Page 52 of Grimm

“After the hike and mountain scaling we did today, with no one hanging around to see what we came up with, I tend to agree that he needs to be patient and let someone else do the leg work.”

“Which sounds like someone who isn’t as physically active as you and me. Not that I’m a poster child for health and wellness.”

“You were amazing,” Grimm said. “I don’t know many people who are deathly afraid of heights who would voluntarily rappel down one-hundred-and-fifty feet through a rock formation where you can’t even see the bottom. Hats off to you, woman.”

Dezi’s chest swelled at his praise. “Thank you. You made it look easy.”

“I’ve done it more times than I can remember. That was your first time. I’m convinced you’ll want to do it again for fun.” He grinned.

“Keep dreaming, cowboy.” Dezi lifted her chin and stared at the road ahead. “We need to check in with Hank tomorrow and see if they sent anyone out to canvass Eugene’s neighbors and friends to discover the identity of the fourth poker player.”

“We can make that call tonight, as soon as we get to the lodge.”

She sighed. “I hate that we have no idea who we’re up against. It might not be the poker player. It could’ve been my uncle’s barber. Uncle Leon talked to anyone who would listen about the treasure he was searching for.”

“How long had he been searching?” Grimm asked.

Dezi sighed. “Decades. That’s what gets me. Why is anyone interested now?”

“Maybe he really did find the treasure.”

“Then why didn’t he upgrade his living arrangements and lifestyle?”

Grimm shrugged. “At his age and relationship status, he might not have seen a point.”

Dezi nodded. “Why bother if you don’t have someone to share it with?”

“Your uncle Leon had to have shared information about his find with someone,” Grimm said. “Otherwise, he wouldn’t be dead, and the people he played poker with wouldn’t be dead or injured.”

“Three out of four that we know of so far,” Dezi corrected.

Grimm tapped his finger on the steering wheel. “If the killer is following us so that we lead him to the treasure, we need to be vigilant and aware at all times.”

“That’s a given,” Dezi said.

“Yet today was a gift. We didn’t have anyone trying to kill us or steal the information we discovered.”

“Give him time,” Dezi said. “He could be following us from a distance. Or he could be waiting to see what we find before he makes his move. After killing or injuring three people, he has to be getting a little more cautious.”

Grimm’s lips pressed together. “Or a little more desperate.”

“Either way, we need to wait for him to make the next move,” Dezi said. “In the meantime, we’re going to the base of the two peaks from the pictograph to see if the answers are there.”

CHAPTER11

When they werewithin cell phone tower range, Grimm contacted Hank Patterson and placed the call on speaker so that Dezi could listen to the conversation.

“What did you find?” Hank answered the call with a question.

Grimm told him about the hike, the rappelling and the cave they found based on the sunlight through the Needle’s Eye. When he got to the part about the cave art, he slowed to describe the placement of the art at the back of the cave and the building added more recently.

“Dezi’s uncle must have been in pretty good shape to have gone to that kind of trouble to plant clues,” Hank said.

“I’m beginning to wonder if he knew someone close to him was looking for the treasure he supposedly found,” Grimm said, casting a glance in Dezi’s direction. “He could’ve set up the list of clues to lure the guy out into the open.”

“Given that the clues involved some strenuous elements, you could be right.”

“Or my uncle loved a treasure hunt and wanted me to love it as much as he did,” Dezi suggested.

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