“Agent Cannon? This is Officer Delco. You asked us to do a health and welfare check on Mrs. Huffman? Well, we found her and her entire family dead. Posed around the table in some kind of sick display.”
“Would you please verify the address for me?”
After the officer repeated the same address Diego had textedher early that morning, Jane answered, “Thank you. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“See you.”
Jane hung up and called Ray.
“The address?” he asked without preamble.
“Whole family. Same MO. I’ll text it to you. I’m headed that way.”
“Meet you there.”
Jane texted him the address and called SSA Grimshaw on the way. She filled in her boss on what had happened and what ties it might have to their killer.
“Good. Keep me updated. I have to brief the ASAC on a few cases. I’ll be sure to add this one to the report.”
Grimshaw gave her a few more items to make note of, including a message from a Tactical Specialist she’d never heard of.
“He asked for me?”
“Yep.”
Jane frowned. “I’ve been using TS Teri Chapman on the social media on this case.”
“Well, maybe Chapman handed it off. Anyway, when you get a chance, you should call. You don’t know what info they might have come across. I’ll text it to you.”
Grimshaw signed off and sent the phone number.
Jane called it, still a good ten minutes out from Kirkland thanks to the traffic. The number just rang. She got through to an automated response stating the phone number and to leave a message.
“This is Agent Cannon. I’m returning your message. Please call me back.” She rattled off her number then hung up.
The traffic felt as if it moved at a crawl, so that by the time she finally wound up at the victims’ home, it felt as if an eternity had passed.
She pulled in right before Ray and waited for him to join her.
“Traffic,” he growled.
They both flashed badges to the officers at the home and, donningbooties and gloves, entered. Forensic technicians continued to process the scene.
“Is Officer Delco here?” Jane asked one of the officers.
“She was with Detective Marcone in the dining room.”
“Thanks.”
Jane sought the pair, not surprised at what she saw when she entered the dining room.
“Not again,” Ray muttered.
Officer Delco spotted her and gave forensics a wide pass. “Agent Cannon?”
Jane nodded. “Thanks for calling.”
A tall, slender man with thinning hair followed. He looked closer to Ray’s age. “Detective Anthony Marcone.”
