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Marlin remained behind the cedar for five minutes, simply watching and listening.
He saw nothing unusual. Heard nothing but birds and traffic on the highway.
So he began to walk slowly to the spot where the man had been standing with the rifle. Unlikely that Marlin would find footprints in the hard caliche soil, but he might spot a path through the grass that would show him where the man had gone.
Instead, he found several drops of fresh blood.
It was possible the man in the army jacket was bleeding, but Marlin figured it was much more likely he’d shot an animal, probably illegally, and that’s why he’d pointed the rifle.
Marlin pondered his options for a minute, then thumbed his microphone. “County, be advised that I’m looking for an armed subject that pointed a rifle in my direction. Young white male. Six-three and maybe one-ninety. Short beard, blue hat, sunglasses, and an army jacket.” Then he described his location in relation to the ranch gate.
“You want me to send someone over?” Bobby Garza asked.
Marlin didn’t want to pull resources away from the investigation at the zoo. Besides, he was used to dealing with armed subjects while working alone.
“Negative,” Marlin said. “Not yet. Let me try to make contact again.”
“Ten-four.”
Marlin studied the blood drops more closely. He could tell by the slant of drops in the grass that the animal had been running to his left, so he walked in the direction with his .357 still in his right hand, keeping an eye out for any movement.
No more than forty yards away, he found a dead axis buck that had been shot behind the shoulder, through both lungs. That was the recommended kill shot for many large game animals, but it didn’t necessarily stop a deer like this from dashing fifty or a hundred yards as it used up its remaining oxygen.
Marlin grabbed one of the buck’s front hooves and moved it in various directions. Limber. He placed his palm on the animal’s neck. Warm. This buck had been killed within the last thirty minutes or so, which would match up with the shot that had been fired during Marlin’s interview with Kitty Katz.
Where was the man with the rifle?
Marlin took out his phone and snapped several photos of the buck, then followed the blood trail in the opposite direction, hoping to find the location where it had been shot.
Lauren pulled Ernie out of the interview and they both shared what they had learned so far. Then they both went into the room where Rory Grafmiller was waiting.
Lauren introduced herself, then she and Ernie sat down at the small square table.
Rory Grafmiller was a handsome kid. Short hair. Clean shaven. Maybe six feet tall. Lean. Sparkling blue eyes. Square jaw. He gave Lauren a big smile and she saw that his teeth were perfectly straight and white.
“I hate to make you repeat yourself,” Lauren said, “but tell me about your experience working at the zoo. What’s it like working there?”
“Sure thing,” Rory said. “But I have to admit I’m a little curious as to what’s going on.”
Earlier, Ernie had told Rory that animals had gotten out of the zoo, but he hadn’t informed him that a body had been found. Rory seemed unaware of that fact.
“Hey, we’re curious, too,” Lauren said. “That’s why we’re here—trying to piece things together.”
“But I don’t understand why my experience at the zoo has anything to do with the animals getting loose. Do you think someone working there did it?”
“We don’t know yet,” Lauren said.
“Just give us a basic recap,” Ernie said. “Along the lines of what you told me earlier.”
Rory accommodated them, telling a glowing story of a tight group of employees who were basically like a big family. To hear Rory tell it, he loved every minute he spent there. Loved the job. Loved the animals. Loved his coworkers. And they all loved him.
If Lauren hadn’t known better, she would’ve bought every word of it. Of course, she was assuming Tracy’s description of Rory was accurate and honest.
Lauren tried not to make snap judgments, but her own opinion of Rory was that he was probably the type who sailed through life fairly easily, thanks to his good looks and charming personality. But what happened when that combination failed him? How did he respond when things didn’t go his way?
When Rory was done talking, Lauren said, “Sounds like a great group of people.”
“It really is. We have a lot of fun.”
“So everybody gets along okay?” Lauren asked.
“Well, sure. Did someone say we didn’t?”
“It’s just a routine question,” Lauren said.
Rory shifted in his chair, which signaled his anxiety, but he smiled. “I’m guessing somebody told you what Albert did yesterday,” he said.
“What happened?” Lauren asked.
“You haven’t talked to him?”
“Not yet, no.”
“But I’m guessing you will, right?”
Was this a ruse? He really didn’t know Albert hadn’t been located?
“We certainly will, but why don’t you tell us what happened yesterday and we’ll go from there?”
“Okay, well, Albert got a little out of hand. Lost his temper a little bit.” Rory was shaking his head as if it were one big regrettable mess.
“What set him off?” Ernie asked.
Lauren wondered if Rory’s account would match Tracy’s.
“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” Rory said. “What did you hear?”
“I’d rather have you tell us about it,” Lauren said. She was becoming impatient with his hemming and hawing, but she concealed it.
“Did Tracy say something? She’s kind of judgmental.”
“She is?”
“She’s in the next room, right?”
“We’re talking to a lot of different people,” Ernie said.
“The thing about Tracy—she kind of has a superior attitude. I was trying to be nice earlier, but if you want someone to come along and criticize everything you do, she’s real good at that. Just ask anybody who works at the zoo.”
“Who should we ask?” Lauren said.
“Like I said, anyone else who works there. Well, she does have some friends there who probably won’t say anything bad about her, but if you talk to more than a few people, you’ll see. She thinks she knows everything. She’s bossy.”
“That’s good to know. In the meantime, tell me more about what happened with Albert yesterday.”
“Nothing happened, really,” Rory said. “We had a discussion, that’s all.”
Lauren felt her phone vibrate with a text, so she quickly checked it. Callie Young, the new deputy, said, Photo of victim doesn’t match anyone who works at the zoo. Disappointing. An ID would’ve helped them move the case forward.
“What did you and Albert talk about?” Ernie asked.
“You know, this conversation feels a little weird. Like I’m about to get roped into something I didn’t do. I didn’t release the animals, okay? Albert got uptight and sent me home early, and that’s the last time I was there.”
“See, that’s exactly the kind of thing we need to know,” Lauren said. “That’s why we’re asking questions. We certainly wouldn’t accuse you of doing something you didn’t do. In fact, our goal here is to cross you off the list.”
“That’s good to know, because I didn’t do anything.”
“Okay, so, did you go anywhere last night or early this morning?” Lauren asked.
“Is that when the animals were released?”
“We’re not sure. Did you go anywhere after your shift yesterday?”
“I stopped at Chicken E on the way home.”
“Chicken E?”
“Chicken Express. Everyone calls it that. I got some food to go.”
“And then you went home?”
“Yep.”
“Where do you live?”
“Chandler Place.”
“That’s the apartment complex?”
“Right. I like it okay. It’s pretty new and they have a pool.”
“Did you go anywhere after you got home with your supper?”
Rory opened his mouth—about to answer—but he changed his mind.
Then he said, “You know what? I definitely want to help you clear this up, but I think I’d better talk to my mom before I answer any more questions.”
“Your mom?”
“She’s an attorney. You might’ve heard of her.”
“Cassandra Grafmiller is your mother?” Lauren asked.
“That’s her.”
Well, crud.