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The video Van sent plays over and over on a loop in my mind. I know what two plus two equals, but I refuse to accept the answer. The idea of someone in town having a trained pet rescue bear somehow makes more sense than the ridiculous thoughts that keep popping into my head. Van is triple checking the footage to make sure it’s not some kind of elaborate hoax.
And, so, here I am, reduced to stalking the good deputy in the hopes that she… what? Spontaneously shapeshifts into a bear right before my eyes so I can stop feeling ridiculous for entertaining the absurd thought? Because nothing else makes sense, but neither does that.
Then what? Even if it’s true, and I did see a bear in that video, knowing that doesn’t help me find out who set the fire. Does it? Maybe it’s all connected in a way I just can’t see yet?
Ditching Leah’s car down the road from deputy Lennox’s house, I cross through a few hundred metres of forest, keeping out of sight of any passersby and squatting down, waiting to make sure nobody else is there. She did say she had a date, after all, and just because Van said he couldn’t find a boyfriend doesn't mean she spent the night alone.
The idea of some guy inside, waiting for her to return, makes my insides burn, and I flex my hands to get rid of the tension building inside me.
Her house, a small cabin on the outskirts of town, is plain, functional, and nothing unique screams Natalie Lennox, let alone Natalie Lennox is a bear in disguise. It’s definitely a rental, and it doesn’t look like she’s done anything to put her stamp on it.
Chancing a quick glance through the window, I can see everything is neat and tidy. It’s decorated like something out of an interior design magazine. It bothers me that I can’t get a read on her. Nothing about her home, except the running shoes lined up under a bench at the front door, gives me even the slightest hint about the woman I’m tracking.
Calling for the fifth time in the last hour, “Tell me you have something for me,” I beg as Van finally picks up his phone. The urge to know everything about this woman is eating me up from the inside.
“You know that when you call someone and they don’t answer, it usually means they’re busy. Normal people wait until they get a call back.”
Ignoring his sarcastic comment, I wait. A put-upon sigh and the sound of his office chair squeaking tells me he’s back in front of his computer. Despite being so good at what he does, I know it’s not where he wants to be. He’d prefer to be on the ground, working alongside me, but that’s not on the cards for Van anymore, and he’s struggling to adjust to that.
“This girl is squeaky clean. The majority of her relations are another story, they’re into some seriously dodgy stuff, but there’s nothing to suggest that either she or Marcus were ever part of the family business.” Van grunts as he pushes his chair from one side of his desk to the other, clicking away on the keyboard as I hear the printer beside him whirring to life. He reads out the lengthy and varied rap sheets of Natalie’s father and brothers and I grow more and more uneasy.
“Natalie grew up with her father, Leon Lennox, her mother, Deb, and her two brothers, Marcus and Bodhi. This guy is a real piece of work. Leon had at least eight more children with various women from around Black River. Fuck, it’s not exactly a traditional set-up.”
One arm thrown behind my head, I scratch my neck, grumbling to myself as I sort through the potential implications. I’m not sure what I was hoping for, but it was more than a breakdown of the Lennox family tree and their list of transgressions.
“Leon was recently in an automobile accident that left him paralysed from the waist down. Marcus is charging Leon with theft of the car he was driving at the time, so there’s clearly no love lost there. He’s not doing pops any favours. In fact, it looks like he’s throwing the book at him.” Van’s voice is monotone as he reads from his notes, treating this like any case, where for me, it’s anything but. “The gang is falling apart without him. Police have been monitoring their activity, concerned about who’s going to fill the gap and a potential violent power struggle because there’s no clear successor. They believe that the eldest of the half siblings, Mitch, has stepped into the void for now.”
So, there is a criminal enterprise nearby loosely connected to my sisters; run by Natalie’s family, rather than the Joneses as I suspected. Van flicks some papers in the background, and I can picture him sitting at this giant desk, drowning in an avalanche of police records, insurance claims, and bank statements. The man is excellent at his job, even if he’d prefer to spend time in the field.
“From what I’ve read, Leon Lennox seems like a prime candidate for the attempted attack on Leah. He’s known for taking on other people's problems for the right price. Someone with a vendetta against the Joneses could have hired him to make a point.”
It seems unlikely the Joneses would have any involvement in petty crime. With already successful businesses under their control, it would have to be big stuff, but something where they could keep their hands relatively clean. Money laundering or that kind of thing. If they pissed-off the wrong person, got in over their heads, it’s possible Lennox was hired to teach them a lesson.
Could Natalie be trying to protect her father, or one of her siblings, out of some misguided sense of loyalty? Especially if he was working for someone else.
“What about the robbery? Any link between Leon and the break-in at Zoe’s clinic?”
Marcus has checked all of this out before, I can see the notes in his files, but it’s no harm to double check, especially when his family is involved. He might be working for the law now but it doesn’t mean he can be completely impartial. Natalie either.
“Nothing. It looks like entirely different people were involved. The people who broke in had already tried to get their hands on the drugs stored there before Zoe even bought the place; they were back for round two. It wasn’t personal.”
Scowling, I run a hand over my stubbly jaw. I need a shave. “There has to be something!” Van’s pause catches my attention and I sit up. “Just say it.”
The trepidation in his voice tells me this is worth hearing.
“Chase, you’re not really acting like yourself right now, so I don’t want to get you worked-up over nothing. Don’t read too much into this until I look into it more.”
“Tell me now.” The cold edge to my voice even surprises me.
Van pretends not to notice and continues. “I know you’re going to read something into it that probably isn’t even there.”
Now I’m on my feet, all of my spidey senses coming to life as I wait for Van to stop rambling and tell me the thing he doesn’t want to share.
“You know the cameras you had us install when Zoe bought the place?”
Mum was worried about her working and living somewhere so isolated, so I sent a few buddies to install a security system for her when she took over the rural clinic. Fat lot of good it did.
“Van, I already read the police report. They had the suspects, they pleaded guilty, so there was no need to review the footage and confirm identities, etc. Seemed pretty open and shut.” Another pause. Gritting my teeth, I smother the urge to shout down the phone at one of my best friends.
