Page 1 of The Catcher (High Peaks Murder, Mystery and Crime Thrillers #5)

T he forest held secrets waiting to be uncovered.

As the autumn breeze carried the scent of pine and decay, the couple made their way through the High Peaks Wilderness Area. The canopy of leaves above cast dappled shadows on the forest floor, and vibrant hues of red and gold painted the landscape in a kaleidoscope of fall colors.

Sam Colson, a tall and muscular young man with tousled brown hair and rugged features, led the way.

He wore a plaid flannel shirt, faded jeans, and sturdy hiking boots.

Not far behind, Isabella Peterson tried to keep up.

She was petite and had long chestnut curls that cascaded over her shoulders like a waterfall.

She wore a fleece jacket, leggings, and hiking boots that day.

“Slow down. I’m not as fast as you,” Isabella said, huffing and puffing.

He stopped on the trail, taking in the beauty of the wilderness. Both of their eyes were alight with excitement, though for different reasons.

Isabella put her hands on her knees for a second to catch her breath. “I hope it isn’t much further. I don’t like the look of those gray clouds rolling in. I forgot to bring my rain jacket.”

Sam took out his phone and opened the Geocaching app to check the navigation. “According to the GPS coordinates, it should be right up here,” Sam said, his voice filled with excitement.

Isabella nodded, her curiosity growing as they neared the destination. “How does this work, anyway?” she asked, gesturing to Sam’s phone.

Sam grinned,tapping on the screen. “It’s pretty simple.

The app uses GPS technology to pinpoint the location of geocaches.

Think of them as hidden containers. We’re told the difficulty level, terrain, size of the cache, and perhaps a hint, and then we follow the navigation to find the general location.

If found, we log it and scratch it off the list. That is the most common one, or what they would call a traditional geocache. ”

“There are others?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “There are about twenty types: traditional, multi-cache, puzzle, earth cache, letterbox hybrid…”

“Hybrid?”

“Look, don’t worry about it.”

Isabella watched with fascination as Sam manipulated the screen, displaying a map with a blinking marker indicating their current location. “And so people just hide these in the wilderness for others to find?” she asked.

“You got it,” Sam replied, his eyes alight with enthusiasm. “It’s all part of the adventure. Think of it as a bit like a game, a sport, a hobby, or an art. You never know what you’ll find or where you’ll end up. That’s what makes geocaching so exciting.”

As they continued their hike, Sam kept his phone in hand, periodically checking the screen for updates. “Not far now,” he said, pointing ahead to a cluster of trees.

He knew exactly where it was but didn’t want to give it away too soon.

With renewed anticipation, they quickened their pace.

As they ventured deeper into the forest, Sam’s heart pounded. His nerves were on edge as he replayed in his mind what he would say.

What if she said no?

He had brought Isabella out there in the hopes of stealing a moment alone, away from prying eyes and the distractions of everyday life so he could pop the big question.

He’d already given the matter some due diligence and spoken with Isabella’s father to get his blessing.

He’d even shown him the ring to get his approval.

Her father had told him, whatever you do, make it memorable.

Oh, it would be memorable.

Sam glanced back at her, a mischievous smile playing on his lips.

Forget getting down on one knee in a restaurant or traveling to an exotic vacation spot.

No, he wanted to make it special. He took Isabella’s love for the outdoors and his curiosity for mystery and combined the two.

While he was nervous about popping the question, his concern was the ring.

It was expensive. He’d had to sell his motorcycle to pay off his credit card.

He certainly didn’t want it to be found by someone else.

Would it still be there? He’d placed it in a geocache container on the previous afternoon.

“Sam, this better not be some plan of yours to get laid.”

He laughed but said nothing even though he’d brought a blanket and condoms. He had no idea what wave of emotions would overcome Isabella. Hopefully, she’d throw herself at him, and wham, bam, thank you, ma’am, it would turn out to be one hell of a day.

Except by the tone of her voice, that may have been too optimistic.

“You know what I told you,” she said.

“Yeah, yeah. You’re saving yourself for marriage. You want it to be special. I got it.”

“Sam.”

“I’m on the same page.”

Inwardly he groaned, pondering why any deity in the sky gave two craps about what humans did.

It was akin to humans worrying about ants.

Still, according to her family —yep —the big cheese did.

Isabella came from a religious background, church every Sunday; him, not so much.

His parents were all about free love, sowing your wild oats, and living life in the now because it was too short.

“Honestly, I don’t get the appeal of this. I like hiking, skiing, and whatever, but trekking through the woods…it’s just so… ”

“You’re hiking.”

“Off the beaten path.”

“What is that quote by Robert Frost you keep telling me? Something about two roads diverging in the woods.”

“But we’re not on a road.”

“Isn’t that the point of adventure?”

“Maybe, but I don’t want to end up a missing person or soaking wet,” she said, looking up at the gloomy fall sky. That was her, Ms. Adventure when it was convenient. Everyone online was making out they were adventurous. Half of them talked the big game, but when push came to shove, they bailed.

He laughed. “You’re not seeing the bigger picture, Isabella,” Sam said, gesturing to the dense forest around them.

“It’s a treasure hunt, and not far from here, hidden in these woods, treasures are waiting to be found.

It encourages people to get out. Besides, they’re everywhere, just waiting for someone to discover them.

Take a look,” he said, lifting his phone to show her a map. “All those dots represent a geocache.”

“That’s a lot.” Isabella wrinkled her nose, a hint of skepticism in her voice. “I don’t know, Sam. The idea of wandering around in the middle of nowhere, searching for hidden containers, sounds like a time waster, let alone a disaster waiting to happen.”

Sam chuckled, shaking his head. “That’s the thrill of it! It takes you off the beaten path to places you might never have explored. And the best part is, you can find them all over the world. It’s one massive global treasure hunt. ”

Isabella raised an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued despite her reservations. “All over the world?”

Sam nodded. “From bustling cities to remote wilderness areas like this, geocaches can be found just about anywhere. It’s like a secret world waiting to be discovered.”

Isabella couldn’t help but smile at Sam’s enthusiasm. “Well, I suppose it does sound kind of intriguing. I hope it’s worth it. We’ve been hiking for two hours, and I’m getting hungry.”

“That’s why I brought food.” Sam grinned, taking her hand in his. “Trust me, Isabella. Once you see it, you’ll be hooked. And who knows? Maybe we’ll stumble upon a hidden gem in these woods.”

He stopped to wipe sweat from his brow. Although the temperature had dropped, it was easy to work up a sweat out there.

“Are we close?”

Sam glanced down. “According to the GPS coordinates, it should be right up here,” Sam said.

“Does that give you the exact position of it?” she asked, gesturing to Sam’s phone.

Sam grinned, tapping on the screen. “Not exactly. That would take the fun out of it. This app uses GPS technology to pinpoint the rough location of the geocache. We still have to find it once we arrive.”

“And what if nothing is there?” she asked.

“There will be,” Sam replied, his eyes alight with enthusiasm. “Relax.”

They pushed through the undergrowth, the anticipation mounting with each step. And then, suddenly, Sam stopped.

“Are we here?”

He nodded, his eyes surveying the area.

There, nestled among the roots of an ancient tree, was a container. It was covered in moss and camouflaged to blend in with its surroundings. Sam knew where it was, but he was curious to see if she could spot it.

“Do you see it?” he asked.

She squinted. “What am I looking for?”

“A camouflaged container.”

“Nope.”

“Look again.”

She tried but couldn’t spot it. Geocaches were hidden in all manner of places. Some were under rocks, in trees, or on posts. The number of ways people came up with disguising them was crazy.

Sam’s trained eye honed in on it immediately.

“Here!” he exclaimed as he pointed to a tree knot. “Go on, pull it out,” he said.

Isabella pulled at the knot with both hands, finding herself holding a large container. Inside, something caught her eye — a small, elegant ring box nestled among the items. She glanced up at Sam, curiosity mingling with surprise.

“What is it?” she asked.

Sam screwed up his face. “Um.” He couldn’t remember placing some of those items inside. He ignored them, just glad the ring box was still there and figuring someone had left them behind — a common action by those geocaching. “Open it,” Sam said.

Isabella’s heart fluttered as she popped the top open, revealing a sparkling ring. Sam breathed a sigh of relief. Isabella’s breath caught in her throat as she looked back at Sam, now down on one knee.

But before Sam could utter a word, a foul odor wafted through the air, assaulting their senses and interrupting the moment.

Isabella wrinkled her nose, her joy evaporating as the stench grew stronger. “What’s that smell?” she asked.

Sam’s brow furrowed as he glanced around. “I’m not sure,” he replied, trying to mask his concern with a casual tone. “Probably just something in the woods.”

He tried to focus, but as he reached for Isabella’s hand, preparing to propose, the odor intensified, filling the clearing with its putrid stench.

Isabella’s stomach churned with unease as she backed away, her eyes darting nervously around the forest. “No, Sam, something’s not right,” she said, her voice trembling with apprehension. “That stinks.”

Sam’s heart sank as he realized the odor had overshadowed the special moment.

As they turned their attention to the surrounding woods, the foul smell intensified, causing them to recoil in disgust. Isabella wrinkled her nose, her hand flying to cover her mouth as she walked around, searching for the source.

“Shit. What is that smell?” Isabella asked again.

Sam shrugged, his eyes narrowing as he peered into the dense undergrowth. “Probably just a dead animal or something,” he replied, trying to sound nonchalant. But as he rounded a tree, his eyes widened in horror as they stumbled upon a gruesome sight over the edge of a cliff.

Down below, a human body was motionless in the ravine, hands tied to a tree branch. The teen boy’s pale skin was mottled with bruises. Blood stained the ground nearby.

Isabella gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in shock. “Shit,” she whispered, her voice trembling with fear.

Sam’s heart hammered as he took in the gruesome scene. He reached for her hand, his fingers trembling as he pulled her close. “We need to call the cops. Let’s get out of here,” he said, his voice hoarse with fear as he glassed their surroundings.