Chapter 17
SEVENTEEN
Katie opened her eyes. Her mind was groggy and her body felt strange.
It took a few seconds for her to adjust to her surroundings; her vision was blurry and the room was dim except for a small fire flickering in the fireplace.
At first, she thought that she was at a campground, but as she sat up slowly she realized she had been lying on a sofa.
She sucked in a breath, causing her body to tingle and her heart to pound in her ears.
The unknown location ticked her fears and hypersensitive nerves into responding to extreme danger. She swung her feet to the floor. Her first instinct was to find the door and escape. She found the door, but it had a deadbolt that would only open with a key.
Her mind was still murky. She slowly remembered that someone had easily overpowered her with a simple technique called carotid restraint.
It was a pressing on the carotid artery on the neck, just long enough for her to pass out.
It used to be a technique used in law enforcement, but other methods were used to restrain combatant suspects these days.
Katie massaged her neck as she steadied herself to look for a way to escape.
“I see you’re awake,” said a man’s voice. He had entered from another room where the door had been closed.
Katie spun around, ready for combat if necessary.
His appearance shocked her. He was tall like McGaven but stocky in build.
She knew she couldn’t overpower a man like that.
His dark beard was thick and he wore several layers of clothing like a homeless person might.
His hair was also dark, thick, and down to his shoulders.
She stared at his face and couldn’t ignore that his eyes told an entire story.
They were dark brown and seemed to convey a kindness, but there was also the indication that he had lived through some dark times.
“Who are you?” Katie demanded. She put her hand on her side and discovered her gun and phone were gone.
“Don’t worry, I will return your weapon, phone, and GPS,” he said.
“I’m a law enforcement officer and you can’t hold me here against my will.”
“It was the only way I could speak with you.” He set down hot coffee. “You are in no danger and I want nothing from you except for you to listen. Then you are free to go wherever you want.”
Katie’s senses told her she wasn’t in immediate danger, but the entire situation implied otherwise. Her head cleared. She kept her distance and obviously didn’t have a choice but to listen.
“I can see you’re not sure whether to trust me, Detective,” he said as he sat down in a tattered upholstered chair near the fire.
“How do you know I’m a detective?”
“I know a lot about you.”
“Which means what?” Katie kept her position with her back against the door so she could keep her eyes on the entire room.
She assumed to be in a cabin somewhere in the woods.
She hated to admit it, but she was intrigued.
There was no indication that his man was the killer they were looking for.
She had no solid evidence, of course, just her gut instinct—but it usually kept her on track in her investigations.
He chuckled. It was difficult to see if he was smiling, due to all the dense whiskers on his face. “Which means I know about how you and your partner, Detective McGaven, seem to solve every case. I know about your dog. I also know that you’ve been in the Army.”
Katie wasn’t sure if she should be impressed or completely creeped out. She kept her composure. “You know so much about me, but I don’t know anything about you.”
“You’re not supposed to. This is the life I lead. Quiet. No bombarding of the world.”
“I see.” Katie continued to study the man as well as his surroundings, which seemed to be the way he liked it.
It was difficult to tell his age. He looked older, but she guessed he was somewhere in his late thirties to forties.
He reached for a cup of coffee and Katie noticed there were deep scars on the back of his hands and forearms.
Katie remained in her watch position at the door as if it would suddenly open and she could make an easy escape.
There was a strange dreamlike quality to her current situation—she had a difficult time reasoning with herself as to why.
She thought of the shadow man with cowboy boots and knew that this man wasn’t him.
He wore heavy hiking boots and was much bulkier than the shadow man.
But judging by his deep scars, the use of the carotid restraint on her, and the way he moved and positioned himself, Katie guessed that he was military or possibly law enforcement.
“Can I at least ask your name?” she said. “You know mine.”
“You can call me Buck.”
She knew that wasn’t his real name, but said, “All right then, Buck it is. I’m assuming what you have to say is about the bodies we found at the construction site.”
“You’re on topic,” he said.
Katie took a breath as her body finally settled down. “You know my partner is frantically trying to find me. What makes you think they won’t find this place?”
“They won’t.”
“You sound so sure.”
“That’s because I am.”
Katie was beginning to tire from this conversation.
She thought about McGaven and John searching for her and what her uncle was going to do when he heard.
She figured if she stayed much longer, the entire force would be searching for her.
She didn’t want to be responsible for all that manpower when they should be protecting the community.
“I can see you’re contemplating your options and maybe profiling me,” he said.
“Put yourself in my shoes.”
He chuckled again.
“You have my attention. Tell me what you wanted to say.”
Buck remained quiet for a minute as he leaned back in the old chair. He clenched his fists. “I think you’re smart enough to know that I didn’t kill anyone in those graves.”
“How do you know about the graves?”
“I just do.”
“Did you see who buried them?”
“Originally?”
Katie nodded.
“No, but there have been many visits.”
“What do you mean ‘visits’?”
“Look, when you live like I do you learn how to move among the world without being seen.” He paused and looked away. It was clear that Buck had seen more than one person should.
“Have you seen anyone visit recently?” Katie tried to keep on topic no matter how curious she was about the reclusive man.
“Yes.”
“At the construction site?”
“Yes.”
“What did they look like?”
“It was a man, tall, slim. Always wore dark clothing,” he said.
“Young or old? Can you tell me anything more distinguishing about him?” Katie was starting to get a bit annoyed. Buck had taken quite a chance abducting her and he wasn’t giving her information that was very helpful.
“I would guess by their movement they are middle aged. I couldn’t see his face just their body. He moved with strategy.”
“What do you mean ‘strategy’?”
“Like he had a plan, but moved slowly to enjoy it.”
“Was he at the area where the three bodies were found?”
“Yes. He seemed to visit that exact area numerous times. I didn’t write the dates and times down, but it was almost weekly. It was strange. It was like he was visiting a grave, paying respect.”
“Even before they began clearing the trees and grading the property?”
“Yes.” Buck looked away.
“Why are you telling me this?” Katie studied him, looking for some type of indication of whether he was telling the truth. She was unsure. Partly due to the fact she couldn’t see his face or any slight mannerisms beneath the layers of clothing.
“Because I’m a witness to someone lurking around the grave of three people.”
“Did you see us investigating?”
“Yes. I watched from an area that wouldn’t be seen. Even when the drone deployed, there was no way it would see me.”
Katie made note of the word “deployed” and the fact that he had been close enough to see the investigation, which meant that his cabin had to be close too.
“Do you know the Collins family?”
He didn’t give an answer.
“Do you know who Meredith and Misty Collins are?”
This was the first time Buck didn’t answer candidly.
“That’s not why I brought you here,” he said.
Katie raised her voice. “What do you want to tell me?”
“I told you.”
“About some man dressed in black visiting the graves? That’s not all you know.
” Katie was being brazen, but she knew from their brief interaction that Buck wasn’t about to hurt her…
or anyone else. He just wanted to be left alone.
She respected his choice of lifestyle, but she needed to know what he knew.
“Please, if you know anything, tell me,” she said, moving a little bit closer to him.
“I watched you at the grave site. I observed how you studied everything, thoroughly, and there was a compassion about you, but… someone like me can tell when another has had the experience of seeing horror. I detect that in you.”
His words seemed to hang in the air. It was true, but Katie hated that she had weaknesses and that they could be seen if a person knew where to look. Being a good cop and competent detective meant that you never showed your vulnerabilities.
“Is there anything else you can tell me that would help the case?” she said.
“Do an ancestry background on the Collins family… beginning with Mr. Bruce Collins.”
This caught her attention. “Is he related to Meredith Collins?”
“Yes.” Buck stood up; he towered over Katie. “That’s all that I can tell you. I don’t know anything else.”
She half expected him to become aggressive, but he disappeared for a few moments and then came back with her things. He gently laid her gun, phone, and GPS on a small table.
Katie hesitated to move.
“It’s okay, you can take them.”
She could see his eyes closely; they appeared to hold unbearable sadness. Realizing that her capture was him doing the right thing, it must’ve taken a lot of courage for him to bring her here and tell her what he knew.
Katie picked up her items judiciously, holstered her gun, and pocketed her cell and GPS. “Thank you.”
“I have to ask you one thing.” Buck picked up a narrow scarf. “You need to wear this while I take you back.”
Katie shook her head. “I don’t think…”
“It’s okay. I will lead you to where you were before.” He kept her gaze.
“Okay.” Katie had to take a leap of faith. What choice did she have?
Buck gently tied the scarf to hide Katie’s vision.
“How can I contact you?” she said.
“You can’t. But… if I need to get a message to you, I know how to find you.”
Those last words stuck in Katie’s mind as she was led, helplessly blindfolded.
She tried to remember all her steps, but had a feeling they were going in circles; however, there was no way of knowing.
Estimating the amount of time since they left the cabin, she guessed it to be fifteen to twenty minutes.
“You can find your way now. The partial moon will guide you,” said Buck.
Katie pulled off the blindfold and turned around. “But—”
Buck was gone. There had been no footsteps. He had vanished like a ghost or as if he went to another dimension. She caught her breath and ran everything that had happened through her mind. She wasn’t going to forget any of it.
Katie suddenly heard voices calling her name.
She ran toward them. “I’m here!”
Katie had found her way back to McGaven and John and their worried expressions. She had told them her story, but they looked at her with concern and disbelief.
“For the last time. I’m fine.”
“We need to find this guy, Buck. Like that’s his real name,” said McGaven.
“I don’t think you will. He has made it virtually impossible.”
“How do you know he wasn’t the killer toying with you?” said John.
“I don’t think he was.”
“What makes you say that?” said McGaven.
“It’s a gut feeling. You had to have been there, seeing his reactions and movements. What he said. I’ve seen people like this before. He has to be military. Maybe even law enforcement.”
“We need to identify this guy,” said John.
“I have something better,” said Katie. She carefully removed her gun and cell phone. “He touched these and we can probably get prints. Good enough?” She smiled.
“Yes,” said McGaven. “Good going, partner.”
“It’ll most definitely work,” said John. “If he was military or police, his prints will be in the system.”
Just then a white SUV pulled into the area.
“Looks like the sheriff is here,” said McGaven.