Page 89 of Hunting Justice

“What? No way. Not my father.” Royce straightened and strode farther into the room.

Sanford shook his head. “I don’t believe it. The man was devastated when his wife left him. We spent quite a bit of time together. I would have known.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. And now there’s another serial killer mimicking Nelson. It has to be someone who knew what he had done. There are too many similarities.” Matt’s eyes darted back and forth between Royce and Sanford. “Royce, why doesn’t your last name match your father’s?”

The man’s shoulders drooped. “I took my mother’s last name when I turned twenty-one.”

“Why?” Jonah asked.

Royce pinched the bridge of his nose.

“That’s okay, son. I’ve got this.” Congressman Sanford rose and placed a hand on the younger man’s shoulder. “Royce and his brother Austin didn’t get along. He wanted separation from the family name, so I supported him.”

“What happened between you and your brother?” Matt asked.

“When we were younger, he changed. One day we were best friends, the next… But years later, after my father disappeared, it was like a switch flipped in him,” Royce said.

“I remember that.” The congressman continued. “After Richard left without word, I took his boys in and helped them get started in the world. I gave Royce a job here in my office, and I invested in Austin’s restaurant. Both boys work hard. Royce is invaluable, and Austin bartends at his own business.”

“The one you frequent with, shall we say, young women?” Matt tilted his head as if challenging the older man to disagree.

Sanford dropped onto his chair. “Fine. Yes, I take my dates there. But there’s nothing illegal about that. They are all of age.”

“I’m not going there about the age difference. But the fact several have turned up tortured and killed makes me wonder, Congressman.”

Sanford jerked back in his seat. “Tortured?” The shock on the man’s face—evident. No way was the man that good an actor.

Jonah pondered the new information while Matt continued to pepper the men with questions.

Noelle’s reaction clicked in his brain. “Royce.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Does your brother have your father’s eye color?”

The man nodded. “Yes. I have a cross between Mom’s and Dad’s blue eyes, and he got Dad’s unique icy blue.”

Jonah spun toward Matt. “It’s the bartender—Austin.”

Matt’s entire body went rigid. “I thought his last name was James.”

Royce shook his head. “No. For some reason, eight or nine years ago he started introducing himself using his middle name, going by Austin James, but unlike mine, his last name never changed. It’s still Nelson.”

Matt gave Jonah a knowing look, then shifted his gaze to the congressman. “If Austin wanted a private place, where would he go?”

“I’m not sure.” The creases in Sanford’s forehead deepened.

“Hold on.” Royce strode to a cabinet next to the desk. “I saw him here this morning. I thought he came to talk with Mr. Sanford, but…” The aide opened the door, revealing a row of keys. One of the hooks was empty. “Your cabin.”

“Where?” Matt demanded.

Sanford wrote down the address and handed it over.

“Don’t leave town.” Matt hurried toward the door. “Come on, Doc.”

Jonah rushed to keep up.

Matt hurried down the stairs. “The one that got away.”