“Okay, let’s have a seat, and you can go through everything,” Dean suggested.
I explained everything I knew to date about the investigation into both Dale Conover’s murder and Frank White’s. I explained that Lissa Nixon had confessed to both murders, but Cass was sure she was lying, so he was continuing to investigate both murders as independent events. I also explained that when I found out that the woman contracted to keep the books for the town was moving, it occurred to me that perhaps she’d been the one who shot White, and her moving was actually an escape. It sounded like a weak theory now that I was explaining the whole thing, but at the time, I’d suspected that she had been skimming off the top and White might have discovered it during one of the audits he seemed to have been subjecting everyone who worked for the town in any way to. I also explained that when I’d called and told Cass about my theory, he felt that, at a minimum, it deserved additional research, so when he hadn’t shown up at the bowling alley, I just assumed he was interviewing Polly. But then, I’d seen Polly at the bowling alley and knew Cass hadn’t been with her as I’d suspected. The question was, if he wasn’t with her, then where was he?
“Can you track his phone or his vehicle or something?” I asked with a slight hint of desperation in my voice.
“We can,” Martin answered. “But before we do, are you absolutely certain that Cass isn’t simply following another lead?”
“Absolutely certain, no. But it isn’t like Cass to stand me up or not call if he’s going to be late or can’t make it. If he was able to, at the very least, he’d have texted.”
“Maybe his phone is dead,” Dean suggested.
“Maybe. And maybe Cass has been shot and is bleeding in the gutter somewhere. We can play this maybe game all day, but it seems to me that if we can track Cass using his phone or his vehicle’s GPS, we should. If he is simply busy with an interview, we can apologize later for disturbing him.”
Martin looked at Dean, who shrugged. “Do you have Cass’s phone number?” Martin asked.
I gave him the number and then followed the men downstairs to their bat cave where they kept their most valuable computers. Waiting for them to do their thing was nerve-racking, but at least it didn’t take long.
“Cass’s cell is here.” Martin pointed to a map on the wall.
“Where is here?” I asked, looking at an area that didn’t appear to be developed in any way.
“The main highway is here,” Martin trailed his finger along a dark line. “And the lake is here.” He pointed to the body of water.
“I think Cass’s home is about here.” I pointed to a spot. “There is no road behind the cabin, which is where it appears Cass’s phone is. I guess I’ll have to take a look on foot.”
“It’s pitch black and cold as an iceberg,” Dean pointed out.
“I can’t wait until morning. Cass might be with his phone. He might be hurt.”
“Can’t drive,” Dean said.
“Maybe we can,” Martin countered.
Before I knew what was happening, the brothers had changed into arctic wear and, after lending me a coat and boots two sizes too large for me, we set off on snowmobiles. I had no idea where we were once we left their estate, but I was riding behind Dean, and he seemed to know exactly where he was heading. Even with the heavy boots and jacket, it was freezing, but Dean’s body helped to block the wind created by the snowmobile as it wove its way through the forest. It wasn’t until we reached the lake that I was able to get my bearings. When I noticed Cass’s house, I suggested we check there to be sure. Milo was inside, and his truck was in the drive, but there was no sign of Cass anywhere. Snowmobile tracks were leading away from the house. Dean suggested we follow them since it appeared they were heading in the same direction as the signal we’d received from Cass’s phone.
“It looks like there’s a hunter’s shed up ahead,” Dean said after we’d traveled through the woods for a while, and he’d stopped his machine and taken off his helmet.
“We should walk from here,” Martin suggested.
I was eternally grateful for the borrowed boots as I stepped off the machine and into the deep drift of snow.
“Should we call someone?” I asked. “It might be a good idea to have backup.”
“Let’s take a peek inside and then decide what to do,” Dean suggested.
Approaching the shed on our own seemed like a bad idea, but they were the geniuses, so I followed along behind. The shed was a single room with one small window for ventilation, much too high for me to reach. The brothers weren’t tall enough to see through it either, so they decided to give me a boost up.
“What do you see?” Dean whispered.
“It’s Cass. He’s tied to a chair. I can’t tell if he is dead or unconscious. I don’t see anyone else in the room.”
The brothers lowered me slowly so as not to make any noise. Dean motioned for Martin and me to follow him. “Now would be the time to call for backup,” he suggested.
“I agree,” I said. “You make the call, I’m going in. It appears that Cass is alone, and it looks like he’s been injured. Or worse. I need to know.”
“But what if the person who tied Cass up is still around?” Martin asked.
“Then you can rescue the both of us.”
Dean tried to argue, but I took off at a run. Looking back, storming into a structure that may or may not have been under surveillance by the person or persons who’d knocked Cass out and tied him up was probably not the best idea, but at that moment, I really wasn’t thinking. As soon as I made my way into the interior of the shed, I knelt down in front of Cass. I put my hands on his cheeks. “Cass?” I shook him slightly. “Cass. Are you in there?”
After a brief moment of terror, he opened his eyes. “Callie?”
“Thank God.” I hugged him as the tears I’d been holding at bay found their release. “I was so scared. I thought you were dead.”
He groaned as I went to work, untying the ropes that bound him. “Not dead, but embarrassed.”
“Embarrassed? Embarrassed, why?”
“It seems you saving me is becoming a pattern. Are you here alone?”
“Dean and Martin are here. They tracked your phone. Help is on the way.”
I helped Cass to stand once I’d managed to work the ropes free. “Who did this to you?”
“Mark Nixon.”
“Lissa’s brother?” I remembered that Mark had been the one to bring Lissa to Foxtail Lake. He was also the owner of one of the businesses Frank had been trying to buy. “Mark is our killer?” I took a stab at an explanation.
Cass nodded. “After he found out what Dale had done to his baby sister, he decided to meet with the man and give him a piece of his mind. The discussion got heated, and Mark ended up shooting Dale with the gun he always keeps on his person for personal protection. After Dale was shot, Mark panicked and left Dale’s residence, but in the end, he felt bad about what he’d done and confessed to Lissa since he knew she’d be upset by the loss of the man she professed to love. And Lissa was upset at first, but in the end, she wanted to protect her brother, so according to Mark, she’s the one who came up with the idea of burning the place to the ground.”
“So why involve me? Why set the fire during a time when I was expected to show up for a meeting with the guy?”
“I’m not sure. Mark didn’t say. Maybe it just worked out that way, or maybe they realized that you would provide an alibi of sorts for Lissa.”
“So Mark must have helped her start the fire and then left. She stayed behind to meet with me and play the role of the terrified girlfriend.” I realized for the first time that Lissa hadn’t had a car when I’d met her at the house.
Cass nodded.
“And Frank?”
“Mark said that Frank had been trying to buy the entire block where he has his hunting and fishing store. He refused to sell, as did most of the others, but then Frank messed up Walter’s deal to sell to the couple from Aurora, and he used that as leverage to get the hairdresser on board. With the option on her property, he controlled half the block. I guess Frank threatened to shut down Mark’s business while he conducted a comprehensive audit to determine if he’d been selling illegal guns. He hadn’t been, but he knew that White would drag his feet, and he’d be out of business even if he eventually passed the audit, so he went to his home to speak to him. Mark said he only intended to talk to the man, but then, as with his conversation with Dale, his conversation with Frank got heated, and he shot the guy.”