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“You think because you didn’t recognize them that they’re from out of town?”
She shook the remaining ice in her cup. “I think it’s likely. I may not remember names, but I remember faces.”
“And yet they stayed behind to steal sketches instead of leaving town, knowing they’d be arrested if they’re caught. Curious, isn’t it?”
The chief’s eyes met mine. “It is. You sure you don’t want a job with the police department?”
“I’m sure.” As much as I needed money, a job with law enforcement wasn’t in the cards for me. One slip of my hand and I’d end up torturing some poor soul who didn’t deserve it. No, the cost of a mistake was too high.
“The fact that they’re probably from out of town isn’t out of the ordinary,” the chief continued. “We get rowdy guys passing through the bars here all the time. Usually hikers and bikers. In their case, my money’s on hikers, given that they took off on foot.”
“Did you check the campsites?”
“Leo did.” She tapped her half empty cup. “This shaken espresso is pretty good. You should try it next time.”
“I’ll consider it.” Once I buy that winning lottery ticket. “What if they’re camping in an undesignated area in Wild Acres?”
It occurred to me that, if they were camping at an unofficial site, the two werewolves might still be somewhere in the vicinity. Might be worth a hike through the woods, although it seemed unwise to search alone. I still didn’t know who these werewolves were and why they attacked Anna.
The chief grunted. “Do you know how big the area is? We don’t have the resources for that, certainly not for a bar brawl.” Her eyes narrowed to slits. “Oh, boy. I see that glint in your eye. You want to form a search party.” Her head fell forward. “It’s cold and miserable, Lorelei. Do yourself a favor and find a good show to binge.”
How did I tell the chief of police that I now wore the mantle of liminal deity for this town?
Right, I didn’t.
The chief rubbed her cheeks. “Listen, if you take a volunteer search party, I won’t stop you, but I’m giving you two rules. The first one is no vigilante justice. I don’t need any additional paperwork. If you find them, call me. Don’t do anything stupid.”
No promises. “And the second?”
“Avoid Bone Lake.”
“Where?” I’d come across a creek, a pond, and a river in Wild Acres, but no lake.
She sucked in a breath. “Nobody’s warned you about it yet?” She clucked her tongue. “And here I thought you’d made friends in town. Of course, it’s pure superstition as far as I’m concerned.”
“Superstitions exist for a reason,” I said. “What will happen if I stumble upon Bone Lake?”
“You could end up as another skeleton, that’s what.”
Another skeleton. “How many have there been?”
The chief scratched a small mole on her cheek. “Enough people have disappeared in its vicinity to make it a no-go zone. It’s like the Bermuda Triangle of Fairhaven.”
Consider my curiosity piqued. “How many people have disappeared there?”
“Dozens. The most popular theory is that they were killed as part of a ritual.”
I thought of the Bridger witches, who’d attempted a ritual murder in their backyard pond. “If people have continued to disappear in that area, I doubt it was a ritual murder.”
“Some people think it’s because the lake is cursed.”
“No monster sightings? No Bigfoot or Nessie?” Despite my teasing tone, an otherworldly creature seemed to be the most likely culprit. One that strayed through the crossroads years ago and never left, but the chief wouldn’t believe that theory.
“If there was a monster living in there, it’s probably dried off and migrated to some kid’s closet by now,” the chief said.
“When’s the last time anyone disappeared there?”
She tipped back her head and blew out a breath. “About two years ago, two hikers from out of state went missing. Their gear was found nearby.”
