Page 106 of Silent Bones

Tucked just off the trail, directly above the slope where the fatal mudslide buried a family last year, sat the small pile of stones. Six. Balanced with uncanny precision.

Atop them, a pale blue phone.

Avery’s.

Noah knelt. The scene was untouched, reverent almost. Like a grave marker.

Callie’s breath fogged in the cold. “He’s pointing us back here.”

Noah looked up at the black expanse of forest beyond. “He wants us to see what they did.”

His mind returned to the present, the media had gone feral, tossing out questions.

“Do you have a motive?” Someone asked.

“Was there a cover-up?”

“Is the DEC complicit?”

Whitaker stepped forward like a lawyer sensing a breach. “We are actively investigating all relevant connections, including those surrounding the Wallface tragedy. Let’s not jump to conclusions based on partial evidence.”

But the questions had already caught flame. Some in the media hit closer to the truth than others.

“Was the landslide preventable?”

Noah said nothing. Bill Calder stood now, back stiff, fists clenched at his sides.

Someone at the back called out, “Why would the suspect leave evidence?”

And that was the question, wasn’t it?

Noah glanced at McKenzie. They both knew the answer.

Because Dale wasn’t hiding.

He was leading them.

The hallwayoutside the press conference was a stark contrast to the feeding frenzy inside. The hum of vending machines buzzed faintly beneath the overhead lights. Bill Calder stood at the far end, staring through a narrow window that looked out over the parking lot. He didn’t turn when Noah approached.

For a moment, Noah said nothing.

“I know you didn’t want this.”

Bill's voice was gravel. “Does it matter?”

“It does to me.”

Bill’s eyes didn’t move. “You know what the worst part is? I used to think if I ever lost her, I’d feel it the second it happened. Like the world would just stop. But it didn’t. It kept moving. Like none of it mattered.”

Noah swallowed the knot in his throat. “She’s still alive.”

Bill turned now, slowly. The man who’d once lectured press corps and chaired environmental committees looked like someone hollowed out and filled with grief. “You saw the video?”

Noah nodded. “It looks like him.”

“And the placement of her phone?”

“Seems obvious. He placed it where that family died last year.” He hesitated. “Dale wants us to understand that this is about what happened at Wallface.”