Page 5 of The Whispering Girls (Detective Katie Scott #14)
FOUR
Katie had just finished unpacking her things and cleaning up the kitchen. She kept trying to put the homicide out of her mind. It wasn’t her case and it wasn’t her responsibility.
Cisco followed her around the cabin, whining once in a while. He wanted to make sure she didn’t forget about him.
Though Katie initially didn’t want to get involved in the homicide investigation, it was, after all, the type of case that was her expertise.
Maybe she could just check out some things as she wrote her report.
She sat down at the kitchen table with her laptop computer and quickly powered it up, deciding to grab another cup of coffee before sitting down again.
The crime scene buzzed through her mind.
Cisco whined once more and then curled up at Katie’s feet.
In order not to forget what happened, Katie typed up her report from the time TJ knocked on her door to the time the police arrived. She found an email for the police department and sent her report and contact information .
She then began checking out the town of Echo Forest. She didn’t know exactly what she was looking for but wanted to try to get a feel and understanding of the area.
She also checked out the website for the police department.
She didn’t find much, but it did refer to Chief Beryl Cooper and his bio stated that he had grown up in Colorado working as a police sergeant for Colorado Springs Police Department.
He then moved to Echo Forest five years ago after being appointed to the position of chief.
Katie continued to scroll through the site, but it was mostly highlights and not much substance. She let out a sigh. Maybe she’d have better luck with the so-called Woodsman.
Typing in this name, and ignoring all the results about hunters and lumbermen, she found a ton of information including movies, books, and various blog articles that were based on a type of mythical monster that stalked people, namely children, in forests.
There were artistic renderings and people’s accounts, which seemed to cross over into other countries.
She then narrowed the search to the specific area and across three surrounding counties.
After scrolling through several pages, she found an article from almost fifteen years ago written by local newspaper The Pine Cone that featured “the Woodsman.” There wasn’t much to the article, but it did say a woman was found dead about five miles from where Katie was staying.
The case had remained unsolved and the article suggested that something powerful had murdered her.
The commentary inferred that something in the forest had killed her—and it had then gone on to cite “the Woodsman.” The article wasn’t very helpful; it was more from the writer’s point of view.
Katie couldn’t find anything about local folklore or any evidence related to the cold case.
It was all too cumbersome to try to pinpoint what she was looking for. It frustrated her.
Katie leaned back in the chair and took a sip of coffee.
There was nothing glaring or conclusive, but she found it troubling that TJ had been so terrified of what was most certainly a well-spun tale.
It could have been stories she had heard growing up—or, though unlikely, it could be something more.
“Well, Cisco…what do you say? Should we go on a hike and check out the location of this cold case from fifteen years ago?”
Cisco immediately jumped up, wagging his tail.
She dropped the location into her phone and hoped the spotty cell signal would be available when they got there. Even if she found nothing, it would still be nice to get out for some fresh air.
Before closing her laptop, Katie decided to check out something. She typed in Jack Thomas, veterinarian, Echo Forest, California .
A simple website popped up. It showed some stock photographs of cute dogs and cats. There was an image of an older warehouse with a sign out front: “Thomas Veterinary Clinic.”
Katie put the address into her phone: 1216 Timber Road.
“C’mon, Cisco,” she said.
The jet-black dog hurried to the front door, not missing a step. He breathed heavily at the doorknob.
Katie tucked her Glock into the holster underneath her sweater and jacket—just in case.
She checked her phone and was surprised she hadn’t received a text message from her uncle—or anyone else.
She thought at least her partner, McGaven, would have checked in with her by leaving a funny message.
But her phone was quiet. She supposed everyone was giving her rest and privacy.
Katie and Cisco climbed into the Jeep. Cisco stood in the back seat behind Katie, staring straight over her shoulder. His tail wagged and every few minutes he let out a whine.
The little bit of snow that had come down earlier was now melting. The roads were completely clear and the only evidence of the previous flurries was spotted along the tree branches.
It took about ten minutes before she came to the downtown area.
She passed a couple of trucks with single drivers and one utility van.
The traffic was nonexistent compared to what she was used to in Pine Valley.
The main street was scattered with a few stores and was about a mile long with adjacent side streets where the grocery, hardware, and supply businesses were located.
She decided to stop and get some groceries just in case the weather hit harder overnight.
When Katie was back behind the wheel, her GPS told her to turn onto a gravel road and then travel farther west. The longer she drove the more rural the area became.
She had just passed the five-mile marker, which was near a hiking trail entrance.
There were no other cars parked. She wasn’t sure what she would find, if anything, but she wanted to get a sense of what had attracted the killer to use the densely wooded area to dump a body.
After making sure the Jeep was secured and locked, she and Cisco headed to the trail. Cisco trotted about five feet ahead, stopping once in a while to sniff something of interest. She tied the dog’s leather collar around her waist in case she needed it.
Katie looked at her phone, which amazingly had a signal, and which showed that she was close to the described location. But it wouldn’t give her the exact coordinates. Either way, she estimated they were near the site.
Katie slowed her pace, then stopped and surveyed the area, wondering how different the forest was from fifteen years ago.
In the article there weren’t any details about the crime scene, just that a woman had been murdered.
No name. No details of the scene. No cause of death.
No mention of any suspects and so forth.
Just that it was a cold case. The article seemed to be a mishmash of information, and most of it not informative .
The air was cold and the bitterness of it stung her face, but the wind was so slight as to be almost perfectly still. The forest area around her was quiet—too quiet.
Katie noticed that Cisco had stopped and was staring straight ahead. His body was tense, unmoving, looking with intensity at what appeared to be nothing.
Katie’s arms tingled. She thought she had heard something, but then dismissed it.
It wasn’t because of anything she saw, but rather, something she sensed.
She looked around a few minutes, but was satisfied it was a combination of the cold weather conditions and that she was surveying an area that was once a crime scene.
“Cisco…” she said.
The dog hesitated, but then turned, wagging his tail as he approached Katie.
She took another few minutes to look around.
It was definitely an overgrown area, but the walking path had been kept clear—most likely by the county for hikers.
She didn’t have anything to go on and there wasn’t anything obvious she could scrutinize and she couldn’t even identify the exact location.
Katie sighed. The clouds blocked all the daylight.
The temperature seemed to drop more, making her shiver.
Maybe it was a stupid idea, trying to fill her boring days with something she could sink her teeth into, such as a cold case.
“C’mon, Cisco.” She headed back up the trail as Cisco effortlessly trotted ahead.
That’s when she heard it…a soft whisper in the wind, “ Katie… ”
Katie spun around with her hand on her Glock, expecting to see someone, but there was no one there. She continued to take a slow three-hundred-sixty-degree scrutiny of the forest. There was nothing.
Cisco had moved close to her. She felt his warm body at the side of her left leg. His body language had changed, becoming vigilant. She took a few more minutes until she was satisfied there was no one there.
Katie took a breath and continued toward her Jeep. One thing was for sure, she had definitely heard her name. She was not imagining it.