Tess sat with her mouth open, a suitably surprised expression on her face.
"You must be kidding."
Michael shook his head. "Nope. I got the news directly from the ME herself." He leaned back when the waitress came by to drop off their drinks and appetizers.
Tess sat for a moment in silence, trying to process the information.
"So that means Rachel was pregnant with her father's child when she came to Seattle. Rachel's sister was buried up in the mountains near Mt. Baker. She was likely murdered, right?"
Michael nodded. "That or she died accidentally, and the parents didn't want anyone to know, but how would you explain the disappearance of an eight-year-old?"
"Rachel said she was home-schooled. Maybe no one knew the girl went missing."
"Could be," Michael said. He picked up a tequila shot and a bite of lime and held it up. "To the investigation. Let's hope we find whoever killed those men. Let's hope that both Rachel and Sadie are safe."
Tess picked up her own shot of tequila and followed suit, licking the salt, downing the shot and then sucking on the lime wedge. She shuddered as the alcohol went down her throat, but in truth, it felt good.
It helped to chase away the sickening feeling she had after what Michael told her. Being a bit numb would be a welcome reprieve.
"I hope they're alive," Tess said and reached for a hot wing. "Do you suppose Mickey killed the two men and then helped her escape?"
"Could be. Or Craig did. Could be either of them. I have to check out Mickey's alibi. If it holds up, Craig's our man."
Tess ate in silence for a few moments and she knew that they were both weighing the possibility that both Rachel and Sadie were also dead, but that didn't seem as likely now that they knew Mickey left the bar with Rachel.
"Mickey's involved in some way. I bet he's protecting her. Helping her run away."
"My thoughts exactly," Michael replied. "I guess we're going to ask him to come in again and answer some more questions in the morning. If Nick isn't happy with his answers, they'll consider taking him into custody. One way or another, I think he was there at the scene. The ME said that there were prints from two other men at the scene, tracking blood around. One was for a size ten Doc Marten boot. I seem to recall that Mickey wears Doc Martens..."
"So, he was there," Tess said and took in a deep breath. "Maybe Rachel's dad abducted Sadie, and that's what she meant by her past catching up with her. Rachel asked Mickey for help getting her back. Mickey goes to the cabin and kills both of the men when they find them abusing Sadie. Mickey and Rachel try to clean up the scene, and then Rachel and Sadie take off. She goes back to Seattle and asks Craig to come with her, but he refuses. She leaves and who knows where she is."
"Sounds like a good summary of what might have happened. Now, all we have to do is get Mickey to confess and it's case closed."
Tess glanced up at Michael to see if he was joking. He laughed.
"Simple, right?" He smiled at her and picked up another hot wing. "I must say that I'm really loving my job with the DA's Office. All the goodness of a detective and a Special Agent combined. None of the having to shoot bad guys if necessary."
"I'm glad you're enjoying it," Tess said and smiled. "And I'm glad you're my boyfriend. I get all the juicy details."
Michael reached out and took Tess's hand. "So, I'm your boyfriend, am I? That sounds so high school."
She grinned. "You're my main squeeze. My significant other."
"How about fiancée?" he asked, his face becoming serious. "The divorce will be finalized in a few months. We could set a date once it goes through."
"You're serious?" she said, squeezing his hand.
"Never been more serious. I think we're perfect together."
"If that was a proposal, I accept," she said, smiling widely.
"I should get down on my knees and offer you an engagement ring, but I was too busy investigating a double murder and missing persons case to pick one up."
"I don't need a ring," she replied.
At that, Michael stood up and leaned over the table, kissing her warmly. It was at that moment that his cell rang, bringing them back to the present. He grinned and sat back down, taking out his cell and checking the call display.
"It's Nick. I better get this."
He answered and listened while Nick talked.
"Oh, that's interesting."
He glanced over at Tess and raised his eyebrows.
"He's usually out on Friday nights with the truck. He told me he took the truck out as usual."
Michael listened some more, and Tess leaned forward, curious about what they were talking about. Obviously, the police were questioning Mickey's alibi for the night Rachel left town -- or went missing. Tess still wasn't sure which it was. Try as she might, she couldn't imagine Mickey killing Rachel and Sadie as well as the two men at the cabin, but she supposed it could be true. He had served time in prison for serious felonies. It would be key to check his alibi and make sure he didn't have the opportunity.
"Okay, it should be interesting. I can go after I'm finished with my meal and talk to some of Mickey's assistants with the charity. I'll pop into the office and update you."
He ended the call and looked at Tess. "So much for getting drunk tonight. When we're done, I have to go and question Mickey's people to check his alibi."
"Such is the life of a Special Investigator, I guess," Tess said with a smile. "In contrast, I can go home and fall asleep."
"Yeah, I may be pretty late if I'm going to find the truck and speak with whoever is working tonight."
They left the bar and Michael walked Tess to her car. They kissed and he drove off.
Tess sat in her vehicle for a moment, and checked her messages, expecting to see one from her mother about the coming Easter holiday and why Tess had been too busy to visit. Before she started her car, she glanced up and saw a vehicle parked down the street, the lights off but the engine running. A single dark figure sat in the driver's seat.
She pulled out of her spot and drove north, planning on taking a shortcut to the apartment. When she saw the vehicle turn on its lights and pull out when she was about a block away, she frowned.
Was the vehicle following her?
She kept driving north for a few blocks, watching to see if the car turned off or kept following. Then, she decided to pull a U-turn in the middle of the intersection. She had to time it just right and hope that no police were in the vicinity. She watched the vehicle as she passed it, and felt the driver turn to watch her, but that could have been simply because she'd pulled a U-turn illegally. She kept driving, watching in her rear-view mirror, but the car apparently kept driving north so she exhaled and kept driving.
It must just be because she was on edge after the recent revelations about Rachel and her ties to the murdered man at the cabin.