Helena also left the table. “Come on, Grace. Do your morning walk with us.”
Sean straightened. “Oh, you don’t have—”
Grace and Luna flanked her on both sides. “We’ll be able to pack up and leave faster. You can help Ivy clean up.”
Ivy didn’t miss the sly smile on Helena’s lips as she stepped out of the bunker with the dogs. If Sean’s teammate was trying to play re-matchmaker, she was barking up the wrong tree.
“Do you remember when you called to ask me for forgiveness, back in March?”
Sean’s question only increased her discomfort. She nodded. Dwelling on the humbling moment wasn’t the most pleasant, but her reasons had been. “I needed to let go of some unresolved stuff keeping my heart hard. Owning up to my part of the divorce helped.” She wondered now, though, if her heart was really resolved.
“Really surprised me. You didn’t ask me to apologize for my part, even though...” He cleared his throat. “Well, we both know I could’ve handled things better, too.” Dylan began to fuss. Ivy turned to pick him up, but Sean scooped him up first, much to the boy’s delight. She blinked rapidly, warring emotions building in her chest. What was he doing? Where was this headed?
“I went to work the next day and told Eli about your call.” Sean made a funny face at Dylan, who tried to mimic him by scrunching up his nose. “I hadn’t noticed the cross on Eli’s desk before—at least, not consciously. He helped me understand. I’ve been wanting to tell you, but I don’t know what’s been holding me back.”
“Are you trying to tell me you’re a believer now?”
“Back in April.” Sean turned to face her, and Dylan followed his gaze. “I guess I can’t help but wonder if we had both...”
The two most important guys in her life watching her, together, took her breath away. She knew what Sean meant. If they’d both had faith, would they have handled things differently? “I’ve asked myself that, as well.”
Sean set the boy down with a couple of toys from the diaper bag. “And about yesterday. I think you misunderstood me if you thought it was about control—”
“Sean, I’m not sure I’m ready for this conversation.” Like a switch being flipped, her entire body tensed. He wouldn’t dare try to convince her not to adopt again, would he? “I’m going to need a little more time to process what you told me. Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad you told me about your first recovery and how it affected you. I always wondered why the sudden change—”
“It wasn’t sudden.” He stood and crossed his arms over his chest. “All the reasons I listed had always been issues.”
“Yes, ones we’d discussed before we married, and yet agreed, together, that they weren’t enough to deter us from starting a family. So, when you went back to those same bullet points a year into our marriage, I thought you were trying to hide that the real reason you didn’t want kids was because of me.”
He pulled his chin back. “What? What do you mean?”
“You thought I’d be a bad mother since I couldn’t even handle city living.” The words slipped out, words she’d been determined never to voice aloud.
“No. Why would you think that?” He moved forward, closer to her.
She automatically took a step back, her legs pressing against the edge of the table. “You are amazing with children.” She waved at Dylan. “You clearly love kids, and they love you. So, I thought it had to be me. I was never a needy mess in small towns, but all my strengths seemed useless in a city.” She whispered, “And you were never there.”
“Ivy, I’m sorry I ever made you feel that way.” He straightened and ran a hand through his hair. “I admit I got frustrated, but it was at myself. I knew I was failing you. We never went backpacking and adventuring like I said we would. That first year of working recoveries, I...I didn’t handle the transition well. I think I was depressed but wasn’t ready to acknowledge it, even though it’d been my dream to be part of the K-9 Unit.” He pulled in a breath. “But it was never about not wanting to have a child with you.”
They stared at each other, and Ivy couldn’t look away, despite how blurry her vision had become. Her perspective shifted once more, coloring the memories different shades than they had been before. “All our arguments seem to have different meanings now.” Her breath shuddered.
He reached for her and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m starting to feel the same.” His voice, low and soft, made her stomach flip.
She closed her eyes, willing the burning sensation to go away. She wouldn’t cry. Instead, she rested her cheek on his chest. The uncomfortable stiffness in her muscles and bones suddenly evaporated, her entire body relaxing into his strength. Oh, how she’d missed being wrapped up in his strong embrace. This was how it was at their happiest. To be with him, to be married. He was always eager to touch her, comfort her. In his arms, everything was okay.
And she knew she could face anything as long as they were together.
But they weren’t. She stepped back and offered him a small smile. They could’ve handled things so much differently, but it was too late. He still didn’t want a family, despite the impression he loved being with Dylan. “And yet...some things haven’t changed at all.”
His mouth dropped open, but he seemed at a loss for words.
“I’m glad we both have changed for the better,” she whispered. “We can be happy for each other.” The front bunker door slammed. She couldn’t bear to continue this conversation in front of Helena. She moved to the pack she’d brought from the survivalist mission. There had to be some tissues handy there.
She clumsily opened the bag and it tipped over. A canister resembling a giant tin of coffee fell out of the sack, and the lid popped off and rolled across the room. Packets of powdered water purification packets tumbled out, along with a glass jar that rolled to the tip of Ivy’s feet. A glass jar shouldn’t have been in there. She stretched to pick it up but froze before her fingers reached the glass. The light caught the contents and reflected yellow hues around the room. “Sean, I think I know what the man is searching for.”
TEN
Gold. Everything about this case pointed to gold. He felt more like a sheriff in an old Western than a trooper trying to solve a murder case. The jar contained the purest flakes he’d ever seen, as well as pebble nuggets. Gold had reached almost two thousand dollars an ounce, so that hefty jar had to be worth a pretty penny. Helena had the jar right now, though, processing it for evidence and checking the glass and lid for fingerprints.
“So Francine must have wanted to escape with the gold. Why else would she have come to the mission?” Ivy tapped her knee with her finger as they drove through the streets of Nome, having already settled Dylan and Minnie back at a safe location. “Except the mission is practically made of windows. So maybe she came inside to get gear, but saw the man coming, so she stuffed the jar in one of the closest containers, thinking she could come back for it after she got rid of the guy.”
“Your theory means she had to know her murderer,” he said.
“She must have, otherwise why hide it?”
“Maybe he saw her with the jar of gold somewhere else and had been stalking her from her previous location. We can’t rule out any possibilities without more evidence.”
He pulled into the parking lot, noting the dredge the man had shot at them from. No sign of movement. “Let’s start with the dredge that Minnie’s son and daughter own.”
Ivy pointed to the eighty-foot-long one. “It’s the biggest one. They have the most employees, so that’s a good choice.”
“It’s gigantic.”
“They use it in the Norton Sound. Minnie said they spent over a million dollars to get it fixed up recently.”
Sean whistled. “They find that much gold each year to make that a safe investment?”
“I can only assume so,” she replied. “Minnie says they’re
like third-or fourth-generation miners, so they know what they’re doing.”
He parked in a way that would ensure he’d be the first to take any hit if someone was hiding on any of the other dredges. He escorted Ivy and Grace around the backside of the first dredge. Two men stepped out onto the top deck of the boat, twenty feet above them. Sean placed an arm out and Grace uttered a warning growl. “I know them,” Ivy said, reaching her arm up and waving. “It’s Ben, Fiona’s husband, from the inn. And his son, Nathan.”
“Hi, Ivy. Minnie said you’d be stopping by.”
They climbed up the ramp that was still on the back end of the boat. The smells of fish and bleach warred with each other. Grace opened her mouth and scrunched up her nose, her teeth bared. “I know, girl,” he said softly. She didn’t like the smell of bleach, but it also wouldn’t stop her from smelling the scent of death. “Get to work.”
They maneuvered in between the equipment that seemed to fill every nook and cranny. So far, other than her huffs, Grace didn’t alert on anything. The aluminum stairs led them to the top deck and, thankfully, to fresh air.
The lines in the older gentleman’s face indicated the man had either been smiling or squinting most of his life. He offered a beefy hand to Sean. “So your Ivy’s...” He let go and let the unsaid words hang.
“My ex,” Ivy finished for him. “And he’s kept me safe this past week.”
“I know Minnie said we might be able to help you, but I don’t really see how. She said you’re in some kind of trouble, but she wouldn’t tell us much more.”
Sean pulled out the photograph of the victim, Francine. “Actually, we only need help in identifying this woman. Have you seen her before?”
The two men exchanged a meaningful glance after scanning the picture but didn’t say anything.
“You know her, then,” Ivy pressed. “It really would be a help if you told me about her.”
Nathan scratched his head. “She was a big mistake, that’s what. She worked for us for a couple months. Came highly recommended and knew how to talk the talk.”
“Until she walked away with almost a hundred thousand dollars’ worth of gold,” Ben muttered. “She swindle you, too, Ivy?”
Her jaw dropped. Sean reached over and gave her hand the smallest of squeezes to indicate she shouldn’t answer. The touch, though, sent warmth shooting up his arm, and he let go of her fingers at once.
“To be fair, we don’t know if she robbed us,” Nathan said. “Not for sure. It’s not as if we saw her do it.”
Ben rolled his eyes. “Olivia had our Nathan wrapped around her little finger.”
Nathan’s neck reddened. “Dad, she didn’t. She was a decent employee, then one day disappeared.”
“Olivia?” Sean asked. If Francine McMillan was her real name, the woman had used an alias here.
“Yeah. Olivia Truby.”
“If you were worried, why didn’t you report her missing?” Ivy asked.
“We did, but the local cops told us we’d been duped.” Ben turned back to the hoses he’d been wrangling when they had boarded. “Apparently, her driver’s license and Social Security number were fakes.”
“You said she came recommended,” Sean said.
“Yeah, by one of the top mining district companies.” Nathan turned to his father. “I did my due diligence. Her references checked out.”
Sean felt like they were hearing an argument that had been played many times before. “Can I get those phone numbers from you?”
Nathan’s shoulders sagged. “Sure, but they won’t do you any good. Used to be one of the top mining district companies until their claims dried up a few years back. That’s why I thought she was looking for work elsewhere, but when I called them after she went missing, all the numbers had been disconnected.”
Ben shook his head in disgust. “Come to find out the owner had died several months before we hired her. Who knows who Nathan actually was discussing Olivia’s references with.”
Maybe they were dealing with a con gone wrong, then. “Ever see another man with her? Maybe a fellow employee with auburn hair?”
Nathan’s eyebrows shot up. “No. That her boyfriend or something?”
His dad seemed to have pegged him right. The man had been smitten, which made it easier to be fooled.
“We’re not sure. But do you know who owns the claims, the district, now?” Ivy asked.
“No. We figured the cops were right and left it at that.” Ben wagged his finger. “But you could always check the Alaska Mapper.”
“Of course,” Ivy said, nodding. Sean had heard the name before but couldn’t remember what it was. They said their goodbyes and left, without Grace having alerted.
Once back in the SUV, he turned to Ivy. “Alaska Mapper?”
“All gold claims have a paper trail now. I believe they went digital when the Department of Natural Resources started auctioning mining leases again, roughly ten years ago. Ben works in the Norton Sound, but there are still lots of smaller claims around all the rivers and creeks throughout the tundra. You can buy, sell or inherit claims as long as the permit fees are kept up to date. If we can use your computer at the trooper post, I can show you in person.”
Sean headed for the post as she’d suggested. He needed to do a quick run on the Olivia Truby alias, as well.
“At least we know Francine was up to no good, otherwise why the fake name? And why couldn’t we tell them that we found their gold?”
“It’s evidence and we don’t know they’re the owners for sure yet.”
“No assumptions.” She nodded. “Right.”
Her words hit him funny. While it was his motto while he worked a case, he’d certainly failed to do the same in their marriage. But right now he had to focus on the matter at hand. “Since Ben reported the missing gold to the local police, it’s likely they’ll get it back when we’re done with it.”
“Does any of this help us get closer to getting the guy? Maybe we could use the jar of gold as bait and you can lure him out.”
“Maybe.” He pulled into the trooper post and they found Helena in the office, hanging up a phone.
“Just touched base with the team,” she said. “No fingerprints on the jar of gold except for the murder victim. It was a fast match since we’d just identified her.” Helena pointed at Sean. “I’m eager to hear how the interview went, but excuse us, Ivy. I need to update Sean on some things in private.”
Ivy pointed to another desktop computer. “May I? I’d like to start looking at Alaska Mapper.”
Sean reached over and clicked a guest account that would keep her from clicking on any classified information and followed Helena into the hallway. “Sensitive news?”
“Possibly.” Helena pulled her lips back in an apologetic grimace. “The troopers that’ve been on location in Little Diomede have wrapped up. They’re on their way back here late this afternoon. The colonel says she’ll give us another twenty-four hours. Then she needs us back. The troopers at this post can take over for us.”
A sour taste rose up in his mouth. Ivy’s assurances that he shouldn’t promise anything came to mind. “Thanks for telling me.” He didn’t know how Lorenza would respond to his request for leave. Ivy might not even agree to let him protect her without Helena’s presence, as well. If he thought about it too much, he wouldn’t be able to focus on using the time they had left. His teammate eyed him for a second as if she didn’t believe he was taking the news well before they walked back into the office.
“I think I’ve found something,” Ivy said. He and Helena hovered over her shoulder as she zoomed into an online map with a box labeling the area as Bozsan mining district. “Ben and Nathan should’ve checked the Mapper before they called those numbers. They would’ve seen beforehand that the ownership was recently transferred to a trustee.” She turned around. “Maybe you guys can ge
t somewhere with that?”
Helena grabbed a notepad and jotted down the information. Then Sean moved to the computer next to Ivy and did a search for the mining district itself. A mining journal website filled with personal ads for gold claims filled the screen. Top-tier gold deposit. For sale. Twenty State of Alaska placer and lode claims encompassing nine hundred acres. Recently mined forty troy ounces in one week. Proof of gold to serious buyers. Start mining gold nuggets immediately. $2,000,000.00 for recent mine, claims, camp and equipment. Contact Marty Macquoid. Agent.
The ancient clacking keyboard Helena’s fingers were tapping stilled. “That name isn’t in our system. No Marty Macquoid. But—” she inhaled sharply “—the district used to own that building next to the dredge parking lot.”
“The one that our suspect ran into?” Sean blew out a breath. “Ben and Nathan Duncan indicated this mining district had dried up.”
“True,” Ivy said. “But if I follow your advice not to assume anything, then I can tell you that just because a claim dried up a few years ago doesn’t mean they can’t find more gold. This district surrounds a few creeks. They can also do hard-rock exploration.” She paused. “You can’t dig up the whole land, though. They only own the mineral rights of gold, so there are restrictions. This also uses a different type of dredging than Ben and Nathan do in the sea. It’s possible there’s potential for more gold to be found, but it’s suspicious.”
He stepped closer to her and looked at the mining map still on the screen. “I can’t really tell where these claims are. This is an unusual map.”
Ivy squinted at the screen. “I think I can help you with that.” She turned to the map of the area the troopers post had laid out on the table in the center of the office. “See this?” Her finger traveled from the sea up a river. “This is the Niukluk River. There are countless creeks stemming from it, though you never know when they’ll be dry or flowing during this time of year. It depends on how hot the summer was. The claims start—” Her finger froze in the air and her face paled.
Sean stepped closer. “Is this as close to where you were kidnapped as I think?”
Arctic Witness Page 12
