“Yes, that’s the one. Do you know him?”
“He was my deputy chief when I was in Orchid. I’d be happy to put in a word for you, if you like.”
“Oh, yes, that would be great!” Lauren said. “What’s Captain Wallace like?”
“Good guy; no worries there. He came to see me to tell me about Bruno, said he would have done what he could to block his appointment if he’d known earlier who he was.”
They changed the subject and chatted through lunch, then Holly said goodbye and went back to the market to complete her shopping. When she was back in her car, she called Hurd Wallace and recommended Lauren Cade highly. He said he’d interview her.
10
Holly awoke early the next morning, fed Daisy and herself, then took them both for a walk on the beach. Daisy ran freely among the dunes, as she always did, looking for just the right spot, then she returned to Holly with a stick of driftwood in her mouth, demanding that Holly throw it. Holly obliged, and Daisy dutifully retrieved the stick and returned it to Holly, wanting more. They made progress up the beach as Daisy retrieved, then Holly threw it once more, and Daisy stopped after a few feet and sat down on the sand.
“What’s the matter?” Holly asked, catching up with her. “You tired already? You haven’t even worn me out yet.”
Daisy made an urgent rumbling noise in her throat, then got up and began to walk up the beach, this time very slowly. Holly watched her, mystified. In their time together she had never seen Daisy behave this way. She followed the dog at her pace, and after another hundred yards Holly saw something in the surf ahead.
Daisy trotted ahead a few yards, sniffed at what seemed to be a lump on the sand, then sat down beside it and barked. Holly began to jog toward her. She was ten feet away when she recognized the lump. It was a body, female, naked, with long blond hair, lying face down in the sand. One ankle had a length of rope tied around it. Holly stopped, called Daisy back, then reached for her cell phone.
The sun was well up now, and a small knot of people was gathered inside a taped-off area on the beach. Holly sat on a dune with Daisy, watching them, thinking. She heard a car door slam behind her, and she turned to see James Bruno trudging through the dunes toward the taped-off area. He joined the group inspecting the body, chatted with them for a few minutes, then turned back toward his car. Then he spotted Holly.
He walked slowly toward her, as if to ascertain her identity, then he stopped a few steps away. Daisy was already on her feet in a guarding stance.
“Good morning, Holly,” Bruno said.
“Is it?”
“Will your dog attack?”
“I haven’t decided yet.”
Bruno thought about that and decided to stay where he was. “I understand you found the body.”
“My dog did. I never got closer than ten feet to the woman.”
“Do you know her?”
“She was face down in the sand.”
He nodded. “If you’ve formed any opinions, I’d appreciate hearing them.”
Holly stared toward where the body was being loaded into the coroner’s wagon. “White female, mid- to late twenties, five-five or -six, a hundred and thirty pounds. No deterioration, just some puffiness associated with being in the water, so she was probably put into the sea last night from a small boat with an outboard engine and with a weight tied to her ankle. Her killer was clumsy, and his outboard cut the rope. She came ashore with the tide, and when it went out, it left her there.”
“That’s very good,” Bruno said.
Holly didn’t reply, just stared out to sea.
“Cause of death?”
“Unless there were wounds on the front of the torso, strangulation. There was a faint mark on the back of her neck. You’d be wise to order a tox screen from the state lab. Hurd Wallace could hurry it up for you, if you call him.”
“Why a tox screen?”
“You’ve probably heard that a serial rapist has been operating locally over the last six weeks.”
“Yes, but he hasn’t killed anybody.”
“Maybe he’s graduated to bigger, more satisfying acts,” she replied. “Maybe rape isn’t doing it for him anymore; maybe he’s decided to become a serial killer.”