West pulled Alex into his cubicle and sat down, offering him a chair as well. Then West gave him a warning look. “You know this could go either way for her. She was digging around where she shouldn’t have been.” He shrugged. “Or she could be seen as a hero, routing this guy out. They’ve wanted him for years, I hear, though I’m not sure I was supposed to.”

“It could go either way for me too. I’m heading to DC tonight.” God, I don’t want to go. He had unfinished business with Mackenzie. He’d had to rush away from her all those years ago, and he didn’t want that to happen again.

He’d been inexplicably drawn to her that first moment he saw her three years ago. And now, they’d had another chance, but the chaos of this world seemed bent on keeping them apart. If either of them was seen as anything other than a hero, then William would have taken even more from her—her future.

“Earth to Alex.”

Detective West’s words pulled Alex to the moment and the detective’s arched brow.

West blew out a breath. “This is what I wanted to show you.” He turned on his monitor. “This security footage is from a gas station at the corner of a state highway and forest road near Stone Wolf Mountain.”

Alex concentrated on the video. West replayed it.

A woman dressed in all black—yoga pants, a T-shirt, and a cap—opened up the back of her car and shuffled stuff around. A sledgehammer was in plain view.

Alex memorized the license plate but asked, “Did you run them?”

“I did. The vehicle belongs to a Shelby Colton.” West pulled up her address for Alex.

“Let’s pay her a visit.” Alex hoped that since the detective had seen fit to show him this much, he wouldn’t mind him tagging along.

West nodded. “As long as you’re free to go.”

Alex stood and took in the busy county sheriff’s office, which was filled with more personnel than it had probably ever seen, even during the incident surrounding Erin.

He was free, except he didn’t want to leave Mackenzie. Then he spotted her walking down the hallway with Nora and Carson, heading toward the exits. She glanced over her shoulder. Was she searching for him? But her gaze never found him.

Disappointment landed in his gut. He should chase after her, but West had started walking. He turned to Alex. “You coming?”

He would catch up with Mackenzie later. Now was the time to solve the memorial vandalism. “Yes.”

Twenty minutes later Alex was walking with Trevor up the steps to a second-floor landing, and they found Shelby Colton’s apartment number. It was 8:30 in the evening. West knocked and held himself in both a compelling and intimidating demeanor.