The call was short, and he soon hung up as he threw some money on the table. The waiter was walking back with a new cup of coffee, but then stopped and stared, confused by their sudden departure. But they didn’t have a second to explain. Warren was already walking away and Tara quickly caught up behind him.

“What is it?” she asked.

“They found another crime scene,” he confirmed, as they stepped outside into the parking lot.

Chapter Twenty Three

Tara sat in the passenger’s seat in silence. She knew the ride was short, but it felt like their longest ride yet. When they got into the car, Warren had informed her that the crime scene was found six miles south. One mile outside of where the trail was closed. A hiker stumbled upon it, he had said, around the same time two teenage girls were reported missing in the same area. The crime scene had the same description as all the others and they both knew it was without a doubt connected.

The realization sat like toxic air in the car. They still had no leads, and it was evident that this killer was in no way slowing down. But, if they did learn one thing, it was that the compasses were undeniably pointing to where the killer would strike next. However, with a trail that covered over 2,000 miles, they needed more than a compass’s direction to have a concrete lead.

As Tara stared out the car window, she heard the buzzing of Warren’s phone and her heart pounded. She had a feeling it was Reindhart. She turned her head at the sound and for a split second met Warren’s eyes, which revealed that he too knew this call was coming. He looked at the caller ID and confirmed that Tara’s suspicions were correct. Tara gulped as he put the phone on speaker.

“Are you with Mills?” Reindhart asked abruptly.

“Yes, she’s right here, I have you on speaker,” Warren confirmed, before looking at Tara.

Reindhart took a deep sigh. “Listen, I don’t know what it is about this case. I don’t know if it’s the two of you working together, or whatever it is, but it seems that you both are not getting anywhere.”

“We are working as hard as we can, sir—” Warren started.

“I understand that,” Reindhart cut him off. “But whatever you’re doing isn’t working.” He then paused. “Mills?”

Tara leaned in closer to the phone, her heart drumming inside her.

“I’m here, sir,” she replied.

“I’m starting to think that this case might be too difficult for you to start with.”

The words hung heavy in the car and Tara didn’t know how to respond. Her heart sunk. This was her worst fear coming to life. She was being pulled from the case, and she knew that was a horrible look to starting her career.

“It’s not her, sir,” Warren defended, and Tara looked up at him in surprise. “This case is probably one of the hardest I’ve worked on, but in all honesty, Mills has shown more promise than our more experienced agents that you would put me on this case with.”