BIG SKY SECRETS 03: End Game Read Free

thirties.”
    “You think it’s the same guy?”
     
    “I’m at the scene right now.” He rapidly gave her directions. “And there’s something here that you’ll want to see.”

TWO
    M egan shivered, wishing she’d worn a heavier jacket. The lower elevations would be much warmer by now, but up here, heavy mounds of snow still covered the north-facing slopes and the shaded ground beneath dense stands of pine.
    Though it probably wasn’t the chilly weather that was making her shake. Even after years in law enforcement, approaching a murder scene triggered flashbacks of the night her childhood friend Laura had been murdered.
    She’d never told anyone in the department. She hid the wrenching memories so well behind her mask of cool professionalism on the job, that many of the locals thought it eerie, how she felt so little emotion in the face of death.
    But none of those people had ever followed her home. None could see into her heart.
    And now, seeing Hal’s haggard expression as he stood waiting for her on the trail ahead, that empty and aching place in her chest made it almost hard to breathe.
    She stepped forward. The body, now covered by a plastic sheet, lay a few yards off the trail partially obscured by thick brush, the snowy surroundings as cool as a slab in a morgue.
    “When the call came in, I took it myself.” Hal lifted his clipboard and scanned his notes. “The hikers were two high school kids who saw the body from the trail. They were nearly hysterical when they called 911. They say they didn’t approach the victim, so hopefully the scene wasn’t contaminated.”
    “Was the body covered?”
    “Only clothing, nothing else. And no attempt at burial, far as I can tell. That wouldn’t have worked anyway—the surface is muddy, but the ground beneath is still frozen.”
    She nodded. “And the ground is awfully rocky—even in the summer, it would be tough. Maybe he figured there wouldn’t be any people up here this early in the season. It wouldn’t take long for scavengers to consume most of the evidence. Bears, coyotes, wolves—and in a few weeks, vegetation would hide the bones.”
    “True. And that makes me think the killer is a local, who knows the area well.”
    She crouched, pulled on a pair of vinyl gloves and slowly pulled back the edge of the tarp, dreading her inevitable, initial flash of shock and horror; hiding her emotions with perfect stillness. Anything less than pure professionalism was a sign of weakness she refused to show.
    She murmured a silent prayer for the deceased as she surveyed the battered face, the deep, gaping laceration across the throat. The body was clothed only in a torn, designer label shirt that covered it from neck to midthigh, the gray flesh was streaked with mud and strewn with pine needles. Even so, she could see that the victim had once been a very attractive woman.
    “Have you called the DCI?”
    “They ought to be here any time now.”
    Megan studied the body, thankful for a chance to check out the scene before the state crime investigation team showed up. “I’d guess she’s been dead at least forty-eight hours, though these cold nights make it harder to tell. Given the position of the lividity markings, I’d say the body was moved at least eight hours after the time of death.”
    “Agreed.” Hal gestured toward a faint path winding through the trees. “There’s a rough fire road off in that direction, a good half mile away. Someone kicked debris over the trail, but you can still see some marks in the ground where the body was dragged over here.”
    “Whoever did it had to be strong. I’m guessing a fairly big and burly guy.” She surveyed the rugged terrain. “Any footprints?”
    “Nothing clear, but I didn’t want to disturb anything. This isn’t our usual act-of-passion or barroom brawl kind of death. Those aren’t hard to sort out. But this one…” His voice trailed off and he shook his head. “The DCI investigators will go over