“Wow, you thinking he rescued our shooter and got a bullet for his trouble?”

“I am. But where does that leave Janie?” She looked back at the mobile. Exigent circumstances. “I’ve got to do a quick sweep of the mobile, see if Janie is inside.” Part of her hoped she wasn’t because if she were, she’d most likely be dead.

“Want me over there?”

“No, stay there. I’ll stay connected.”

Tess opened the mobile, stepped up and over Blakely. “Janie, Janie Cooper, are you here?”

As quick as she could, she walked through the place. “It’s quiet as a tomb,” she said to Bender. She saw a lot of stuff she’d want to go through later, but no Janie. She was on her way back out when a strap caught her eye. Holstering her gun, Tess stepped into the kitchen and knelt down. “There’s a purse under the table.”

“Janie’s?”

Tess opened it up, pulled out a wallet, and saw Janie Cooper’s smiling face on the ODL.

“Yep, it is.” Dread enveloped her like a thick fog. She left the purse and made her way out of the mobile home.

“I’ll need Jonkey here, early, to come stand by until the coroner arrives.”

“10-4, I’ll send her there.”

“How is Garrett holding up?”

“I didn’t tell him what I told you. His sister is here with him, and the friend who had the boys just came and picked up the little girl as well. What do you want me to tell him?”

“If Blakely had Janie, where would he take her?”

“I’ll ask.”

Tess considered her officer. He had to be as exhausted as she was. But she knew that like her, he’d probably want to see this through. Good cops were that way about their jobs, and Gabe was a good cop. Briefly she wondered if they’d need more help. She’d called in two officers, Del Jeffers and Sergeant Curtis Pounder, to help with the perimeter for the shooter at Faith’s Place. Del she’d released earlier because it was his day off, but Curtis had stayed on because he had simply been called in early for his shift. Now he was handling calls for service. Since the sheriff’s department was running point on the shooting at Faith’s Place, she hadn’t thought that she would need any other personnel. Ken Blakely’s murder was related to the shooting at Faith’s Place, she was sure, so they would step in. Calling in another officer would severely strain her staffing for the next week. No, she and Bender would have to see this through.

Like earlier, Tess thought, they needed to know where to search before they could mount an effective effort.