Striking Range

by Margaret Mizushima

  “Who knows? But for now, the sheriff wants us to stay in our lane with Tonya’s case. Transport should arrive any minute. We need to follow it back to Timber Creek to make sure the car stays within our custody.”

  Mattie felt pulled in two directions more than ever. Dog handling and working with the K-9 teams was in her blood, but loyalty compelled her to find justice for Tonya.

  “Look at the condition of this car.” Mattie pointed to the road grime and dented rear end. “This car was on the road last night, and the dents look consistent with hitting something softer than another car.”

  “I noticed that too.” Stella frowned. “This might be the vehicle that hit Johnson last night. If there’s any DNA on the exterior of this car, we need someone to find it.”

  Mattie studied the upper part of the trunk, imagining the loss of body fluid from the nose or mouth of any victim who had been struck. She hoped that was the case and that the fluid had been preserved and could be swabbed as evidence.

  A truck and covered trailer turned into the parking lot and headed their way. Mattie waved the driver over, and she and Stella observed as he used a winch to load the car. Within minutes, they were on the road, following the transport vehicle toward Timber Creek.

  Stella’s phone rang, and she spoke with a person who Mattie soon realized must be the medical examiner. Stella flipped open her notebook and began taking notes. After ending the call, she turned to Mattie.

  “The ME just completed Tonya’s autopsy. He’s listing her cause of death as cardiac arrest secondary to respiratory arrest and the manner of death as homicide. He found subtle bruising on her forearms and above her ankles as well as a sticky residue that suggests binding with something wide, like duct tape.” Stella’s distress was evident in her tight voice and the look on her face. “He confirmed a vaginal birth, and there was enough trauma from that to make it hard to tell if there was a sexual assault. Since there was no semen present anywhere, he thinks it unlikely.”

  “So maybe our hunters aren’t implicated after all.”

  Stella shrugged. “Condoms take care of the lack of semen.”

  “You’re right.”

  “The ME says four fentanyl patches could cause respiratory failure. He’ll let me know when the toxicology results come back with the blood levels. She had edema and congestion in her lungs and airways, enough to inhibit her oxygen intake and stop her heart. He estimates time of death between two and five o’clock PM.”

  “That means the baby was born between ten o’clock in the morning, when Tonya left the midwife’s office, and the time-of-death window. Pretty fast labor for a first-time birth.”

  “The ME ordered a test for Pitocin,” Stella said, referring to the drug used to stimulate labor.

  Mattie glanced at Stella. Her friend’s face had paled, and she sat hunched with her arms wrapped across her stomach. Though the ME report had been disturbing, Stella’s reaction seemed atypical of her usual stoic self. “Are you okay?”

  Stella looked out the passenger side window and shook her head. “I’m feeling a little queasy, and my head aches again.”

  “Do you want some more Tylenol?”

  “I brought my own,” she said, reaching for her bag. “Probably should take some.”

  “There’s a bottle of water in the console.”

  Stella lifted her travel mug. “I’ve got some coffee left over.”

  “Water’s better if you’re queasy.”

  Stella shot her an impatient look but opened the console for the water. “All right, Mom.”

  Mattie shook her head. “That’s hard news from the ME. Want to talk about it?”

  “I guess so.” The pill bottle rattled as Stella shook out tablets and popped them into her mouth, chasing them with a swig from the water bottle. “Bruising indicates Tonya was restrained before death, possibly during her labor and delivery. Posing her body the way it was indicates she was dumped by someone who knew her, maybe someone who cared about her.”

  Mattie nodded. “I’m liking Skylar Kincaid more and more for this.”

  “Right. But one more thing—the ME found a short red hair on Tonya’s sweater. He doesn’t think it’s one of hers, because it’s wiry, similar to a beard hair.”

  “Reagan Dawson.” Mattie glanced at Stella, whose nod told her she’d thought of the same person. The man who’d found Tonya’s body—and they had an appointment to interview him and his buddies back at the station within the hour. “Well, we’ll soon be able to question him about how close he got.”

  They rode in silence for a few miles, Mattie checking on Stella with sidelong glances. The color in her face returned gradually.

  After a bit, Stella spoke. “I can’t imagine the pain and terror Tonya felt when she delivered her baby. Restraining her like that must have been pure torture. This is a hell of a case.”

  A glance told Mattie that her friend felt anguished by the mere thought. “That’s a painful thought.”

  “Even a miscarriage is painful. I can’t imagine what it would be like to deliver a full-term infant under those conditions.”

  Mattie could tell that Stella’s torment had something to do with her own loss as well as the case. She raised her hand with the intention of touching her friend’s shoulder but lowered it back to the wheel. She wasn’t sure what to say that would provide comfort.

  After a few minutes, she decided to address it head on. Knowing Stella, if she didn’t want to talk about it, she would say so. “Going through a miscarriage is a terrible thing to have to do on your own. Did you have anyone to support you during that time?”

  Stella shook her head as she looked out the passenger window. “Not really. I didn’t want the jerk to know about it, and we worked out of the same department. You know how cops are—we’re at work all the time, so our only friends are the people we work with. I had yet to meet someone like you, someone I could trust to keep my problems confidential.”

  This time Mattie did touch her on the shoulder. “I’m sorry you had to go through that alone. I know a good counselor I could recommend if you need someone to talk to.”

  Stella glanced at her, and Mattie gave her a soft smile. They both knew she was referring to the counselor Mattie worked with, the therapist who specialized in trauma counseling that Stella had recommended several months ago.

  Stella returned the smile before sobering. “I’m all right. It’s just this case that’s getting to me, and I can’t seem to shake this headache. I’m just not up to par.”

  Which was all the more reason that Mattie needed to stick to this case and work with Stella. She wanted to assist her in any way she could. “You know what? Tonya delivered that baby before she was overdosed enough to cause her death, so I think it’s alive and someone has it.”

  “That makes sense, and it poses the question: where is that baby now?”

  “If we can find it, we’ll find our killer.”

  Stella nodded but didn’t comment as she settled back in her seat to gaze out the window and brood. This behavior seemed more typical, and Mattie retreated into her own thoughts.

  She realized that tracking down the baby was more easily said than done. She would have to see if the sheriff would put out a press release calling for tips regarding an infant showing up unexpectedly in a family or a community. It wouldn’t hurt, and it might actually give them information that would help solve Tonya’s case, now labeled for certain as a homicide.

  TWENTY-ONE

  Cole lingered nearby to see what would be done next. A hit from an explosives detection dog added another level of caution to the equation.

  “Are we sure this is a bomb?” Hauck asked.

  Rob, the black Lab’s handler, spoke up. “Thunder also detects gunpowder. It could be something as harmless as ammo buried here, or it could be a more dangerous type of explosive.”

  “Okay … how deep?”

  “Hard to say, but I’d guess anywhere from one to twelve inches, depending on the type and amou
nt of what’s there.”

  “And how often is your dog wrong?”

  This question made Rob frown. “He’s still in training, but he’s been accurate so far.”

  Madsen stepped in. “These dogs are taken through a protocol that goes from easy to difficult. Thunder has passed every training item with flying colors and is doing field work now to finish up. We should take this alert seriously.”

  There was a moment of silence before Madsen spoke again. “What’s John Cobb’s MO? Are bombs his thing?”

  The words came out of Cole’s mouth automatically. “Guns, drugs, and fire.”

  Hauck nodded his agreement. “Decades ago, this guy smuggled guns and drugs out of Mexico. In recent years, I’d guess, he was still into drug running. But bombs … that’s not been a part of his game that I know of.”

  Madsen looked as though he was turning the information over in his mind. “We still can’t take a chance on digging this up ourselves. We have to wait for a bomb squad to recover whatever’s down there.”

  Hauck rubbed the back of his neck. “Are you sure it’s not narcotics?”

  “Completely.” Madsen straightened, staring at Hauck. “Thunder hasn’t been trained to hit on narcotics, and he wouldn’t. Protecting human life in a case like this is top priority. We’ll wait for the CBI team to get here.”

  Cole wondered how long that would take. If they had to wait until the CBI arrived to take over, the rest of the day might be wasted.

  “McCoy is sending Deputy Brody to take over this site so we can move on up the trail.” Madsen turned to the dog handlers. “You guys finish up the search while I mark off these sites.”

  Cole helped Madsen string flagging tape near each site. Within an hour, both Brody and McCoy arrived, Brody on foot and McCoy on the back of one of Frank Sullivan’s horses.

  McCoy nodded at Cole before speaking to Madsen. “Deputy Brody will take over here. We expect the CBI forensic team and an explosives team to arrive soon. I’ll ride up the trail with you to the next spot on the map.”

  Madsen and his dog handlers led the way to set the pace while Garrett, Hauck, and Cole followed on horseback. Sheriff McCoy brought up the rear. As they wound their way upward, Cole noticed that Garrett was quieter than usual.

  Cole’s thoughts lingered on Garrett and Leslie’s daughter, Grace, and how he and his kids still missed her. That led to thinking about Tonya and how her bright light had been snuffed from this world. Two unrelated and senseless deaths.

  Hauck interrupted his thoughts when he turned in his saddle. “So I heard that both you and Garrett were here the night John Cobb abducted Mattie and took her up to the cave at the top of the trail.”

  “We were. We rode together in a search party and found her sometime after Cobb set the forest on fire.” Memories of the roaring blaze that had threatened to overtake them flamed briefly in his mind. Nightmares still haunted him about that towering fire.

  “So how did you find her in this huge forest?” Hauck asked.

  “Her dog Robo found her. We followed him.”

  A speculative look crossed Hauck’s face as if he were imagining it. “That’s pretty amazing,” he said, before turning forward in his saddle.

  They climbed higher into the mountains. The sun was a brilliant white ball making its way up in the sky, and its heat warmed their backs and began melting the snow. It was turning out to be one of those gorgeous fall days that often followed a Colorado snowstorm.

  Cole soon recognized a massive boulder beside the trail and knew they weren’t far from the trail’s fork halfway up. Within minutes, the K-9 crew had reached the stream at the fork and Madsen was handing out instructions even as Cole and the others approached.

  “We might as well stay close to the trail, because this terrain is too rugged to go too far beyond. Dirk, since you’ve already found one corpse today, you take this section off to the north side that corresponds directly to the X on the map. The rest of us will take sections above and below, with one team covering a narrow strip to the south. We’ll rotate through just like we did before.”

  While the handlers led their dogs off to search the area, Cole thought that although Detective Hauck might not have developed an appreciation for K-9 teams before, he’d be completely schooled in their value by the end of the day. How else could you search for drugs, explosives, and bodies in a rugged, mountainous area like this?

  After about an hour of searching, the explosives team had another hit. Madsen left the rotation to collaborate with Hauck and McCoy. He squinted against the sun as he shared his thoughts about what to do next. “We should finish our work here and move on to the site up above. We need to get back to Denver tonight, so we better keep moving.”

  “I have to go back to Denver tonight too,” Hauck said.

  “We’ll mark the site of the hit and assign someone to stand guard until we can excavate it,” McCoy said, glancing at Garrett and Cole.

  Cole knew he should volunteer. “I’ll stay. Garrett knows the exact spot to show you up above.”

  But Garrett gave Cole a look that held an appeal. “I’ll stay here, Cole. Just get them to the cave, and Detective Hauck can direct you to the spot Robo was interested in.”

  He must think we’ll find another grave, Cole thought as he agreed. He returned to his horse, preparing to lead the others to a place he’d avoided since the night Mattie was taken. A place he’d once thought lovely that now represented nothing but bitterness.

  * * *

  When Mattie and Stella entered the station lobby, Robo trotted toward the dispatcher’s desk, obviously expecting his friend to be waiting for him, but he stopped in his tracks when he spotted a stranger sitting there instead. He tucked in by Mattie’s left heel and kept up with her as she approached the desk.

  Apparently Rainbow had arranged for one of the local EMTs, Nadine Cooper, to cover for her. Nadine, a woman with short graying hair and kind brown eyes, removed her headset and smiled as Mattie greeted her. She’d served on the county ambulance team for years and occasionally subbed in as dispatcher when necessary.

  “Hey, Mattie,” she said, before nodding at Stella and then speaking to her. “Detective, I heard from the hospital just a minute ago. Ed Johnson’s awake, and he wants you to call him as soon as you can. He asked for Sheriff McCoy, but he’s up on Redstone Ridge trail and I couldn’t reach him by cell. I offered to call him on the satellite phone, but Ed asked for you to call him instead.”

  “Sounds good,” Stella said, and hurried toward her office.

  Mattie felt relieved that Johnson was awake, and maybe he’d even remembered something. “How did he sound, Nadine?”

  “Weak but alert.” Concern creased the EMT’s brow. “Compared to last night, I’ll take that any day.”

  This comment surprised her. “Were you on the call last night?”

  “I was. It’s a relief to know he’s awake and making sense.”

  “It sure is.” Mattie paused before changing the subject. “What’s going on up at Redstone trail?”

  “Deputy Brody is in charge of the lower site. The forensic team and bomb squad have arrived, and the dog teams have gone on up the trail. Oh … and CBI Special Agent Rick Lawson should arrive sometime this afternoon.”

  Mattie knew Lawson; they’d worked together before, and she considered him a decent guy. She glanced at the clock—ten minutes before ten. “And the three hunters we expect from the campground? Are they here yet?”

  Nadine shook her head. “No one has come in. Garcia is working a double shift. He’s been in and out.”

  “Okay, I’ll be back in the staff office.” She turned away as Robo trotted ahead. Mattie thought his response at finding a stranger at Rainbow’s desk had been cute. But then, she often thought that of her dog.

  As if to fortify his cuteness, Robo pounced on his red cushion and went into play pose, his routine for asking for a treat. As usual, she made him work for it, directing him to the middle of the room for a seri
es of doggy push-ups—commands for “down” and “stand” in rapid repetition.

  She’d once watched a video of a group of officers doing push-ups alongside their K-9, all of them in sync. She hoped to duplicate that video with members from the department as soon as Robo could perform his doggy push-ups flawlessly. He was doing great, alternating his downs and ups without hesitation, but now the recording would have to wait until Johnson healed. Her video wouldn’t be complete without the rookie.

  Stella entered the office, empty coffee mug and notebook in hand, and went directly to the coffeemaker. After filling her cup, she laid down her notebook and leaned back against the counter to blow on her drink, sending up hot steam that carried the coffee’s aroma. “Our three hunters just arrived. I put Reagan Dawson in one room and Cutter Smith in the other, and I left Wyatt Turner out in the lobby for now. I want to make them wait a few minutes.”

  “Okay.” Mattie gave Robo his treats and directed him to his cushion, where he lay down. “Did you reach Johnson?”

  “I did.” Stella looked perkier than she had all day. Talking to Johnson must have lifted her spirits. “He said he spotted the car, saw Tonya’s license plates, and thought the car was empty. The next thing he knew, it was backing toward him and pinned him against his own vehicle. He can’t remember the rest clearly, but he thinks he slipped on the ice, fell forward, and was dragged a ways. He remembers the pressure of being run over, and then he blacked out. He doesn’t recall moving into the ditch, but I think that’s probably what saved him.”

  “Did he say why he didn’t call in his location to dispatch before leaving his vehicle?”

  Stella shook her head, lowering her gaze for a second. “I couldn’t ask him about that. I’ll leave that one to Sheriff McCoy to deal with.”

  “A rookie mistake. Once the kid’s back, we’ll all give him hell for not following procedure.”

  “That should do it.” Stella and Mattie smiled at each other.