Zach had only had cause to sit in on an autopsy a few times in the past. Never a pleasant experience by any means, it was so much worse seeing this young woman, who was little more than a kid, her dark hair spreading across the cold metal table, her skin waxy-looking and pale in a way that no living creature could mimic. Wrong. So fucking wrong.
He cleared his throat, wishing he could clear out the smell of the room as easily. Hospitals were never his favorite places, but here in the damp basement, the underlying stench of death couldn’t quite be scrubbed out, no matter how much antiseptic was used.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqbveu8vrow
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The medical examiner adjusted his tools and took a deep breath. “We don’t see a lot of murder in these parts.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsqTTjN65q
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“I know.” Augusta was quite a bit bigger than Clear Springs, but their crime ran toward theft and domestic abuse—not cold-blooded murder. “But that’s no excuse for the damn leak. We’ve got to do this one by the book, William. That means keeping the information on lockdown until we have a suspect in cuffs.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhzvLw2K2z
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“I don’t know how it happened, Zach.” He cleared his throat. “But there won’t be further issues. Of that I can assure you.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdoEf0QMSUM
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It was the best he was going to get. He nodded at the girl. “Let’s get started.” Twelve hours since the body had been found, and he needed to know who she was—and if she had any connection to the fact that Neveah Smith still hadn’t turned up. No way around it. We’re going to have to put together a search party. The chances of Neveah having wandered off and gotten lost were slim to none, but with this girl on the slab in front of him, he had to admit that it was just as likely they were looking for another body.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvlBb8otaQC
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Fuck.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu7XhDG4GXj
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William nodded, his snow-white hair poking haphazardly out from his head. He looked a lot like the professor from Back to the Future, though Zach would never say as much. William Reynolds might be quirky to the extreme, but he was good at his job. His job had just never entailed something quite like this before.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0tlgzuJbMX
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And someone in his office sent a picture to the daughter of a woman who could very well be a suspect. Just fucking perfect.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFhDXPpebjs
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He began the autopsy, muttering under his breath. “You don’t need to be here for the entirety of it, Zach. I’ll go through the preliminary stuff and send you the rest of the report by the end of the day.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgA3dIQOdhW
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He wasn’t sure if William was offering it as a favor to Zach or because he worked better alone, but he wasn’t going to complain. The sound the sternum made when the coroner cracked it was enough to cause Zach nightmares even with all the shit he’d seen. He crossed his arms over his chest. “Okay.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8aFICZsrvp
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William went through it methodically, combing out the girl’s hair and depositing the detritus from the brush into little baggies. “Looks like mostly weeds that are local to the area, but I’ll go through it more closely when I’m done.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91bxJmBS9e
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It lined up with how they’d found her. “Can you tell cause of death?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMHLmWKU3v
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The coroner raised his white eyebrows. “I’m getting there.” He touched her neck gently with a gloved finger. “See these bruises?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQXjqT7ZnW2
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Zach leaned closer. “Those weren’t there when we found her this morning.” Though he might not have noticed, considering the rest of the bruises covering her body. “These were, though.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9SP90g9BSn
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“The others are older. The range in color means they weren’t all done at once—some of these are days old, if not closer to a week or more.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG81Irth7mo
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So unless she was held somewhere for more than a week, chances were those bruises had been caused by someone other than the killer. Don’t make assumptions until you have all the facts. This could have been an abusive boyfriend who took things too far. That didn’t explain the tattoos, though. Zach eyed her throat. “I don’t suppose we could get prints off her skin?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGpRoRFH9nG
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“We can try, but it’s unlikely we’ll pull anything.” William rested his hand against her neck. “Mediumish grip—I know that’s not specific—so could be either a small man or a large woman.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5oITY8ojCY
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“Personal to kill her like that. Killer would have to get right up close and watch the light fade out of her eyes.” His chest tightened at the thought, memories hovering at the outer edges of his mind. It had been a long time since he’d been in combat, long enough that he’d mostly emerged on the other side of it, but that didn’t mean there weren’t bad nights. He had a feeling tonight would number among them.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHkKUt7Yeg
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“Takes some considerable strength, too. Easier to do it from behind with your arm or a rope or something.” William motioned to his forearm and then moved back over the body. “These tattoos are new, all four of them.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ42zpKTNvD2
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“Four?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFXPLoEXcc
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“Between the shoulder blades, sternum, right wrist, and left hip.” William nodded at the table behind him. “I took pictures beforehand so you could take them with you when you go.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoTvtlUAYnI
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“Thanks.” The tattoos made him think of Eden Collins showing up in his station this afternoon. She’d known about them—she shared a few of them—which seemed to support her theory that they were somehow connected with Elysia. Though she was keeping things from him if she’d only told him about three of them . . . or she didn’t actually know the fourth existed.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Z0KGrvCRz
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She could have done it.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikKa6ZQa1g
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He made a mental note to call the FBI and double-check that she was actually one of them. Easy enough to make up a card that said whatever she damn well pleased. He hadn’t asked to see her badge—something he regretted now.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs26U9KJpz9
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“There’s nothing beneath her nails, no new injuries with the exception of cause of death.” William hesitated. “She had sexual intercourse recently. I’m running a tox screen, but I have to ship it over to Great Falls, so God knows how long it’ll take to get back. They’re backed up just like every other lab in the country. I can try to push, but this isn’t going to ring any bells for them.”
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Zach hated that. She should be more important to everyone. There should be outrage that her young life had been cut so short. But there were thousands upon thousands of deaths and murders on any given day across the country. There was no reason this one would make people sit up and take notice.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOaRdX8WGz
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Unless there ends up being more.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xX2bqZG3O
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No, he couldn’t think like that. He had to work the case he had, not the one he feared. As of now, there was nothing connecting Neveah Smith’s being missing with the body in front of him.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ07IBF7NEVc
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He just hoped like hell it stayed that way.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpfothbepoo
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“What do you mean my flight’s been canceled?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKnZgJBxfg
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“I’m sorry, ma’am. There seems to be some weather causing problems in Chicago, which is your connecting city.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0WymqWgTRE
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Eden should have known better than to connect through Chicago, but it was the only flight she could book last-minute. Silly her, she’d only caught a one-way from Quantico. Over the years, it’d become something of a superstition—the only time things went sideways seemed to be when she had concrete plans in place for travel back home. She hadn’t even thought about it when she’d flown out to Montana.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl17K3JQ7Ob
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Now it seemed she was going to pay for it.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMM9SwYYHuP
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She squeezed the bridge of her nose. “Can you fly me through a different connecting city?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHKSTfnYBf
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“I’m sorry, ma’am. With all the travel being diverted, there simply isn’t another flight until two days from now.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKA1EygO97
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Two days.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4VqNEpTOoH
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She’d told Zach she’d be in town for a few days, but after the run-in with Martha, the thought of spending a minute more than necessary in Clear Springs had her threatening to break out in hives. She’d come straight back to her room at the B&B and locked the door, but that hadn’t stopped her from glancing out the window repeatedly, half expecting to see Abram standing on the curb on the other side of the street.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvoaELY7s1S
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It wouldn’t be the first time.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGqqNx64Qo8
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Should have booked a room over in Augusta instead.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUTnggtlmx
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Ultimately both her pride and common sense had gotten the best of her. If she stayed outside Clear Springs, it was as good as waving a sign saying she was uncomfortable here—that Elysia and Martha still had power over her. There’d been the added consideration of being close on the off chance Zach actually took her up on her offer.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwxMfHlpr7
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None of it mattered now. She was here, she was spooked, and the sheriff didn’t want her help. All she wanted was to go back to Virginia.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAxAyo8ZcXg
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Eden shuddered. “Look again. Please.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjlha3Dz2WD
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The customer-service agent sighed. “Ma’am, I understand your frustration. Believe me, I do. But there’s simply nothing else I can do.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsJPQbZcQB
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She knew that. It didn’t make it easier to swallow. Eden cleared her throat. “Then book me the flight two days from now—and not through Chicago if at all possible, please.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7NUeiJtAq
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The man sounded relieved. “Yes, of course. Would you like me to e-mail you the updated itinerary?”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwI2z4twJ7
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“That would be great.” She waited for him to confirm he’d done that and hung up. Eden dropped her phone onto the bed and cursed. The temptation to get in her rental car and start driving was strong, but it wasn’t logical. She’d get back to Quantico faster by sitting here and waiting for her flight in two days than by driving—and be less likely to get herself killed because she fell asleep behind the wheel.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3p4ddj3xai
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She moved to the window again and flicked the curtains back, just enough to see out. Darkness had fallen while she was on the phone. She hadn’t even been in Clear Springs twenty-four hours and it still felt like a lifetime. What was I thinking, coming back here?198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RZCyy1ylT
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That was the problem—she hadn’t been. She hadn’t stopped to think from the moment she’d seen that photo. Britton probably thought she’d lost her damn mind.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdw5Nt4b50O
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Eden ran her fingers through her hair. Britton ran a tight ship back at Quantico. He’d taken over for the last director right around the time she’d joined the BAU, the Behavioral Analysis Unit, though sometimes she felt like he’d been there for time unknown. He had that ageless quality that made it impossible to put a number on him—he could be anywhere from thirty-five to fifty.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJ9knEx1wB
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He had to think she was crazy. She’d rushed into his office this morning and asked for a week of personal time for a family emergency. He hadn’t commented on the fact that in six years, she’d never once made an effort to see her mother, let alone demanded emergency vacation for it. He hadn’t pointed out that she and Vic were about to be sent out on a new case. He’d just approved her time off and told her to do what was necessary.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWLDQm1YIBe
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“A couple more days isn’t going to kill me.” Maybe if she said it enough times, she might actually start to believe it.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWO4Hivsi7
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Eden shivered, the hair on the back of her neck standing on end. While she’d been staring out into space, the few people on the street below had disappeared, as if fleeing the coming darkness. It was a fanciful thought—the truth was most people in this area had homes and children that required dinner on the table at a reasonable hour—but she couldn’t shake it.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQsS8yr5cj
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A flicker of movement against the corner of the building across from her window caught her eye, and she frowned, leaning close to the glass. Seconds ticked by, leading into a minute, but nothing else moved. “Weird.” She closed the curtains and flicked on the television, turning it to a mindless comedy. It wouldn’t help. No matter what she did, she could feel her mother’s presence looming over her, waiting for her to miss a step so she could sweep her back into the Elysian fold.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡetaI90lWgL
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I’m not going back. I promised myself that when I left, and nothing has happened to change that.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsGBBm54Zq
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