Page 107 of Her Last Whisper

“You know that gut thing I’m always talking about?” she said.

“Yeah.”

“It’s working on overtime now.”

Sixty-One

McGaven didn’t have to argue about wanting to drive this time; instead, Katie handed him the keys before he could ask.

Katie had retrieved Cisco from the police department kennel and he padded alongside the detectives as they got into the police vehicle and raced out of the sheriff’s office parking lot heading east.

The setting sun was behind them reflecting a burning orange in the rearview mirror as they raced down the freeway. McGaven set an ambitious speed but kept safety as his priority, especially with the dog unrestrained in the back seat.

Cisco stood up and watched the road with the detectives—he sensed something important was up and obviously wanted to be a part of it.

“What are you thinking?” asked Katie holding to the handhold.

“About?”

“The location.”

“One thing I’ve been learning during my short time as a detective is that you never know what you’re going to find. Jump in feet first and let whatever happens shake out.”

Katie leaned back against the headrest and smiled. “That’s the truth,” she said, remembering her last case and the odds that were stacked against her.

“Did you want to call the sheriff?”

“No, I want to wait for when, and if, we find anything.” She took slow even breaths, hoping that McGaven didn’t notice that she was beginning to feel strange—that familiar chill of anxiety crept into her spirit again. She relaxed as much as she could, hoping that it would merely wash over her and vanish like it had before when work had taken over.

They traveled for more than a half hour. Katie watched the outside scenery change from cityscapes to rural settings and then change back to smaller communities again. The landscape in the area was diverse and it was reasonable, if not commendable, that the county as well as the state wanted to improve impoverished and abandoned areas pumping new life into the city.

The view finally transformed into miles of agricultural land for crops, which made it seem like they hadn’t seen another house in ages; she noticed less traffic too. The light was waning, affecting their ability to conduct a thorough search of the “Humanity Project” also known as Highland Project.

“Turn there,” she instructed.

McGaven slowed the car and turned down a heavily graveled street, but it was instantly obvious that it was going into no-man’s land. Even though they were within ten miles of the freeway, the neighboring two streets remained like a ghost town: overgrown, deserted, and ultimately forgotten.

The area had been originally fenced to keep people out, but it had been put up so long ago that it was lacking in areas. The main gate hung askew, broken and rusted, and was just wide enough for a car to barely pass through.

“What do you think?” she asked.

“I didn’t expect it to be so…”

“Creepy.”

“That’s an understatement,” he said.

Katie strained her neck, surveying the open land. It appeared to go on for miles. There were areas that crops were growing: mostly vegetables like broccoli, lettuce, and zucchini.

“It’s so strange,” she said, for lack of a better description. She felt a cold chill crawl up her spine and moved her shoulders quickly to try and shake it away.

McGaven studied the areas as well but remained quiet.

Cisco circled in the backseat and pawed back and forth from window to window. He kept his watch on the area looking for bad guys, but nothing moved except for pieces of garbage and dead brush blowing down the dirt street.

“Let’s take a look,” she said and focused on her iPad showing an overview of the area. “I think we should make a left and park.”

McGaven maneuvered the car around a large fallen branch in the middle of the road. There were telephone lines down too, making it a tight squeeze driving underneath. He finally parked.