Page 55 of Shadow of Fear
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The online church service Kinsley was watching in Dev’s cabin with his mother, Jada, and Colin was winding down, and a knock sounded on the door.Sierra.Had to be her. Or at least Kinsley hoped it was her and not another problem. She had seen Dev glancing at his phone during the last song and tapping his screen a few times, most likely opening the gate for Sierra.
Dev flashed Kinsley a look that she took to mean stay put, and he strode to the door.
“Has to be Sierra from the Veritas Center,” Kinsley said so the others didn’t worry. “Dev somehow succeeded in getting Sierra to hop in her van first thing this morning and drive directly here. How he did it, I don’t know. Especially on a Sunday.”
“My boy can be very persuasive.” Sandy smiled. “Especially when he turns on the charm with women.”
“Yeah,” Jada said. “He’s the charmer of the family all right, but he’s still single, so apparently he isn’t succeeding with the women.” She chuckled.
Sandy swatted her hand at Jada, but Colin laughed along with her.
Kinsley had no desire to laugh and kept her eyes pinned to the doorway. However Dev got her to come here, Kinsley was thankful. Plus, she was thankful that Sierra had assigned a team to process Kinsley’s apartment. And on top of that, Sierra refused to take any money for their work. That didn’t mean Kinsley wouldn’t find a way to pay them back. She would. She just didn’t know how yet. Maybe she’d give them free work on any projects they needed her on in the future.
Dev opened the door a crack, looked out, then stepped back. “Thanks for coming.”
Wearing jeans and a navy blue sweatshirt that highlighted her blond hair, Sierra entered in quick steps. She strode into the family room and stopped near the fireplace where she turned her back to the roaring flames.
She didn’t look tired from the long drive, but her eager expression said she wanted to get to work, and she quickly introduced herself to everyone.
“Thank you for coming,” Kinsley said.
Sierra waved her hand as if it were no big deal, but Kinsley knew she was leaving her family behind to be here. She held her hands out to the fireplace. “This fire is wonderful, but the wildfires not so much. Looks like they’re approaching here.”
Dev joined them. “So far, they haven’t issued any evacuation alerts for our area, but we’re keeping an eye on it.”
“I’ve never seen the glow from the flames this close.” She shuddered. “And I hope never to see it any closer.” She took a deep breath and let it out. “So tell me more about what happened last night.”
Dev described the incident in detail.
Kinsley watched Sierra’s expression as she took in the news. The forensic expert had always impressed her, but she could often look unassuming. Pretty, but almost forgettable. With her long blond hair and bangs, she appeared to be in her early twenties just starting out in a professional career when in reality she was in her thirties and headed up one of the nation’s top crime forensics labs in the country.
Of course, her inconspicuous presence was only true when she was dressed in civilian clothing, standing still and not in action. The moment she put on her white Tyvek suit, her focus became laser-sharp, and she tuned out everybody but her workers to do the job.
Dev picked up the plastic bag with the drone controller and handed it to Sierra. “This is the controller our suspect dropped so you can run it for prints and DNA.”
Sierra took the controller and looked at it then nodded. “And is that all that happened?”
Dev shook his head and described the suspect fleeing in a truck. “I hoped the dog would take him down, but no such luck. The suspect fended him off.”
“A dog.” Her eyes lit up. “Did you say the dog touched the suspect?”
Dev nodded. “He almost tripped the guy up, and that’s when he kicked the poor little fella in the side.”
“Then I need to see the dog.” She planted her hands on her hips, which were made curvier by the birth of two children. “Now!”
“But why?” Kinsley asked.
Sierra looked at her. “Human DNA can be transferred to dogs.”
Dev gaped at her. “Do you mean Bandit could be the source for our suspect’s DNA?”
“It’s a distinct possibility. Researchers have determined that DNA collected by a dog’s contact with humans is retained on the surface of the fur, not deeper in the fur and closer to the skin. That also gives it the potential to be easily disturbed, and I need to see the dog right away before that happens.”
“If I take you to Bandit’s house, you can swab him for DNA?”
“This information is very new and cutting edge. I haven’t tried it before, but the researchers tell me that if Bandit touched your suspect, and he hasn’t rubbed away all of the evidence, I should find touch DNA on his fur.”
