Harpers Bay
The tiny airport at Harpers Bay made Vancouver Airport look colossal in comparison. There were no sprawling terminals spread across acres of land with multiple runways merely one runway serviced by a single story terminal that was no bigger than a large log cabin. As the men eyed their new surroundings it became clear they were far away from civilisation. In fact Adam had purchased a book on the area and had happily informed his friends and colleagues of various pieces of information, the most interesting one being there were only 176 inhabitants of Harpers Bay. That solidified the reason King chose this place. Isolation clearly suited his agenda, whatever that might be. A brief discussion had taken place en route about whether some of the Unit should visit the island Jay had been abandoned on but ultimately it was decided to meet up with their missing friend first. The truth was everyone was anxious to see Jay with their own eyes and no one wanted to miss the first opportunity to do so. Now standing by the small baggage carousel and taking turns lifting off their gear the men could feel the adrenaline building. They were going to have their friend back with them and then they would put an end to Kings' sadistic streak once and for all. Voight and Al moved several feet away from the others as they had all of their bags accounted for. The Sergeant was just about to say they needed to call Marks when a loud mans' voice called his name. Turning around Voight eyed the six foot blond newcomer in surprise. Hell this guy definitely did not look like anything he had expected. He wore a dark blue denim shirt accompanied with tight Levi jeans and cowboy boots for one thing whereas a suit would have been the norm. The shoulder length hair was also a surprise but it did match the day old stubble on the mans' face. He looked like a Model rather than a Law Enforcement Officer and judging by his smirk he was well aware his appearance was being scrutinised in surprise.
"Dan Marks," the blond finally reached the pair and held out a hand to Voight, "good to meet you Sergeant."
"How do you know he's not Voight?" the gruff man enquired gesturing to the moustached Detective at his side even as he returned the firm handshake.
"I did my homework," Marks grinned in depreciation as he shook hands with Al, "so I assume you want to get to the Ranger Station ASAP?"
"You assume correctly."
"Well in that case after one stop we can head out once everyone is good to go. I have three SUVs at our disposal for now ....,"
"What stop?" Voight cut in, he wanted to get going now!
"No offence Sergeant," the younger man spoke evenly before gesturing to the feet of the men now all gathered around him, "but you need proper footwear for hill climbing. Best to avoid any unnecessary accidents. I have a shoe store waiting down the street so if you gentlemen will follow me we can get you sorted and then get to work on reuniting you with your friend."
The last part showed the friendly man was not naive and understood their priority. Voight found himself liking the newcomer and got a good feeling they could work together without being at loggerheads. Crowley it seemed had chosen wisely and for that he owed her big time.
Pearl Caves
As the three men approached the caves it looked from the outside like they were similar to any other caves and the grandiose title seemed out of place. Jay had again taken point, much to the other mens' consternation. He had refused outright to wear a sling and his companions understood without needing to ask why. A sling would inhibit his movements in a fight. Jay had however placed his injured hand into his open shirt and held it against his heart to control the blood flow, not to mention the vicious throbbing that had taken up residence in the injured appendage. He may be injured but he had no intention of letting either man be the first to deal with whatever King had left in the caves. He had decided it was unlikely King would be waiting patiently for his arrival. As they had trekked through the woodlands Jack had obligingly furnished more details about the caves. They consisted of three interconnected caverns each with a separate entrance but joined by man made openings inside. There was a small hole carved out of the ceiling of each cave which allowed smoke from fires to escape. The Hotelier had stated the caves could indeed have been a likely place to hide treasure, as per folklore, due to their proximity to the water and their depth. It transpired that although from the outside the caves gave the misleading impression of being small arising out of the closeness of the three entrances each cave began with a narrow passageway which subsequently opened up into an expansive area. As they neared their destination Jays' gut had tightened. He knew what lay within was going to be bad. The young man had provided more details of Kings' crimes to the two men with him, wanting to ensure there was no quarter given by either on the off chance the Murderer did materialise. He had warned the pair not to be caught off guard by whatever greeted them. Now standing in front of the middle entrance the Detective stifled a wince as he carefully removed his bandaged hand from its' place of protection.
"I'll go in. You two stay on guard out here. King could still show up."
"He could be inside," the Ranger noted seriously, "and you're in no condition to tackle him. I'll go in and .....,"
"I'm not arguing," Jay stated grimly, "I've been working this case a long time. This is my job not yours."
"That may be so but he has a point," Jack spoke up in concern, "how about one of us goes in with you. It only needs one to guard all three entrances and there's no other exit route so ...,"
"I'm done talking! I'm going in alone," Jay insisted, barely managing to continue their conversation in a hushed tone before relenting slightly, "if I'm not back in ten minutes one of you can come in."
"Your Sergeant bald by any chance?"Gregson enquired.
"No," Jay frowned at the abrupt change of topic.
"I find that hard to believe dealing with you every day!"
"Oh you're a funny man," the youngest of the trio chuckled despite the circumstances then turned to the entrance, "be back shortly."
"You'd better be!" Jack warned, all mirth gone.
Ranger Station
Jay had taken time before the mens' departure to show Billy and Angie a photograph of the team on Mouses' ultra secure website. Photographs of the Unit members were not generally posted online for security reasons hence their social media accounts were pretty bare on work details but after one Thanksgiving get together Antonio and Kevin had started a conversation lamenting the lack of photos to remember such occasions. What began as an idle comment from the Italian-American soon encompassed the whole group as they fondly recalled other days when lifes' dark side was banished to the sidelines and they simply celebrated their friendship through food, football and films interspersed with the inevitable pranks. It was a week later that Mouse had requested Voights' permission to speak to everyone in the open plan office. Surprised at the request from the usually quiet IT Specialist the older man had acquiesced. It transpired that Mouse too had often felt they were missing out on having memories to look back on through photos. With that in mind he had nervously proceeded to unveil his solution to the problem. He had built a website solely for access by the Unit members. No one else knew the password to gain entry into the site. All photos could be safely put online in the various sections Mouse had identified from formal (as he said in case someone finally tied the knot) to informal which covered special days such as Thanksgiving, Memorial Day and St. Patricks' Day. The IT Specialists' website had been appreciated by everyone but it gained even more significance now in that the Detective was able to let Billy and Angie know who exactly to let in. He did not put it past King to change his appearance and try to gain entry. This solved that worry. The Units' arrival with Marks was met with immense relief. Introductions were quickly made and then the news that Jay had gone to Pearl Caves already was imparted. In truth it was only to be expected. Voight and the others knew it was not in his nature to sit and wait, especially if there was a chance of catching King, however slim. The disappointment of not seeing their friend was quickly put aside as Billy had explained that his brother and the Ranger had accompanied the young man. That knowledge provided a modicum of relief. It was soon decided that the Sergeant, Al, Adam and Marks would head to the caves with the remaining trio remaining at the Ranger Station. Although unhappy about being left behind Antonio, Kevin and Mouse dealt with their disappointment without rancour. The truth was they understood someone needed to stay behind to mind the civilians and in any event they all knew Jay would never forgive them if the family was hurt while they were out looking for him.
Pearl Caves
Jay advanced cautiously along the narrow passageway using the small but powerful torch Jack had provided. Mindful of traps he only placed his foot down after a careful inspection. Eventually he was through to the large, high ceilinged cave. Its' size surprised him. From the outside it appeared the caves would be small but clearly that was not the case . Unfortunately the size was not the only surprise he found. Sitting on the dirt floor against a large boulder and bound by rope a dead mans' lifeless eyes shone eerily in the torches' glow before the young man lowered the light with a vehement curse. One didn't need to be an ME to know the man had been dead for some time. Sighing heavily Jay forced his feet to move once more as he advanced on the forever stilled form to look at what King had left for him, a note pinned to the mans' shirt. Holding his breath to avoid the stench Jay quickly pulled the note off after tucking the torch under his arm and backed away towards the passage. There was nothing else to see. A cursory visual examination had not provided any cause of death so it would be up to Forensics to determine same. For now Jay headed back to the outside world seeking fresh air cravenly.
Jack and the Ranger had been exchanging tales they had heard growing up about the caves when Jay returned looking pale and decidedly unhappy. Exchanging worried looks they were relieved that the young man was at least back with them.
"You alright?" Jack asked although it seemed redundant, something had clearly upset the Detective.
"Yeah," Jay assured automatically, his lungs enjoying the fresh, clean air as he took some deep breaths and he allowed the torch to fall to the ground as he slowly eased his injured hand back inside his shirt with a sigh of intense relief as the throbbing eased off somewhat.
"What did you find?" the Ranger eventually asked after a few moments of silence and the pale features got some colour back.
"A male Victim. No obvious cause of death. Been there a few days at least."
"Damn," Jack shook his head in disgust before gesturing to the crumpled piece of paper the young man was holding in his good hand, "what does it say?"
"Nothing good," Jay spoke, hoarseness betraying his emotions for he knew without any doubt what the missive held would be damaging.
"Yeah but what exactly does it say?" Gregson urged.
"You tell me," Jay relinquished the note to the Ranger and walked slowly over to a large rock situated in front of the first entrance.
Jack and the Ranger looked at each other before Gregson unfolded the paper and began to read aloud ......
tbc
ME - Medical Examiner