Page 31 of In the Dark of the Past

Finn stepped between them.

“No. That’s not how this goes. I’m the sheriff,” he said coolly. “This is my jurisdiction. We found evidence, potentially connected to an open cold case. And my team is processing the scene. There’s nothing to tell you yet, Mr. District Attorney. We don’t even know what we’ve found exactly.” He gave his brother a sharp look.

Sean hesitated. “Well. Just thought you might want⁠—”

“What I want,” Finn interrupted, “is for this not to be turned into a political circus. Or a jurisdictional tug-of-war. So, unless either of you has crime scene credentials or something productive to contribute, you’re both free to observe from outside the perimeter. Like everyone else who’s not directly involved.” He jabbed a finger into the distance.

That went over about as well as expected.

Grant didn’t move. “I knew Eleanor, you know.”

The clearing went still.

Finn’s jaw twitched. “Yeah. And? Plenty of people did. She was a fixture at the school and in the town for many years.”

“No, I knew her.” Grant’s voice softened slightly, but something about it felt false to me. “She was…troubled. Smart, but troubled. She talked about leaving a lot. Starting over somewhere. Sometimes, I wonder if she meant to disappear all along.”

“Funny,” Finn said, ice creeping into his tone. “You didn’t mention that during the initial investigation. There’s none of that in the reports.”

Grant shrugged. “No one asked.”

My pulse thudded too loudly in my ears. I wanted to scream. To ask what else he’d conveniently left out.

But Finn stepped forward, close enough now that his body partially shielded mine. It was subtle. A bit protective. I felt it like a wall of heat.

“She didn’t disappear,” he said, his voice low. “Not like you’re insinuating anyway. Someone put her here. Or left her here. Buried her like trash. And if I find out you knew more than you let on⁠—”

“That a threat, Sheriff?”

“No. It’s a promise.” He stood straighter.

Eryn rose suddenly. “Gentlemen,” she said with sharp finality, looking pointedly at the mayor and Sean, “we have a potential homicide victim here. At the very least, key evidence in an active cold case. Unless either of you wants to be added to the chain-of-custody log—which means mountains of paperwork—I suggest you clear the scene. Or at least back the hell up like the sheriff ordered so I can do my damn job.”

Grant looked like he wanted to push further, but Sean tugged his sleeve slightly.

“Come on,” he muttered. “Let them work.”

They left. Finally. But not without one last glance over the shoulder from Grant—at me.

If I were being honest, the look chilled me more than finding Eleanor’s belongings in the ground did. There was no curiosity in it. No surprise. Just the steadiness of a man confirming something he already knew.

Behind him, Sean finally looked at Finn. Just once, and just for a second, before turning and following Grant out of the clearing.

I couldn’t read what passed between them, but Finn went very still when it happened. It was the kind of stillness that wasn’t about the scene, the evidence, or the job. It was about something older.

He didn’t say anything about it. And I didn’t ask.

But I filed it away.

Chapter Twelve

Finn

The quiet didn’t sit right. By the time I got home, learning that all that was buried there were the clothes Eleanor was last seen in, her jewelry, and her purse, the sun had dipped behind the ridge, casting long, distorted shadows across my porch. The air still carried the scent of wood and upturned earth. I hadn’t spoken much after we left the trail, not even to River. Not because I didn’t want to, but because I didn’t trust what would come out if I did.

Inside, the house felt colder than usual. I dropped my keys in the ceramic bowl by the door and headed straight for the den. Something itched at the back of my neck. I initially told myself it was just exhaustion. Until I opened the cabinet where I kept my archived personal case files. Notes and things from cases I’d worked, and all the copies of stuff I brought home when my mind wouldn’t let me leave it at the office.

I froze.