There was no doubt that Maria was crying now."Thank you."She sniffled and breathed, "God, this sucks.Do you have kids?"
“No,” Michael said, “but I’ve dealt with kids in these kinds of situations numerous times.”
“You should have kids.You sound like you’d be a great dad.”
Michael smiled, a little sadly.“Maybe I will one day.”
Maria took a deep breath to stifle her tears, then asked, “Is there anything else I can help you guys with?”
“Just two more questions,” Faith replied.“Did you notice a change in Kevin’s behavior recently?Did he mention anyone new in his life?”
“No, no one new.And he seemed the same to me, but we didn’t talk very often.He’d call for the kids, and we’d make small talk when he’d pick them up or drop them off, but we haven’t had a real conversation in years.Not since Julie was born.”
Faith nodded.“Very well.If you think of anything else, please call me back at this number.”
“I will.Thank you.”
She hung up, and Faith leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms.
“I know that look,” Michael said.“You have an idea.”
“Not quite an idea,” Faith replied.“More of an observation.”
“I’ll take an observation.Hit me.”
“Both of our victims were veterans who were upbeat and garrulous but who also kept most people at arms’ length.Those few allowed closer got to see a deep depression stemming from trauma suffered during the war.”
“You think our killer is performing mercy killings?”Michael asked.
“It’s possible.We’ve dealt with several killers like that.”
“But who would want to give these two specific people mercy?”Michael asked.“Two hours apart in two separate archaeological digs?”
“That’s why I think the crime scenes are the key,” Faith said.“I think knowing the victims tells us what kind of killer in general.If we want to know the specifics, we need to figure out why these specific burial sites were chosen.”
Michael’s phone chimed.He glanced at it and said, “Well, we’re in luck.It looks like Dr.Cuthbert just pulled into the lot below us.”
“Wonderful,” Faith said.“Let’s see what he has to say.”
As the three of them drove down to the lower lot, Faith thought of the victims carefully laid to rest by a killer who honored them as warriors.Did they know how much pain their families were in, or were their thoughts too haunted by the ghosts of their pasts to see the ghosts of their futures?
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Dr.Raymond Cuthbert was tall, but he was as thin as a willow reed.Even if his alibi hadn't been confirmed, Faith would have had difficulty believing he could have carried Paul's and Kevin's bodies up hills and then dug their graves.
He made up for his slight build with an almost manic energy.When he greeted the agents, he pumped their hands rapidly up and down—including the paw of a befuddled and slightly amused Turk—and grinned as though being interrupted by a murder investigation was just the most exciting thing that ever happened to him.Who knew?Maybe it was.
“Did you guys get a chance to check out the dig site?”he asked eagerly.
Before Faith could explain that they were too busy dealing with the dead man found buried on that site, he said, “Two hundred fifty years ago, this part of the park was old village of Candlewood.The village burned down in 1823 and was cleared away, but that’s neither here nor there.The hill where we’re digging was the site of a battle between the Candlewood militia and a unit of British Army regulars in 1773.The militia was almost completely wiped out, but the nine survivors went on to become founding members of the Minutemen!”
Faith had to reach back to elementary school American history to remember that the Minutemen were one of the first attempts to organize the colonial militias into a legitimate fighting force that could oppose the British presence in America.“That’s very interesting, doctor, and under other circumstances, I would love to hear all about it.However, you were called back here to assist us in a murder investigation, so I have to insist that you stay on topic.”
No sooner had she said that than something clicked in her head.“Wait.This was a site of a battle?”
“Yes.A fairly small one but an important one.This battle and others like it were catalysts for the formation of the Minutemen.See, the British weren’t keen on violence with colonials prior to the 1770s.Before then, most encounters with colonial militia were bloodless.”
“Thank you,” Faith interjected.“That’s good to know.”
