One Last Step by Sarah Sutton (free e books to read TXT) 📗

“Yes, of course,” the woman responded.

She looked down at the pictures on the counter, picking them up one by one before placing them back down.

“I’m usually pretty good with faces,” she said as she placed the last photo down on the counter. “I saw their pictures on the news, but they definitely didn’t come in here.”

Her words were disappointing, but Tara knew there was still more to ask. “Is there a manager we can speak to? We’d like to take a look at the cameras.”

The woman nodded. “You’re looking at her, Follow me.”

They followed her to a back room, and moments later, they were scanning through the video footage. But, after examining all the days prior since the first two hikers went missing, it was evident that the cameras didn’t capture anything of substance and it was clear that none of the victims stopped in there.

Tara finally looked up. “Is there any other place hikers might’ve stopped to eat?”

The woman thought for a moment. “Yes, actually. You could try the deli down the street.”

The woman gave her directions and after Tara thanked her, she and Warren were soon out the door.

***

A few moments later Tara and Warren entered the deli. It was a small space, with barely anyone in it, but a man stood behind the counter. He wore a white apron over his large round belly, his bald head shining under the overhead light. He was making a sandwich as he talked and laughed with the only customer in the store.

The deli was unusually warm, and Tara wondered if that’s why it was so empty.

“Can I help you?” the man behind the counter asked, as he placed more toppings on the sandwich in front of him.

Tara could now see that it was sweat that caused his bald head to glisten so.

“Sorry if it’s a bit warm in here. Our AC just broke,” he added.

“It’s fine, we won’t be long.” Tara approached the counter. She held out her badge and the man looked up at it and then turned his gaze toward the customer with a look of concern. Tara could tell that the two men knew each other fairly well.

“What’s this about?” the man asked. “Don’t tell me Tommy’s in trouble.” A sudden flash of terror crossed his face.

It was not a response Tara expected and she briefly met eyes with Warren.

“We’re actually not here about that,” Tara replied, skeptically. “Who’s Tommy?”

The man let out a long sigh. “Thank God! I don’t think I could handle any more,” he said before a pause. “Tommy’s my son,” he added as he finished the sandwiches and wrapped them up. “He’s been having a tough time with me and his mom’s divorce.”

Tara nodded. “How old is your son?”

The man shook his head, realizing he was creating an inaccurate picture. “He’s only fifteen,” he confirmed. “He’s harmless, I’m just a bit on edge. He’s been getting into some fights at school.”

His explanation sounded a bit contradictory—he didn’t sound exactly harmless if he picked fights—but Tara knew that he wasn’t a suspect since it would be unlikely that a fifteen-year-old could remove an adult body from a crime scene without leaving more evidence.

She nodded before pulling out the pictures of the victims and showing them to the man. “Do any of these people look familiar to you?”

The man placed the sandwiches in a bag.

“Here you go, Dan,” he said as he held it out over the counter. “Take care of yourself and tell Becca I say hi.”

The customer thanked him and gave his best wishes as well, before grabbing the bag and walking out of the store.

After the customer left, the deli worker reached for the pictures but paused once he saw the images of the first two victims.

“They look familiar,” he said, as he stroked his chin, trying to recall where in his mind he knew them from. “They’re a couple, right?”

Tara nodded as she anxiously waited for him to elaborate.

“Yeah, they came in here,” he added. “Probably about a week ago.”

“Did they mention anything to you, like where they were going or who they might’ve met?” Tara asked.

The man shook his head. “I think I just opened up. They ordered a couple sandwiches and left.”

Tara’s heart sank. Again, no lead.

Tara asked a few more questions, trying to determine if anyone who came into the shop seemed suspicious, but the man only confirmed that he never had a strange feeling from anyone, and that he was the only person who worked there. It was a family-owned business, and when he couldn’t work, they were closed. After exhausting her efforts, Tara thanked him, and they were soon out the door.

They stood outside on the sidewalk and Tara turned to Warren, who now had a look of defeat on his face.

“We gotta find a lead somewhere, we need something.” He stared off into the distance. “It can’t be a coincidence that they all stopped here in Hanover, and that the victims were in their early twenties.” He paused for a moment. “The killer could be targeting women—maybe the boyfriend of the second victim just got in the way.”

Tara knew what he was suggesting—that they weren’t random killings.

“You think they were targeted?” she asked.

“You don’t?” Warren snapped, with a look of surprise.

But Tara shook her head. To her, it seemed more likely that they were crimes of opportunity—that the killer had picked an area where he would hunt and then hunted down whoever walked through there next, just like a hunter would come upon a deer in the woods.

“I think it would be pretty hard to target a victim based on age and gender,” she started. “If our theory is right about the compasses pointing to where he will strike next, then how would he know that a woman in her early twenties is going to walk through there?” She paused for a moment. “It could be months before a hiker meeting that criteria hikes through that area.”

“Well, maybe he’ll wait months