Page 31 of Shadow of Doubt
“That’s the feeling I get too,” Reid said. “After Nick is done making his call, we should search the rest of the property before notifying the locals.”
Colin nodded, and they stood watching Nick until he shoved his phone into his pocket.
He stepped over to them. “Kelsey has to pack up the chopper with needed supplies. Figures she won’t be here for ninety minutes. She’s going to bring Sierra, our forensics expert, too. We hope the local sheriff will let her process the scene.”
Colin nodded. “We should have Dev talk to him.”
“The he is a she,” Dev said. “Sheriff Abby Day. I went to college with her and used to know her pretty well.”
“I didn’t know that,” Colin said.
“Lots you don’t know about me. Especially my college days. Was safer that way.” Dev laughed.
Colin rolled his eyes. “Good to hear you know her, if you have a good relationship. But I was thinking you should call because you were a former deputy and speak the same language.”
Dev scratched his cheek. “You were law enforcement too.”
“Yeah, but a fed. You know that can often bring tension with locals.”
“Good point.” Nick looked at the building. “Maybe Russ could run interference too.”
“No,” Reid said forcefully. “If this somehow blows back on us, we don’t want him included in it.”
“Okay.” Nick raised a hand. “Point taken.”
“Let’s take a look around the rest of the property while we wait for your teammates.” Colin turned on his flashlight again. “Line up for another grid search, but we’ll head east.”
They formed a straight line, and Colin fell in on the end. His nerves were on edge. Were they going to find another body? Some other evidence of a crime? Would it be bad for Brooklyn or help them bring Tarver in?
Colin cared an unreasonable amount for the little time he’d spent with Brooklyn. Was it just championing the underdog or one of those love-at-first-sight things that he didn’t really believe in? But could he be wrong? Did it exist?
One thing was for sure, there was a connection between them. A strong one.
They inched forward picking their way through debris, the lingering smoke curling into the air was a reminder of the fatality.
“What’s that?” Ryan asked, his light skipping ahead and illuminating a structure that hadn’t been touched by the fire.
“Let’s check it out,” Dev said.
“We will, but keep to the grid until we reach it,” Colin said. “Never know what we might find on the way.”
They made their way toward the structure. Single story, the large box of a building was about fifteen feet square with concrete walls that had iron bars in the upper part of the front. A strong lock hung on a door on the side that also looked as if it was electronically controlled.
Ryan ran his flashlight beam over the area. “If the place wasn’t so fortified, I’d say it was a kennel. But no chains or wayto tie up a dog, and even the biggest dog doesn’t need such a strong structure.”
“Maybe the building was already on the property, then someone converted it to a kennel,” Reid suggested.
“You all wait here. I’m going to take a look inside.” Colin snapped on disposable gloves and opened a door as thick as the cinderblock walls. It held two locks. One was a simple metal hasp, the other electronic. Odd for an animal enclosure. The smell of feces and urine hit him hard, but his quick look with the flashlight didn’t reveal anything moving. He did see plenty of animal hairs littering the floor among the large droppings.
“Whatever he kept in here was big. Scat is huge,” he said. “And furry, but not furry like a dog, more cat like, I think.”
“He didn’t ever have pets when we knew him,” Nick said.
Colin faced the guys. “I don’t think this was a pet.”
Nick’s gaze narrowed. “Then what?”
Colin shrugged. “Hopefully Sierra can shed some light on what was housed in this enclosure. The animal could be loose now and wandering around the area.”
