“I know,” Maya said. “I’m all right, but I’m worried about what we found and who the victim might be. I’m scared, and you know me, I don’t like to admit it. Plus, I am your favorite granddaughter…and your only one.”
Pops laughed and then turned serious again. “Lucas filled me in and so did Rory when I ran into her at the sheriff’s office. Between the two of them, I think I have a pretty good idea that our victim might be Amber and that a prosecutor named Elena Pierce might be our missing person.”
Maya noticed that Pops had left out the part about Josh being the main suspect. He knew it, though. She was certain of that. He was just being careful with her. She filled him in about the tracks and the area the dogs took them along with the broken window.
“I know who owns that home,” Pops said. “I’ll call them and fill them in. Not only do I want to get a piece of wood covering the broken window, but I also need to have a deputy tape it off since it’s part of our crime scene. The owners are good people and will cooperate.”
By the time Pops finished, Josh had come and joined them. Staring down at the ground, Maya could tell the gravity of the situation was settling in. Sometimes when you were working your dog, you could forget other things going on, but as soon as your dog was off duty and comfortable, things would hit a person again. Maya found they often hit hard.
“I think I need to step down off this case,” Josh said to Pops.
“I agree. I had Lucas make some calls and the CBI is going to take the lead. None of us should touch this case until we have the remains ID’d. If the victim isn’t Amber, then we can all step back in and figure things out. I called Agent Kessler and he asked if the CBI would take the lead on the case. He has a full caseload right now and thought the Forest Service would be okay if he wasn’t the lead. But he said to call anytime if needed. He’s happy to provide FBI resources.”
Maya liked Agent Kessler and trusted him. “I’ll call my boss and fill him in, but I’m sure he won’t mind the CBI being in charge.”
“I did tell Lucas that I would call in the local SAR team,” Pops continued, using the acronym for search and rescue. “They will be here in about an hour. I want a deputy out with them because we don’t know if our missing person is really the prosecutor or one of the homicide suspects. I don’t want to put anyone else in danger. Their team leader told me, and I agreed, that if they thought this should be turned back over to law enforcement, they would pull out. This isn’t a normal missing person. As far as who it is out there, I do suspect it is Elena Pierce, in which case she needs to be found before something bad happens to her—either from Mother Nature or whoever killed our other victim here. Hopefully she’s still alive.”
“Maybe our dogs can rest about an hour and then go back out,” Maya suggested.
“No,” Pops said. “They’ve worked hard today and we don’t want tired dogs and handlers. Plus, like I mentioned, we need to stay away from this until we find out more.”
“I might be able to help with that,” Rory said. She’d been patiently waiting, holding some papers.
“What did you find?” Maya asked.
Rory handed Pops the papers and Maya peered at them. Josh, being the tallest, stood behind them, also taking in what Rory had given them.
“I found her Facebook account, which was active until she became a prosecutor,” Rory said. “Lucky for us, she forgot to change the settings to private. Not that there’s anything scandalous, I was just able to get pictures and more information.”
“Great job,” Maya said. The pictures showed a petite but fit young woman. A couple of the posts that Rory had printed out discussed running and fitness.
“I tried to copy and paste important information,” Rory said. “From what I could tell, before law school she was a Team USA cross-country hopeful. I think she missed the team by only a tenth of a second.”
“That’s good,” Maya said. “That means she’s fit and can maybe navigate terrain that other people wouldn’t be able to.”
“I found a picture with her in a doorway to a restaurant in Chicago. I’m estimating her size to be small—about five foot two or three,” Rory said, quickly adding, “but math isn’t my strong suit.”
“I understand,” Maya said. “But I’m thinking you’re correct on her size.”
Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, trying to keep her mind from racing to conclusions. But the tennis shoe prints they’d found matched a runner with a small foot size.
And the remains were too tall to be Elena. Even if Rory’s math was off.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Maya stayed and helped with anything extra, including going back to the house where Juniper had tracked and putting up a small piece of plywood over the window. Not only did the house need to be protected from the elements, but a critter could break in through the plastic. She and Deputy Wilson ran crime-scene tape around the property and around the tire tread on the street. He agreed to stay there until Miranda or one of the CBI crime-scene techs could come process the house. Maya felt bad for the homeowners. They would come this summer and need a window repair and a deep cleaning to get fingerprint dust off everything.
When Maya returned to the main crime-scene area, she saw that the SAR teams had arrived. There were a couple more dogs. Even though Lucas was in charge, he’d asked Pops to talk to the search-and-rescue volunteers since he knew the areas and the team members. Maya approached the tent someone had put up as Pops was finishing talking about the situation.
“I’m short-staffed,” he was saying. “I have a deputy who can go out with one team, but my other deputy is securing another scene that pertains to this case. I’ve called a couple of other deputies who were off duty today. They should be here soon and will be able to accompany you.
“I’ve put in a request for a helicopter and they’ve agreed, but with the sunny day, there are a lot of shadows and that can make it difficult to see anyone. It would be nice if the day became cloudy. We believe the missing person is Elena Pierce, but we’re not certain yet. We also believe she witnessed this crime. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt, so if at any point, you don’t feel comfortable or come across someone suspicious, do what you think is best. You do not have to engage. You all have radios. Use them and call us if you need to. Any questions?”
Maya observed the SAR team members. They were avid outdoorsmen and women. They were the people she would want to come looking for her if she was ever missing.
“Okay then,” Pops said. “If there’s no questions, let’s get started. We’ll search until nighttime and then evaluate the situation and any leads. I don’t want all of you out in the wilderness when it’s dark if we can help it.”
Maya heard several people agree and then the teams split up and headed out in different directions. She hoped they could find Elena, or at least some more clues that would lead them to her. If that was truly who they were looking for. Maya had to remember they didn’t know for sure, but the probability was high.
