Page 110 of Silent Bones
McKenzie followed immediately, peeling left toward the kitchen. Callie entered last, covering the bedroom hallway. They moved with practiced precision, clearing angles, communicating with hand signals.
The house smelled of abandonment. The air was musty as if it had been sealed and forgotten.
"Kitchen clear," McKenzie called.
"Bedroom clear," Callie added.
Noah lowered his weapon slightly, sweeping his flashlight across sparse furnishings and a cold wood stove.
He holstered his weapon and began a more careful examination of the space. Dale had lived simply, no television, no computer, just the basic necessities. But there were gaps now. Empty spaces on shelves where items had been removed. Drawers hanging open, their contents rifled through.
"He packed," Noah said. "But not everything. Left what he wanted us to find."
The proof was sitting on the kitchen counter, impossible to miss. A single photograph, glossy and recent, propped against the coffee maker like a greeting card.
Noah picked it up carefully, holding it by the edges.
The image showed Dale standing beside a massive eight-point buck, blood dark on the snow around the animal's body.Dale was younger in the photo, his hair less gray, his face carrying a satisfaction that bordered on joy. But it was the background that caught Noah's attention, a rustic cabin built of logs and fieldstone, set against a backdrop of steep, forested hills.
"Misdirection?" McKenzie said, looking over Noah's shoulder.
"Possibly, or a trip down memory lane." Noah squinted. "Different terrain. Looks like High Peaks country. Could be anywhere from here to the northern wilderness."
Callie emerged from the bedroom, carrying a manila folder. "Found this under the mattress. Along with some other things that might interest you."
She spread the contents across the kitchen table. Property tax bills for the current address. A hunting license from last year. And buried at the bottom, a lease agreement for a seasonal cabin rental.
Noah read the document carefully. The lessor was listed as McNair Wilderness Rentals. The property was described as "Cabin 7, accessed via unmarked logging road off Route 28N, approximate coordinates 44.17°N, 74.21°W."
"Where does that put us?" Noah asked.
Callie was already entering the coordinates into her phone's GPS. After a moment, she looked up. "Deep wilderness. About forty miles northwest of here, near the High Peaks boundary. No cell service, no grid power. Just forest and mountains."
Noah studied the photograph again, comparing it to the satellite image on Callie's phone. The terrain matched, steep ridges, dense forest, the kind of country where a man could disappear for months if he knew what he was doing.
"He's taken her there," Noah said.
"You're sure?" McKenzie asked.
Noah turned the photo over. On the back, written in Dale's careful handwriting, were the words: "Last hunt, November 2021. Landed the big one at last."
"He didn't leave this by accident," Noah said. "He wanted us to find it. Just like the trail camera. He's leading us somewhere."
"Into a trap?" Callie asked.
"Maybe. Or to the place where he plans to end this."
They searched the rest of the house, but found little else of value. Some clothes were missing from the bedroom closet. The medicine cabinet in the bathroom had been cleared out. A few gaps on the kitchen shelves suggested Dale had taken supplies, canned goods, batteries, basic survival gear.
In the bedroom, Noah found one more item of interest. A small notebook tucked beneath clothes in his closet, filled with Dale's handwriting. Most of it was mundane; grocery lists, reminders about vehicle maintenance, observations about wildlife. But the final entry, dated a week ago, was different:
"Time to finish what should have been finished a year ago. They think they can forget, but some things demand to be remembered. The mountain remembers. The families remember. I remember."
Noah showed the entry to his team. "He's not running. He's completing a mission."
McKenzie checked his watch. "We've got maybe eight hours of good daylight left. If we're going after him, we need to move now."
Noah looked once more at the photograph, at Dale's satisfied smile and the remote cabin behind him. Somewhere in that wilderness, Avery was running out of time. And Dale was waiting.
