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Josie laughed. “Trinity going scorched earth? I almost feel sorry for the guy. Almost.”
Noah said, “There must be something there though for her to dig up. Otherwise, why would he have come after the two of you?”
Josie said, “We could ask him, but I’m sure his lawyer won’t want that.”
Anya said, “How did he even know you were in town?”
“We drove past the gas station where Jana Melburn was last seen. He was pumping gas. He saw me.”
Anya stared into her mug, head shaking sadly. “I don’t understand. Dermot was always reserved. Stoic. He was strict with the kids—he was never warm or fuzzy—but he was never violent. Not that I saw. I wonder if the stroke has impaired his judgment. He has never been a hothead. He was always very calculating. Careful. Him trying to hurt or kill you and Trinity? It’s very out of character for him. I’d expect it from Vance, but not Dermot.”
“They’re both hiding something,” said Josie, taking another sip of her coffee. “But they’re not going to tell us what it is, so we have to work whatever leads we’ve got.”
Noah said, “Gretchen got a warrant for the light-colored sedan owned by Garrick Wolfe even though the Hadlees’ sedan appears to have had human remains in the trunk at some point. Hummel’s still processing Garrick’s car but he was able to download the GPS history. Garrick Wolfe is a no-go. He’s been in Bly for weeks. The only places he goes are the grocery store, the cemetery, and the liquor store. Sometimes a local bar.”
Josie downed the rest of her coffee, already feeling more clear-headed. “Garrick is off the suspect list but did he make it through surgery? Is there any way we can talk with him? He might know things that will help our investigation.”
Anya sighed. “I called the hospital. The surgery didn’t go well. He had extensive internal damage. His bowel was punctured in two places. His body did not tolerate the repairs very well. The surgeon is worried about peritonitis—that’s an infection. It seems he is still bleeding internally somewhere in his abdomen and may need another surgery. He’s in critical condition. The doctors have him intubated. They’re not sure if he’s going to pull through.”
Josie said, “I’m sorry, Anya.”
Anya’s eyes shone with unshed tears. “I’m the one who’s sorry. Garrick was truly good to me. So was his wife, Marie. They took me in, protected me. Garrick even protected me after I moved away, but I left them behind just like I left Cyrus. I mean, I said goodbye to them but once I left, I never looked back. It seemed like the only option at the time, the only way I could survive emotionally, to cut off that life like it was a gangrenous limb, but now I wonder if I made a mistake. I’m going to drive to the hospital today and be with him. It’s the least I can do. He’s got no one else.”
Josie said, “He’s got Mathias. Any word on him?”
Noah shook his head. “Nothing. He’s good at hiding, that’s for sure. Last I checked, the state police were still processing Garrick’s house—although that was hours ago. Anyway, at that time, Cyrus said that they’d found some personal items that looked as though they belonged to a man in one of Garrick’s spare bedrooms, including the burner phone that Mathias had been using to call Keri Cryer. It’s got a ride-share app on it. That’s how he was getting around. That’s how he got to Garrick’s without his own vehicle.”
“Mathias was staying with Garrick,” Josie said. “Makes sense. He wasn’t with Keri all the time, and he didn’t keep much in the way of clothes there. Hallie Kent said that Mathias went from prison to the halfway house in Bradysport and then she lost track of him. There was a two- to three-month gap before he started showing up at Keri Cryer’s apartment. He was probably with Garrick. No one would have thought to look for him there. He must have spent some time there since he was familiar enough with the terrain around the house to navigate it in the dark. Did they find anything else at Garrick’s house?”
Noah frowned. “Like Sharon Eddy’s glove and Keri Cryer’s shoe?”
“I have to know,” said Josie. She couldn’t get the encounter with Mathias out of her head. Her gut told her he was innocent even though absolutely nothing they’d found so far had proven it.
“No.”
Relief washed over her. At her feet, Trout sighed and nuzzled his head against her ankle.
“The only odd thing they found was a bone fragment. The coroner said it’s very old, though.”
Josie recoiled. “They found a bone fragment inside his house?”
Anya said, “Human?”
“Human, yes,” Noah said. “The Everett County medical examiner is pretty sure it is a skull plate. They’ll send it for testing but they’re not sure they’ll get DNA from it.”
“Where was it?” Josie asked.
“In a metal box in Garrick’s garage. Cyrus said the lab will try to pull prints from it. There were a few other items inside the box. A piece of clothing, also old and badly degraded. What they think might be a necklace of some kind, and also perhaps a hearing aid, but they’re not sure. Everything was caked in dirt and badly deteriorated. Like I said, we’ll know more once it’s all been through the lab.”
Josie looked at Anya. “That sounds like a box of serial killer trophies.”
“No,” Anya said. “Garrick would never…I don’t know why he would have those things, but he would not hurt anyone.”
Before Josie could ask more questions, a cell phone trilled. Each of them checked their pockets. Noah took his out and swiped answer. After listening for a moment, he said, “Got it. Yep. I’ll ask her.”
He hung up. “That was Mett. Gretchen’s off. He located Carolina Eddy at a shelter in Bradysport. We’ve also got an armed robbery in East Denton. One person injured.”
“You mind taking the armed robbery?” she asked. “I’d like to go with Mett to talk to Carolina Eddy.”
