at her feet as she made it over the hillcrest. Ellie paused, stooping to see what it was.
A daffodil.
The small yellow flower petal was damp and wilted. Another fluttered to her feet, followed by another. The soft swishing of the creek against the rocks echoed in the silence, and she peered through the fog towards the water. On the bank beneath a live oak, she thought she saw something… or someone.
Curious, she pulled her flashlight and shined it across the foliage and ground as she maneuvered her way toward the sea of yellow ahead.
As she neared, she had the uncanny sense that she wasn’t alone. Pivoting, she scanned the woods. The sound of insects, frogs croaking, and the falling rain filled the muggy air.
Then she realized she was right––she wasn’t alone.
Eight
For a moment, Ellie simply stood, staring at the sight with a sickening, hollow feeling in her gut. She’d set out on the trail for peace, to decide what to do with her life, and to forget the grisly memory of the children’s graves imprinted in her mind.
And now a young woman had been left here. It was no accident either. Judging from the deep slash on her throat, she’d been murdered. Even more disturbing was the way she was posed, laid out on the bed of flowers with a vine full of thorns wrapped around her neck, her hands in prayer.
Rocking back on her heels, Ellie’s instincts kicked in, and she pulled her weapon from her pack and turned in a wide arc, searching the area. Leaves rustled, and tree limbs dipped and swayed from the force of the wind. Creek water gurgled over the rocks, spilling onto the bank, flooding caused by the recent snowstorm.
Slowly inching closer to the scene, she kept her gun at the ready, pivoting and scanning her surroundings and the woods beyond. Even with the sound of a coyote howling and rain drizzling, an eerie quiet enveloped the area, and the wind brought the pungent blend of wildflowers and brutal death.
She had to call this in. Get the Medical Examiner and an Evidence Response Team out here ASAP.
She had to get back to work, even if she wasn’t ready.
Heart hammering, she radioed Cord. As a ranger with Search and Rescue, he worked odd hours and might not be on duty now. Hell, he might not even answer. During the last case, Derrick––FBI Special Agent Fox––had practically accused Cord of being involved in the Ghost’s murders. When Ellie had asked Cord about it, he’d shut down, hurt that she hadn’t trusted him.
But he was damn good at his job, and even if he was pissed at her, if someone needed help, he’d come.
Static crackled and popped, the wind rattling the airwaves. Finally, his voice echoed back.
“Ranger McClain, SAR.”
“Cord, it’s Ellie—”
“I’m working,” he said in a clipped tone.
“Good. I need you to come to the Reflection Pond.”
After an awkward pause, he heaved a breath. “What’s wrong?”
Her chest clenched at the sight of the jagged red slash across the woman’s neck. “I… found a body.”
A hushed silence fell between them, the coyote’s howl growing more eerie in the quiet.
“Did you hear me?” Ellie asked.
“Yeah,” he muttered. “A hiker? Accident?”
“No accident,” Ellie said. “It’s a woman, Cord. She’s been murdered.” Her detective’s brain finally overrode her emotions. “Request an ERT, the ME and a recovery team. We need to process her body and look for evidence before the rain kicks in again.”
“Copy that,” Cord said in a husky voice. “Did you see the killer?”
The concern in his voice gave her hope that he didn’t totally hate her. “I don’t see anyone,” she replied. “Judging from the scene, she’s probably been here a while.”
Already petals had come loose and were floating in the pond, wilted and turning brown.
The radio crackled. “I’ll call it in and be there ASAP.”
Plunged into silence, Ellie pulled her camera from her pack, snapping pictures of the ground near the mound of flowers, the brush, and the trees that stood with their branches pointing toward the heavens, like natural grave markers.
Treading carefully, she aimed her flashlight at the ground in search of footprints or other forensics, but if the killer had left prints, the rain had already washed them away.
With so many hikers en route now, it would be hard to identify a specific print. Still, if forensics found one near the body, they’d certainly try.
Careful not to contaminate the scene, she inched closer to the body. The woman looked to be in her mid-twenties.