Something shifted in Kori’s expression, and Wyatt had the impression she was holding something back.
“What is it, Kori?”
She licked her lips before saying, “I couldn’t sleep last night, so I went through Mackenzie’s trail camera footage.”
“And?”
She pulled out her phone and showed him the screen.
It was a grainy photograph she’d taken of the laptop display.
“There are fourteen clips,” she said. “Different days. Different weather. Same trail. Same direction.”
She swiped to the next photo. It was of a man carrying a box through the woods.
“They’re not hikers,” Kori said. “They’re moving supplies.”
Wyatt studied each frame as she scrolled. “So Mackenzie discovered this.”
“Yes. But there’s more. Look at this image.” She showed him the one. “I recognized the man.”
He squinted. “What do you mean?”
She explained who Bartholomew Beekman was. Wyatt’s eyes widened with each new detail.
“Wait . . . this may be connected with you?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I don’t know. Not for sure. But it can’t be a coincidence. What if Mackenzie was watching this footage, and she recognized him also?”
“Tell me everything you know about him.”
She blew out a long breath before answering. “He owned like six hundred acres or something. The land had been in his family for years. Then the state decided they needed to build a highway right in the middle of it—eminent domain. He was furious. Especially since he had a farm there.”
“Keep going,” Wyatt said.
“I could understand his anger. But then he started sabotaging equipment. He took it too far when he went to the home of the project manager with a gun and began threatening him.”
“Sounds like he lost his mind a little.”
“He did. I sensed something really off about him. I knew he was a danger.”
“How long did he get in prison?”
“Ten years. That was four years ago.”
“Any way he could have gotten out early?” Wyatt asked.
“It’s a possibility. I already put in a call, but it’s too early for anyone to get back with me.”
