The Crying Season (Detectives Kane and Alton)

“You planning on fighting me now?” Kane gave him a long, hard stare. He had to be joking; one punch and Woods would be nursing a broken nose for weeks. “You wouldn’t want to do that, Mr. Woods.”

The man lunged forward, swinging his fists, and Kane sidestepped, leaving air in his place. The momentum from Woods’ punch unbalanced him and he staggered forward. Kane caught him by the collar and swung him around to face the red-brick wall. He flicked a glance at Rowley. “Add attacking an officer of the law and resisting arrest to the charge of causing a public nuisance.”

“I’ll stand up in court if needs be as a witness, Deputy.” A white-haired elderly man stepped forward. “And so will my son, we got everything with our cellphone camera. He’ll tell you everything you need to know.” He shook his head. “I don’t want no ruckus outside my store—its bad for business.” He turned and went slowly up the steps and into the store.

A man stepped forward. “I can send you the pictures.”

“Thank you, sir. Rowley here will give you my card. Send the file to me with your details.”

Kane pushed Woods against the wall and cuffed him, kicked out his legs, then frisked him none too gently. “Is that your rifle?” He indicated to the Winchester 70 Featherweight leaning against the wall.

“Yes, and I want my lawyer.” Woods glared at him over one shoulder. “In case you have forgotten, it’s James Stone.”

Kane ignored Woods and turned to Leroy Finch. “What happened here?”

“We caught him sneakin’ around our cabin.” Leroy’s mouth turned down. “We got ourselves a night-vision camera, thought we had a bear causing a ruckus, but it turns out it was him. Last night he slept in our barn. He ain’t got no right to be creepin’ around our property at night.”

“And you’ve got no right to be fighting on the sidewalk. You could have injured a bystander. I’m charging you this time.” Kane read them their rights then pushed Woods toward Rowley’s cruiser. “All of you inside.” He collected Woods’ rifle. “I’ll be following right behind. Any sign of trouble and you can walk in front of the cruiser. Understand?” He shut the door and looked over at Rowley. “As if we don’t have enough to deal with.”

“Black Rock Falls, perfect one day, crazy as hell the next.” Rowley grinned then swung inside his cruiser.

* * *

Crazy as hell, now there’s an understatement. Kane followed the prisoners and Rowley into the sheriff’s department foyer, passed the counter, then stopped at the sight of Jenna emerging from her office. “Chase down anything interesting?”

“No, all dead ends.” Jenna glanced at the retreating figures on their way to the cells. “What have we got?”

“Not much.” Kane leaned one shoulder against the doorframe of her office. “I do have a video of the arrest and Woods’ assault on me, so we have him to rights. Apparently, Woods has been hanging around the Finch brothers’ cabin. I’m not sure who started the fight, but this rifle belongs to Woods, so I’ll need to add it to his property list.”

“I’ll lock it in the weapons locker.” Jenna’s attention moved to the rifle. “Nice.” She lifted the weapon from Kane’s hand and checked it out. “I hear these are pretty accurate.”

Kane followed her inside. “Not bad for a hunter, but not what I’d have in my arsenal; but then, I don’t use my Light Fifty to hunt animals.”

The delicious smell of hot coffee filled the room. Kane glanced at Jenna’s desk, noting the takeout bag, and his stomach gave a slow rumble. He gave her an apologetic smile, his thoughts on the cookies in his desk and the always full coffee pot waiting in the small kitchenette. “I’ll go and interview the prisoners—well, the brothers at least. Woods lawyered up. I called Stone already.”

“The Finches can wait ten minutes. Rowley won’t have finished processing them yet.” She waved him to a seat. “I thought you might be busy, so I’ve brought lunch for you, and while we’re eating you can give me a quick rundown on the autopsy report. Wolfe hasn’t sent me anything yet but I’m sure he’ll have a preliminary report over to me soon.”

Kane dropped into a chair and sighed. “Okay and thanks, I’m famished. I haven’t had time for a break this morning.” He peered inside the bag and the smell of chili filled his nostrils. “You are an angel.”

As he ate, he outlined Wolfe’s initial findings. He sipped his coffee, waiting for her to digest the information.

“I figure it’s the same killer.” Jenna pushed to her feet and went to the whiteboard. “He likely lives out of town but in Montana. We need to scan the databanks for any other similar crimes. If he committed this type of murder before, he could be active throughout the state. People come from all over Montana to hunt here and the same would be for most hunting areas statewide. He would keep his licenses up to date, and visit the checkpoints. He slips into society without anyone noticing.”

“Not many serial killers choose hunting seasons; there are too many rangers and hunters roaming around.” Kane shrugged. “I don’t figure this is an opportunistic thrill-kill. The evidence points to him using trail cams to track his victims, but how does he know they will be in that particular area? He has to know to set up the trail cams beforehand.”

“Easy.” Jenna’s eyebrows rose. “He sets them up all over but in some of the more remote areas. Tons of couples prefer the more secluded trails. They want to be alone.” She shrugged as if it was a done deal and returned to her seat. “If he can access the trail cams via his cellphone he waits to see a possible target moving into his area then jumps out and kills them.” She held up a finger to stop his reply. “Also, it’s unusual for people to steal trail cams because they know the owner would have video evidence of the theft. Hunting season is a perfect time to kill people in the forest. It’s hunting season here most months of the year and if a man comes out of the forest blood-spattered, no one would bat an eyelid. They dress their kills on-site.”

Kane leaned back in his seat and stretched out his legs. “Point taken. The only possible way I could see this idea working is if he lived in the mountains. He could see a couple heading for one of his trails but he’d still need to get there and hike or ride a horse to their position… unless he makes his choice out of couples who plan to camp overnight. The trail cams have audio, so he would be able to listen to their plans.”

“And if he was close by, he would have time to get there and set up an ambush.” Jenna chewed on her fingers then stared frowning at the whiteboard. “Leroy and Abel Finch live in the mountains near Bear Peak and they caught Ethan Woods prowling around their cabin at night. The three of them are volatile. Do any of them fit your profile?”

Kane considered her question. “The brothers are an unknown quantity: One is dominant and that alone would fit the profile of those who kill in pairs. They live in the forest, which could make them a possibility as well.” He thought for a moment. “Ethan Woods is a regular visitor and used to be a resident of Black Rock Falls, so he would know the area. He has money to purchase the best equipment so I find it hard to believe he slept in the Finches’ barn.” He looked at Jenna. “Yeah, he is a possibility as well, especially as he lawyered up the moment I arrived.”

“Hmm.” Jenna moved around her desk to the whiteboard. “I’ll add their names to the suspects list.”

Kane rubbed his chin. “I sure would like to take a look at their cellphones and see if they have a trail cam app and any recent footage.”

A rapping came on the door and Rowley’s face appeared. “The lawyer, Mr. Stone, is here, and here’s the arrest files on the Finch brothers.” He handed Jenna two folders.