“I’m afraid things might be even worse than that,” he’dsaid.
Riley’s mind boggled at what he might possibly mean. What was soimportant that he insisted they return to the police station to discuss it?
When they arrived, she parked their car next to Wightman’svehicle. As she and Ann Marie got out and followed him toward the building,Riley’s heart sank at what she saw.
A group of reporters was gathered at the front door.
It’s started, she thought.
She’d known all along that it was only a matter of time beforethe media started hounding them for information. Not only did this case involvethe murders of two local women, it had some bizarre aspects that the presswould love to run with.
But just how much of all that had they found out?
Riley and her colleagues just kept walking and pushed among thereporters without answering any of their questions. As harassed as Riley feltby all their shoving and prodding, she was relieved not to hear any questionsabout the “Goatman,” or about cryptic messages threatening of another abductionon Halloween night. The reporters knew that a second body had been found thismorning, and they also knew the victims’ identities, but not much else.
This could be worse, Riley thought.
But she wondered how long they could keep some of the moresensational details from leaking out.
As they entered the building, the receptionist at the front deskstood up and spoke to Wightman.
“Senator Danson called again just now. He really wants to talk toyou.”
“Damn it,” Wightman grumbled to the receptionist. “If—or when—hecalls again, tell him we’re doing the best we can. Tell him I’ll get back tohim … well, when I can.”
“Right,” the receptionist said.
“Walker Danson’s been calling every several hours,” Wightman saidas he led Riley and Ann Marie into his office. “He even called me at home lastnight. I’m sure he’s heard by now that we’ve got a new body. I wish he couldget it through his head that we’re liable to do better work if he’s notpestering us.”
Riley got a sinking feeling as she and Ann Marie sat down infront of Wightman’s desk. She remembered the state senator’s inscrutableexpression when he’d asked her whether she knew Carl Walder.
It was bad enough that Danson was constantly calling to check ontheir progress. She was even more worried that Danson seemed to have some kindof personal connection to Walder. If they didn’t solve the case soon, wouldDanson complain directly to the BAU’s special agent in charge? Politicians haddone that before, and it had always raised problems for the investigation.
If that happened now, how long would it be before Walder startedbreathing down Riley’s neck, holding her job over her head as he often did?Tangling with Carl Walder was the last thing she needed while she was trying tosolve a murder case.
At least he doesn’t know about Bill and me yet, shethought.
But of course, it was only a matter of time before he did.Whenever that happened, she was sure Walder was going to make thingsuncomfortable for her—and for Bill as well.
Wightman took several folders out of his filing cabinet then satdown behind his desk.
He opened up one of the folders filled with reports.
“Here’s what we’ve got on Yvonne Swenson, the vice principal atPater High School. As you already know, she disappeared two years ago—onHalloween night. The last time she was seen, she was walking home from aHalloween party that had been held in the school gym.”
Wightman shook his head wearily.
“I can’t describe what a toll her disappearance took on thecommunity—and frankly, on myself, personally and professionally. Not everybodygot along with her, but just about everybody respected and even admired her.She was a widow, dedicated to her work. Nobody could seriously believe shewould just run off without telling anybody. We worked like demons trying tofind out what had happened to her. Of course we failed.”
Riley thought hard about what she was hearing.
She said, “I take it you thought the date was just a coincidencewhen Allison Hillis disappeared on Halloween last year.”
“Well, of course it made us wonder whether their disappearancesmight be connected,” Wightman said. “So we looked for some common threadbetween Allison and Yvonne, but we couldn’t find a thing. They lived indifferent neighborhoods, didn’t know each other personally, and didn’t have anyacquaintances in common—or any enemies, for that matter. There didn’t seem tobe any actual connection between their disappearances—until just now.”
Riley found herself holding her breath. She doubted that she wasgoing to like whatever he was about to say next.
He said, “You know, in a town like this, folks disappear fromtime to time. Sometimes we can figure out why they disappeared, and even wherethey went. Sometimes we can’t. But that doesn’t necessarily indicate foul play.People can run off for lots of reasons. It just happens.”
Wightman opened up the other two folders and showed Riley and AnnMarie their contents.
He said, “For example, a woman named Deena McHugh vanished fouryears ago. Her husband was unfaithful and as mean as hell, so even he figuredshe just wanted to get away from him and didn’t want him to ever be able tofind her. Four years before that, a thirteen-year-old kid named Henry Studdarddisappeared. He lived with an abusive father, so everybody figured he just ranoff as well.”
Wightman took a long, slow breath.
He said, “The thing is—both Deena McHugh and Henry Studdarddisappeared on Halloween.”
Ann Marie’s eyes widened. She said, “But you never had any reasonto think anything of it until now.”
Wightman scowled. “No bodies had ever turned up. We had no reasonto think they’d been murdered. All that’s changed now that we’ve got YvonneSwenson’s corpse. What scares me now is …”
His voice trailed away.
Finishing his thought, Riley said, “If their disappearance onHalloween is significant, that means there might have been two moremurders—and two other buried dead bodies that nobody’s ever found.”
Wightman nodded silently.
Riley’s mind clicked away as she tried to process what she washearing.
Of course, it might merely have been coincidence that two otherpeople had disappeared on Halloween over a period of several years. Riley hadlong since learned
