Page 19 of Once Silenced

Riley’s gaze fixed on the skeletal remains as the last layers of dirt were carefully brushed away.The bones, frail and bleached by time, told a story that only silence had heard for a long time.A remnant of fabric clung to the form like a whisper from the past, while tarnished jewelry offered a glimpse into the woman who once was.

“Looks like she’s been here for a while,” Jennings grumbled, his voice devoid of empathy.“As a first estimate, I’d say about twenty years.”

Riley was absorbed by the details—the curve of the spine, the position of the arms—as if understanding the dead woman might lead to understanding the person or persons who had buried her here.

“Jannings,” she prompted softly, “the jewelry...might there be engravings?Something personalized?”

“Maybe,” he replied curtly, already waving his team over.“We’ll take a closer look at the morgue.”Then he turned to his team.“Alright, let’s get her ready to move,” he ordered, his tone signaling the end of the on-site investigation.

Riley watched as they prepared to transport the remains with a care that seemed incongruous with the coroner’s brusqueness.

“I’ll call Sheriff Hagen myself,” Jennings announced, his words slicing through the afternoon air.“He needs to know about this.”

“Are you able to determine the cause of death?”Putnam asked.

“Too early to tell,” Jennings said.“I suppose it could have been a case of natural causes, and someone simply wanted to bury her in some out-of-the-way place.”

It wasn’t that,Riley thought.

She realized she’d gotten one other hint about whoever had buried this body here—that they harbored at least a trace of guilt, and that the stones were, in some sense, a sort of apology to the dead.

She was murdered, all right,Riley thought.

Putnam stepped toward Riley, his arms crossed and his feet apart in a posture that broadcast authority, as if he were marking his territory.

“Thanks for your help, Paige,” Putnam said, his voice jarring in its casual dismissal.“I’ll take it from here.”

The words stung, but Riley didn’t flinch.Instead, she met Putnam’s gaze steadily.

“Of course, Agent Putnam,” she replied, her tone even.

But she didn’t feel ready to leave—not with so many questions burning unanswered in her mind.

But have I got any choice?she wondered.

She remembered Meredith’s words from yesterday, a directive that had seemed simple then: solve the mystery of the coordinates and come back.Yet, the fact that they’d found a grave that was located by math puzzles that had been pinned to dead bodies only indicated that there was more to uncover.

As the coroner’s team lifted the remains from the makeshift grave onto a stretcher and began their solemn procession away from the clearing, Riley dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone.She dialed a familiar number, then pressed the phone tightly to her ear.

“Riley.I’m glad you called!”Bill said, taking the call.“Tell me what’s going on.”

Every detail spilled out in a rush as she recounted the discovery, the skeletal remains and the conversations that followed.

“Putnam thinks he can close me out, just like that.”Riley’s words sparked with indignation.“But there’s more to this, Bill.I can feel it.”

There was a beat of silence on the line before Bill replied.“Riley, you know as well as I do that this is not the time to step back.No one else gets inside a case like you do.”

“Exactly,” she agreed.“I can’t just abandon this now.”

“Then don’t,” Bill urged.“Call Meredith.He’ll listen to you.”

“Yeah, but will he agree to let me stay here to work on the case?”

“It’s up to you to persuade him.Make him see why they still need you on this.”

“Thanks for the advice, Bill.I’ll do that.”

Then she paused before adding, “I wish you were here.”

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