“I never read anything of the sort in the report.” He frowned. “Did you give the info to Officer Hughes?”

Officer Hughes’s negligence came as no surprise. “Yes, but I wasn’t able to identify the state.”

He pulled a notepad and pen from his shirt pocket. “I’ll run what you have and will keep you informed.”

My phone rang. The blocked number indicated my anonymous caller, and I wrestled answering it.

Sheriff Wendall slid the phone’s screen to him and turned it back to me. “Answer this, Shelby. Put it on Speaker. Prove to me this isn’t a legitimate threat.”

I pressed the Speaker button. “This is Shelby.”

“What’s the sheriff doing there?” the distorted voice said.

“Following up on a couple of things from last week.”

“So am I. I suggest you let him know this is a friend. If you want your loved ones to be safe, better do exactly what I’ve told you.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Then I start with hurting your friends in Valleysburg and will move on to your family. Suicide makes the most sense, right?”

“Except it makes no sense as long as I abide by the terms of my parole.”

“I’m losing patience with your lack of guts. This must be handled soon, or you’ll have regrets.”

“Then let’s have a face-to-face. Are you a twelve-year-old who’s mastered voice distortion?”

“You’re more stupid than I thought. Who do you want eliminated in your life? Edie? Amy-Jo? Denton? What about the sheriff?”

“I could leave Valleysburg, change my name.”

“Leaving won’t change a thing.”

“All right. Just give me a little time to—”

The caller clicked off.

I laid my phone on the counter and clenched my fists against my legs. What should I do?

The sheriff scratched his head. “Shelby, this isn’t going away.”

“Why does suicide mean more to my stalker than killing me and not leaving any evidence?”

“The caller is certain you have vital information of some kind. And while the person doesn’t have a problem hurting others, they, and I think it’s more than one person, draw the line when it comes to killing you.”

“No blood on their hands,” I whispered.

“And I think you know who it is.”

I stared at him, and a name flashed across my mind. I shook away the thought.

The sheriff glanced at his watch. “I need to go. Someone’s watching the cabin. Do I have permission to run your phone records?” When I agreed, he continued. “I suggest picking up a burner phone as soon as possible. Use it to contact me and those who might get hurt.”

“And you can trace it?”

“Technology offers law enforcement the means to investigate what formerly looked impossible. We can also run the voice through our database. If the person is in our system, we are good to go.”

I wouldn’t be able to talk to Edie until I bought a new phone. We’d enjoyed texts and calls, and I wasn’t ready to let go of our friendship. Although my reasoning was selfish.