Missing: The Body of Evidence (15 page)

The door to the cabin loomed large.
Nancy sprinted up the steps to the veranda and reached out for the door handle.
A sensation that she was moving in slow motion struck as her brain went into
survival mode. With heightened senses, the pounding on the gravel behind her
propelled her forward. Her clammy palm grasped the door handle. Her thoughts
leapt ahead to the poker by the stove, when a thud and a sharp pain in the
small of her back propelled her into the door. Nancy screamed out.

The cabin door crashed open. Nancy hit the
floorboards in the doorway, her fall broken by her outstretched hand. She lay
still, cursing that she had run instead of facing her aggressor. She lay face
down, motionless, feigning death, and fearing the worst. The weight on top of
her pinned her shoulders to the floor. Liquid hit the nape of her neck in a
dribble, followed by the rasp of a tongue. Warm foul breaths and the sound of
huffing nostrils, prepared her for the worst as the pain from what felt like
claws dug into her shoulder blades. Her eyes squeezed closed, waiting for the
bite that would severe her spine.

‘Skip, get off her.’

A yelp, followed by the weight lifting from
her shoulder, and she turned over. Nancy scrambled on all fours, like a crab
until her back hit the sofa, her eyes still bulging from the sockets. The
handyman held a Great Dane by the scruff of the neck and slipped a choker chain
over its head.

‘Sorry about that, ma’am.’

‘Jesus Christ, I thought it was a black
bear and I was dead meat.’

Nancy pushed herself off the floorboards,
still shaking from head to toe.

‘He wouldn’t hurt ya, ma’am... Honestly. I
really am sorry. As for the black bears, we’re quite a while away from the cub
season; even then if ya keeps yer distance, they ain’t a problem.’

She accepted his apology with sheer relief.
The handyman led the dog to his SUV, opened the car door and the dog jumped
onto the seat. Nancy sat on the arm of the sofa, and the handyman walked up to
the door. He took off his hat when he reached the cabin door.

‘Can I come in?’

‘Sure.’

‘Listen, I am sorry. I took him for a walk
to relieve him, and to mark out the trees in the area. Thought it would keep
the deer away with his scent, but something spooked him. He slipped his lead
and ran off through the undergrowth.’

Nancy felt each of her shoulder blades in
turn with the tips of her fingers, but there was no sign the dog’s claws had broken
her skin.

‘Forget it, no harm done.’

‘I’m all finished here now, I’ll get going.
You alone?’ He stepped toward her. ‘Do you want me to take a look at your back?’

Nancy signalled with an outstretched palm
for him to stop. She didn’t like the gleam in his eye, or that his palm was
resting on the handle of the hunting knife in the sheath on his belt. She
glanced at the poker and back at him.

‘No, my boyfriend will be back any minute.’

He hesitated and sucked on his bottom lip.

‘Okay, enjoy the rest of your stay.’ He
replaced his hat and made his way to his vehicle.

Nancy moved swiftly to the door. She closed
the door and turned the key. Fits of giggles escaped her lips and then her eyes
moistened at thoughts that the good place she was in could have ended without
ceremony.

She headed for the kitchen to prepare the
packed lunch in readiness for their walk in the woods. The tyres crunching the
gravel outside signalled the handyman was leaving, and his SUV, as it passed
the kitchen window, confirmed she was right. Nancy bagged the sandwiches,
placed them in the refrigerator and went to the bedroom for her backpack and
hiking boots. Passing the mirror in the bedroom, Nancy did a double take. Her
hair looked dishevelled. She picked up a hairbrush, leaned forward and brushed
her hair from the back and covering her eyes. A flick of her head, a final few
strokes with the brush and she sighed.

‘Damn.’

Her hair looked frizzy with static. All
attempts to flatten it were in vain as the static made her hair stand on end
every time the brush came into close contact with her hair. She gave up trying
and shaped her hair into a ponytail, fastening it at the back of her head with
a band.

Nancy turned her attention to her backpack,
picked it up and emptied the contents onto the bed. She knew she had not taken
anything out of it since she had last used it, but continued with her ritual of
checking all the contents. Everything was accounted for, from the first aid kit
to the plastic hooded rain cover. Nancy opened a side pocket and pulled out a
compass. It was not up to much, but her dad had given it to her as a child on
one of the few generous occasions she could recall, and she treasured the
compass as a keepsake. She set it down on the bed and the needle settled. Her
hand hovered over the compass ready to pick it up, when the needle began to
spin. Nancy drew her hand back and the needle settled. This caused her a few
moments of light relief as she kept touching it, causing the needle to spin and
then pulling her hand away for it to settle again.

‘Well, I’ll be? I’m full of static.’

She tired of the game and put the compass
away with the rest of the items, satisfied that she had every eventuality
covered with the contents of the backpack. Nancy picked up the backpack, her
boots and socks and headed back to the living room. She set the items she
carried on the floor next to the sofa and reached out to switch on the
television. The images on the television were visible, but with snowy flecks
running across the screen. Nancy pressed the numbers on the remote control for
the news channel and nestled into the cushions on the sofa. The weather report
was promising, with no break in the hot weather predicted, but it came with a
warning of a high alert for wildfires. The news commentator appeared on screen.

‘Following on from our report on the
bizarre accident in which the tenant of a condo’ is said to have been
incinerated in what the coroner’s office confirms is the first case of
spontaneous combustion in the Los Angeles area. The body of the janitor to the
same apartment where the spontaneous combustion took place was found yesterday,
in circumstances that appeared at first to be a suicide. Reports just in, are
saying that his death is now being treated as suspicious and a possible
homicide.

A spokesperson for the police department
said this morning, ‘There is no apparent link between the two incidents. Our
investigations into the death of Mr. Kelly are ongoing.’ Other than that
statement, they offered ‘No comment.’ And moving on...’

Nancy cursed inwardly at having switched on
the television. Both cases had been almost at the furthest point of her mind
until she had heard the news report. Now, the cases were at the forefront of
her mind once again.

The sound coming from the speakers
distorted. Nancy climbed off the sofa, walked over to the television and banged
on the casing, hoping it would somehow fix the problem. Her action only made
things worse as the picture gained a purple patch in one corner and the sound
disappeared.

Purple patch? What was it the tech guy
said... positor?
She ran her fingers over the
purple patch on the screen. An energy shock ran up her arm. She jumped back and
let out a scream.
Damn static.
Nancy reached behind the television and
pulled the plug out of the socket. Loud thumping on the door to the cabin
caused her to snap a look in the direction of the ruckus and she caught glimpse
of a face at the side window.

The clock on the cabin wall displayed
the time at eleven-thirty-five. Nancy was not expecting Kyle to arrive back
from his fishing expedition for at least another hour. She stared at the shadow
though the curtains.

‘Kyle, is that you?’

She edged to the small window at the side of
the door, but could not see who was outside. The handle moved and someone
shouldered the door.

‘Yeah, it’s me. Damn door’s stuck.’

Tension washed from her body and she
sighed. Nancy turned the key in the lock and stood back in time for the door to
burst open. Kyle stumbled, trying his best to keep his balance. She reached out
and steadied him, as he tripped on the threshold, and he was about to land head
first on the floor.

‘Sorry, I locked the door. You’re back
early?’

‘The fish weren’t biting, and besides, I
was missing you. Why lock the door?’

‘If you were a woman you wouldn’t ask,
you’d know.’

Nancy relayed all the details of her
encounter with the dog and the handyman.

‘That’s funny, because all the while I was
at the lakeside; it was like someone was watching me. Maybe it was the dog and
the handyman. I kept hearing a rustling sound, but no one called out the name
of a dog. I thought I was going mad at one time. I was sure I heard a camera
whirring sound.’

‘What a wuss. That’s why you’re back early
isn’t it?’ She poked a finger repeatedly in his chest. Nancy only meant to
tease him, but his expression, together with a flush of his cheeks, gave away a
moment of truth.

‘What, with a 9 mil in my backpack? Don’t
be silly.’

‘Whatever.’

Kyle took off his backpack and sat on the
sofa. Nancy walked over and stood in front of him.

‘You’re not going to like this. A
television newscaster has reported that Kelly may not have committed suicide.’

‘Damn, why do they do that? If it is a
homicide, it gives whoever tried to make it look like a suicide a chance to be
long gone. Did they mention the shorthand note?’

‘No.’

‘Well, that’s a blessing.’

‘It still could be a suicide. I’ve been
thinking.’ Nancy kneeled on the rug in front of him and placed her hands on his
knees. ‘What if having his son placed in the mental hospital messed him up? Say
he stole the car, or borrowed it from whoever was following me. Alternatively,
maybe it was Kelly who followed me, who knows? Then he went to get some cans to
drown his sorrows. He got out of the car to have a drink. Then, Kelly could’ve
realized his drinking prevented him from looking after his son. After that, he
poured out two of the cans, while working his mind into a frenzy of remorse and
got in the car before he could pour the rest away and then blew his brains out.’

Kyle clapped his hands.

‘Very good, Detective Roberts. I’d really
like to think it’s what happened and it
was
Kelly following you. It
would be one less thing to worry about. But as it is, I’ll err on the side of
caution and not let you out of my sight until we know for sure.’

‘You mean, like leaving me here and going
fishing?’ Nancy laughed and levered her hands on his knees to stand. A thought
struck her and she could not stop the thought translating to the words escaping
her lips.

‘Is that why you want us living together?’

Kyle looked flustered.

‘No, it’s not the reason. I... ‘

He stopped short of what she wanted to
hear. She was too far in to let go and wanted a definitive answer while he was
sober. She knew how she felt about Kyle, but she wanted to know how he felt
toward her. Moving in together for companionship and sex was one thing, but to
Nancy, she had worked out that for her to make a life changing career move it
had to be for more than just time running out for the both of them.

‘Go on. What
is
the reason then?’
She was sure she had him nibbling like one of his fishes. Now she wanted him to
take the bait to be certain she had him well and truly snagged.

‘Because, you know.’

Kyle pushed with his hands on the sofa
cushions, stood in front of her and placed his arms around his waist. A
churlish expression spread across his face, as if she had caught him in a prank
and she was asking him to confess.

‘What do I know?’

Nancy couldn’t help but giggle at seeing
him squirm. She playfully pushed him back onto the sofa, landing on top of him
and they smothered each other with a lingering kiss. They broke apart. Kyle had
a serious expression and gazed into her eyes.

‘I’ll tell you tonight, promise. Now
doesn’t seem right.’

‘Tonight? I’m intrigued.’ She decided to
give him some slack, knowing it was just as difficult for her to come out with
how she felt. Nancy climbed off him. ‘Okay, tonight it is. That gives you all
afternoon to think about it.’

‘It’s not that. I just need you to trust
me. Now are we going for that walk?’

‘Sure. Headache’s gone and I’ve packed
sandwiches.’

Kyle playfully rapped her on the butt.

‘What are you waiting for, let’s go.’

Nancy changed to her hiking boots, packed
the sandwiches and placed a water bottle in her backpack. Kyle was already on
the veranda when she locked the door.

‘Which way?’ Kyle asked.

Nancy pointed to a pine-covered mountain
beyond the creek below. Kyle gulped.

‘What, all the way to the top?’

‘See that bare cliff face? If we head for
the cliff, there’s a mountain spring forming a waterfall and a small lagoon. We
can skinny dip in the lagoon if we’re alone. The views are fantastic. Besides,
once we cross the creek below, it’s dense woodland and we can have shade from
the sun.’

Nancy linked his arm and the set off down
the track toward the creek.

***

The day had been
exhilarating for Nancy. She felt closer to Kyle than anyone else she had ever
met. Looking back at Kyle as they neared the cabin, she was not sure if he felt
half as exhilarated, more she thought; the correct description in his case was exhausted.
Kyle laboured up the hillside using a fallen tree branch as a crutch. Nancy
reached the veranda, and with arms akimbo, she called out.

‘Come on, slow poke.’

He finally made it to the veranda, dropped
his backpack and collapsed his behind onto the rocking chair.

‘Damn, if I’m not ready for a shower and
sleep.’

‘Not on your life, Sunshine. You’ve got
something to tell me, right?’

‘Don’t worry. A promise is a promise. But I
really do need a few hours of sleep first and my legs need to recover, they keep
cramping.’

‘Okay, it’ll be dark soon. You take a
shower first and climb into bed. I’ll wake you in a few hours.’

He looked like a mess as she unlocked the
door and Kyle hobbled into the cabin. In the kitchen, Nancy made a coffee,
returned to the living room and read a magazine. The time was approaching
eight-fifteen; some twenty minutes after Kyle had retired. There was no sound
coming from the bedroom as she crept though the open door and tiptoed to the
side of the bed. Kyle was asleep on the top of the covers and wearing his
boxers. She had an overwhelming urge to climb on the bed beside him, but the odour
of her day’s toil, brought her to her senses.

Taking the lingerie Kyle had bought her, a
towel from the bedside drawer and her dressing gown, she walked quietly out of
the room to the bedroom next door for a shower. The big hurdle was over with in
Nancy’s mind. Now, she thought, she just needed them both to cross the
finishing line, for her to know she was making the right decision. Nancy did a
twirl facing the mirror in the lingerie Kyle had bought her. Taking her perfume
from her purse, she dabbed it behind each ear, and for the final touches, she
applied her lipstick. She now thought she had done everything in her power to
overcome his shyness at telling her how he felt, and the rest was down to the
will of God and a little scene setting.

Nancy put on her dressing gown, tied the
belt and headed for the living room. The clock on the wall wasn’t moving fast
enough. The notion entered her head that she should just come out with it, and
say; ‘Listen, I love you, do you love me and want to spend the rest of your
life with me?’ But there again, she thought, she had managed to go through life
by avoiding the subject with her other partners, and her only other experience,
probably imagined, was of a faint memory of her mother telling her she loved
her. On second thought, she decided it had to come from him naturally and could
not be contrived, or dealt with as a matter of fact, with a bible in one hand
and the other saluting, while reciting: ‘I do solemnly declare that I tell the
truth and nothing but the truth.’ A picture flashed through her mind of her
giving him a polygraph test, which made her snicker. At the end of the day, she
knew it was all down to trust and to surrender to it.

After reading a few more magazines, Nancy
busied herself making nibbles to eat and opened a bottle of wine. She set out
the candles, lit them and scattered the cushions from the sofa on the rug. With
the time at nine-forty five, she could wait no longer. Nancy turned on the
portable CD player she had brought and loaded a compilation of R&B love
songs. There was no need to wake Kyle as he walked through the hall door,
having put on his jeans and a T-shirt.

‘Hi, Babe. Like the music.’ He walked over,
stooped and gave her a kiss on the cheek. ‘Hmm, smells good.’

He sat down beside her.

‘How do your legs feel?’

‘I’ll live, but I think I need to book a
few sessions at the gym.’

‘Did you have a good sleep?’

‘Not really, I’ve been thinking about what
to say.’

Thinking?

‘Listen, before I say what
I
want to say, I first of all need to tell you something about my past that may
change your mind about this whole living together thing.’

What?
Nancy
sat cross-legged on the rug, the warm feeling she had turned to a cold shock.
She put her fingers to her lips in alarm. This was not how it was supposed to
play out.

Kyle turned his head away from her and
sniffed.

‘Can you smell something?’

Nancy could not smell, or feel anything
from the shock of what the revelation may be. Kyle jumped up and darted to the
window. Nancy could see an unusual glow through the window.

Kyle turned to her. ‘Fire! There’s a damn
wildfire outside.’