Page 77 of Lost Cause
Abby offered one of her comforting smiles she’d given to so many people during the investigation. “Thank you so much for your time, Doctor.”
He’d spent months with her on the prior murder investigation, and he’d learned about her kindness. Or at least he thought he had, but this investigation was really revealing the depth of not only her kindness but her faith too. Made her even more attractive to him, if that was possible.
Burke cleared his brain of such thoughts and motioned for Abby to precede him to the doorway.
As soon as they were in the car and Abby closed her door, she took out her phone. “I got a text from Kelsey. She didn’t want to waste the day driving to the island. She had Coop fly her, and they’ll land in thirty minutes.”
“Perfect. It’ll take us about that long to get out to the island.” Burke fired up the engine and pointed his department vehicle toward the marina.
Abby swiveled on her seat to face him. “Do you think Dr. Shore has anything to do with the theft of the crown?”
“I don’t know. She seemed to be hiding something. I just don’t know what. Shedidvisit Victor last Friday, which would be within the theft timeframe.”
“When she said she was there all afternoon, I kept thinking how Victor said he napped every afternoon, no matter what.”
“You think she might’ve swiped the crown while he was sleeping? Maybe put it outside until he woke up, so when she left he wouldn’t see her take it?”
“It’s a possibility we should consider. She could even be the one who tracked in the lichen.”
“We could try for a warrant to search her house so Sam can process her footwear. Could be tough to get one before we actually have a body though.”
Abby nodded. “If thereisa body on the island, Kelsey will find it. You can be sure of that.”
Burke had read articles about the anthropologist on the internet last night and everyone spoke highly of her, but could anyone be so good? He was about to find out.
After weaving through heavy traffic, they finally boarded his friend’s boat. He started to push it full throttle, but the sunshiny day had brought people flooding to the bay. He had to take it easy to maneuver through the other boats. The typically thirty-minute trip took an hour. Abby notified Kelsey of their delay, who said she would start an initial search on the sunny, coastal area mentioned by Dr. Shore.
When they arrived, she was exactly where she said she would be, controlling a drone. Abby had said it was how Kelsey would likely locate the body. Burke could hardly believe it. Using a drone to find a body? Science fiction as far as he was concerned, and he couldn’t wait to find out how it worked.
Kelsey had brought along a skinny guy with thinning hair and an average-height woman with reddish brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, looking more like a teenager than a forensic scientist. All three of them wore protective white suits, but a camera hung around the other woman’s neck.
He and Abby approached the trio. No recognition of their arrival from Kelsey. Her focus stayed on the controller in her hand.
“Hey, Kelsey.” Abby stopped next to her.
“Oh, good. You’re here. I’ll take a quick break so we can talk, then re-launch the drone.” She maneuvered the controls until her drone landed, then she turned to them.
She didn’t look anything like Burke expected a hardcore forensic anthropologist might look. A sparkly clip held back her curly dark hair, and her Tyvek suit, open above her waist, revealed a frilly floral blouse. Her fingernails were coated in a pastel pink, matching her lipstick. A girly girl.
She shoved out her hand to Burke. “Kelsey Dunbar, forensic anthropologist, Veritas Center.”
“Detective Burke Ulrich.” He took her soft hand, surprised at her strong grip.
She shifted her attention to Abby. “Good to see you again, Sheriff—I mean, Abby.” She shook her head, her curls bouncing. “I didn’t think you’d ever leave law enforcement, but I’ve heard wonderful things about your new team.”
“I am most blessed to be on it.”
Kelsey gestured at her team members. “This is Shawn Fortune, my assistant, and Ainslie Houston, one of the center’s forensic photographers.” She returned her attention to Abby. “Thank you for texting the information from the botanist. I’m concentrating on the area she suggested, and it should move things along faster.”
“So I assume you haven’t located anything so far,” Burke said.
“Nothing, but I just got started.”
“I don’t want to delay you or question your methods, but this is all new to me, and I’m dying to find out how you locate graves with a drone?”
“No worries. I’ve explained this to any number of law-enforcement officers since I started employing it.” She gave a quick smile. “The drone uses infrared imaging. Works bothabove and below the ground. If for some reason the body has been moved, the infrared technology can also find both locations for up to two years after the removal.”
“No offense.” He squinted at her. “But that almost sounds unbelievable.”
