Page 59 of Long Pig

“I’ll take the phone so there’s a chain of custody,” Russel said. “What do you want to do now?”

“Keep looking.”

They found another damaged cell phone a few minutes later. It was bagged and tagged like Willow’s.

“I’m thinking there was a third person,” Russel said.

“My thoughts too. The phones need to be analyzed, checked for prints, and DNA. There’s a pattern here, and I guarantee you this is not two people running away together.”

“I’ve come to the same conclusion. This happened on federal land, and it’s my case. You’ve convinced me that something bad happened here.”

“I don’t want to get in your way or cause trouble when it comes to prosecution, but I will be investigating this, too.”

The ranger gave a quick flash of teeth. “I don’t mind the help. As long as we keep it by the book, my supervisor won’t have a problem either. We’ve had too many cutbacks, and we need manpower.”

They continued their search, then started over, looking for footprints and anything else out of the ordinary. The tow truck driver’s prints were distinctive with a small indent on the right heel. They checked each other’s boots to eliminate them. Willow’s prints were easy because her feet were smaller. They also found two other sets. Russel made casts of them after taking photographs.

“What are you using?” Dale asked as the ranger worked.

“Dental stone. Works better than plaster of Paris.”

“Things are changing so fast, I don’t know if I could keep up.”

Russel looked at him and smiled. “Everyone thought two lovebirds ran away together. You have a sharp eye, and now I have a big case on my hands. I think you could keep up just fine.”

Dale appreciated the praise. He continued to watch Russel while he thought about Willow.

After the casts set, they went back to the search.

“Look at this,” Russel said. “It appears that someone used a shovel.” He took several pictures. “Let me get the shovel from my vehicle,” he said after Dale walked over.

Carefully, he moved the top layer of dirt away. Dale went to his haunches. “Blood.” He would swear his heart stopped beating.

He looked through the trees into the distance.I know you’re alive, Willow, and I’m coming.

Chapter Forty

Gambrel Hooks and Erections

Butch

His excitement grew the more he thought about Willow’s reaction to the body settling. She hadn’t screamed, hadn’t wept, hadn’t even flinched the way most did. Her expression stayed composed, thoughtful even. It unsettled him. He couldn’t catalog her reactions the way he usually did.

Was she the perfect woman for him? Would she accept his experiments, his truth, or would she recoil once she understood it?

Time would tell.

Butch crouched beside his well system and found the corroded pipe he needed to fix. The old fittings squealed as he turned them loose. He liked work that required patience. It gave him time to think. The world shrank to sound: the drip of water, the scrape of wrench against steel, and his steady breathing.

It was two hours before he went below ground. Willow shielded her eyes when he flicked on the light. He carried a bottle of water, condensation slicking his fingers.

“He smells,” she said.

Butch inhaled deeply through his nose. The air was sweet and cloying with the odor of death that he’d long since stoppednoticing. “I must be insensitive to it,” he said. “The body needs to rest before I process the meat.”

That got a reaction. “Meat?” she asked, her eyes going to the deputy, her voice rising an octave.

“Do you really want those details?”