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American.” Shadow stressed the word “native.” “Accomattoc tribe.” He knew he was being perverse but couldn’t help himself.
    “Accomattoc? Never heard of them.”
    “From up on the middle peninsula. Near where the first English settlers established Jamestown. You’ve heard of Powhatan? Pocahontas?” Shadow tried to put an inflection in his tone to hint Barnett was probably too stupid to know of Pocahontas, but the commissioner ignored it, or missed the jibe.
    “Pocahontas? Sure, the Disney movie—I took the grandkids to see it.”
    Shadow just looked at him.
    Barnett dropped his gaze. “Hmm, well, I suppose I’d better have a look at it,” he said. “Take the tarp off, Ranger.”
    Shadow grabbed a corner of the covering to keep it from blowing away and began removing the bricks. The tarp fluttered with every breeze, causing him to struggle with the task, especially since he tried to be respectful of the body. Barnett made no move to assist him. When Shadow had managed to remove the tarp and blanket, he laid them in a heap on the dock and weighted them down.
    The commissioner stared down at the dead girl with an expression of distaste, but no sign of unease. It was as if he disapproved of something on his plate while dining at a restaurant.
    “I see what you mean,” he said. “That’s a horrible injury.”
    “Yes, sir, it is,” Shadow said, pleased the man had finally agreed to something. “It looks like something tore right through her throat.”
    “Hmm.” A pause. “You say you found her in the water?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “Then that’s it. Something got at the corpse in the water. Sometimes crabs or other scavengers get at them. That’s probably what happened. There are no dangerous animals in the park; surely you’ve learned that by now.”
    “Something killed this girl,” Shadow said stubbornly. “I don’t know what, but she didn’t accidentally drown.”
    “Yes, she did!” Barnett snapped. “Other than the mutilation, what makes you think she didn’t drown?”
    “Er...just a strong hunch.” He didn’t want to mention how he had sensed evil, not to this man. “And knowing an animal doesn’t take only one bite if it’s feeding on a corpse. I’ve hunted enough to know that.”
    Barnett glared at him. “Look, Ranger, there are going to be reporters here; one girl dead and one girl missing is news enough. If you mention to any of them you suspect this girl was killed, it will be all over the media in no time. Visitors to our parks have nothing to fear—as you well know—and I don’t want a lot of bad publicity. As a matter of fact, I don’t want any publicity right now. I’m sure the coroner will learn what caused that, uh, disfiguration—crabs or something, I’ll bet.”
    “Yes, sir.” Shadow clenched his teeth, grateful for his military training, which enabled him to keep his temper with his appointed superiors. He ruefully remembered, though, that it hadn’t helped him when arguing with his wife.
    The commissioner’s manner changed immediately when Shadow agreed. He even cracked a thin smile.
    “That’s the ticket,” he said. “You’re new here, and I’m sure you’re upset after finding a body like you did. You did find it yourself, didn’t you? Good job, by the way.” There was a flash of phony-looking smile. “This unfortunate incident will be investigated thoroughly. I assure you that, if there truly is a problem, I’ll be the first to acknowledge it. But let’s not get any bad press we don’t deserve, okay?”
    Shadow nodded.
    “I noticed you’re having a bit of trouble with your left hand. Did you injure it?”
    Shadow shook his head. “No. Just stiff, that’s all.”
    Barnett’s eyes shifted to look at something over Shadow’s shoulder. “Ah, here comes McGuire. I’ll go and chat with him a while. You remember what I said. Right, ranger?” He slapped Shadow lightly on the shoulder. “Pocahontas. I liked that movie.”
    Shadow turned