There was a quick knock on the door as John poked his head in. “I have a match on the fingerprints for Buck.”
Katie and McGaven quickly followed him into the lab.
“Whoa,” said McGaven as they entered.
The forensic examination room looked more like a science fair than the usual forensic analysis department. Katie had to admit she had never seen this much evidence in one case.
“I will have a lot of information for you early tomorrowmorning. Well, how about ten,” said John. “But I thought you’d want to know right away who your abductor is.”
“You found his prints in the system?” said McGaven.
“Well, yes—and no.”
“What does that mean?” Katie was a bit confused. “He’s a living, breathing human being.”
“Of course,” John chuckled. He sat down at one of the computer stations in front of a large screen.
Katie and John moved in close to see what was so elusive.
“I was able to retrieve two clear prints from the index and middle fingers. I double-checked the prints to make sure. You ready?” he said, smiling at the detectives.
“Sometime in this century,” said McGaven.
John clicked on an image. It revealed the headshot of a young man in his late twenties, solemn expression, crew-cut brown hair, and a thousand-yard stare. “This is Marine Corporal Raymond Anthony Young, a.k.a. Buck. He served eleven years and was honorably discharged after he suffered injuries from about two years ago near Iraq that took half his team.”
Katie immediately remembered the deep scars on Buck’s hands that had appeared to go up his arms. His thick beard must’ve been hiding facial injuries as well. Her heart sank thinking about what he must’ve gone through, not only with the explosion, but with coping and healing when he got home. She could understand why he chose to stay reclusive.
“Does he look like your man Buck?” said McGaven.
“Not really. But his eyes tell me it’s him,” she said, studying the photo. “He’s older now. Has a beard.”
“He would be thirty-seven,” said John.
“Is there anything more about his history on record?”
John shook his head. “There’s very little information besides the names of his team and commanding officer. It also looks like he received manyawards and medals.”
“What now?” McGaven said to Katie.
“I don’t know. We have more questions about him than answers. Like, how does he know the Collins family members and why is he so interested?”
“It wasn’t any type of coincidence, by the sounds of it,” said McGaven. “He seemed invested.”
Katie nodded, remembering Buck’s eyes and how adamant he was about the information he shared. “I don’t know what his connection would be.” She sighed.
“I’ll send over everything I have on him,” said John.
The detectives turned to leave.
“Oh, there was one strange finding,” said John.
“Here it comes…” said McGaven.
“When the computer was searching for a match, it actually came up withtwopotential matches.”
“Two?” said Katie and McGaven at the same time.
John laughed. “Yes.”
