Page 7 of Canyon Killer
She had little memory of the journey down, her mind still back in that cave, picturing what looked like two Halloween decorations, cuddling like lovers. How could that be real?
When they were back at the trailer, Ian called the sheriff’s department to report that he had found what looked like human remains in a cave in Humboldt Canyon. His voice was calm, though she noticed his white-knuckled grip on the phone.
He ended the call and looked at her. “They’ll be right here. We’re supposed to stay put and wait.”
“I still think they’re not real,” she said. “Someone must have put them up there.”
“You mean to scare me off?”
She shrugged. “My brothers said people are upset about you closing the canyon to the public.”
“I don’t think they were fake,” he said.
“How can you be sure?”
He shook his head but didn’t answer. They fell silent, seated on opposite sides of the desk in his office. Waiting.
Not much time had passed before the crunch of tires on gravel propelled them out of their chairs and outside.
A Rayford County Sheriff’s Department black-and-white SUV rolled to a stop in front of them. Bethany tensed. Only one thing could make all of this more awful.
The driver’s-side door of the vehicle opened, and Sergeant Gage Walker stepped out. The sheriff’s brother was familiar to her from search and rescue calls, and she relaxed a little as he came toward them.
“Bethany, what are you doing here?”
A second deputy had emerged from the passenger side of the vehicle. She let out a groan. Her older brother, Aaron, followed behind Gage, a scowl making him look fierce. Like Bethany, Aaron had inherited their dad’s dark curls, which he kept clipped short.
After four years with the Waterbury, Vermont, police department, he had agreed to help his parents and brothers move to Eagle Mountain and ended up accepting a position with the Rayford County Sheriff’s Department after one of their long-time deputies had left to run a family business.
She ignored his question and turned away.
Gage nodded to Bethany, then addressed Ian. “You called in about human remains.”
“We climbed up to those caves to look around.” He pointed out the caves, high on the opposite cliff wall. “We found two skeletons. They look like they’ve been there a long while. Just bones and rotting clothing.”
Gage squinted up at the caves. “How did you get up there?”
“There’s a trail,” Ian said.
“Then let’s go see.”
Ian led the way, Gage and Aaron close behind. Bethany trailed after them.
Aaron stopped and turned to her. “You need to stay down here.”
“No.” She kept walking, prepared to push past him if necessary.
“Let her come with us,” Gage said. “We’ll need to get her statement, and I might have questions.”
She resisted the urge to stick out her tongue at Aaron. Childish, maybe, but if he was going to be the big brother bossing her around, it was so tempting to slip into the role of bratty little sister.
No one said anything on the climb up. The various implements attached to Gage’s and Aaron’s uniforms rattled together as they moved. By the time they reached the top, both men were sweating. Bethany remembered that they would be wearing ballistics vests. Aaron had let her try his on one time—it had been heavy and hot. She felt a stab of sympathy for her brother, though she didn’t say anything.
“In here.” Ian led the way along the ledge to the cave. He stopped at the opening and pointed.
Gage moved in first, followed by Aaron. The beam of a flashlight bounced off the rock walls. Ian and Bethany moved in a little closer.
“The bones look old,” Gage said. “The clothing is rotted away. That takes years in this climate.” Still holding the flashlight beam on the bones, he looked back at Ian. “This isn’t as popular as Caspar Canyon, but climbers have been coming out here for years. How did no one find this before now?”
