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Back The Silenced Women
Chapters (50)
  1. Front Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Part I
  6. Chapter One
  7. Chapter Two
  8. Chapter Three
  9. Chapter Four
  10. Chapter Five
  11. Chapter Six
  12. Chapter Seven
  13. Chapter Eight
  14. Chapter Nine
  15. Chapter Ten
  16. Chapter Eleven
  17. Chapter Twelve
  18. Chapter Thirteen
  19. Part II
  20. Chapter Fourteen
  21. Chapter Fifteen
  22. Chapter Sixteen
  23. Chapter Seventeen
  24. Chapter Eighteen
  25. Chapter Nineteen
  26. Chapter Twenty
  27. Chapter Twenty-One
  28. Chapter Twenty-Two
  29. Chapter Twenty-Three
  30. Chapter Twenty-Four
  31. Chapter Twenty-Five
  32. Chapter Twenty-Six
  33. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  34. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  35. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  36. Part III
  37. Chapter Thirty
  38. Chapter Thirty-One
  39. Chapter Thirty-Two
  40. Chapter Thirty-Three
  41. Chapter Thirty-Four
  42. Chapter Thirty-Five
  43. Chapter Thirty-Six
  44. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  45. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  46. Read on for a sneak peek at the next Violent Crime Investigations Team mystery!
  47. Chapter One
  48. Acknowledgments
  49. About the Author
  50. Back Cover

It was always like this at the start, Mahler thought. Lots of ideas. No one knowing which detail would turn out to be important. In most cases, the veteran homicide cop Woodhouse once told him, you find a shell casing or fingerprint and you’re done. Makes you think the answers will always be there, leaves you unprepared for the ones that are nothing but being lost in a dark woods. “I think we’re getting ahead of the real evidence.” He looked at Eden. “Did you do what I told you with the press release?”

“Yes, sir. A physical description of the victim went up on the department’s website at eight fifteen.” She handed him a paper copy. “Press release to the media at the same time. Phone number and email address for anonymous tips. So far, we’ve got twelve hits on the website and five calls.”

“Get through the tips as fast as you can. Keep a log of everything. I’ll arrange for some patrol officers to start on it.”

“I don’t suppose anyone’s found what was used to hit her?” Frames asked.

Coyle shook his head. “Nothing at the crime scene yet. When Trish does her exam, we might know more.”

“Why’s the victim there?” Rivas asked. The others turned to look at him. “It was a lot of work, right? Carrying the body would take two strong men. They have to get past the locked gate. I mean, there are a million easier places to leave her.”

Frames pointed to the photos on the whiteboard. “Whoever did it wanted her to be found there.”

“If it’s Partridge, he’s showing us he’s starting again in the same place,” Coyle said.

Mahler frowned. “Partridge’s a thin guy. He couldn’t have carried her. In 2017, we figured both women were killed where we found them.”

“Maybe he had help,” Frames said. “Or he’s changed his pattern.”

“Serial killers don’t change patterns,” Eden said.

“How do you know?”

“Statistics.”

Coyle rolled his eyes. “Here we go again.”

“What do you have against data?” Eden turned in her chair to face him. “You don’t think data can help solve cases?”

“Maybe for the FBI. Maybe for national cases. We’re a small town. We don’t have a lot of data.”

Eden looked back at the victim’s photo. “Anyway, what’s interesting here is the killer’s arrogance. It’s like someone’s saying: Look, I can do this. I can put this woman here.”