Top Secret Target

by Dana Mentink

  “Nah. I left a marker with Sigma Pseudo Corpse Scent earlier.”

  There was no hint of a smile so she figured he wasn’t kidding. “There’s a fake scent for corpses?”

  “Yeah, comes in three kinds: recently dead, decomposed and drowned. Cool, huh?”

  “You don’t get invited to many parties, do you?”

  He laughed. “Easier than getting real cadaver scents, let me tell you. You wouldn’t believe the paperwork. I’m just happy the air force is allowing me to cross-train Titus as a cadaver sniffer.”

  “It was your idea?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why? Don’t have enough to do already?”

  He stepped over a fallen log. “I want to help people find answers. If you don’t, it can destroy their lives.” He paused. “When my brother died, it took three weeks to find him. Those days nearly drove our family to madness.”

  They watched Titus zigzag from shrub to tree trunk.

  Ethan scrubbed a hand over his chin, which showed the beginnings of a five o’clock shadow, and looked over at her. “You want to know, but you’re too polite to ask, aren’t you?”

  She sighed. “Yes. Nosy, I suppose.”

  “Nah. Natural. I’d want to know, too. My brother, Luke, loved backpacking. He was an outdoors fiend. We used to go all the time. The hard kind of traveling with only a backpack, water, a mat for sleeping, couple of protein bars and a fishing line and that’s it.”

  “Sleeping under the stars, huh?”

  “Yeah, we ate that stuff up. Anyway, one time he went by himself ’cuz I was in boot camp. Mama told him not to, of course, but Luke was never one to doubt his own abilities and he didn’t take direction well.” He held up a palm. “You aren’t going to say it runs in the family, are you?”

  She mimed locking her lips and throwing away the key.

  “Luke was perfectly comfortable in every situation unless you put him in a suit and tie. Then he was like a trussed-up chicken.” His grin was boyish. “Anyway, while out on this three-day adventure, he went and got himself hurt—busted femur and ribs, head trauma, the coroner told us later. No phone reception so he couldn’t have called for help. Search and Rescue did their best, brought in a helicopter and the whole nine yards. I got leave to fly home to assist. It was twenty-two days before they found his body at the bottom of a ravine.”

  Her heart squeezed. “How terrible.”

  “We knew after a few days he was dead, Mama and me. He would have hiked out if he was able. But those days, the hours just stretched on and on. Our church family did their best and held us together, but the wait was agonizing, and the wondering was almost unbearable. At one point we had to wrestle with the knowledge that he might never be found. They can’t keep searching forever. Resources have to be reassigned to newer cases. Soldiers’ families have to wrestle with that, too, the fear that their son or daughter will never be found, especially if they’re lost while deployed. I decided that someday, if I could, I would do something about that.”

  “It’s a hard job to be the one who finds the body, isn’t it?”

  “Hard job, but a privilege. Finding the deceased is the end of hope, but it’s also the start of closure and the beginning of healing.” He shrugged. “So that’s the story. I wanted to be part of that.”

  The dappled light from the setting sun teased the caramel streaks from his eyes, rich and vibrant. How could Jillian have betrayed him so brutally? “You are a good man, Ethan.” She surprised herself by saying it aloud.

  He made a funny face. “Aw, Titus is really the star of our operation, but I cook a better fritatta than him.”

  She laughed.

  “Titus shows promise. When he’s ready, he’ll be able to detect decomposition of bone, body parts, blood and residue scents even if the body is no longer in place. I read about a case where a dog found a body buried twelve feet deep.” He looked suddenly uneasy. “Was that more than you wanted to know?”

  “No. Just reinforces that dogs are pretty amazing.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Enthusiasm lit his face. “It’s like when you walk into a room and smell chili cooking. Well, a dog walks in and smells each ingredient in the pot. They can discriminate odors individually. Awesome, huh?”

  His smile was infectious. “Awesome,” she agreed.

  “We both have a long way to go. Titus isn’t fully trained yet and we haven’t even started water recovery work. He’s not super enthusiastic about waves, which I tell him is pure cowardice on his part.” He eyed the dog. “Gonna have to get you some water wings, huh, boy? But like I said, all the other dogs are gonna laugh at you.”

  Titus stiffened, pulling to the left toward a wide pile of granite boulders.

  Ethan groaned. “No, Titus. That’s not where we’re headed, buddy. He’s still distracted by other things.” He put the dog into a sit, earning a whine from the animal. “I know this is new for both of us but you gotta focus.” He scratched Titus’s muzzle. “Got it together? Okay. Let’s do this. Find the package.” He shot Kendra a look. “‘Package’ is nicer than—”

  “A body,” she finished.

  Again Titus beelined to the left, and only Ethan’s strength kept him from yanking the leash free.

  “Titus,” Ethan started to say when a high-pitched scream cut through the air.

  Titus switched gears and bolted for the noise, Ethan and Kendra scrambling to catch up.

  “Help,” the voice called again. A woman’s voice.

  Kendra could not pinpoint the source as they crashed through the trees. The canopy of branches grew thicker as they pushed deeper into the woods, the shadows, distorting, disorienting.

  “Please,” came the cry again.

  Kendra pushed faster, praying she would not trip over a tree root and break her ankle, but she dared not slow.

  Someone was in the woods with them, someone who needed help.

  * * *

  Ethan followed a dirt trail, feet pounding on the earth before he skidded to a halt where the ground gave way to a creek bed some ten feet below them. Titus would have scrambled down immediately if not restrained.

  “Sit,” Ethan commanded and Titus instantly obeyed, though he was probably chewing Ethan out in his doggy brain.

  Kendra, he saw, was peering over the edge, but the water was screened by a thick tangle of shrubbery. “Who’s there?” she bellowed.

  A voice from below called out, “Please. I need help.”

  “Wait,” he said, but Kendra did not hesitate, plunging down the steep slope, picking her way between the rocks. Biting back a complaint, he followed.

  Branches slapped at both of them, the rocks shifting under his boots. As they cleared the bushes, he saw a bicycle lying on its side in the water, rear wheel spinning lazily. Jillian’s neighbor, Mindy Zeppler, sat on a rock, wet and shivering, streaks of mud across her forehead and cheek.

  Kendra splashed across the creek. “Are you hurt? What happened?”

  Mindy pushed a clump of hair from her face, dirty water trailing down her cheek. “Jillian, I’m so grateful you found me. I forgot to bring my phone with me.”

  Kendra repeated her question.

  Mindy took a breath. “I was riding. I love the woods at this time of day, except for the mosquitoes. I crashed and fell. I’m so glad you were here, too.” She looked at Ethan. “Training your dog?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  He did not see any visible bleeding on Mindy, no bruising apparent under the streaks of mud, but those would surface later. “Did you hit your head?”

  “No. I don’t think I broke anything, either.” She examined her wrist. “I hope not anyway.”

  “I’ll pull your bike out for you,” Ethan said, eyeing it. “Doesn’t look too badly damaged.”

  “We’ll help you get home,” Kendra said. “Do you want us to call an a
mbulance?”

  Mindy shook her head. “I’m okay. I’m sort of a klutz, as my ex-husband would tell you, but this time I had a good excuse.” Fear flickered across her face. “I crashed because...” She swallowed. “Because there was a man, here in the woods.”

  Ethan’s gut tightened. “A man?”

  She nodded. “I’ve only lived here for a couple of years and people are always coming and going, so I don’t know everyone, but he was acting weird.”

  “How?” Ethan allowed Titus to poke his nose into the creek.

  Mindy took a breath. “He had binoculars and he wore gloves. Way too hot for gloves, isn’t it? He was watching something. I didn’t know what at the time, but I think I do now.”

  Ethan’s muscles bunched at the base of his spine. “I think I do also.”

  Kendra’s expression told her she’d reached the same conclusion.

  The man in the woods had been watching them.

  NINE

  Kendra swallowed hard. “Can you describe him?”

  Mindy frowned. “It all happened so fast... About five-eight maybe? He wore a hat so I couldn’t tell his hair color. I didn’t get a good look at him because I was busy crashing my bike. But why would someone be watching you, Jillian?”

  Kendra tried to rally her thoughts. She could not get into the Red Rose Killer details, but she had to give Mindy something. “I...I have a violent ex-boyfriend. His name is Andy.”

  Mindy’s brows furrowed. “Boyfriend? I thought...” Her gaze traveled to Ethan. “I thought you two were back together.”

  “Yes, we are. Andy was ancient history.”

  “He must have a long memory, if he’s still coming after you.”

  You don’t know the half of it. “I’ll call the police. They can help keep an eye out.” Kendra wondered how she was going to explain the particulars to Officer Carpenter and still keep the investigation under wraps. There was no choice. They had to tell the cops about the current attack since it involved a civilian. Andy couldn’t be allowed to endanger anyone else but her, if it really was him.

  “Can you stand?” Kendra asked her neighbor, offering her an arm.

  Mindy took it, her fingers icy on Kendra’s skin. “All your wasp stings are healed up,” she said, her eyes wandering Kendra’s face.

  Kendra wished she had a cap to pull down. “Yes. Much better now.”

  “Do you think the guy with the binoculars was the one who called me looking for you? Maybe this Andy of yours?”

  “I’m not sure,” Kendra said. “I’ll look into it.”

  With her support, Mindy seemed to gain strength and they crossed the creek. “Wait,” she said. “When I rode up and saw him, he sort of jumped. I think he might have dropped his binoculars.”

  Kendra’s spirit surged. Though he’d been wearing gloves, maybe an errant fingerprint survived, which would reveal exactly who was after her.

  “On it,” Ethan said. He and Titus began scouring the bushes while Kendra helped Mindy back up onto the trail. She heaved a breath and detached herself from Kendra.

  “I’m okay, I think. Just banged up. I can make it back to the house.”

  “I’ll go with you. The police will want to talk to all of us.”

  Mindy walked a few feet before she suddenly halted. “Here. Look.”

  Before Kendra could stop her, she reached under the shrubs and grabbed the binoculars, holding them triumphantly. “See? I told you he dropped them.” She caught Kendra and Ethan’s reaction. “What’s wrong?”

  “You’ve got your fingerprints on them now,” Ethan told her.

  Her face fell. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t think of that.”

  “It’s okay,” Ethan said. He pulled a plastic bag from his pocket and Mindy dropped the binoculars in, zipping it closed. “The guy probably didn’t have time to search for them with you calling for help.”

  The three walked slowly from the woods, emerging some ten minutes later at the back gate to Mindy’s property. Mindy let them into a small house similar to Jillian’s, but decorated in light colors with framed photos covering the wall behind the sofa and a deerskin rug on the floor. A wedding picture showed a much younger Mindy, beaming and beribboned in a fluffy wedding dress, holding an elaborate bouquet.

  Kendra touched the silver frame. “Pretty picture.”

  Mindy eased into a chair, holding an ice pack to her knee that Ethan had fetched from her freezer. “Yes. The marriage was a disaster, but I figured since the dress cost a mint I might as well keep that photo up. Are you...” She grimaced as she flexed her knee. “I mean, are you two going to have another ceremony?”

  Kendra couldn’t come up with a response.

  “Sure we are,” Ethan said, beaming. “Only this time it’s gonna be a proper wedding on the beach with good food, country music and comfortable footwear. My uniform dress shoes were designed by the enemy to torture me, I’m pretty sure.” He looked at Kendra. “This time we’re gonna get it right, don’tcha think, Jillian?”

  Somehow he had come up with the perfect response, as usual. Kendra heaved a silent sigh of relief. “Sure. Why not?”

  Mindy giggled. “Sounds romantic.”

  Actually, it did to Kendra, too. She’d dreamed of a marriage like that, where things were easy and honest, with someone to encourage her in life and faith. She discovered Ethan was smiling at her. For some reason it brought warmth to her cheeks.

  After a thirty-minute wait, Officer Carpenter arrived to take their statements. Kendra met him at the curb.

  “Ms. Bell?” he said, eyebrow arched.

  “There are a few things I need to tell you before you go in there.”

  “You don’t say?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Is it possible that you have not been forthcoming with the police?”

  “You know who I really am, sir, but I need to tell you who I’m pretending to be and why I need you to keep the pretense going.”

  He folded his arms across his chest. “You may talk, Ms. Bell, and I will decide what I will or will not do with your information.”

  “Yes, sir,” she said. Blowing out a breath, she plunged in.

  * * *

  Ethan stayed mostly silent as Carpenter finished scribbling down the information, took the binoculars and said good-night to Mindy Zeppler. Ethan, Titus and Kendra walked him to the car. Kendra had told him everything, and apparently he was going to keep her cover intact since he had not revealed Kendra’s true identity in front of Mindy.

  “I will check on the whereabouts of Andy Bleakman,” Officer Carpenter said. “As far as Sullivan goes, I’ve only got the barebones information that your task force has been willing to share.” His tone was bitter, as Ethan’s would be if he was being shut out of an investigation.

  Ethan had already been forced to share more than he wanted to in the first place. Sullivan was discharged from the air force, and it was their duty, their responsibility, to put him away. “Got anything from the shooting yet?”

  The officer shrugged. “Gun wasn’t military issue. Rifle, standard Ruger. Plenty of folks around here have them for hunting. Shooter didn’t recover his brass at the scene so we’ve got shell casings. Not the best marksman, in my humble opinion. How about Sullivan? He any good with a rifle?”

  “Enough to pass basic training, but he was no sniper, that’s for sure.”

  “What about accomplices?”

  Ethan stiffened, watching the officer’s body language. “What are you thinking?”

  Carpenter shrugged. “Just wondering if he’s got a lady friend.”

  Ethan stared at the cop, assessing him now. “We’ve got females on the suspect list. Why?” Carpenter was enjoying making them wait, payback for being shut out of the investigation to date.

  He thumbed his mustache. “We picked up a partial footprint i
n the soft dirt near the shell casings. Real small. Looks to be from a woman’s shoe.”

  “You took—”

  “Impressions, of course, and when we’re good and finished examining them I’ll send them along to your people at Canyon.”

  Ethan didn’t argue. It was the best they could do. “Thank you, Officer.”

  “Don’t thank me,” he said. “Footprint isn’t gonna help much. Likely the binoculars aren’t, either, but we’ll scan for prints anyway.”

  They walked back to Jillian’s house in silence. The air was thick with the promise of a storm, Texas style. In the kitchen he supplied fresh water for Titus and let him out in the yard before the rain arrived. Baby crept out from under the sofa, where she’d streaked the moment they returned. He leaned on the counter, details pinging rapid-fire through his mind. Finally he went to the fridge and opened it, staring inside as if there might be an answer somewhere in there. He sighed. “You want a Coke?”

  “Sure.”

  “What kind?”

  She quirked an eyebrow. “Coke is a kind.”

  “Nah, that’s a category. What kind do you want?”

  She laughed. “That’s a Southern thing, isn’t it?”

  He returned the smile and handed her a root beer, taking one for himself, too. He had a need to hear her talk, to soak in the way her face showed her feelings. “Where you from then where they don’t speak properly?”

  “I grew up in Colorado. My brother’s still there with his family, but I haven’t been to see him since I left for prep school, only texted a few times. I have a small office clear across the state, closer to where I went to prep school.”

  “Where you met Jillian.”

  “Yeah. I met Jillian on my first day when I transferred in as a sophomore. I was a charity case. Scholarships paid for everything. I was surprised that Jillian wanted anything to do with me. I certainly wasn’t part of her circle, her being the daughter of a high-ranking marine. She had all the money and clothes she wanted while I was wearing a secondhand uniform and working at the gas station at night. Jillian was what I wanted to be—smart, confident, popular. She never had a Saturday night without a guy by her side.” She broke off. “Oh, I’m sorry if that was insensitive.”