Ogrodnik Interior 2.0c Read Free

glutes as he powered up the steep stairs and refused to slow down until he fell into a regular cardio rhythm. By the time he reached the top of the trail, he was breathing heavily and wished there were more stairs to scale. The three times a week he went to the Karate dojo kept him flexible and in reasonable shape, but he needed more to really push himself. For years he had been an avid hiker. He, Sarah, and Jake would often travel to destinations that offered demanding hiking trails. Some trips were as near as the Laurentian mountains directly to the north of Montreal and some as far away as Europe or South America. He’d forgotten how much he relished those hiking trips and thought about how much his life had changed over the past few years. He also came to the realization that just because some things he used to cherish were no longer in his life, it didn’t mean that he shouldn’t pursue his own desires.
    Elliot turned to take in the view, just as he knew his father would have done, and waited for his heart rate to slow down before moving on. This was the first time he had come up to look at the scene of the crime and, although he didn’t know exactly where the murder had occurred, he’d been on this trail a number of times and, based on the police report, he had a good idea of where it had happened. He came over the last of the pitches and then slowed down to scrutinize the trail for signs of the crime. When he turned the next corner, he saw the remnants of yellow crime scene tape fluttering from a tree limb like a beacon from the dead. There was no chalk line on the path as you might see on a city sidewalk, just a discoloration in the general shape of Australia that he thought might be a blood stain but was probably just a dark patch of earth.
    He soaked in the scene for a few moments as he stood by the trail and allowed his thoughts to stray as he recalled some memories of his father. Remembering the good times only strengthened his resolve. Justice would be served.
    The walk up the trail and the visit to the murder site was something Elliot wanted, and needed, to do. He considered it the final stage of grieving and knew it would put closure on the death of his father and allow him to move on personally. This was also the place where his investigation would begin.
    The primary goal of the walk up the trail was not to visit the murder scene and hunt for clues. The investigators would have done a complete examination of the surrounding area and, even if they missed something, a month of rain, people, and small animals would render any trace evidence left behind unusable. His primary goal was to look at the lay of the land and determine the logistics of how the killer had accomplished his task. The police did not view the case as a planned murder and therefore would not have investigated with the same rigor or methodology that he would be using.
    After climbing the trail and taking note of the sightlines, Elliot discounted the possibility that the killer had followed his father. It wasn’t plausible that the killer would follow him all the way up the mountain only to kill him at the top. There were plenty of opportunities to do the deed along the way up, so why complete the strenuous climb? It was far more likely that the killer knew his father’s routine and was waiting for him at the top. He continued along the trail in search of the parking area at the top of the mountain. He knew of a public parking spot at the place called the Lookout, or as it is known in Montreal, the Belvedere, and made his way over to it. The Lookout was on the main road that traversed the mountain and was formed by a pull out where the road widened to accommodate about twenty parking spots. At the front of the parking spots was a sidewalk area bounded by a sturdy guardrail on the down slope side. It was a popular area for tourists and sightseers and offered a spectacular view of downtown Montreal and the St Lawrence River valley