Page 4 of Scent of Death (Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue #5)

Griff still needed solid confirmation that Alexis and Denali had uncovered the first two missing girls, he couldn’t simply base his suspicions on a tattoo similar to Josie Allen’s and a woman with dark hair like Megan Riley, but his gut told him they were standing in the middle of the serial killer’s burial ground.

Two victims so far, not three. But he was plagued by a sense of urgency to find Wendy Evers before it was too late.

He scanned the horizon, wondering if the guy was still out there. Doubtful, but as soon as more officers arrived on scene, he’d spread out to do a search.

And that gave him an idea.

“Alexis? Can Shane come out with Bryce to track the killer?” He kicked himself for not thinking of the possibility sooner. Then he hastily added, “Or one of the other Sullivans, whoever is available?”

“Everyone has been tied up with other cases, that’s why I decided to work alone today.” She shrugged. “I know Shane is in Laramie. Let me try Joel, he was helping someone local.” Alexis pulled out her phone, sighed, then tucked it away. “I’ll have to use the sat phone as this is a dead zone.”

Dead being the operative word , he thought grimly.

She rummaged in her backpack for the bulky sat phone.

He listened as she made the call, giving the same detailed coordinates she’d provided for him.

When she finished, she turned to face him.

“Joel and his K9, Royal, will be here soon. Sounds like Logan just finished a charter and is willing to drop Joel and Royal off nearby.” She put a hand to her stomach.

“They’re bringing food, too, not that I’m in the mood to eat. ”

He wasn’t hungry either. Finding dead bodies tended to ruin a man’s appetite. Still, others may be interested in lunch. “That’s great news. I wish I had thought of it sooner.”

“Probably wouldn’t have mattered.” Alexis grimaced. “Summer is our busiest time of the year, and the siblings have been spread out across the country. I’m glad Joel and Royal got back in time to help.”

He nodded. “That’s good for us. Although from what I remember, Royal isn’t an attack dog like Bryce.”

The corner of her mouth tipped up in a smile. “No, but you’d be surprised. Royal might be a sweet black lab who is anxious to please, but he can be fierce if needed.” She glanced at Denali, and added, “All of our dogs can be protective in the face of a threat. Besides, Royal is a great tracker.”

Since he sensed that was true, he let it go. Although deep down, he knew this guy they were after was a vicious killer.

But considering the way he’d fired at Alexis from a safe distance, he might also be a coward. They’d know when they found him.

“What do you know about Wendy Evers?” Alexis asked.

“She’s nineteen and has been missing for two days.

” Two long days , he thought somberly. “Her grandmother reported her missing late last night. I drove up from Cheyenne first thing this morning to interview her. Wendy works in a pub in Greybull. Two of the three victims worked at bars, but all in different cities. Josie Allen disappeared after working her shift at a bar in Casper, which as you know is a long way from here. Megan Riley is from Jackson.” He shook his head, battling a wave of frustration.

“I don’t know how this guy is choosing his victims or why he’s traveling hundreds of miles to find them.

Maybe he’s a trucker? Or has a job that requires a lot of travel? ”

“I’m no expert, but what bothers me is that this guy might be escalating,” Alexis said thoughtfully. “Maybe he buried Josie here a week ago and then felt compelled to find the next girl sooner than usual.” Her blue eyes held his. “That could be why he grabbed her from a closer city like Greybull.”

It was a good point. One that made him feel as if they may already be too late to save Wendy Evers. Not that he’d stop trying to find her. “I’ll need to talk to some of my FBI colleagues.” Griff frowned. “Now that we have two dead girls, I need one of their profilers to get involved.”

“Agent Flannery!” He turned to glance over to where the crime scene techs were gathered around the gravesite where Denali had found the bloated hand. He quickly crossed over to join them.

“I told you, call me Griff.” Nobody in Wyoming used formal titles.

When he glanced at down at the uncovered grave, his stomach clenched.

The victim was a teenage girl; her face was bloated, and there were dark ligature marks around her neck.

Still, he easily recognized Josie Allen.

“Looks like she may have been strangled.”

“I would agree with that assessment, but we’ll need the ME to tell us for sure,” the deputy agreed. It was a cop Griff had never met, but his name tag identified his last name as Gordon. “There’s no ID on her body.”

Griff pulled out his phone. There was no cell service, but he was able to access his pictures. He thumbed through to find Josie and showed the image to Deputy Gordon. “I’m fairly certain the body is that of Josie Allen. Reported missing from Casper, Wyoming, ten days ago.”

“Casper, huh?” The deputy shook his head. “She’s a long way from there.”

He nodded, then waved behind them. “Alexis and Denali found another body about two hundred yards from here. Very possibly the first missing girl, Megan Riley.”

Gordon whistled. “That’s not good.”

No, it wasn’t. He turned to where the crime scene techs were standing off to the side, giving the ME room to work. “Will you both come with me? We found another victim.”

The pair of techs glanced at each other with concern. “You’re saying this guy is a serial killer?”

“It sure looks that way.” Griff knew it was only a matter of time before the news of a madman targeting young girls traveled across the state.

A discovery like this would bring in the national media, too, something he was not looking forward to.

That level of attention was exactly what this guy wanted.

And it would make his already difficult job that much harder. But there wasn’t anything he could do other than keep working the case.

“This way.” He gestured for them to follow. “I’ll show you.”

The techs hurried after him, bringing their box of tools.

They had smaller trowels, brushes, and mini rakes to help expose a buried corpse.

He didn’t believe this area was the actual location where the girls had been murdered.

Having a third missing girl made him think the killer was keeping the victims in a van, cabin, or some other location where he could kill the girls without being seen or heard.

Then he brought them there to bury them.

Did that mean his home was nearby? Some serial killers wanted to be near the location where they left their victims so they could visit and relive their kill. Although in this case, Alexis was right that the guy had quickly turned his attention to another victim.

The techs went to work, carefully removing the packed dirt from around the dead body.

This one took more time as the body had been there longer.

Megan had been reported missing a month ago from Jackson.

She hadn’t worked in a bar like the others, but at a grocery store.

If Megan was the first victim, it could be that the guy chose her on impulse.

Yet he couldn’t say for sure there wasn’t another missing girl somewhere.

Maybe a victim who didn’t have friends or family to report her as missing.

Griff had planned to scour the missing children database to see if there were other likely victims out there, but he hadn’t had time yet.

Another reason to get additional resources here from Washington, DC, or maybe the field office in Denver or Phoenix.

He borrowed Alexis’s sat phone to make the call to his boss, who promised to relay the information up the chain of command.

“Griff? You want to come check this out?” Suzanne, the female crime scene tech, called him over.

He returned to the grave and slowly nodded. “Yes, that looks like Megan Riley. And like the other victim, she’s been strangled too.” He sighed and raked his fingers through his hair. “Two of three victims have been found. We really need to figure out who this guy is in time to save Wendy Evers.”

“We’ll ask the ME to come take a look here when he’s finished with the first victim,” Zack Hart, the second crime scene tech, said. He stared down at the dead woman. “I don’t like knowing this guy is out there walking the streets in our cities.”

Griff understood the tech’s concern. He didn’t much like it either.

Before he could say anything more, though, he heard the rumble of a plane engine.

Shielding his eyes against the sun, he watched as the small prop plane belonging to Logan Fletcher banked in a curve, likely looking for a place to land.

The mountain region didn’t offer much as far as plane landing sites. They’d likely have to use the two-track road back where they left their vehicles.

“Alexis, do you want to come with me to meet your brother?” He gestured to the second grave. “There’s nothing more we can do here.”

“Sure.” Alexis looked relieved at the thought of moving away from the gruesome finds. He’d heard she and Denali worked several disaster sites over the past year, but he was convinced that finding brutally murdered teenagers was different.

He stopped briefly to chat with the ME, then used his compass to retrace his path back to the two-track road. Alexis and Denali fell into step beside him.

“I hope we’ll be able to find a trace of this guy,” Alexis said. “It’s not like we have a great scent source to work from. Joel’s K9, Royal, might be able to hit on the scent near the graves, but there’s no guarantee.”

“We may have another source,” he said. “I passed what could have been the broken branch you heard.” He shrugged. “It’s worth a try.”

“That could work. Especially if Royal can pick up the scent from both the branch and the grave sites.” She looked up at the trees overhead. “We should count our blessings. We have good weather and plenty of daylight.”

He grunted without saying anything. Two girls were dead, and one was in grave danger. There were no blessings here that he could see.

When they reached the fallen branch, he pointed at the tree trunk where it had broken off. “I’m thinking he accidentally hit it with his rifle. Maybe it was sticking out of a backpack or something.”

“Yes. Joel would know better than I would, but it looks recent.” She grimaced. “I’m not a hunter the way Joel, Shane, Chase, and the others are.”

“I understand.” Griff had been deer and elk hunting, but he generally preferred fishing. Not that he was able to get out of Cheyenne as much as he’d like to enjoy the outdoors.

The Sullivans were a magnet for trouble , he thought as they continued on. Five minutes later, they met Logan, Jessica with her K9, Teddy, Joel, and his K9, Royal.

“I didn’t know Jess and Teddy were tagging along,” Alexis said.

“No reason you guys should have all the fun.” Jessica strove for a light tone, but her expression was one of concern. “Besides, from what I’ve heard, we need all the help we can get to bring this guy to justice.”

“Agreed,” Griff said. “Okay, let’s head back this way to what will hopefully be our starting point.”

The broken branch wasn’t much to go on, but Griff didn’t have a lot of other options.

He watched as both Teddy and Royal sniffed the ground with interest. Griff had faith in both dogs, especially Royal, as he’d seen the black lab in action.

Jessica’s Teddy was a narcotics dog, cross-trained to find people as well.

After both dogs had been given water, Joel and Jess instructed them to search for the bad guy.

Both K9s put their noses to the ground and headed in the general direction of the burial site. Griff was encouraged, though, when Royal and Teddy veered off the path to the north.

He glanced at Alexis, who nodded thoughtfully. “I think they’re following his trail.”

“Really?” He was almost afraid to hope. Rather than taking a direct route back to the dead bodies, he and Alexis followed Joel and Jessica in a wide arc. After thirty minutes of walking, though, the Sullivans called for a break.

“It’s hot, and the dogs are panting quite a bit,” Joel explained. “That’s how they sweat, but it’s also an indication that they need a rest.”

“I understand.” There was no point in complaining. He appreciated how the Sullivans treated their dogs with care and concern.

“I brought snacks.” Logan rummaged through his pack. “Plenty of water, protein bars, and dried fruit.”

Griff wasn’t that hungry, but he knew it was smart to eat. Logan passed along the goodies, and even Alexis accepted a protein bar and water.

“What’s this about the guy shooting at Alexis?” Joel asked.

She wrinkled her nose. “He missed. And I’m sure he was trying to get me away from the location of the dead girls.”

“Good thing he missed,” Jessica muttered. “Chase would not be happy if something bad happened to you. You know he hates it when we work alone.”

Griff knew Chase had worked a case alone back in February, but that situation had been different. Sort of.

They rested without saying much for ten minutes, then Joel pushed himself up from the ground. “Time to get moving.”

Griff’s knee was killing him, but he did his best to ignore the pain. The Sullivans went through the routine of offering their dogs water and telling them to search the bad guy. As before, both dogs quickly went to work.

It was less than ten minutes later when they reached a hill that had a direct line of sight to the activity around the graves. Then Royal let out a sharp bark.

Griff turned to glance at Joel. “What did he find?”

“A shell casing.” Joel gestured to the hint of brass lying partially beneath the leaves. “Looks to be from a rifle.”

“Really?” Griff hurried over to see for himself. Then he used an evidence bag as a glove to pick it up. The shell casing alone wasn’t proof of anything, as the woods teemed with hunters during the peak hunting season.

But considering the direct line of sight to the grave sites, Griff felt certain the shell casing had been fired by the killer.