Chapter 12

TWELVE

Warm inside from seeing Tauri happy and contented at Wolfe's house, Kane ignored the icy chill biting into his exposed flesh and gripped the handlebars of the snowmobile. His fleece-lined leather gloves protected his hands most times, but in these temperatures his fingers were going numb. At least his back was warm with Jenna snuggled close behind him. She seemed fine, recovering faster this morning and eating breakfast. He'd packed a large carrier with sandwiches and filled all the Thermos flasks with hot coffee and chocolate, then tossed in a box of energy bars just in case. He'd even packed a change of coats, jeans, gloves, and boots for both of them. He'd loaded his covered trailer with everything he could think they might need. The weather could turn again in a second. Right now, the snow was light, but the weather report mentioned another blizzard on the way and temperatures dropping again. Nothing could prepare him for the extreme and unexpected changes in climate. He'd just take every precaution. If they became stuck out overnight, their chances of making it through the night were minimal. Up ahead, Blackhawk and his friends led the way through trails they'd discovered, pointing out the cabins they'd found along the way. At each one they stopped, hammered on the doors, and looked around for any sign of habitation. Most people would have a fire going all winter long, so the lack of smoke told them no one was at home.

When they arrived at the location of the body, Wolfe dismounted along with Emily, and they walked around searching the ground for clues. Kane walked to his side with Jenna, and they waited for him to examine the victim. "Is it the same MO?"

"It sure looks the same." Jenna moved closer. "Why do you figure he cuts off their hair like that?"

"I examined the bodies of the other women this morning. They'll still take a long time to thaw but there are no apparent injuries. They've had extensive cosmetic surgery: face and breasts, as far as I could tell. Teeth are porcelain caps on both victims. The nails are false too. These women were high-maintenance. From the amount of hair at the scene, both had long hair, neither appear to be natural color, but I'll confirm once I get back to the lab." Wolfe frowned at them. "I figure he tied them to the tree alive and left them to freeze to death. Talk to Jo Wells. What's happened here is significant. The extensive cosmetic alterations, being naked, with the hair hacked off and left to die means something, and she'll know." He sighed. "We'll photograph the scene and get her bagged and tagged before the wildlife do any more damage. It looks as if something nibbled at her ankles, is all."

Kane took in the figure before him. The usual smell of death was missing. The body must have frozen in a short time. Death would have come quickly in such low temperatures, but would it have been painful? He turned to Wolfe. "She looks like a sad statue. Did she suffer?"

"At first, the constriction of the blood vessels due to the sudden drop in body temperature causes pain, but as the process continues the body becomes numb, organs start to shut down, and at the end, no, there's no pain." Wolfe met his gaze. "My fingers are numb and painful, so I guess yours are as well. It's much the same but it gets worse before it gets better."

"She looks like the others, as if she can't believe what's happened to her." Jenna shook her head slowly. "Why would a woman come out here in the middle of winter with someone she just met?" She flicked a glance at Kane. "It would be very difficult to bring someone here against their will on a snowmobile or dogsled."

"Yeah, it would." Wolfe pulled a scarf back over his nose and slapped his hands together. "When I do the blood work, I'll check for drugs, but she was awake and alive when her hair was cut off with a knife or she wouldn't have bled."

Taking in the crime scene, Kane bent and peered at the shredded garments. "The damage to the clothes is the same as the others too." He straightened. "This hasn't been done by a critter, these were cut from the body first. See how the hair is scattered on top? The eye makeup on all three was running down their faces as if they were crying when he was doing this to them. I figure they knew him."

"I agree and I'll talk to Jo but, right now our main concern is finding Julie. By all means help Wolfe get the body bagged, but then we keep searching." Jenna frowned. "Blackhawk mentioned one of the trails is blocked by an avalanche. It's getting dangerous to be moving alongside the mountain looking for cabins. I wish we could use the drones but they're useless in this visibility."

"I'm done taking pictures." Rio pushed his phone back inside his pocket and pulled on a glove. "Man, my fingers are frozen solid."

"We'll get her into a bag and onto the trailer." Wolfe bent to cut through the gaffer tape. "Take the weight. I don't want her hitting the ground. Rowley, get ready to assist. We lift and carry her to the open bag."

Taking in Rowley's troubled expression, he shook his head. Rowley had a weak stomach when it came to homicide and the idea of him spewing at a crime scene wasn't an option. "I can manage alone. The less people contaminating her body the better." He looked at Rowley. "Scoop up the clothes and hair and bag them. You know the drill for collecting evidence. Note the time and weather on the label as well as the date."

"Copy." Rowley let out a stream of steam as he exhaled. "Thanks." He collected evidence bags and a pen from the back of Wolfe's trailer.

With little effort, Kane carried the slight figure to the body bag. It was fortunate the victim stood upright. He couldn't imagine the trouble they'd have fitting a frozen bent figure inside the bag. He looked at Emily, as she assisted Rowley. She concealed worry and frustration like her father. He'd very rarely seen Wolfe show emotion unless it concerned his daughters, yet at the moment he was eerily calm, as if finding her dead was inevitable, and Emily was echoing his mood. He turned as Jenna went to Wolfe's side.

"We'll find her." Jenna squeezed Wolfe's arm. "Someone came and helped her. She's probably in front of a warm fire recuperating and doesn't have a satellite phone to call you." She looked at him, her face upturned and pale against the hood of her sheepskin-lined parka. "Looking at these women, she isn't his type."

"This is my concern." Wolfe frowned. "She is slightly built like these women, and has natural beauty, long blonde hair, and long dark eyelashes. Her lips are naturally full like her mother's. She's my daughter but I'm not blind. I know her looks are what these woman pay a surgeon to achieve. It's even more so with Emily. To the animal who tortured these women, my daughters would be like magnets."

Kane rested one hand on his shoulder. "Julie would have been bundled up, right? She would have been wearing so many clothes and a scarf. No one would have seen her face. Look at Jenna and Emily, only their stature would make someone assume they are women. Whoever rescued her would have found a bundled-up woman." He blew out a breath filling the air around them with steam. "We'll keep searching until we find her. She must be out here somewhere. If not, she's in town. They might have taken her to the hospital. If she was unconscious with no ID on her, they're not going to call you, are they?"

"Em, call the hospital and make sure if anyone fitting your sister's description is brought in, they're to call me immediately." Wolfe climbed onto his snowmobile. "Let's keep searching."

"I'll call Maggie and ask her to contact the medical centers in town in case they've seen her." Jenna pulled out her phone and made the call.

The next moment, Blackhawk came hurtling toward them. "We can smell smoke. There must be a cabin ahead. Follow me."