Page 91 of Swept for Forever
I continued, “I figured the safest move was to keep going, so I veered onto the Raven Bluff trail. But you know how that turned out. I slipped down the slope when I thought I was headed for the river.”
I drew a breath, then added, “Out of nowhere, Lulu showed up while I was stuck down there. And just as quickly, she was gone. Then you found me.”
Dom pulled out a nod, as if processing every word. Then his eyes sharpened. “Is that the full truth?”
“Yes. Lulu was his dog. He tore off her collar before she ran away from him.”
“Lulu wasn’t his.” Dom’s voice was quieter now, but no less intense. “She belonged to a girl named Deborah Sinclair.”
“No…what happened to her?”
“She disappeared just a few days before I found you, so your hike must’ve started right after.”
The air in my lungs turned sharp and cold. I slapped a hand over my mouth, and my lips quivered like I had been crying all day.
“Deborah Sinclair? I swear I didn’t know her,” I whispered, the words barely making it out. “That man…I thought he was burying drugs, or money, or weapons. There was no way it was a body. Or—or?—”
The floor inside me gave way. My mind spun, careening toward the worst-case scenario.
“Oh, God,” I choked out. “No, it couldn’t have been her body. The duffel bag was too small. Even if…”
Dom’s expression didn’t change. “He chopped her body?”
I nodded, my hands shaking. A cold sweat broke over my skin. “Don’t tell me the girl is a child.”
“No,” he said evenly. “She’s about your age. Similar build.”
I forced a breath. “Okay. Okay. Yeah, there was no way that bag contained her body.”
Dom stared at me, and for the first time since I’d seen him standing in my backyard, something in his face softened.
“Dom, I swear, I’m telling you the truth.”
He didn’t answer right away. Then, finally, he asked, “So why did you run?”
Tears stung my eyes, but I forced them back. “Because my face was all over Buffaloberry Hill. That was supposed to be me, right?”
“I think so.”
“So what am I accused of?” I snapped.
“Robbery at gunpoint. Blodgett Pass Trail.”
“Jesus,” I muttered. “It has to be him. He took Deborah, then cooked up some fake robbery to throw the authorities off, and frame me at the same time?”
“And to flush you out,” Dom added. “Small towns don’t miss much. Lucky for you, the sketch wasn’t exactly a masterpiece. Not even Ms. O’Donnell made the connection.”
I shook my head. “Sketch quality doesn’t matter when the sheriff’s already decided I’m a violent criminal.”
“You should’ve trusted me, Autumn.”
I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes. “I know,” I admitted. “But I panicked. I didn’t want to drag you into it, and I didn’t know where else to go.”
Then a new thought hit me. “Did anyone else know about Lulu?” I asked.
“Claire. She figured it out.”
My head dropped. “Of course. Lulu’s microchipped, isn’t she?”
