“I get it, but there’s nothing I can say except sit tight. We’ll be with you as soon as we can.”
“Okay. I’ll keep in touch.” It takes all her willpower to drive some positivity into her tone. Moments like this—and there are always moments like this in an investigation—when things don’t go your way: this is when you show your mettle. She needs to draw on the strength she felt earlier.
“Guess it’s a no-can-do?” Steed says heavily as she says goodbye.
“For now, yes. They’re still underwater. Looks like we’re in for a long night.”
“At least we’ve got a plan.” But the confidence in his tone is belied by the concern marring his face.
He’s scared too. Doesn’t want to show it.
She nods. “First, we need to speak to what’s left of the Leger group. Get some answers.”
“Two from the same group, you might still be looking at coincidence, but three . . .”
“Yep. I think there’s a reason why the killer’s targeting them. Has to be.”
Steed looks past her to the member of staff who’s clearly scoping out the sandwich offering. “But doesn’t that mess with the whole reaper motivation?”
“Might do. It’s tricky. If there is some overall plan to take out this group, it suggests something very personal. But then those teenagers’ deaths back in the day—and Jo’s murder on the beach—imply someone more delusional, acting on impulse.” Her mind flip-flops.
Steed runs a hand over his forehead. “The differences could be the result of erratic taking of meds. More lucid at some points than others.”
“Or even two different people working together.” Elin chews on her lip. “I just can’t square it away. Everything we found in the cave and the issues with Creacher’s conviction imply it’s the same killer, but the anomalies bother me. The different levels of planning, why those stones were near the teenagers’ bodies, yet no sign of them here . . .”
He shrugs. “Perhaps the selection of those kids was more intentional than we know.”
“True, but then what’s the connection between them and the Legers?”
“It might just be coincidence they’re from the same group,” Steed says slowly. “There aren’t many people left on the island. The killer could be opportunistic.”
“Perhaps. I just feel like we’re missing something, particularly about the school. . . .”
“But how does that fit with the Legers?” Steed frowns. “Unless they’re extremely genetically blessed, they weren’t alive when that school was around.”
“I know. I think it’s worth double-checking to see if any of them have ties to the school.”
“Well, we can ask them now.” Steed nods to the door. “They’ve just arrived.”
75
I’ll do it,” Elin says, but as she speaks her voice splinters, the weight of the news she’s about to impart suddenly overwhelming. It’s as if the sight of Hana, Caleb, and Maya has breached the barrier she’s had in place since the beach. The memory hits her afresh—Jo Leger’s bloodied body on the sand.
“You can take a moment,” Steed says, watching her.
“I think it’s only just . . . sunk in. A double shock, in a way; I was so convinced that it was Farrah, and then to find someone else . . .” She blinks, reliving the moment.
“Understandable. You want me to do the honors?”
Elin smiles, grateful. “Please.”
Hana stops a few yards away. Elin and Steed make their way over. Hana’s hair is wet, legs stained with mud splatter. Caleb and Maya are standing awkwardly behind, equally bedraggled. Maya’s dark curls, freed from their usual headscarf, are clinging in damp clumps to her shoulders. Caleb tugs out an AirPod as they greet him, but he looks discombobulated as he fiddles with the hem of his blue T-shirt. Numb.
“Sorry to jump on you right away, but we need to speak with you privately.” Steed steers them into a corner. He lowers his voice. “What I’m about to say is going to be a shock, but I need you to try not to react or draw attention to what I’m saying. Does that make sense?”
It’s only Hana who seems to pick up on something in his expression, or perhaps his tone of voice. “Something’s happened, hasn’t it?” she says quickly.
Steed cuts straight to the chase. “I’m afraid I have to tell you that Jo is dead. We found her a little while ago.”