Dead by Sunrise

by Richard Ryker

  “Not at all. After we, you know, did it. We came back and said goodnight and we both went to bed.”

  “And that’s the last time you saw her?”

  “Yeah,” Justin said.

  “Tell me, bud,” Will said. “Do you feel bad at all about Lauren’s death?”

  Justin glanced from Will to Brandon, as if to ask Brandon to have Will back off.

  “I do.” He slid the dreadlocks out of his face. “She was a nice girl.”

  “Not sweet enough for you to leave Brooke?” Brandon said.

  “Brooke’s my girl. You know what I mean, right? I was just playing.”

  “Does Brooke know about you and Lauren?” Brandon asked.

  Justin’s eyes went wide. “Hell no. You won’t tell her, will you?”

  “Why not?” Will said.

  “She’ll never forgive me.”

  “You’ve done this before?” Brandon asked.

  “No…I mean, Brooke doesn’t know.”

  “So, you have but haven’t got caught.”

  Justin ran his hand over his face.

  “You’re aware we have your DNA in the system, right?” Brandon asked.

  “I guess.”

  “And you know why.”

  “That was all cleared up, man. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “You were accused of sexual assault,” Brandon said.

  “Yeah but Brooke dropped the charges. She was just mad at me because she thought I was playing around behind her back.”

  If Justin was telling the truth, all he was guilty of was being a two-timing, good-for-nothing boyfriend.

  But even if he had consensual sex with Lauren, that didn’t rule him out. Sex wasn’t the only motive for murder.

  “The DNA evidence will come out at some point,” Brandon said. “It will be in the trial when we catch whoever did this. In the meantime, it’s up to you to come clean with Brooke.”

  Justin stared at his hands.

  “What about Adam?” Justin asked.

  “What about him?”

  “I mean, if he knew about me and Lauren, wouldn’t he want to kill her?”

  “You have evidence he murdered Lauren?” Brandon asked.

  “No.”

  “Did Lauren ever say she felt threatened by Adam?”

  “That wuss? No. She could probably kick his ass.” Then as if realizing he’d just blown his own theory about Adam, he added, “But he could have. I mean, isn’t jealousy a good motive for murder?”

  “There is no good motive for murder,” Brandon said. He stood. “One more question. You ever been into the vampire culture?”

  “Like what?” Justin asked.

  “Dressing up, wearing teeth.”

  “You mean like cosplay?”

  “Cosplay?” Brandon asked.

  “Costume play. Like Comic Con.”

  Brandon had heard of Comic Con. They’d come to Seattle. Thousands of barely clad men and women dressed like anime characters, superheroes, or whatever they found at the local thrift shop.

  “That’s for nerds, man,” Justin said.

  “How about Adam?”

  “I don’t know. He is sort of a nerd.”

  “Brooke?”

  “Hell, no,” he scoffed. “I wouldn’t date no chick into that stuff.”

  “That’s enough for now.”

  Will escorted Justin to the waiting room. When he returned, he led Brooke to the interview room. Outside the door, Will spoke to Brandon.

  “He could have done it,” Will said.

  “Maybe.”

  “It’s clear he didn’t give a damn about the girl. Or any girl for that matter,” Will said.

  “Agreed, but being a complete ass doesn’t make him a good suspect for murder.”

  “Well, someone ought to knock some sense into him.”

  Brandon rose an eyebrow. “How long until you retire?”

  “Not soon enough.”

  They interviewed Brooke next.

  Brandon had just closed the door when she asked, “What did you ask Justin? Is he in trouble?”

  Brandon glanced at Will.

  “We’ll leave it up to your boyfriend to tell you what we discussed,” Will said.

  Brooke stared at Will for a long time, as if trying to decipher the hidden meaning behind Will’s statement.

  “Was Lauren ever interested in anyone besides Adam?” Brandon asked.

  The question was meant to gauge how much Brooke knew about Justin and Lauren.

  “No…I mean, before Adam she’d had a couple of boyfriends.”

  “No one recently?”

  Brooke’s jet-black hair was cut short on the sides, but her bangs were long and leaned over her right eye. Her hands trembled as she pushed the bangs aside.

  “No,” she said.

  “How long have you and Justin been together?” Will asked.

  “A year and a half.”

  “How are things between you?”

  “Fine. Why are you asking me these questions?”

  “Just curious,” Will said.

  “Shouldn’t you be going after Ruby?” She pulled her feet up into the chair and sat cross-legged. “I mean, she’s the one who wanted Lauren dead.”

  “That’s a serious accusation,” Brandon said.

  “Well, it’s true. She threatened Lauren. Everyone knows that.”

  Brandon slid his phone out of his back pocket, found what he was looking for and held it up.

  “Does this look familiar?”

  The color drained from her face. It was a strange reaction, considering Justin had made it clear they had no interest in the vampire subculture.

  After a few seconds, she said, “That’s the graffiti in town. Justin and I were just talking about that.”

  “What about it?” Will asked.

  “I don’t remember. It was like, something about how weird it was.”

  “Do you know what it means?”

  “No idea,” she said, her eyes avoiding the picture.

  “Not into that sort of thing?” Brandon asked.

  “What sort of thing?”

  Brandon put his phone away, ignoring the question.

  “We’ll be in touch,” he said. She’d already made it clear she wasn’t interested in revisiting her accusations of sexual assault against Justin. She was going out of her way to avoid saying anything negative about her wayward boyfriend.

  “Are you going to stop her from doing this again?”

  “Who?”

  She sighed. “Ruby. Because Justin and I aren’t safe—”

  “We’re following every lead,” Brandon said. He motioned toward the door. She was free to go.

  Brooke stood.

  “By the way,” Brandon said, “I’ll remind you not to invite strangers into your home. Even if they are underage teen girls you’ve encouraged to attend a party where you happen to be drinking.”

  Her eyes widened in genuine fear.

  “Especially when the girl is my daughter,” Brandon said.

  Will returned. “What the hell was that about?”

  “What?” Brandon asked.

  “The underage teen girl thing.”

  “Justin and Brooke invited Emma to the house where they’re staying. Josiah responded to a noise complaint and Emma was there.”

  “Damn.”

  “By the way. Don’t mention that to anyone,” Brandon said.

  “I’ve been doing this for how many decades, and you don’t think I know how to keep my mouth shut? You know how many chief’s kids I had to deal with?”

  “Emma’s not like that. She was being stupid. Gullible.”

  “I get it,” Will said. “Just…keep your eye on that Justin kid. There’s something about him…”

  Chapter 28

  Brandon shot off an email to the prosecutor’s office, letting them know Doug Nevins’ DNA didn’t match that found with Lauren Sandoval. He was being charged for resisting arrest and attempted murder of two pol
ice officers. Based on the information they had now, it appeared Nevins fled because he figured they were there to bust him for failure to report as a sex offender.

  That, at least, narrowed the list of suspects. But that didn’t rule out someone they hadn’t come across yet. Anyone could have picked up Lauren on her way back to the beach. Considering her level of intoxication, she might have agreed to share a couple of beers with just about anyone.

  That she’d had sex with both Adam and Justin was telling, but it didn’t point to either of the men. They both had motive. Adam, if he knew Lauren had cheated on him. Justin had a history of accusations of assault against him. But was he willing to kill to keep his affair with Lauren a secret?

  Brandon had asked Jackson to follow up with the police in Port Angeles if she wasn’t able to get ahold of Adam by phone. They hadn’t heard from him.

  There was no sign of him at home or work.

  What about Brooke? Lauren’s best friend by her own report. Had she learned of Justin’s most recent tryst?

  Then there was Ruby. Brandon had no reason to like the woman. She had lied to him, acted as obstructionist as possible, and was a criminal in light of her drug dealing activities. She had a clear motive to kill Lauren—considering the girl’s threats to turn her in. And now he had proof she’d participated in Vasile’s blood-sucking cult. It was possible Ruby owned a pair of fangs like the ones that made the marks on Lauren’s neck.

  Bite marks like that were either sexual or part of some sort of perverted fetish. Ruby didn’t fit the mold. Then again, he’d never guessed she was part of a vampire coven.

  A reminder popped up on Brandon’s computer screen. He had an appointment with the mayor.

  Ten minutes ago.

  Mayor Kim and Olivia Baker, her Minister of Tourism, were waiting for Brandon. They were on opposite sides of the conference table, a map of the Moonbeam Festival stretched out between them.

  “Nice of you to show,” the mayor said.

  Brandon ignored the jab. They were lucky he showed at all.

  “I hope this isn’t another attempt to change the way my officers dress. I don’t have time for this today—”

  “A hot date?” Olivia asked, her lips in a teasing smile.

  Olivia had been at the public meeting where Ted had made the insinuation about Brandon and Misty.

  Brandon’s cold stare was enough to change her mind about pursuing the question further.

  “Okay, well…as you might recall,” Olivia said. “There are only six days until the Moonbeam Festival—”

  “And Tiffany Quick has expressed concerns,” the mayor interrupted, “about the ongoing murder investigation.”

  “What does Tiffany Quick have to do with my investigation?”

  “She’s concerned for her safety.”

  “I see. Then tell her to avoid camping on Second Beach.”

  “This is serious, Brandon.”

  “I know it is. That’s why I’m spending all day every day working on this case.”

  Which I could be doing if I wasn’t sitting here with you.

  “If she doesn’t feel safe—” Olivia started.

  “I can’t change how she feels, Ms. Baker. All I can do is solve Lauren Sandoval’s murder.”

  “You do know there’s been another case of vampire graffiti?” Olivia asked.

  “When?”

  “Someone reported it this afternoon.”

  “Reported it to whom?”

  “The newspaper,” Olivia said. “It’s the vampire symbol, but this time there’s a message, too.”

  “And?”

  The mayor found the picture on the Forks Journal website and turned her laptop to Brandon.

  The photo showed an abandoned house. He’d seen it before but couldn’t place it. Blackberry bushes and knee-high yellow grass framed the weathered empty craftsman. The vampire ankh covered the home’s front door. Next to the door, in the same spray paint, were the words More Will Die.

  “Where is this?”

  “Over on Elm Street.”

  Brandon sighed. “Why contact the newspaper instead of letting the police know?”

  “Maybe they don’t think you’re doing enough,” Olivia said.

  Mayor Kim put a hand up to silence her.

  “What does it mean?”

  The vampire symbol paired with the warning of more deaths was meant to solidify the connection between Lauren’s murder, the bite on her neck, and the cult aspects of the vampire community.

  Was it the killer, tipping their hand that there would soon be another victim?

  “I’ll go check it out,” Brandon said.

  “Any updates on your investigation?” Mayor Kim asked.

  Mayor Kim noticed Brandon glance at Olivia.

  “You can keep it general,” the mayor said.

  “You’ve heard about the Doug Nevins, the contract worker staying at the Forks Inn?” Brandon asked.

  “Right,” the mayor said.

  “Evidence suggests it wasn’t him.”

  “What about this Ruby person?” Olivia asked.

  Ruby had been right about one thing. Rumors around town suggested she was the one responsible for Lauren’s death. Those assumptions were based on the enmity between Ruby and Lauren. So far Ruby’s involvement in the coven wasn’t public.

  “Isn’t it true she had it in for Laruen Sandoval?” the mayor asked.

  “Did they have their disagreements? Sure. Would she have murdered someone? I don’t know that.”

  “I think it was stronger than a disagreement,” Olivia said.

  Brandon eyed her. “You seem to know a lot about Ruby and Lauren.”

  He was confident Nolan had leaked information to Ted. For the first time, he wondered if Olivia was getting info from Nolan too.

  Like Justin, Brooke, and others in town, Olivia was eager to blame Ruby for the murders.

  “Any other suspects?” the mayor asked.

  “All of her friends.”

  “Her friends?” the mayor asked.

  “Things aren’t always as they appear,” Brandon said. “And Lauren might not have been as good of a friend as she seemed.”

  Mayor Kim rose an eyebrow. “You mean Lauren was sleeping with the other boy—what’s his name?”

  He’d underestimated the power of women’s intuition—again. How the hell did she figure that out?

  “DNA doesn’t lie,” Brandon said. “There is the possibility it wasn’t consensual.”

  Brandon’s eyes landed on Olivia, her mouth agape in surprise. He knew he’d said too much.

  “This is not public information,” Brandon said, locking eyes on her. “Is that clear, Olivia?”

  She stared at the table, her expression suddenly blank.

  “Olivia?” the mayor said.

  Olivia rejoined them. “Sorry. Yes. Totally private.”

  Brandon didn’t like the way Olivia reacted to the news that Justin and Lauren slept together. Besides being fodder for town gossip, the information wasn’t directly relevant to Olivia. So why the reaction?

  Next time the mayor asked for an update on the case, he would stick to generic answers. Brandon wasn’t sure who to trust—Nolan might not be the only one leaking information to the media. Already, the killer knew too much about the investigation.

  Out in the parking lot, Brandon called to check on Emma.

  “I already dropped her off at home,” his dad said.

  “We agreed you would keep her until I was off.”

  “It’s almost six, Brandon. I got plans for tonight.”

  What plans could his father possibly have? The man had been a hermit for as long as Brandon could remember.

  “Vampire book club meeting tonight at the library.”

  Brandon remembered his father was a fan of Tiffany Quick.

  “I thought you already read the series. What more could there be to talk about?”

  “There’s more than one series, you know. It’s a whole genre. R
omance, mystery, suspense. All with vampires.”

  “Romance?”

  “I didn’t say I read that kind of vampire book,” his dad said. “At least I don’t read that commie Russian stuff you like.”

  “Chekhov, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky—”

  “Exactly.”

  “Were all pre-revolution,” Brandon said.

  “You don’t think they read Marx?”

  Brandon had no interest in debating nineteenth century Russian politics with his father. In fact, Brandon despised just about any conversation involving politics. With his father or anyone else.

  “You’re not part of one of those covens, are you?” Brandon asked.

  “Coven? Like for witches?”

  “Vampires,” Brandon said.

  “You don’t actually believe in vampires, do you son? Because this is fiction we’re talking about.”

  “Never mind.”

  “Anyway, Emma’s safe at home.” There was a pause. “She told me about getting in trouble.”

  Of course, she did.

  “You mean because she was in a house with alcohol and probably pot too?”

  “Don’t be too hard on her, Brandon.”

  Buzz Mattson, the general, dishing out parenting advice?

  “Yeah, because you were so easy on Eli and me—”

  “She’s a smart kid.”

  “And we weren’t?”

  “I’m just saying. She knows what she did was wrong. You got to show her you trust her.”

  “Okay, Oprah,” Brandon said. “Thanks for the pep talk.”

  “Remember, you weren’t so innocent yourself.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about,” he said.

  “But you turned out okay.”

  “You know, that’s the nicest thing you said to me all day.”

  Or ever, Brandon thought.

  “Ah hell, I got to go.”

  “Bye, dad.”

  On his way home Brandon stopped by to take a picture of the house on Elm Street. The front door was locked and, to Brandon’s surprise, none of the windows had been broken out. He did a quick search of the sticker bushes and tall grass but found nothing. He was looking for a discarded spray paint can.

  Returning to his truck, Brandon noticed a woman across the street watching him. He walked up to her porch.

  She was mid-forties, wearing a tank top and shorts. She sat on the top step, a cigarette in one hand, her cell phone in the other.