Her Shallow Grave (Detectives Kane and Alton)

The steps creaked under his weight. He was enjoying her fear. In sheer terror, she tried to drag her battered body away and hide but the sound of heavy footsteps followed her, walking slow. There was no escape and he had all the time in the world. I’m going to die.

One

The Glacial Heights Ski Resort, Black Rock Falls

Monday

Sheriff Jenna Alton glanced at her reflection in the glass door as she made her way toward the brilliant white snowscape outside the ski lodge. She sure didn’t resemble a sheriff at the moment, and the memory of her past life as DEA Agent Avril Parker was well hidden. Bundled up with all the resort shop had to offer in the latest ski gear, she slid on her UV sunglasses and pushed through the second set of doors, glad to be out of the overheated interior. She hadn’t made up her mind if the two sets of doors created a chamber to prevent the heat from leaking out, or to give the guests a few seconds to acclimatize. If the latter was the case, it did little to stop the shock of the arctic blast hitting her the second she exited door number two. The icy chill of winter blasted her cheeks and the familiar smell she’d craved since the last melt, filled her nostrils. It was a fragrance only someone who’d been fortunate enough to visit an alpine region during snow season would recognize. She often thought it was like stepping inside a freezer but with a hint of fresh pine needles and a touch of woodsmoke. She inhaled and coughed as the air threatened to snap freeze her lungs. She stepped with caution onto the snow-covered path and made out Deputy Dave Kane, her close friend and ex-special-forces sniper and the best darn profiler she’d known. He stood six-five and in his big boots and fur trimmed hood, resembled a florescent blue sasquatch rather than a man. She blinked at him through the falling snow dusting the walkway. “Is that you, Dave?”

“Yeah.” Kane turned away from the sets of ski equipment he had leaning against a pine tree, to look at her and grinned. “Ha, I love the new outfit. You look like the Easter Bunny, all pink and fluffy. Have you got your GPS tracker and satellite phone with you? There’s only a few people using the northern slopes and none have gone down today, so we’ll need to be careful.”

Not wanting to divulge what she’d thought he resembled, she smiled. “Yeah, nothing has changed since you last asked me.”

She enjoyed Kane’s company, they had an easy relationship and although she indulged in the odd girls’ day out with her friends, she preferred to spend her downtime with him. As he lived in a cottage on her ranch, they’d become close but with Kane mourning the loss of his wife in a terrorist car bombing, being friends for now worked just fine. It was great to be away from the office, and over the weekend the slopes had been busy for so early in the season. They’d spent the weekend with her protégé Deputy Jake Rowley and his girlfriend, Sandy. The couple had returned home on Sunday night and Jenna had put Rowley in charge of the office. As the ski resort was only a short drive from town, Jenna and Kane planned to remain for the rest of the week unless a crime wave suddenly descended on the town of Black Rock Falls.

The fresh snow had given the entire village a powder finish and after getting their ski-legs over the weekend, they planned to tackle one of the advanced slopes. She took the skis he handed her and clicked in her boots. “Thanks.” She looped the cords of the poles over her thick gloves and looked at her weird reflection in his sunglasses. She hoped he had the titanium plate in his skull—compliments of the car bombing—well-covered. The cold gave him incapacitating headaches and was the only Achilles heel of the strong capable man, well, unless she considered, his determination to jump in front of a bullet to protect her.

She followed Kane, sliding along the path to the northern slope and through the tall pine trees, their branches heavy with snow. The owners had used every care to blend in the resort so not to damage the environment, with no conspicuous buildings or bright colors. The main resort building and surrounding log cabin village seemed to grow out of the forest, and even the ski lift was unobtrusive and didn’t ruin the majestic views. They ran the entire complex on solar- or water-generated power and the resort had become a beautiful addition to the county of Black Rock Falls. The slopes formed a natural break in the forest and the northern one ran parallel to one of the access roads to the resort. As they moved toward the top of the slope the trees cracked and groaned with the lowering temperature. Winter had come in a rush and taken nature by surprise.

When they reached the top of the slope Jenna stopped beside Kane to read the noticeboard. The prominent black diamond designated the slope for advanced skiers. It also gave the current weather report and listed any projected problems they might encounter on the way down and where to locate the ski lifts. The advice to stay in the middle was usual and Kane had already checked the conditions several times before they’d decided to ski. He took no chances of being out on the mountain during a blizzard. She moved up beside him. “You go first. I’ll follow you down.”

“I’d rather follow you, just in case.” Kane inclined his head and looked at her but she couldn’t see his eyes behind the blue reflective lenses.

Jenna laughed. “In case I fall? I won’t. I’ll be careful and if I did, you’d be back here in minutes.” She grinned at him. “I like watching you. You go so fast it takes my breath away.”

“Okay.” Kane moved forward. “Meet you at the lift.” In a swish of snow, he was away and heading down the slope.

She watched him for a few seconds and then followed. With a push of her poles and bending her knees, she tucked in her elbows, leaned forward, and surrendered herself to the thrill of the slopes. Glacial wind bit into her cheeks but the rush as she gained speed was exhilarating. As she entered a long sweeping bend, she noticed Kane jump to one side and come to a stop in a plume of white snow. He turned toward her and waved both arms. She zig-zagged to slow down and then mirrored his move in what she called a hockey stop and glided slowly to his side. “What’s up?”

When he didn’t answer, handed her his gloves, and then searched his jacket pocket for something, worry for his health churned her stomach. “Dave. What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure.” Kane pulled out the small pair of binoculars he always seemed to have in a pocket and trained them along the trees growing alongside the road. “Oh, that’s not good.”

Following his line of sight, Jenna swallowed hard. “What the hell is going on?”

“Someone has decorated a pine sapling with what looks like body parts.” Kane handed her the binoculars. “On the bend close to the road.” He pointed in the direction and took back his gloves. “We’ll have to go down, take the ski lift, and then go look. It might be a prank.”

Jenna peered into the binoculars. “I can’t imagine anyone doing that in this weather.” She scanned the area. “Okay, I’ve found the bend.”

“Move in slowly, I spotted them on the way down.” Kane took her shoulders and turned her a couple of degrees to the left.

“I see it.” The sight of discolored frozen arms and legs hanging from the snow-laden tree branches came into view and she gaped in astonishment. Some of the limbs had brightly colored tattoos and one of the frozen hands still wore a pinky ring. “That’s no prank.” She dropped the binoculars from her eyes and stared at him in disbelief. “Well, that’s our vacation over. It’s starting again. Another lunatic has arrived in Black Rock Falls.”

Two

The top of his truck, he’d discovered, made a fine place to rest his rifle and peer through the scope. From his position, he coul

d make out the flashing lights of the deputy’s black truck. He’d caught the expressions on their faces at his display and chuckled. Mouths turned down, the sheriff and her deputy had puffed out great clouds of steam and waved their arms around. Hampered by their thick winter clothes they resembled automatons. He glanced at his reflection in the side mirror and shuddered. The amount of clothes he had to wear in the mountains dragged him back to his memories of his time as a kid. He’d been the kid without a friend, more round than tall with zits covering his face in exploding masses. He’d hated himself and as he’d grown had taken steps to change his appearance, but the little boy, bullied or ignored, still cowered inside.

As the years went by, he often wondered why teachers, who professed to nurture their students, made two kids captains of opposing teams and allowed them to humiliate the other kids by choosing who was best and next best and so on to join their team. He’d always been the last pick, the boy nobody wanted. Did anyone understand what it was like to walk in his shoes or what it was like to feel worthless, unloved, and despised?

And then there was Delores. She’d made like she was his friend. He’d never forget her, the black fingernails, colorful tattoos, the ring through her nose, and her black hair. Most of the guys thought she was hideous but he’d loved her—until she’d humiliated him. The little boy hiding inside exploded into flames and a new man rose out of the ashes. He’d enjoyed killing her but it hadn’t lasted long enough—he wanted more and had planned to spread her remains far and wide but when he’d returned to her shallow grave, he’d found it empty. Since then, he’d seen her in every town he visited. She just wouldn’t stay dead.

He always gave Delores a choice. She could spend some quality time getting to know him before she died. He only wanted to talk and maybe a little company over dinner. He wasn’t interested in sex but she always abused him, threatened him, and called him names. The screaming did something to his head, it turned on a buzzing sound that made him happy. At first, he waited for her to attack him and then he’d defend himself. It was the same as if a bear walked into his cabin and slashed out with its claws. It had been messy but he’d refined his skill as more Deloreses came into his life. Although, the last one had been a mite easier. He’d opened the door and set her free. She’d run through the snow, staggering like a wounded deer, and then he’d popped her.

He smiled. The sound of the chainsaw still rang in his ears. Left outside in the snow overnight, she’d made his work easy and then he’d hauled the smaller bits of her to a tree and added a few other touches and arranged them just so. It had become a skill he enjoyed. People would remember him for his frozen art but no one would recognize her, she’d become another statistic, another Jane Doe. He looked through his scope again and smiled. “You thought you were all that, huh, Delores, and now look at you, downgraded to bear popsicles.”

Three