Page 13 of Once Hidden
“We'd like to see that scene first,” Riley told her.
“Of course,” Rawley replied.“It's still secured.We can head there now if you're ready.”
Ten minutes later, they were back in their vehicles, following Hodge and Rawley in an unmarked police SUV.The road wound through increasingly rural territory, farmland giving way to thicker stands of trees.Riley kept her attention divided between the road and her thoughts, trying to visualize what might have happened to Amanda Lindeen.
“What do you think the odds are that she's still alive?”Ann Marie asked quietly.
“Let's see the scene first.”
Riley's instincts were already sending up warning flares.Two delivery drivers abducted in as many days, both with cryptic codes left behind?This wasn't about ransom.This was about something else entirely—something methodical and planned but still inexplicable.
They turned onto Creekside Road, a narrow asphalt strip with no shoulder to speak of, dense woods pressing in from both sides.After about two miles, Riley spotted yellow crime scene tape stretched along the edge of the road.A National Parcel Express delivery van was parked there at an odd angle.
Riley pulled in behind Hodge and Rawley's vehicle.As she stepped out, the scent of pine and damp earth filled her nostrils.Birds called from the canopy above, seemingly unconcerned with the human activity below.Crime scenes in places like this always struck Riley as particularly jarring—human violence intruding on nature's domain.
“Her van was found just like this,” Hodge said as they approached.“Driver's door open, keys in the ignition.Her phone was right there on the passenger seat.”
Riley circled the vehicle slowly, taking in every detail.The position suggested Amanda had stopped suddenly—obviously not for a delivery.
“And that,” Hodge said, pointing to a substantial tree branch lying on the side of the road, “is what must have made her stop.”
Riley examined it without touching, noting the clean cut at one end.
“This wasn't blown down in a storm,” she observed.“Someone cut it.”
“And it has been moved,” Ann Marie observed as she studied the marks in the dirt.
“Right,” Hodge agreed.“We figure it was out in the road and she stopped to move it to the side.But she didn’t make it back into her van.”
“Perfect trap for a delivery driver,” Rawley said.“Road's too narrow to go around a branch like that, so she'd have to get out and move it.”
“And when she did...”Ann Marie began.
“Ambush,” Riley finished.She straightened up, scanning the tree line.“The unsub would have waited near his own vehicle, hidden in the trees.Amanda stops, gets out, moves toward the branch.As she's bending to pick it up or while she's trying to drag it away, he strikes.”
Hodge agreed.“That fits with what we determined.”
“Over here,” Rawley called, pointing to the ground near the driver’s side of the van.“We found scuff marks consistent with a struggle.Looks like she was dragged from here”—she pointed—”to there, where trees and bushes masked the unsub’s vehicle.There are tire tracks where it had been pulled over.”
Riley crouched down to examine the disturbed earth and gravel.The marks told a story that she could see clearly—the desperate struggle of a woman fighting for her life, heels digging in, being overpowered and pulled toward another vehicle.
As she continued to survey the scene, Ann Marie engaged Rawley and Hodge with questions about search patterns, canvassing efforts, and Amanda's personal life.Riley recognized the tactic—Ann Marie was creating space for her to think, to absorb, to get into the unsub's head.
Riley stood up and stepped back from the immediate scene, letting her eyes unfocused slightly.The setting was isolated but not remote.The trap was simple but effective.The execution was clean.This wasn't opportunistic.This was planned, targeted.
“Has there been any ransom demand?”Ann Marie was asking.
“Nothing,” Rawley replied.“No contact whatsoever.”
Riley bit back what she wanted to say:There won't be any ransom demands.Amanda Lindeen is already dead.The certainty of it had settled over her now.This wasn't about money or personal grudges.It was about something else entirely.
But she kept her conclusion to herself for now.She needed more evidence before sharing such a grim assessment with the local authorities.Besides, even the faintest hope was sometimes necessary to keep an investigation moving forward with the urgency it deserved.
Meanwhile, Riley was sure of one thing.Until they cracked those codes, discovered their meaning, there were going to be more victims.
CHAPTER SIX
The espresso machine hissed as though it was angry and orders piled up faster than April’s hands could move.“Triple shot mocha, extra whip, for Ralph!”she called out, sliding the finished drink across the counter.As three more orders appeared on the screen in front of her, she took a deep breath, centering herself.The café was packed wall-to-wall with the lunch crowd—professionals from nearby offices, college students hunched over laptops, and tourists seeking refuge from the June heat.
