Page 55 of The Catcher
“Noah. I’ve got footprints and drag marks,” an officer shouted, breaking through the tense silence.
Noah hurried towards the source of the discovery, his heart racing with anticipation. Following the tracks, they soon came upon a mound of dirt and two tubes sticking up from the ground, one of which led to a large water container.
As realization dawned, a heavy weight settled in Noah’s chest. With a sinking feeling, he knew they had found what they were looking for — the makeshift grave where Colt Banning had been buried.
Noah and his team dug into the dirt with their bare hands, scooping it back as fast as they could. Every handful of earth brought them closer to the truth they dreaded to uncover. Hope battled against the odds in Noah’s heart, clinging to the belief that Colt Banning might still be alive. Everything on the surface indicated that the boy had been given air and water, fueling Noah’s desperate optimism. He had gone missing only the night before, so his survival chances seemed promising.
However, as the dirt began to clear, Noah’s hopes were shattered at the sight of the boy’s motionless face. They dug him out with frantic determination and immediately started CPR in a desperate bid to revive him. But Colt’s body was already cold, his spirit having departed long before they unearthed him from the grave.
Noah’s heart sank as he examined the tubing that had been set up, realizing the cruel trap that had sealed Colt’s fate. The boy hadn’t stood a chance. Forced to choose between air and water, Colt had unknowingly sealed hisfate. Thirst, a primal urge that could drive a man insane, had driven him to opt for water, only to find that in doing so, he had unwittingly sealed off the supply of life-giving air. No amount of blowing into the tube could reverse the deadly mechanism set in motion.
Noah’s heart ached at the knowledge of Colt’s agonizing choice and the tragic consequences that had ensued.
17
Camp Colby soon became an absolute circus after the media was tipped off. Noah figured it was one of the crew there to winterize the estate. He knew they were running against the clock in more ways than one. Every death was another mark on the reputation of the agencies, another reason for that cocky reporter from theAdirondack Daily Enterpriseto write a hit piece. Noah had already been the focus of two since Carl McNeal had taken Lena’s old position.
While they were able to stop the approaching media vans coming down Lake Colby Road, they couldn’t prevent them from getting close via water, using long-lens cameras from boats, or even taking video from above with drones.
What he hadn’t expected was for that asshole to snag an EMT’s uniform and sneak in under the premise of collecting Banning’s body.
Had it not been for Carl McNeal’s ugly mug and thekeen eye of another officer who saw him taking snapshots, he might have succeeded.
“Impersonating an EMT? You are a piece of work.”
“Screw you, man, at least I do my job,” he said, taking another below-the-belt jab. “That’s three dead, by my count, right?” McNeal said as he was escorted off the premises. “You might be a Sutherland, Noah, but you don’t have your father’s track record,” McNeal yelled over his shoulder.
Noah replied, “Maggie’s your boss, isn’t she?” He paused. “Not even she would approve this. Maybe I’ll give her a call.”
“Go ahead. Go on!” he yelled back. “Won’t do you much good. Next month, I’m running the show.” He howled with delight, grinning broadly.
Noah balked at the idea. Impossible. There was no way.
He turned his back and got on the phone to call Maggie. A longtime friend of the Sutherland family and an even closer friend of Lena’s, she’d always given him the time of day. The phone rang several times before she picked up.
“Noah. Good to hear from you.”
“How are you, Maggie?” he asked, his tone already indicating that this wasn’t just a run-of-the-mill conversation.
“You know, aches and pains, aging like we all do. What’s the matter?”
“Is it true?”
“What?”
“That the piece of scum is taking over your position at the paper?”
She let out a long sigh. Before she could answer, Noah thought it was best to bring her up to speed on what Carl had done. “He was just here impersonating an EMT. Lena pushed the boundaries, but not even she would have stooped that low to get a shot.”
“I hear you.”
“Do you? These are deceased teens, Maggie. This is not a game,” he said while simultaneously thinking of how they were being toyed with by the perp.
“I know,” she said firmly. “Look, newspapers are going the way of the dinosaurs. It’s been getting worse for years. The trajectory is steadily declining, with more people turning to the internet for news. We’re not unique in that regard. Every media outlet has suffered. Us just a little more than others. Lena was meant to help. She had great ideas. She made me believe again. I hadn’t felt that way in years. And then…” She trailed off with a heavy sigh. It said it all. Noah felt a sharp sting in his chest. “Listen, I’m not getting any younger, Noah. Eventually, I have to hang up the publisher’s hat and a bunch of other ones I’ve been wearing. Carl is still young; he’s foolish enough to think he can turn something like this around. Recently, I was offered a substantial amount of money to step down. I’m talking about the kind of money I’ve worked all my life for. Retirement. I want to spend time with my grandchildren. Life is passing by, Noah. It’s moving at the speed of light. My days of chasing stories or protecting your family’s name are at an end.”
“You accepted the offer?”
“Yes. I did. I leave at the end of the month. I’m sorry.”
