"He deserves more than hanging in a barn like a warning sign." Erik's voice was hard, but something in it trembled. "And we can't let anyone else find him. Not yet."
She stepped forward, her expression confused. "Erik, if we don't say anything, if we hide him, aren't we helping them?"
He met her eyes. "No. We're setting a trap."
She blinked.
Erik knelt, running his hand over the earth. "If they think we never found the body, they'll panic. If Rudy just disappears, they'll get reckless. Maybe even make a mistake."
Fiona stared at him, breath catching. "You want them to think they're safe."
"Exactly," he said. "Let them wonder if someone's hiding Rudy, if he ran away, if he told someone something before he vanished. They won't know what we know. And in that chaos… we get answers."
Fiona stepped back slowly, her eyes still locked on the boy's body. "It feels wrong."
