Was Alvarez buying into the whole “Big Foot in the woods” theory? No way. Not down-to-earth, stick-to-the-facts Selena Alvarez. “Don’t even go there,” Pescoli growled as she yanked her door shut.
“Don’t go where?”
“To the far-fetched. Okay?” Sweat was beading on her brow and between her shoulder blades. “Bianca’s already mentioning monsters chasing her, and Lex Farnsby is talking Sasquatch. You know, like there’s a Big Foot running around the foothills. Holy crap, it’s boiling in here. How about some air?”
“Just give it a sec.” Alvarez fiddled with the temperature controls. “I’m not talking about Big Foot. What do you take me for? I’m thinking maybe our guy, a big, strong guy, is hyped up on drugs. I knew a guy in high school who snapped a guy’s forearm during a wrestling match and he wasn’t trying to do his opponent harm, not really, just wanted the pin.” She adjusted her sunglasses before backing out. “And you always hear about in times of great stress like during an accident, with adrenaline pumping through his body, a guy’s able to lift a car off a kid or rip a door from its hinges. Superhuman strength.” She shot Pescoli a look. “So, let’s just say, we’ve got a guy who’s intent on murder, and he’s already fired up anticipating the crime.”
“Maybe someone who doesn’t want a baby screwing up his plans?”
She twisted her neck to look out the rear of the vehicle, rammed the gearshift into reverse, and began backing out. “So, now he’s pumped up, right, in a rage? Adrenaline flowing through his bloodstream, maybe steroids or whatever’s amping him up adding to the mix, and good old testosterone driving the show. Just how tough would it be for a big guy, a trained fighter, to snap a small woman’s neck?” She hit the brakes and put the Outback into drive. “Piece of cake.”
A bad taste filled Pescoli’s throat as she wrestled into her seat belt and flipped down her visor. At least a waft of cool air had begun to filter through the vents.
As Alvarez eased on the gas and pulled out of the lot, Pescoli’s cell phone buzzed. Plucking it from her bag, she glanced at the screen and inwardly groaned. Her ex-husband.
Great. Just what she needed. A chat with Lucky.
Because of Bianca’s recent trip to the hospital, she took the call. “This will just take a sec,” she told Alvarez, then answered: “What’s up?” No need for pleasantries.
“I was checking on Bianca.”
“She’s at home. You could call her.”
“I did.”
“And?” She slid on a pair of sunglasses and stared out the window. Despite the heat, the sidewalks of the upper level of Grizzly Falls were crowded with pedestrians and skateboarders, women with strollers, joggers, and a few people walking dogs. Strip malls and restaurants lined the street, where traffic moved smoothly. This part of town, sprawling toward the foothills, was the newer area of Grizzly Falls. The older, original section of town lay upon the banks of the Grizzly River, just below the falls for which the town was named.
“I wanted your take on things,” Lucky said.
That was a surprise. In their few years of a tumultuous marriage, he’d rarely wanted to hear what she had to say. A truck driver who was handsome, charming, and as slippery as an eel, he had been a big believer in asking forgiveness rather
than permission. In Pescoli’s opinion, it hadn’t been a question of permission or forgiveness, but rather what should have been a discussion. Instead of a meeting of the minds, she and Luke had been forever butting heads. Still were. And she didn’t trust him.
“She’ll survive. Despite what she says, she won’t be scarred for life.”
“Physically, ya mean.”
“Right. I think she’ll put everything else in perspective, though. It’ll take time.”
“Pretty tough.”
She thought about the first time she’d seen a body. It had been her grandfather in a casket, and even that had been creepy for an eleven-year-old. “Real tough. And, she thinks she may have known the victim.”
“The victim? Oh, the dead girl? Yeah . . . yeah, of course.” He cleared his throat. “Real hard.”
Something was off here. “What did you think I was talking about?”
“Come on, Regan. Bianca was chased through the woods with a Sasquatch bearing down on her. Has to be traumatic.”
“Oh my God, you too?” She nearly clapped her hand to her forehead in exasperation.
“They’ve been spotted all around here,” he said defensively.
“But no one has pictures or bones or even any spoor.”
“Not yet.”
“Please.”