Page 6 of Shadow Sabotage
“A charm bracelet,” I said, staring at it. I recognized it instantly.
“That’s right.” Wendy’s eyes met mine.
The bag held a silver charm bracelet with only three charms—a football, a jeweled crown, and the letter K.
“Oh my God,” I whispered, moving my hand to my mouth. “We just found Katelyn Brown.”
All the blood drained from Sheriff McGrath’s face.
“That’s not an official identification,” Wendy cautioned. “We’ll use dental records and DNA to confirm. But it’s certainly a possibility. A strong one. The size of the bones, the age of them…”
“Katelyn Brown was wearing that the night she disappeared,” I added, still unable to keep my eyes off the bracelet—a bracelet that had just made those bones entirely too human.
“Nearly identical,” Wendy agreed. “The only difference is that Katelyn’s had four charms, not three. But a fourth might have broken off during a struggle.”
The sheriff’s hand trembled. “I have to make some calls,” he said gruffly. “No one touches anything else. We’re going to have to bring in Wyoming DCI. They’ll want to process the scene themselves. I…” He shook his head, trailed off, then turned and headed up the hill without finishing his sentence.
Trey and I exchanged glances. He kept his expression professional, but I could see the excitement in his eyes. This was the biggest thing to happen in Sage County in years, and he was right in the middle of it.
Katelyn Brown. Seven months ago, she’d stormed out of a college party, driven to her apartment, packed a bag, and left town. She’d never been seen again, causing a flurry of speculation, rumors, and fears. According to the news reports, there had been no real leads. After a few months, everyone had moved on and forgotten about her.
I knew in my gut it was her.
But what the hell was she doing in a park outside of Wildwood?
Chapter Three
Claire
Sheriff McGrath’slips were pressed into a tight line when he returned. “DCI is sending an agent. He’s a few hours out though, won’t be here until morning. Wendy, I’m sorry, but they’re asking you to leave the remains in place for tonight. That means you’ll have to come back tomorrow, meet them here.”
“It’s not a problem,” she reassured him.
“We’ll have to keep the scene secure overnight,” he said, his voice oddly gruff. He was staring at the bones with a faraway look, like he couldn’t believe that this was happening in his county.
“I can do that,” I volunteered. “I was already planning on camping tonight, anyway.”
“You sure?” Sheriff McGrath asked, turning toward me with a look of concern. “It’s your day off. I know you were looking forward to it and I hate to ruin that for you.”
“It’s really not a problem,” I said. It wasn’t like I would be getting any real sleep anyway—not with the adrenaline that was running through my veins.
“That will work out well,” Trey said smoothly. “I’m on duty tomorrow. I can be here in the morning to take over watch until DCI arrives.”
And kiss the agent’s ass.I fought back an eye roll. Everyone knew that Trey’s dream was to work for DCI as a special agent. He’d already applied once and had gotten passed over for lack of investigative experience. He was probably chomping at the bit to work a high-profile homicide case with whoever DCI was sending us.
I’d have given anything for them to send a woman. Watching Trey attempt to flatter and impress her would keep me laughing for years.
Sheriff McGrath hesitated, then put his hand on my shoulder. “You’re really sure you’ll be okay handling this alone?” His eyebrows furrowed as he searched my eyes.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” I shrugged. “I do this all the time.”
He shook his head. “Sitting with remains isn’t the same as bedding down on the trail. You don’t have to volunteer for this. I can ask one of the guys to do it.”
Ah.So there it was. I could read between the lines. Since I was the only female deputy, Sheriff McGrath often tried to shield me from the rougher parts of the job, never noticing that his doing so just made things harder for me in the long run. I’d never earn any respect if I didn’t have a chance to prove myself.
Not that I should have to. I’d proven myself time and time again on the SAR team. But none of that seemed to count when it came to the badge.
I bit down my frustration and plastered on an easy grin. “No need to mess up their beauty sleep. I’ve got this.”
