Page 37 of Craving Sin (Touch of Evil 13)

In the truck bed, barely visible, were distinctive tire marks—the kind made by ATV wheels. They formed parallel lines in the fine layer of dirt coating the metal, evidence that something had been loaded and then removed.

If Nanuq had brought an all-terrain vehicle, he could have offloaded it before the clearing. No one would have heard the engine if the four-wheeler had been hidden far enough away. He could then easily have caught up with the group covering the territory on foot. Granted, he would have had to ditch the ATV at some point due to the incline, but the possibility still existed.

“Agent Houser?” Bit waited for Russell to confirm receipt of his transmission. “We still haven’t located Kavik and Nanuq, but I’ve come across evidence that suggests they might have had access to an ATV.”

“I’ll alert the agents surrounding the area.”

Bit didn’t like putting off collecting his laptop from the SUV to research the ice cave for Brook, but he needed to speak with one of the state troopers or federal agents searching for the two men. The ATV theory could prove to be true, which would mean that Nanuq would have dropped off the four-wheeler somewhere along the dirt road where there was an easier access point.

Bit was able to locate one of the federal agents.

They spent a few minutes discussing the possibility that the men might already be out of the area and heading up the mountain. Bit suggested allowing the family members to continue searching to avoid upsetting them, while also involving other state troopers and federal agents. They couldn’t search Kavik or Nanuq’s vehicle without a warrant, which meant they needed proof that one or both men had been working with Norona or Walsh.

Until someone or something gave them cause to search the vehicles, they were at a standstill. Bit informed the agent that Nathaniel should be arriving soon. He would be able to give more insight into any possible warrants being granted with what little evidence they currently had on hand. Technically, two men going for a walk while waiting around for word from the recovery mission wasn’t a crime.

As Bit rounded the back of his rental vehicle, something caught his attention—a splash of darker color against the tall grass and weeds at the edge of the clearing. He squinted, trying to make out if it was a piece of trash.

It was a boot.

A heavy work boot, partially obscured by the weeds, pointed at an odd angle.

Instead of extending his hand to open the SUV’s hatch, he slowly lowered his arm. He lifted his gaze to scan the wooded area behind the underbrush. When nothing else unusual made itself known, he lifted the radio and switched the dial to a local channel. Once he had alerted the troopers and federal agents to his location and the reason for his request, he slowly approached the body.

Each stride revealed more and more of the male subject.

A leg.

A torso.

An arm flung outward.

Finally, Bit found himself standing over Kavik Aningan, the man’s eyes staring unsightly up at the sky. A dark stain had spread across his chest, the fabric of his jacket torn and soaked through.

Not a gunshot—the wound was too ragged, too broad.

A knife, or something similar, had been driven with enough force to penetrate the heavy outdoor clothing.

Bit could only guess as to the reason for Kavik’s death. Any speculation didn’t matter at this point. What mattered now was that Nanuq was unraveling, and there was no predicting his next move.

Unless…

Bit spun around to find two federal agents walking toward him. With a few instructions to wait for Nathaniel to arrive at the scene, as well as instructing the forensic techs in the vicinity that they had an active crime scene, Bit radioed the others to locate Aputi Kalluk.

“Did you find them?” Aputi asked as he materialized from the opposite side of the clearing. He was actively searching the area behind Bit. “An agent said that you needed me. Are they okay? What were they doing that they couldn’t?—”

“I’m sorry, Aputi. Kavik is dead.” There was a lot of pressure on Bit to manage this situation. He normally would have taken time to be empathetic, having just experienced such an announcement himself regarding a friend. Unfortunately, there was no time to allow the man a moment to absorb the news. “This is now a crime scene, and federal agents are rounding up your family members. You’ve already been through something like this before. We’ll need statements, timelines…you know how this is going to go. Please, help me.”

“I—I don’t know what else I can tell you,” Aputi said, clearly in shock. He had even reached out to a vehicle to help balance himself as he tried to come to terms with the situation. “Nanuq and Kavik were with us this morning, drinking coffee and hot chocolate. We had all taken the day off work to?—”

“I’m not talking about now.” Bit could hear the engine of a vehicle approaching, but he didn’t bother to glance in that direction. He stayed focused on Aputi. “Nanuq and Kavik gave each other alibis. The owners of the wildlife conservation confirmed that part of a fence had come down. I pulled those photographs, and the work was done. Only I think that Kavik did the work himself, and Nanuq made his way into town.”

“Nanuq would never…” A spark of anger had Aputi stepping forward. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. I was at the bar that night. The road was closed off. You can ask anyone. Even if Kavik and Nanuq had wanted to come into town, they couldn’t until the road closure was lifted.”

“Not if Nanuq used his ATV to get around the debris of the accident.” Bit held up the radio to make his point. “Nanuq might very well be headed up that mountain to try and stop my boss from discovering Lusa’s remains. I don’t know how or why, but Nanuq is somehow involved in your sister’s death.”

“First, it wasn’t that type of accident that closed the road. It was a hit-and-run. Old man Croc was walking his usual route to the bar that night and got hit by a car,” Aputi amended, his anger still simmering at the surface. “And Nanuq is more like a brother than a cousin. He would never?—”

“Kavik is dead,” Bit stated bluntly, refusing to revert to his usual laid-back demeanor. Kate deserved justice, too. “Nanuq was the last one with him. There is mud in the bed of Nanuq’s truck that suggests he transported an ATV recently. I think Nanuq got Kavik to cover for him that night based on some senseless lie, and Kavik finally came to his senses. I’ve seen this before, Aputi. Your cousin is spiraling out of control, and more people are getting hurt. Think back. Why would Nanuq have killed your sister?”

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