“Nice to be appreciated.” Rina got up, washed her hands, and said the ritual blessing over the bread. Then she took a bite and sat back down. “So, tell me about Brock Baer.”

“Nothing’s changed since the car ride home last night. He’s a strong person of interest, but that doesn’t mean that Elsie Schulung has been taken off our list of suspects. I need to talk to her. But first I have to find her … if she’s still alive.”

“Are you still searching for a body?”

“I don’t have any reason to allocate people for that yet. Maybe when DNA results come back from the knife and shirt, we’ll have more to work with. We’re hoping to get them by next week, but I suspect it might take longer. We’re testing for Pauline’s blood, for Elsie’s blood, and also for Baer’s blood. If he stabbed the women, maybe the knife slipped in his hand and he cut himself.”

“Did you find any mixed blood at Elsie’s house?”

“I don’t know. Baniff did all the testing. From what I’ve been told, it was Pauline’s blood only.”

“Any theories?” Rina asked.

Decker shrugged. “Baer stabbed her and he took her to Elsie’s house. She died there and then Baer forced Elsie to help bury her. But that doesn’t make a lot of sense because Pauline was buried three hours from Elsie’s house.”

“Near the diner.”

“Yes. I’m just trying to figure out why Elsie or Baer would bury her so far away.”

“They didn’t want her body associated with Baniff.”

“Still, you take a chance … carrying a corpse so far away.”

“I agree. But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Bertram went missing so close to the burial spot.”

“Absolutely.” Decker refilled Rina’s mug with coffee. “The investigation is kind of on hold until we get the DNA back.”

“But you’re actively looking for Baer.”

“Yes. He and Pauline got into a massive fight right around the time that Elsie and Pauline went missing. If there’s Baer’s DNA in the blood we found, then we have a compelling case against him.”

“And you think that Elsie’s dead?”

“Maybe.”

“I thought you figured that Elsie was in Germany with Bertram and Kathrine.”

“That’s also possible. I’ve called Bertram’s parents’ secretary no fewer than five times. I’ve called their local police two or three times. It would certainly be helpful to know if Elsie was or still is there. Then I don’t have to search for another body.”

“It’s odd that no one is calling you back, especially the local police.”

Decker shrugged. “I’ll keep trying.”

“How does Bertram Lanz fit in?”