Page 109 of The Whispering Girls

“I can read the SD card,” he said. McGaven put down his backpack, which was filled with all types of tools, ropes, and technology, retrieved his small laptop, and inserted the card into a designated slot.

They scrolled through the photos that showed the camera had been active within the last twelve hours. It was just some of the native wildlife seeking out food, but then, there it was…

“Is that…?” said Katie.

“It sure looks like Jack walking through with a long gun. Look at his stance. He’s on a mission,” said McGaven.

“Does that mean that…”

“No, it doesn’t mean that John is dead.”

“What’s the timestamp?”

“Looks like about three hours ago.”

“Where’s he going?” she said. Katie looked at the compass on her watch. Since they were heading north, then Jack was too. “We’re heading the right way. It must be toward one of those structures.”

“Let’s go.”

Katie finally felt a jolt of energy and a feeling they were going in the right direction. She kept the path straight and continued.

“How far can you be from Cisco and still open the door?” he said.

“About two miles.”

McGaven was impressed. “Wow.”

After walking for about fifteen minutes, Katie saw some interesting changes in the snow. She veered slightly to the left. “Do you see this?”

McGaven walked near her to take a look. “What is that?”

Katie knelt down. “These are footprints and, by the looks, I think there are two sets. They appear to be stepped around several times and one set had the impression of slipping.”

“You think there was a struggle maybe?” he said.

“I don’t know but it’s definitely human footprints.”

Katie and McGaven continued on their trek in the same direction as the footprints. They stayed close to the property lines and continued north.

Katie estimated they had walked almost a half mile when she started to observe the landscape change from densely wooded to more spread out with light in between the trees. She became more observant and careful.

Along the boundary divider, there was one of the drainage ditches, just like on Devin’s property. She still thought it strange. Looking back, she saw McGaven regarding it as well.

Katie decided to walk more left, but still north. It was partly cloudy, alternating between low lighting and then bright sun. She heard a strange sound. It seemed like footsteps but could be anything. It was crunching in the snow, but it wasn’t coming from them.

Katie and McGaven stayed still, both listening, trying to figure out where the noise was coming from.

The sound stopped.

Katie motioned to McGaven to back away. She was just about to retrieve her weapon when they heard a man’s voice yell.

“Show me your hands!”

FORTY-SEVEN

Sunday 1510 hours

Katie and McGaven froze. Half expecting Jack, they weren’t going to drop their weapons under any circumstance, but there was something familiar about the person’s voice.