Rising River (A Mountain Mystery) by Shoultz D.R

Author:Shoultz, D.R.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-11-02T00:00:00+00:00

-7.1 -

DET. RANKIN ASKED Emily to delay a day or two before meeting with him. But with the press briefing successfully completed, Emily couldn’t wait any longer. She called as she and James were leaving Amy Powers’ home.

“Well, I gave you a day. Time’s up. When can we meet?” she asked. “Have you spoken to your sheriff lately? I think we may have puckered him up a bit this morning.”

“I’ve seen outtakes of the press briefing on TV. He didn’t come away looking too good,” Rankin replied.

“It’s been on TV? That was fast. The press conference just ended a couple hours ago,” Emily said. “But you didn’t answer my question. Have you spoken to Jeffries since we talked yesterday?”

“He called me into his office right after the briefing. He wants to release the analysis of the boot prints.”

“Are you serious?”

“Serious as a heart attack,” Rankin replied. “I assume his decision was influenced by the heat applied by the Charlotte reporter this morning.”

“What did the analysis show?”

“The prints you provided match the prints taken at the river the day of the accident. Both are a man’s boot, size ten or eleven.”

Emily’s eyes widened.

“So, foul play is involved? Bryan Powers was murdered?”

“Possibly, but not certain,” he replied. “The evidence is circumstantial at best.”

“You gotta admit it’s looking less and less like an accident.”

“I don’t admit to things I can’t prove,” Rankin replied.

“Stan Martin told me Dennis Statler’s real estate office and Northrock Lake Estates are just a couple miles up the ridge from where we found the boot print.”

“That’s right. What’s your point?” Rankin asked.

“If I were a Sheriff’s detective, and I was aware Statler tried to bribe Martin and Powers to drop their lawsuit against the utility company, I might go check out the boot sizes of Statler and his sales associates.”

“Thanks for your suggestion, but Jeffries has given me a to-do list as long as my arm.”

“And checking out Statler isn’t on the list?”

“I don’t make a practice of laying out my plans to private investigators.”

“Not even to one who’s providing evidence?”

The line was silent.

“Alright. I’ll be getting with Statler, and I only tell you that so you stay clear of him. Got it?”

“Statler is all yours, but keep me in the loop,” she said.

“And you do the same. By the way, I wouldn’t advise holding another press briefing without giving Jeffries a heads-up. He’s pretty pissed off.”

“It’s a deal, and I’d still like to meet when you get some time. How about after you see Statler?”

“I’ll call,” he said. “Gotta run now.”

Emily disconnected and turned toward James with a Cheshire cat grin on her face.

“Sounds like you two are getting chummy,” he said.

“Rankin may be our only window into what’s going on with Jeffries and the powers within Newford County.”

“Would you mind if I pointed this Jeep toward Sunset Peak? It’s been seven days and I got a voicemail from my mom earlier today. She needs to get back to managing her hardware business.”

“Go ahead. Let’s head home, but you can’t back away from this case now,” Emily said.

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