Gage nodded. “Yeah, they changed their hair color from dark to that sandy blond. I think they’re tryin’ to be surfers. They went out to California for a while to visit their mama and I guess the idea of bein’ surfin’ bums was too much to pass up.” He snickered. “They’ve been gone a few years. Maybe their mama got tired of supportin’ their lifestyle and sent them back to their daddy.”

“How do you know so much about them?” Remy asked. “I only interviewed them once, they didn’t seem a good fit, and had nothin’ to add to the investigation, so I put them out of my mind.”

“You haven’t driven the streets like I’ve been doin’. A few years ago, around the time of the killin’s, there was petty vandalism goin’ on, mostly homes of the elderly and the poor, but someone was beatin’ the hell out of the occupants. None of the incidents occurred in New Orleans, but more in the outlying parish. No one died, but it was pretty ugly.”

“And they were suspects?” Remy’s gaze flickered once more to the table where Cooper and his friends were getting louder.

He’d always wondered at the possibility of two men committing the murders. The murders were messy and all over the place, yet the altar was exact, meticulous even. He could never find evidence of two killers, but the bone harvester could easily be a team.

“I had a hunch, but there was never any hard evidence at any of the break-ins.” Gage shrugged. “Now that they’re back, the break-ins have started again.”

Remy observed the two men for a few minutes. “They whisper to Ryan, and they’re the ones buying the drinks. I think they’re eggin’ him on.”

“I noticed that as well,” Gage said.

Remy had always respected Gage. He held all of his brothers in high esteem, but since Gage had become the sheriff, he’d grown very serious about his work and he was damn good at it. “Is it possible they’re a killin’ team?”

Gage frowned, studying the two men. “Are they capable of it? I would say yes. I think sooner or later they will kill someone. These break-ins are definitely not about the money. Whoever is beatin’ the elderly is doin’ it for fun.”

“You don’ get a scent?”