Page 48 of Trail to Trouble
“I’ll take one, too,” Hannah said.
She didn’t really need sparkling water. Regular tap water would suit her just fine. But she’d go with the flow.
“Coming right up. Anything to eat?”
The thought of food made her stomach toss.
“No. Thank you,” Hannah replied.
Bianca shook her head.
“I’m sorry, ladies. I know you’re exhausted and emotionally drained, but I need to ask you some questions. We need to find out who...”
The chief paused for just a moment before saying the horrible words she knew he’d say.
“Who murdered your friend. Was it intentional? Random? Is there anyone who had issues with your friend? Anyone who didn’t like her?”
“No. ...”
Suddenly, Hannah couldn’t bring herself to say her friend’s name. It was just too hard.
“Everyone loved her. She was so nice and thoughtful. She didn’t even really want to take a trip like this. She did it for me. This is all my fault.”
The chief held his hand up. “Stop right there. This is not your fault. You couldn’t have known.”
The man’s dark eyes emitted sincerity, and she took a moment to soak that up. That was exactly what she needed to hear, yet she still had doubts and felt responsible for what had happened. Was this the infamous survivor’s guilt she’d heard about?
He released her gaze, and then she craned her neck to look at Bianca. Her gaze was not warm or consoling at all. Did she blame her for Alyssa’s death?
“Tell me again exactly what happened.”
“We hiked up to the top of Lover’s Leap Falls. Alyssa was taking a photo of me and Hunter. A shot rang out, and Alyssa fell forward, landing hard on the ground. At first, I didn’t realize what was going on. Hunter must have though, because he threw himself in front of me and wrapped me in his arms. Then another shot rang out, and that one hit Hunter. It was then that he launched us over the falls. There really wasn’t anywhere else to go because it’s wide open up there. Hunter took the brunt of the fall. I pretty much came out of the fall scratch-free.”
Hannah paused and took a breath. She felt anxious. Not because of how the chief and Dewey were looking at her, because truth be told, both men kept their gazes neutral with a bit of empathy. Their body language was the same. They actually made her feel more at ease, but the incident itself sent her into a state of fear and helplessness.
“Then?” the chief asked.
“We quickly got out of the pool of water and ducked into the woods. Hunter knew where to go to get away from the shooter, but his injuries slowed him down. We knew the guy was following us because he yelled at us. I stashed Hunter and kept moving in the direction he’d told me, then I came here. I don’t know where I lost the shooter or when he stopped following. I’m just so relieved he didn’t find Hunter. Maybe he thought we both kept moving.”
The chief and Dewey nodded in unison.
The chief turned his attention to Bianca. “So, you stayed back at camp?”
“Yes.”
“Why is that?”
“I don’t really care for the outdoors. We’re on this trip because of Hannah,” Bianca replied.
The accusing tone her friend used stung.
The knowing look tossed her way from Chief Ricco let her know he felt the same about Bianca’s accusing tone.
“What did you do while the others were gone?” the chief asked.
“I laid on the beach. Soaked up the sun. Took a nap.”
“Did you see anyone or hear anything odd?”
