“You’ve been briefed on what we’d believed was Special Agent Weldon’s suicide?” Ava asked.

“I have.” Nora said, tipping her head toward Mason and Ray. “Everyone here has been.”

They’d all been stunned by the connections involving the masks and law enforcement. Everyone felt that the probability that the two cases were unrelated was minuscule.

“Think of our role as more of observers looking over everyone’s shoulders,” Ava said seriously. “Special Agent Wells will be the FBI primary. We want to know if our agent was murdered, just as you want to find Denny Schefte’s killer. We’re here to make certain every rock is looked under twice.”

Nora held her gaze. Ray and Zander both looked away from the tension between the two women.

“I’m sure that will be fine,” agreed Nora. She gave a sincere smile. “I like your frankness, Special Agent McLane.”

Ava nodded. Zander and Ray looked relieved, and Mason felt the air clear.

“The feeling is mutual, Detective Hawes.” Ava glanced at the men. “Glad to know there was a calm head present this morning.”

“You’re telling me,” said Nora. “I thought this group was about to go cowboy and start combing the woods for a killer when I got here.”

“It’s a beautiful location. Rugged, too,” said Ava. She did a slow scan of the area, but Mason knew she wasn’t admiring the scenery. She was getting a feel for the location.

Mason followed her gaze, trying to look at the area through fresh eyes. When he’d first arrived a few days ago, he’d appreciated the beauty. The deep red of the cabin against the dark firs. The mist at the tops of the trees in the early mornings. Tiny lavender petals among the tall grasses. After Denny’s death, all he saw was a crime scene.

The property was tainted.

The crime scene techs moved in and out of the cabin. They’d already removed the evidence from behind the woodshed and enlisted all the responding officers for a grid search of the immediate wooded area, which hadn’t turned up a speck of evidence. No footprints, no gum wrappers, no dropped trash.

How did the killer get Denny to leave the house?

Who did it?

A flash of dark yellow darted between the firs, and Mason spotted a shoulder and the back of a head rapidly moving away.

“Someone’s running through the woods.” He took off after the figure without waiting to see who’d follow, thankful he’d put on tennis shoes that morning instead of his usual cowboy boots.

Behind him he heard Detective Hawes shouting instructions to fan out through the woods and cut off the suspect. He ignored her. No one was between him and the runner, and he wasn’t going to pause to listen to directions.

His heart pounded in his chest, his adrenaline spiking. He dashed between the trees and underbrush, pushing through limbs and leaves, painfully aware he wasn’t armed. The figure vanished and he pressed forward, pumping his legs harder. Twice he tripped on the uneven ground but managed to stay upright.

A cracking sound came from ahead to his left and he changed course. He saw low branches move and he pushed harder. The shouts of officers behind him grew fainter and the figure came into view. It was a blond man in a dark-yellow sweatshirt.

“Oregon State Police! Stop!”

The man didn’t stop, but Mason had gained ground. He estimated less than twenty yards between him and the suspect.

The blond man’s arms flailed for a split second and he dropped out of sight. Mason heard him shout in pain.

Seconds later Mason stood over a man writhing in the dirt, clutching at his right arm. He’d fallen into a wide shallow ditch.

“On your stomach, arms out to your sides!”

“I fucking can’t! I think it’s broken!”

Mason stepped down into the ditch, rolled him to his stomach, put a knee on his back, and yanked his arms out to the sides as the man shrieked.

He didn’t have cuffs or a gun, but the pain distracted the suspect from noticing. Mason knew he had a dozen officers with cuffs not far behind him. He pulled the man’s left arm behind his back and awkwardly searched him for weapons with his other hand.

Footsteps crashed through the woods. “Over here!” Mason shouted. “He’s down! Over here!”

A Lincoln County deputy burst through the brush. “I need your cuffs,” Mason said. “Help me check him for weapons. He thinks he broke his arm.”

“You take him down?” The deputy jumped into the ditch and handed Mason his cuffs. He ran his hands over the man’s legs.

“Nah, he tripped.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Really. That’s what happened. Hey, you tripped, right?” He poked the man in the back.

“Fuck you. Watch the arm!” he shrieked as Mason pulled on his right arm to cuff him.

“Here’s another set.” The deputy handed him a second pair to link to the first to give the man’s arms more room. Three other officers, including Nora Hawes and Ray, stumbled into the area.

“Nice job, Callahan!” Ray slapped him on the back. Mason stood, breathing heavily as he looked around for Ava. The adrenaline felt like fire in his veins and he wanted to tear down the trees to find her. She showed up a second later and he relaxed.

“What were you doing in the woods?” he directed to the man on the ground.

“Not illegal to be in the woods,” he snapped in reply. “You can’t arrest me.”