Zander looked grim. “He was found hanging in his garage wearing a Freddy Krueger mask. I already had Ben reach out to the OSP detective at the coast scene and let them know we might have a related case.”

Ava stared at him for a long moment before looking to Ben and Mercy. She’d known the office had been shaken up about the man’s suicide, but she hadn’t heard details. A horror mask seemed like a detail that would have rocketed up the gossip chain. A dozen questions shot through her brain.

“You’re familiar with Freddy Krueger?” Ben asked.

“From A Nightmare on Elm Street. He kills kids in their dreams.” She paused. “But Vance was a suicide, right?” she slowly asked.

The three agents exchanged a grim look. “We’re taking another look,” said Ben.

Ava looked at Agent Kilpatrick. “I assume you know more about Vance’s . . . suicide?”

“Correct,” the domestic terrorism agent stated. “Special Agent Weldon was found hanging from the rafters of his garage last Monday by his wife,” she said in an even voice. “The Vancouver Police Department got the call, and they handled the investigation, but I was assigned by our agency to work with the police and oversee our interests.”

Ava nodded. She’d heard Vance Weldon worked in Domestic Terrorism. Besides the usual concerns for the agent’s family’s needs, this sort of incident would require interaction from the agency to rule out any foul play that might have been related to his job, and to make certain any sensitive intelligence was properly secured.

“What did you conclude?” Ava asked. She took a closer look at Mercy Kilpatrick. She had the long dark curls of a Kardashian but the intense presence of a highly experienced agent. Intelligence radiated from her gaze, and Ava wanted to know her better.

Mercy furrowed her brow. “I never saw or read anything in the reports to make me doubt it was a suicide. Even his wife said he’d been struggling with depression.”

“Kids?”

“None.”

“What about the horror mask? Surely that stood out in the case as something that shouldn’t have been there.”

Mercy shook her head. “Special Agent Weldon was a collector. He had a fascination with horror movies, especially Freddy Krueger. He actually had a little side business going where he sold Freddy Krueger gloves online.”

“Gloves? Like the glove he wears in the movies with all the blades?” Ava asked. It was the character’s primary weapon.

“Yes. His wife showed them to me. He makes them and they look straight from a movie set. Not sharp, though,” she added quickly. “His wife couldn’t say for certain that the mask was his, but she said it would be the type of thing he owned. He had a lot of horror movie memorabilia.”

“Is there a Pinhead mask missing?” Ava asked.

“We’re trying to find out,” Ben said. “I’ve left a message for the wife to call me back.”

“There’s no way the captain’s death at the coast could be a suicide,” said Zander. “His neck was deeply slashed and there’s no knife left behind. I’ve heard of people cutting their own necks, but hiding the weapon in time? Can’t happen. And the only blood found was right with the body.”

Ava nodded. Hiding the knife after cutting one’s own neck would leave a large blood trail. From what she was hearing, everything indicated murder for the captain. “But two horror character masks on two dead law enforcement officers within a week is too big to ignore,” she said flatly. “We need to be involved and take a closer look at our agent’s death. If it wasn’t suicide, it could be related to one of his terrorism cases.”

“Agreed,” said Ben. “I’m assigning it to you and Zander, but I want you to head to the coast death scene first because it’s fresh. Do what you need to there, and then start looking into the Weldon case. Agent Kilpatrick will get you everything you need.” He held up a hand as Ava opened her mouth. “I’m operating on the assumption Mason will soon be officially cleared of any involvement in his boss’s death. If I recall, the two of you were in San Francisco at the beginning of last week, correct?”

Ava nodded.

“Then he wasn’t involved in our agent’s death. Right now that’s good enough for me.”

His logic was a bit weak, but Ava knew he didn’t have anyone else to assign. She wasn’t about to argue with him; she wanted the case.

She looked at Zander. “Ready for a trip to the coast?”

“Special Agent Vance Weldon was discovered hanging in his garage at six thirty A.M. by his wife last Monday morning,” Zander summarized from the file on his lap. He’d been making calls and reading case details to Ava as she drove toward the ocean. “A stool in the garage had been kicked over and his hands weren’t bound. His wife Sharon briefly tried to get him down, but realized he’d been dead for several hours and called 911.”

“That’s horrible,” Ava murmured, envisioning herself trying to wrestle Mason down from the rafters and then realizing he was cold with death. “First on the scene was patrol from Vancouver?”

“Yes,” said Zander. “This report says she begged them to cut him down, and the first two cops at the scene did it.”

“Destroying evidence.”

“Being human,” countered Zander. “I’m not sure what determines if they have to try to resuscitate. I imagine it’s hard to come across a hanging and make yourself leave the body up there, wondering if getting him down could have saved him.”