“But what?” he asked, standing behind her again.
“There’s something not right about these emails Carrico sent. The ones with the cipher codes.” She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but she knew she was missing something.
“Are you sure you cracked them correctly?”
“Definitely. I just feel like I didn’t look at the source code thoroughly enough. I took the messages at face value, because it was showing me what I wanted to see—that you were innocent.” She tapped her temple. “I should know better.”
She had all this skill when it came to computers, but when it mattered most she couldn’t seem to figure out whatever it was she was missing.
Why was Dr. Michalski talking to Carrico? The others were legitimate connections, but there was no reason he should’ve been talking to Carrico.
And these emails from Carrico to whoever was on the other end of that burner email. Something was off about those, too. Carrico didn’t strike her as someone who would use a cipher to communicate. The delicate nature of the code just didn’t seem to be his style.
“It’s time for me to turn myself in,” Tanner said. Except for bouncing information off the other, he hadn’t spoken much since they got back to the cabin. He’d stood looking out the window. She’d known it was justa matter of time before those words would come out of his mouth.
“They know I’m running now,” he continued. “Michalski, guilty or not, will sing like a canary. So they’ll up the search. They’re going to put pressure on my family, call Noah in for questioning. I can’t let the people I care about pay the price.” He walked over and kissed the top of her head. “I can’t letyoupay the price. If we go back in now, there shouldn’t be many repercussions for you.”
She sighed. If that was what he wanted to do, she would support him. But if he would just give them a little more time...and do something she knew he was going to fight.
She stood and wrapped her arms around his waist. “I know I might sound like a broken record, but before you turn yourself in, there’s one more thing I want us to try.”
“What?”
“Let’s go visit Carrico again. He’s the key to cracking this open. There’s too much about his situation—the emails, his ties to two of the victims, but not three—that’s illogical. But most important, why was Michalski there talking to him just three days ago?”
Tanner let out a harsh breath. “I can’t go inside the prison. My ID will ping law enforcement immediately and let them know I’m there. Plus, Carrico hates cops anyway. He’s not going to talk to me.”
She backed away a little bit and pointed to her chest. “But he might talk to me. I’ll go. Maybe I can figure out whatever it was we missed the first time.”
Tanner backed away, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against the wall. She’d known he wasn’t going to like the idea.
“No,” he said. “And before you ask, it’s not becauseI don’t think you can do it, but because it’s not worth the risk. Your name is probably tagged in the system, too. As soon as you show them your ID, it’s going to tip off the same people as if I had done it.”
If he hadn’t liked the first part of the plan, he definitely wasn’t going to like the second. “Or... I can use the ID I had in my bug-out bag. It’s never been utilized—it’s completely clean. It definitely won’t raise any red flags.”
Tanner didn’t move from where he was standing. Those brown eyes of his were shuttered. “Still no. Carrico could be a killer. Sending you back in there does nothing but put you on his radar. Three men are already dead. I don’t want to put you at risk, too.”
She walked over until she was standing right in front of him and raised her hands until they were caressing the outside of his biceps under his Henley shirt.
“I don’t think Darin is the killer. All this played out just a little too nicely, don’t you think?”
“He’s our most likely suspect and we can’t ignore that. Just because he might have gotten someone else to do it rather than pull the trigger himself wouldn’t make him any less of a killer. I feel for him in his situation with his daughter, but that doesn’t mean I can deny the evidence we found.”
“But that evidence has holes. Like it’s leading us somewhere that’s definitely going to be a dead end.” She squeezed his arms. “If you could get in there to talk to him without letting law enforcement know where you are, would you think it was worth it to talk to Carrico one more time?”
She could almost see his teeth grinding in his jaw. “Maybe.”
“What does your gut say about Carrico?”
Tanner let out a sigh. “Fine. You’re right, okay? Right up until the point where you found those encoded emails, I was completely buying into his story. But somebody framing him and me? We’re really getting into conspiracy-theories territory here.”
“Tanner, just let me talk to him and find out what Dr. Michalski said. I’ll do it today while he’s still at Colorado Correctional and we can still get in contact with him. If he’s really about to get moved up to the max-security prison, it will be harder to get info from him there.”
She could see him struggling with the idea.
“Team, remember?” she said. “I’m not arguing with you about turning yourself in. I know you think that’s the right thing to do, and I support that. But let’s do it with as much information as possible.”
His arms came around her and jerked her to his chest. “I don’t like it, but I can’t deny what you’re saying.”
