Page 7 of Twin Jeopardy

“What about the other camper who was in the area? A single man.”

“I can only tell you what’s in the file, since I wasn’t part of the force then. The notes you’ll find in there indicate that while Valerie mentioned seeing a man camping a short distance away from the Shepherd family, no one else in the family actually saw him, and no one else we talked to saw him either.”

“Do you think she was making him up? Was she like that?”

“I don’t know. I’m mentioning it as one possibility.”

She opened the file folder and began flipping through the notes and reports inside, scanning each page. She stopped at one report. “This says a deputy spoke to a couple of hikers who saw a man with a backpack in the area. He was alone, and they never saw him again.”

“He might be the man Valerie saw, or he might be someone else,” Travis said. “The department put out an appeal asking anyone who had been in the area that day to come forward, but no one ever did.”

She closed the file and looked at him again. “Were there ever any suspects?”

“None,” Travis said.

“What about the family? Could one of them have done something to Valerie and hidden it from the others? I know it’s horrible to think about, but it does happen.”

“There are copies of interviews with each family member, as well as background information from neighbors and teachers who knew them. Everyone agreed that Valerie was a loved, well-cared-for child. The parents and her brother were devastated by her loss.”

“Whenever I write stories like this, I always hope someone will come forward with new information,” she said. “We usually run a box at the end of the article that asks anyone who might have information to contact the sheriff’s department.”

“I’d be happy to hear from anyone who could shed more light on what happened that day, but I think it’s doubtful that will happen.”

“Probably not. Of course, the main point of the article is to highlight the efforts of search and rescue that day. Can I get a quote from you about that?”

“My understanding is that prior to Valerie’s disappearance, the group was a loose-knit band of volunteers without the formal structure they have today. They worked with local law enforcement, but they weren’t under the direction of the sheriff’s department, as they are today. Today Eagle Mountain Search and Rescue is a professional, highly trained organization I would consider one of the best in the mountain west.”

She scribbled the quote in her notebook. “That’s great,” she said. “Exactly what I’m looking for.”

He flashed one of his rare smiles. “I’m glad I could help.”

She left the sheriff’s department and was walking back to the newspaper office when a voice hailed her. She turned and was surprised to see her younger brother, Mitch, striding toward her. Mitch had inherited their father’s darker, straighter hair, which he wore long and pulled back in a ponytail. Dressed in fashionably cut jeans and a loose linen shirt, he looked ready to make a deal on Wall Street or—a more likely scenario—sell a luxurious vacation home to that Wall Street denizen.

“How’s the real estate business?” she asked as Mitch drew even with her.

“I just came from a showing I hope will result in a sale of a ranch over near the county line,” he said. “Now I have time to kill and thought I’d see if you wanted to grab lunch.”

“I do if you’re buying,” she said. She nudged him with her elbow. “Seeing as you’re about to earn a big commission and everything.”

“It’s not a done deal yet,” he said. “But I can buy my sister lunch.” He hugged her briefly. “How are you doing?”

“I’m doing okay.”

“Not better than okay? Are you still upset about Darrell?”

“No, I am not upset about Darrell.” Not anymore. Breaking things off with him had been the right decision, she knew. He wasn’t interested in ever settling down and she was ready to look for something long term. “Ending things between us was sad,” she said. “But I know it was the right thing to do.”

“You’ll find someone else,” he said. “Maybe a handsome, wealthy, single, straight man looking to make his home in Eagle Mountain will walk into my office this afternoon and I’ll introduce him to you.”

“Please do,” she said, and laughed.

“Where should we have lunch?” he asked.

“Let me drop this off at my office, then you can pick,” she said, holding up the file folder.

He gestured at the file. “Something you’re working on?”

“I’m writing about the search fifteen years ago for a little girl who went missing.”

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