“Sounds good,” Gabriel replied, clearly relieved they wouldn’t be stopping to check out every location themselves. “Let me, Dad, and Will do the shovel work. There’s a lot of land to cover here.”
Josh nodded. “That’s my thinking also. We walked back to the lake to get a sense of it. The shoreline has turned into steep bluffs, undercut by the rising water in the spring and fall. So we’re not looking to search the shoreline itself, other than from a boat.
“There are numerous animal trails in the woods. The deer blinds have been set up on the obvious ones, the underbrush cut back so that a vehicle can get through and close to the blinds. I think we’ll check those spots next, let the dogs search the animal trails. After that we’ll start a systematic search-from one point in the pasture straight through the trees to the water, then back to the pasture. Like a checkerboard, moving west to east. We’ll work daylight hours, with a break as often as the dogs need to stop, until we’re done. Probably two or three weeks, depending on the weather and how the dogs handle it as we push through the woods.”
Evie could tell Josh was providing a lot of details, not for their sakes but for Grace, who would do best with more information rather than less.
Josh opened his truck’s tailgate, pulled over a cooler, offered Grace a water bottle and opened one for himself. “I need to run into town, pick up a couple of GPS readers, marking flags, get the topology map for this place enlarged by sections, put together water, jerky, doggie treats, that kind of thing, then pick up the dogs. We’ll do a few hours yet today while the light is still good. See if we can’t clear the area by the house.”
Gabriel nodded. “Grace, how about we give you a lift to the campground while Josh goes into town? Josh can pick you up there after he collects the dogs.”
“That’s a good idea, Grace,” Josh concurred. “You had an early morning. Get yourself a nap while you can. I’ll come your way about three. We won’t stay till dark, but we’ll get a start at least.”
Grace considered the group, nodded. “I’ll take your advice as this unfolds, Josh. Ann says you’ve done more of these searches than anyone around.”
“Today will mostly be training on how to mark the maps, and you’ll get a feel for how the dogs work. Why don’t you pack some snacks for us-whatever’s handy. We’ll get a decent meal once we’re done tonight.”
“I can do that,” Grace said.
“I’ll call if the time changes.”
Evie motioned toward Gabriel’s truck, and Grace walked over to it. As Evie followed, she heard Gabriel mention, “Josh, you’ll probably find Ann and Dad at the old post-office building.”
“I’ll find them,” Josh said.
Evie chose the backseat in the extended cab so Grace could sit up front with Gabriel, hoping a conversation with him would break the rather cautious politeness among them.
Gabriel settled in the driver’s seat, and Grace said, “I appreciate you doing this.”
“It’s no problem. I’d say it’s the job, but it’s a lot more personal for us than that. All the Thanes would like to see this settled for you, Grace.”
Grace nodded and looked out her window. They drove mostly in silence to the campground.
What is there to say? Evie mulled over in her mind. I’m sorry your parents were murdered, it has to be hard looking for their bodies, and by the way, we know what happened to you here? There weren’t words to bridge those kinds of realities, and she didn’t think it wise to try. At least not yet. She caught Gabriel’s glance in the rearview mirror and gave him a brief shake of her head. There would be better moments than this one for a conversation over the next couple of weeks.
Gabriel Thane
Gabriel slowed as he read lot numbers, pulled to a stop at Lot 29. “Nice campsite, Grace. You’ve got a good view here,” he said, looking for something-anything-to say.
Grace stepped from the truck, paused to smile back at him. “Lovely view and I like the camper. It has a microwave and a TV, shower and queen-size bed. I’ll be comfortable. Thanks for the lift, Gabriel.”
“You’ll call if there’s anything you need, right?”
“You know I will.”
She raised a hand in farewell and walked to the motor home, unlocked it. Gabriel watched her step inside, waited as Evie shifted to the front seat.
“I’ll drive the long route into town,” he said, “show you the turnoff to Will’s place when you want to pick up your dogs. That will give Josh time to hear the full story from Ann and Caleb before I bring you back to the post office.”
“Want me to help with the shoveling?”
Gabriel shook his head. “You’ve got two cases to pursue during this working vacation of yours. The only thing left to do on the Dayton case is to find the burial site, and it’s likely where Josh is looking. It’s going to be many hours patiently waiting for the dogs to indicate something, digging up animal remains to clear those flags, before we find the little girl’s body. We’ll get it done, but there’s no use in taking up your time on the search here when there’s another case needing your focus.”
He glanced over, saw a look he couldn’t interpret. “Feeling left out of the action?”
“No. Nothing like that. Just struggling to get back momentum for what I was working on yesterday.”
“Ann’s bombshell still has aftershocks, and it’s going to take more than a few days to absorb them,” Gabriel agreed. He thought about yesterday, the sense of breakthrough he’d felt when Evie posited the idea that Scott and Susan had been seeing a marriage counselor, the sense that finally some progress was being made on the case.
“Evie, you need to know that for this community, the Florist case is even more significant than the Dayton one. A family disappears, a deputy… besides their relatives, no one in Carin County would be more pleased to see it resolved than the cops who work here. You’d be doing us a big favor to stay focused on it. You’d be doing me that favor.”
She offered a small smile. “I understand. Thanks. Want to come by the post office for a while?”
“I’d like to, but Dad and I need to talk, and Will needs to hear from me what’s going on. While Grace is in the area, it’s going to be a Thane family matter. Anything you need from me?”
“Not at present. Keep in mind lunch tomorrow, the interview with the doctor. I’d like your impressions of him.”
Gabriel nodded. “I’ll make sure the time stays open.”
He pointed out the turnoff for Will’s, then turned back to town through the forest where Evie had originally met up with the deer. He slowed so she could see the spot.
“No warning he was coming, just a glimpse before the collision,” Evie said, turning to see the gash in the tree. “Makes me wonder if there haven’t been a lot of such accidents on this road.”
“Between county deputies and the state highway patrol, we work a lot of car and animal collisions around the lake,” Gabriel said. “You want me to stop to pick up something to eat?”
“Sure. Something I can carry in for Ann and me. That Italian place you mentioned-is spaghetti-to-go an option there?”
“Definitely. Let’s make it for three.”
Gabriel stopped at the restaurant, and Evie stepped out of the truck. “I’ll get the order started. It shouldn’t take long.”
Gabriel texted Will and then called his father, learning he was on the way home. That set his plan for the next few hours. Stop at the office, confirm all was quiet there, go visit with his father, go talk to Will, then out to the farm with a shovel. He’d leave Evie out of that part, at least for now.