Buried Deception (On the Edge) by Amanda McKinney
Author:Amanda McKinney [McKinney, Amanda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Montlake
Published: 2022-09-19T16:00:00+00:00
Chapter Twenty-One
Mia
Easton crouched down, studying the dirt. âSee, here?â
With his finger, he outlined the almost invisible print but didnât touch it.
âThis is the corner of the heel, a boot, and you can see the tip of the toe here. And a bit of the tread here, but not quite enough to gauge the type of boot . . .â His voice trailed off before he continued, as if talking to himself now, working out the details in his head. âBut Iâd say the shoe size is about a nine.â
âA woman?â
âMaybe.â
âCullen is kind of a short guy. Do you think it could be his? I think thatâs close to the shoe size he would wear.â
âYes, itâs his shoe size.â
âHow do you know?â
âAssumption, based on the height from his most recent driverâs license photo that I had McNamara send me before we left.â Easton stood. âStay there. Donât move.â
After marking the print with a small yellow flag, he then carefully stepped away and began scanning the forest floor from left to right. He paused, taking note of something else.
âWhat is it? What do you see?â
Carefully, he stepped through the brush and knelt down, becoming almost invisible in the tall grass. âSomeone was here too.â
âSomeone else?â
âNot sure. Do you know if Cullen dips?â
âDips what?â
âTobacco.â
âNo.â
âNo, you donât know, or no, he doesnât?â
âNo, he doesnât. Iâm sure of it. We discuss things like that, physical addictions, extensively in my sessions. He drinks; thatâs it. Can I come over?â
âNo, stay there. Hang on.â
Easton stood, pulled a small plastic bag out of his backpack, then knelt again. After a minute, he stood and made his way back to me.
âDid you just bag up the tobacco?â
âCome on.â
âWhy?â
âWhy what?â Easton breezed past me.
âWhy did you take the dip?â
âThis way.â He reached back, his palm open, and my hand slid into his. It felt more intimate than it should have, considering we were tracking a missing person. Carefully, he guided me around the track. âStay right behind me, close.â
âWhatâs the significance of the dip? Itâs so annoying when you donât answer my questions.â
âItâs significant because it indicates someone was with or close to Cullen Nichols before he was reported missing. Assuming the footprint is his.â
âWhat are you going to do with it?â
âNot sure yet. For now, focus on these tracks.â
He held on to my hand, leading me through the brush, following a trail that I couldnât see. The trees closed in around us, blocking the waning light. I didnât care, though. I was preoccupied by the feel of my hand in his and why he wasnât dropping it . . . and how much I didnât want him to.
âSo is this how you track?â I asked quietly at his back, not wanting to break his intense concentration.
âTechnically, yes. The easy way. Finding a print is like hitting gold for a tracker.â He paused, then knelt in front of another print that I didnât see. âYesâthe tracks belong to a man.â
I swatted at a bug zipping around my face, then bent forward, putting my hands on my knees as I studied the overturned earth.
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