I go, Mark had said.
Jack went on. âLucas says you gave Mark a knife like it.â
âYes.â
âIf it was the one you gave Mark, could you identify it?â
âYes, I could.â
âCome down to the station then, all right? And try not to let anyone follow you.â
âRight,â she said. âIâll get that order to you as quick as I can.â
Chapter Five
H eather studied the knife Jack had handed her. It was sealed inside a plastic bag. She looked for the tiny chipped place and found it.
âItâs the knife I gave Mark.â
âAre you sure?â Jack asked.
She nodded. âThereâs a tiny chip missing right here, see?â She held up the bag and pointed. âRight where the little tweezers fit in. Jason Lee had that knife for years, and that little chip was always broken off.â Heather glanced from Jack to Lucas, who was sitting, very silent, in a corner of the small interviewing room. âWhere did you find it?â
âIn a big drainpipe,â Jack said. âAt the base of Sweetbriar Summit. Over in Sweetbriar Park.â
â When did you find it?â
âAbout an hour ago.â
âDid you find anything else?â
Jack shrugged. âA few footprints and not much else. Itâs been a dry year, so we couldnât follow his trail much more than a few hundred yards from the pipe. Our guess is he slept there.â
âIn the pipe?â
âRight. For that first night after he left your placeâor maybe even last night. Maybe both. We canât say. Weâll keep a close watch on the area now, though, in case he returns to it.â
Heather cast about for any small thread of hope to hang on to. âSo that means he didnât take off hitchhiking. That heâs somewhere reasonably nearby, at least.â
âNot necessarily,â Jack said. âYou say he owned that knife. And we believe the footprints we found were his. Theyâre the right size and the right sole patternâwe think. So the chances are he was in that pipe at some point. And thatâs all we can say right now.â
Heather stared at the knife in her hands. âIt isnât much, Uncle Jack.â
âI know, Sunshine.â Jackâs voice was gentler. âBelieve me. I know.â
She looked up. âWhich way did his footprints lead?â
âAround the base of Sweetbriar Summit in a southerly direction, more or less parallel with the river. Weâre following up on them. But so far...â
âItâs okay. I get the picture.â Heather held up the bag that contained the knife. âI take it you want to keep this?â
âFor a while,â Jack said.
In the corner, Lucas shifted in his chair. It seemed to Heather that she could feel the frustration and despair radiating off him.
âOkay.â Heather handed the knife to Jack and got up from the plastic chair her uncle had offered her when she first came in. âIs that all, then?â
âYeah. Thanks, Sunshine,â Jack said.
âAnytime. You know that.â She turned for the door that lead to the reception area of the small sheriffâs station. But before she went out, she stopped.
She sought Lucasâs eyes. âWalk out with me.â
Without a word he rose to his feet and moved to her side, reaching around in front of her to open the door. She went out ahead of him. When they passed through the reception area, she waved a friendly greeting at Don Brown, who was manning the front desk.
She didnât turn to Lucas until they were out the door and standing on the stationâs steps. And when she did stop to face him, she had to stifle a gasp. In the bright light of day, he looked terrible, his skin gray, his eyes lined and haunted.
âWhat do you want, Heather?â
Her heart went out to him. She wanted to help him, to alleviate his suffering somehow. But all she could think of to offer was the
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