Chapter 19

NINETEEN

The list of evidence, or lack of it, on the whiteboard concerned Jenna. Her deputies had found a few people of interest but they had nothing on the victims and no evidence or a possible motive. She turned to her deputies and waited for them to bring her up to speed.

"I have good and bad news." Rio stood and went to the whiteboard. "We all know that there are cabins littered all through the forest. Only a very few of them are owned by the Forest Service. Some of these old Forest Service dwellings have been sold over the years as the forest wardens were moved to improved premises. Others have been left as hunting cabins for people caught in the forest overnight or needing assistance. The cabins that we found near the crash site were Forestry Service cabins. There are others in the area within a mile or so that had been sold and are currently owned by people either living in town or hunters who use them for vacations. Kalo sent a list of the ones that are legitimate owners of cabins in the immediate area, but a check of the vehicle records tells us another story. There are many people, as in hundreds of people, who list their address as somewhere in Stanton Forest." He rubbed his chin.

"This is where we pulled up possible suspects. Kalo found six men who listed their address as Bear Peak, Stanton Forest. We can only assume that these are scratch-made cabins. There are another three that were part of a parcel of land that was sold and divided as a recreational area near the river. Cabins were built but the business collapsed. This was some thirty years ago. People have moved in and made improvements since. Two years ago, someone claimed three of the cabins. They went through the legal process and the entire complex now belongs to them legally. They allow the other people to live there. Some are off-the-grid survivalists."

"Do we have any names?" Kane frowned. "The whereabouts of the off-the-grid survivalists might be useful in finding Julie."

"I have a list of names of everyone living out at Bear Peak but none have an actual address as such." Rio indicated to the whiteboard. "This is where we hit the wall."

Jenna leaned forward. "How so? We must start somewhere."

"This is why we looked at the problem from a different angle." Rowley twirled a pen through his fingers. "We contacted the forest wardens and asked them to check their records for people hunting around Bear Peak during the last hunting season. Usually some of these people use the forestry hunting cabins overnight, and some book them for a short stay. So in other words, we have their details." He smiled. "I got a list of names and called as many of them as I could find. I managed to create a rough map with the location of the cabins they used for shelter during the hunting season."

Raising both eyebrows, Jenna stared at him. "I figured that they just left early each morning, hunted during the day, and left by sunset as per the rules."

"Nah, as they are not allowed to hunt between dusk and dawn, they stay at the cabins so they can leave early in the morning. Not everyone wants to go home and travel all the way back to the forest each day during hunting season. It makes sense to stay in a cabin and leave from there. They can move from one cabin to another during the course of their visit." Rowley leaned back in his chair. "Some of these cabins I didn't know existed. The problem is, we can't access any of them at the moment. When I spoke to the forest warden, he said that the current avalanches are making it difficult to move around the forest. Many of the main trails are blocked."

Pushing her hair from her face, Jenna blew out a long breath. "I don't recall so may avalanches in the past. The snow is great for Glacial Heights Ski Resort but an avalanche there would ruin everything."

"Yeah, it's caused by increased seismic activity in the area." Rio frowned and rubbed his chin. "There have been tremors all winter and they're increasing. Anywhere on the mountain in this weather is dangerous right now. The snowfall is heavier this year as well. It came late and made up for it. I know we have the snowmobiles but getting around the blocked trails is going to be murder."

"So what do you know about these guys?" Kane pointed to the whiteboard. "Why have you chosen Steven Oberg, Luke Sierra, Davis Davidson, and Dan D. Williams? The other name, John Raven, why is he underlined? Is he a prime suspect?"

"Nope, he is the guy who owns the group of cabins we mentioned earlier." Rio smiled. "I've discovered some information on him. When his name came up, I received a call from Carter. He figures he met him at one time. He goes by Johnny Raven. If it's the same guy, he's ex-military medical core, went off the grid after his entire team was wiped out in a chopper crash. He survived and left with a Purple Heart and other bravery medals. Although, as Carter said, he has no idea what mental health issues the man has now, but apparently, he kept his medical license current. He owns properties in the mountains. He did work with K-9s for a time. He spent his rehabilitation working with the dog trainers. As far as Carter is aware, he trains dogs for personal protection. He selects suitable dogs from the animal shelter and makes sure they end up in good homes. That's how he makes his living, selling dogs and doctoring the locals." He shrugged. "He must live in one of the cabins alongside the river. He could be one or two miles from the crash site. The only map we found is thirty years old from the land claim and it covers a ten-mile stretch of land from Bear Peak to Bison Hump Bridge." He drummed his fingers on the table. "Before you ask, I have no idea how people communicate with him. He doesn't have a phone or a CB radio as far as we know."

"If Carter knows him and he's not a threat, take him off the list." Kane pushed a hand through his hair. "We have enough people to chase down. If he found Julie, she'd be in good hands and likely this guy does have a communication device or how would he sell his dogs? Maybe he only sells dogs through a contact in town?"

Jenna rubbed both hands down her face. "What about the other guys on the list?"

"We've narrowed it down to the men on the list." Rowley looked up from his laptop. "Steven Oberg and Luke Sierra are survivalists who live somewhere in the Bear Peak area. The other two men, Dan D Williams and Davis Davidson, live in town and hold hunting licenses. They were all hunting last elk season at Bear Peak. We found them through the DMV."

Relieved they had a starting point, Jenna nodded. "Okay, conducting interviews will be a problem until the blizzard stops, but we'll need to get background info on the men who live in town. Dave, I'll get you to work on that for now. Run them all through the databases and see what comes up. Include John Raven. Military men go bad same as everyone else. Being known by Carter isn't a reference."

"Okay." Kane went to work. "But you're wasting my time. I know Carter. He'd have run his name before he called us, but I'll hunt him down if you insist."

Jenna thought for a beat. "It won't hurt, will it?" She shrugged. "Right now, Wolfe has nothing to assist us in discovering the identity of the frozen victims. We need to do a state-by-state search for missing women. There's no one missing locally but I'll extend my search to the entire state. Rio, I want you and Rowley to send out the information we have so far on the victims and see if we get a callback. We have hair and eye color, approximate height. Put their age between twenty-five and forty as they've had extensive cosmetic surgery."

"So they could be tourists?" Rowley leaned back in his chair and stared into space. "The ski resort is very busy at this time of the year. Maybe I should call them and ask them if they have any missing guests?"

"Follow your instincts. We have three dead women, no clues to who they are or how they came here. Check everywhere in town where they might have been staying." Kane glanced at him over his screen. "It would be strange for a woman to be arriving in town alone, so the killer came with her."

Jenna shook her head. "Not necessarily. Many people make friends online and become attached just as if they had met in real life. It wouldn't be unusual for a person to travel somewhere to meet someone they'd met online."

"It's a normal thing to do now." Rio grinned at Kane. "Technology is great, isn't it?"

"Maybe, but you'll never take the old-school values out of me." Kane shook his head ruefully. "If we have a little girl, when she's grown, I'll want to meet any boy who plans on dating her."

Grinning, Jenna nodded. "No doubt by then all the kids will be microchipped so you won't have to worry."

"That is so not gonna happen on my watch." Kane's face was deadly serious.

Recalling the time when Wolfe dug the tracker from Kane's back, Jenna nodded. "Mine either. Okay let's get back to work."