A Judgment of Whispers Read Online Free PDF Page A

belong.”

Three
    Jerry Cochran took a set of calipers and pulled the underpants to the top of the bag. “Are you kidding me? Teresa E. Cabin 8? ”
    â€œMaybe she’d gone to summer camp,” Saunooke said, almost breathless. “Maybe she wore those there.”
    â€œA lifetime ago,” Cochran replied. He dropped the pants back inside the bag. “This sandwich bag doesn’t look like its been in the ground more than an hour or so.”
    â€œThat’s what I thought,” said Saunooke. “Makes you wonder if it didn’t get here, like, today.”
    â€œYou get anything else?” asked Cochran.
    â€œA cigarette.” Saunooke held up the broken cigarette he’d placed in another evidence bag. “The dog might have shredded it, digging up the underpants.”
    Cochran turned to Wilkins, his eyes cold. “This one of your smokes, buddy?”
    Wilkins shook his head. “I quit years ago.”
    â€œThen tell me again who you are.”
    Saunooke said, “He says he … ”
    â€œJack Wilkins, Pisgah County Sheriff Department, retired.” Jack handed the sheriff his wallet. It held all his IDs—driver’s license, Medicare card, an FOP membership card. “I worked this case when it was new.”
    â€œHe claims he worked it with Whaley.” Saunooke sounded like a kid tattling to his teacher.
    Cochran looked up from the wallet. “That true?”
    Jack nodded. “Whaley had just been promoted from patrol. I already had fifteen years as a detective.”
    â€œSo what brings you back here this morning? You come to check out the yard sale?”
    Jack felt his cheeks grow hot. What should he say? That his wife had gone to Minnesota and he didn’t know what else to do with himsel f ? That this morning he woke up early because something evil was in the air? “I’ve never forgotten this case. I wanted to see the neighborhood one more time, before they built all these new houses.”
    â€œGo sit over there by the bulldozers,” said Cochran. “I’ll talk with you later.”
    â€œYes sir.” Jack nodded, hiding a smile. This young police chief had mastered the command stare pretty well. His gaze was flinty, without a trace of humor. The patrol kid still had some work to do. He stood there sweating, obviously excited, still holding the dog by its collar. Jack turned to him. “Would you like me to get the dog out of your way?”
    Cochran turned his attention to the animal, which was wagging his tail, as if he were part of the team as well. “Why have you got a dog here anyway, Saunooke?”
    â€œI got a 10-91,” he replied. “I was taking him to the pound when Gahagen said somebody was trying to hotwire a bulldozer over here.”
    Cochran turned back to Wilkins. “That wouldn’t have been you, would it?”
    â€œNo sir,” said Jack. “I’m way too old to drive a bulldozer.”
    Again, Cochran gave him the cop stare, but then he nodded at the dog. “Then take Rover over there and wait for us.”
    â€œYes sir.” Jack took the dog by the collar and walked over to the huge vehicle. The dog trotted beside him, lying down by the front tire while he sat down on the running board. Jack, even more than Saunooke and the chief, was dumbfounded. This dog had dug up a pair of Teresa Ewing’s underpants! How had they gotten there? Could they be evidence they hadn’t found?
    â€œGood boy,” he said softly. He rubbed the dog between his ears, then settled down to watch. Over the hill, shoppers were haggling over vinyl record albums and old water skis; here, a murder investigation had sprung back to life.
    At first Cochran and the patrol officer stood talking outside the plastic fence that surrounded the tree, Saunooke pointing at various spots while the chief’s gaze intermittently returned to him. Then a green Mustang pulled up beside the