She might not have been spotted yet, but he could feel her close. It was like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. There'd always been something malevolent about the woman—something not quite right. Whether she was the force behind the original murders and the current ones was open to conjecture, but regardless, he still believed there was more to Nelle James than the motherly front she'd presented to the world at large.
"Did you find the truck last night?"
"Half this town drives blue trucks. None of the ones I found was being driven by a near na**d blonde, unfortunately."
"It was worth a shot.” He glanced down at the file again and frowned. He picked up the photo, shifting it a little closer to the light. “You know, Jontee McGuire also came from the Merron cream pack."
"His mom did. Jontee left when he was quite young, though."
"Fifteen isn't that young.” Not when it came to someone like Jontee, who was once described as “old man crazy,” simply because he was far more mature mentally than his years. Of course, much of that was due to his upbringing. It seemed the cream pack weren't all that tolerant of “half breeds,” even if the wolf in question was the result of force rather than choice. Jontee had no choice but to grow up fast, and according to the psych guys, didn't really know the true meaning of reality—though that fact hadn't saved him in court. Nor had the innate charm that Savannah had talked about. “Maybe it's my imagination, but there was something in the woman's cheekbones and chin structure that reminds me of Jontee."
"Jontee never had kids, as far as we know."
"There were none at Rosehall, that's for sure.” Rosehall had been all about dreams and freedom, and children represented a reality most there didn't want to know about. “But that doesn't mean Jontee couldn't have had kids earlier. He was close to forty by the time we caught him, so he was certainly old enough."
And revenge for perceived wrongdoings to a father was certainly a good motive for murder.
"If he did have kids, why weren't they listed as next of kin in his files?"
"Who knows? Maybe he didn't want his crimes wrecking his kid's lives."
Anton's expression suggested he wasn't buying that. “I'll contact the ranger in Merron and see if he can add anything to what we have."
Cade nodded. “Any word from Hart yet?"
"He's due to arrive in a couple of hours."
"Get him to set up the van at the Ranger's station. It'll be more secure there."
"You don't think this pair will go as far as attempting to destroy evidence?"
"Who knows, but I'm not taking any chances. I want everyone to pair up—with the rangers if you have to—whenever you're on the street."
Anton nodded. “You realize that'll mean letting them in on the investigation more than we usually allow."
"This case is somewhat different than normal. Actually, call a general meeting of both teams for eight tonight. It's time we started fully cooperating."
"I can hear the IIS management having apoplexies at the mere thought."
Cade smiled. “Have you done the crosscheck on Oliver?"
"Yes. Nothing out of the ordinary so far. I'm digging deeper."
"See if you can get into his bank accounts and check the statements. I want to know if there was any unusual banking activity around the Rosehall time."
Anton raised his eyebrows. “You really do think he's involved, don't you?"
He shrugged. “It's just the lack of information that's bugging me. If it wasn't Oliver, then someone else was trying to screw the investigation."
"They didn't do a good job, then, because Jontee was caught."
"Presuming Jontee was the sole murderer. I don't think he was."
"A statement, I gather, that is in the file notes we can't find."
"Conveniently."