In the Clearing (Tracy Crosswhite #3)(59)

Back at the table she said, “Sorry. Something about this case is hitting home.”

“No apologies necessary,” Wright said. She set out several photographs and again used the pencil eraser as she explained. “To make that significant of a depression, the vehicle had to have been traveling at a very high rate of speed when it landed.”

“Landed?”

“The vehicle that hit here came down at an angle,” Wright said, confirming Rosa’s opinion that Kimi had suffered “crush” injuries. “Given the direction of the tire tracks, we can assume the truck crested the hill.” Wright thumbed through the photos and set out another photograph. “Here. This is what I was looking for.” The photograph appeared to have been taken from the clearing looking up the sloped hillside. “I think, from this, that your deputy made the same assumption—that the vehicle crested that hill, went airborne where the tracks stop, and crashed down bumper-first right there, making that deep depression.”

“Why would the ground be so torn up?”

“I would surmise from the circumstances—the driver going at a high rate of speed and not expecting to suddenly be airborne—that his instinct was to take his foot off the accelerator and jam on the brake. When the truck landed, it would have bounced and fishtailed. If he was experienced with off-road driving, he would have hit the gas, causing the back tires to tear up the ground in a counterclockwise direction, which is what we have here.”

Tracy’s heart hammered in her chest. “You said this was ‘truly frightening.’ Why?”

Wright set down the photographs and took a moment to pick through a stack and lay out a few others. “Because there was someone on the ground.”

“Where?” Tracy’s mouth and lips were dry. She took another sip of water. “I mean, how can you tell?”

Wright handed Tracy another photograph. “The impact when the car landed obscured some of the impressions, but not completely.” Wright pointed with the eraser. “Do you see these three depressions where the grass blades are lying flat, all in the same direction?”

“Not really.”

Wright flipped through the other photographs and handed Tracy a second one along with a small magnifying glass for Tracy to use. “This one is a little better. Here. You see where the grass is lying flat?”

Tracy could. “Yeah, I see.”

“Your deputy, without training, never would have recognized these. In fact, I’m amazed he was able to capture them with his camera. He likely wouldn’t have, except he was so thorough. He might have thought they were shoe impressions. It was overkill, really, but it was also fortuitous. I’ve seen this a hundred times. Those are impressions made by someone’s head, shoulder, and hip.”

“Someone lying on her side?”

“Yes. And judging from the deep impression made where the vehicle landed, it struck her just below her hip.”

Again, Wright’s analysis was in keeping with Rosa’s opinion that Kimi Kanasket’s pelvis had been fractured.

Wright collected those photographs and began setting out rows of other photographs. “Your guy also captured a lot of shoeprints. I’d say these were made by at least three people and as many as five.”

Tracy felt suddenly numb. “More than one?”

“Oh, definitely more than one,” Wright said. She leaned over and pointed to the first photograph in the top row. “These are Converse, which was a popular brand for boys during that time period. Size twelves.”

“So we’re probably talking about a young man as opposed to a boy,” she said.

“Yes.” She handed Tracy a second photograph of a shoe impression. “These are also Converse, also size twelves, but the impression is deeper than the other impression. I can’t say with any certainty, but the depth of the impression could mean these were made by someone heavier.”

“But again, a young man.”

Wright handed Tracy a third photograph. “Also Converse, but these are smaller. Size nine to ten.”

“So a second, and possibly a third person,” Tracy said.

Wright shuffled through the photographs and set another on the table. “Puma,” she said. “Also popular at that time with kids, also size ten.”

“So that’s definitely three and maybe four,” Tracy said.

Wright handed Tracy another photograph, but this one captured a pattern much different from that of the Converse or the Puma—inverted Vs above three rows of multiple slash marks, with the second row slanted in the opposite direction from the first and third rows. It looked like a row of backslashes between two rows of forward slashes on a computer keyboard.

^^^^^^^^^^^

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

/////////////

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

“Also size twelve,” Wright said.

“Doesn’t look like an athletic shoe,” Tracy said.

“It isn’t. It’s from a rubber boot,” Wright said. “I did a little research. The pattern is distinct for boots made by the United States Rubber Company. They were popular in the 1970s and highly sought after because they were rubber, which meant waterproof, but also because they were lined with fur, which meant they were warm. They were originally made for soldiers in World War II and became popular with hunters, but the plant closed when rubber was needed for more pressing war purposes.” Wright handed Tracy another photograph. “Something else.”