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“How long have you been with Tribal PD?”Kari asked, surprised that she didn’t actually know.

“Fourteen years.Started as patrol when I was twenty-two.”

That would make him thirty-six now—two years older than her.Though something in his manner had always made him seem older.

“Made detective six years ago,” he continued.“Needed something to focus on after my sister died.”

Kari understood that impulse all too well.Work had always been her refuge, the place where chaos could be ordered, where problems had solutions if you just applied the right methodology.

“Why did they partner us?”she asked suddenly.It was a question that had been nagging at her since her transfer.With her outsider status and federal connections, she’d expected to be sidelined, not paired with one of the department’s most experienced detectives.

Tsosie considered the question as he navigated a sharp turn.“Captain Yazzie believes in balance.I know the land, the people.You know homicide.”He paused.“And maybe he thought you’d need someone who understands what it means to come back.”

The simple assessment caught Kari off guard.She’d assumed their pairing was political—keeping an eye on the half-Navajo detective with the FBI father and the big-city methods.

“For what it’s worth,” Tsosie added, “your reputation preceded you.Eighty-nine percent clearance rate in Phoenix.That speaks for itself.”

Kari hadn’t realized he’d looked into her background.“You did your homework.”

“Wouldn’t you?”He almost smiled.Almost.

The road narrowed as they approached the east access point.A wooden sign marked the boundary of the national monument, its paint faded by years of sun and wind.Tsosie slowed the SUV to a crawl, scanning the area for Officer Nez.

“There.”Kari pointed to a tribal police cruiser parked beneath the sparse shade of a juniper tree.A uniformed officer stood beside it, waving them over.

Tsosie pulled up alongside the cruiser and cut the engine.Officer Nez approached—a stocky man in his mid-forties with the weathered face of someone who spent most of his days outdoors.

“Detectives,” he greeted them, his expression grave.“Thanks for coming so quickly.”

“What have we got?”Kari asked, stepping out of the SUV into the wall of heat.

Nez glanced between them.“Hikers found it about two hours ago.A German couple, taking the Spider Rock trail.Woman got sick from the heat, they went off-trail looking for shade.Found more than they bargained for.”

“Condition?”Tsosie asked, reaching into the back seat for his field kit.

Nez’s face tightened.“Bad.Real bad.Like nothing I’ve seen before, and I’ve been working these canyons for twenty years.”He hesitated.“It’s… not natural.”

Kari exchanged a quick glance with Tsosie.“Not natural” could mean many things—from animal predation to ritualistic elements.She supposed she’d know soon enough.

“ID?”she asked.

“Nothing definitive yet.Male, best we can tell.Caucasian.Middle-aged.”Nez shifted uncomfortably.“Body temperature and decomposition stage indicate he’s been dead no more than forty-eight hours.The desert heat accelerates the process, so hard to tell for sure yet.”He sighed heavily.“Look, I’ve secured the scene, but I haven’t gone closer than necessary.Some things…” He trailed off.

“We understand,” Tsosie said.“Where are the hikers now?”

“Ranger station.Park Service is taking their statement.They’re pretty shaken up.”

Kari retrieved her own kit from the SUV—a compact case containing gloves, evidence bags, and the basic tools of scene investigation.“How far to the site?”

“Half-mile hike from here.Not too rough, but it’s heating up fast,” Nez warned.“I’ll take you there, then I need to get back to the hikers.Rangers aren’t used to handling witnesses in a potential homicide.”

As they prepared to follow Nez, Tsosie paused, looking at Kari.“You good with this?Given where we are?”

The question surprised her—a small acknowledgment that he understood the potential personal connection to her mother’s death.It was the kind of consideration she wouldn’t have expected from their limited interactions so far.

“I’m good,” she assured him, meaning it.Whatever waited for them, she wouldn’t let it rattle her.“Let’s see what we’ve got.”

Nez led them along a narrow trail that wound through scrub brush and around weathered rock formations.The morning heat intensified with each step, the sun climbing higher in the cloudless sky.Kari felt sweat beginning to soak through her shirt at the small of her back.

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