He and Laurel had waited for the techs while freezing their asses off. Then they’d waited until the scene was clear to actually go through the cabin inch by inch and survey the property down to the river.

Christine Franklin’s hands, the talented hands of a cardiologist, had not been found as of yet.

It was a “fuck you” to them all.

Huck half emptied the beer bottle, eyeing Aeneas, who was sleeping soundly on a cushion to the side of the fireplace. At least somebody was content. He had to find this damn killer before another woman was brutally murdered. The killer was speeding up his timeline, and he probably had another woman already in his sights.

Huck’s phone buzzed and he fumbled for it on the table behind the sofa. “Rivers.”

“Hey. It’s Monty.”

“Hi.” Huck placed the bottle on his thigh. “You okay?”

Monty sighed. “Not really. You’re gonna want to get on the Internet and watch the newest podcast from The Killing Hour. It’s streaming now and the transcript will be in print in the morning. I’ll talk to you then.” He clicked off.

Huck scrolled through and brought up the website, where there was a new video featuring Rachel. He clicked on it, his gut already churning.

“We end this segment of The Killing Hour with an update on the Witch Creek murder case. It appears that Dr. Christine Franklin has been found dead in the middle of a meadow with red flowers all around her, just like the other victims. What makes this murder different is that, apparently, Dr. Franklin was in FBI custody at the time of her kidnapping.”

Ah, shit. Huck dropped his feet to the floor. He’d returned her call earlier but hadn’t given her any information when she hadn’t given him any. Apparently they were now done using each other for facts.

Rachel’s eyes glittered. “In addition, there seems to be coordination again between FBI Special Agent in Charge Laurel Snow and Washington Fish and Wildlife Captain Huck Rivers, just like in the Snowblood murder cases. Is it just me, or is there something going on here? I know I’m an opinion host, but I try to get my facts straight for you all. If there’s something untoward going on, could that be why poor Dr. Franklin was taken right from under the FBI’s noses?”

Huck’s head reeled. Why in the world would she even say such a thing? Were ratings that important to her?

Rachel sighed and her face moved into sympathetic lines. “Now, I have to be fully transparent here. I was once engaged to Captain Rivers. We broke up after a particularly difficult case that involved a young boy. I won’t go into more detail than that.”