Sergeant Chopin, the Alaska State Trooper stationed in Niniltna, hired me to. I see. But clearly Truax did not see. I spoke to Sergeant Chopin yesterday on the sat phone as regards this matter, and Holly here told me that he‘d said he would be sending someone out. I naturally assumed it would be another trooper. There isn‘t another trooper assigned to Niniltna, Kate said. I am a licensed private investigator. The state frequently hires me to assist the troopers in those cases that might not be, shall we say, front burner.

Oh, Truax said after a beat. I see. He exchanged another glance with Haynes, and then rose to his feet and went around to sit at his desk.

Kate appreciated the signal. She even got up and moved the chair in which he had been sitting to one side and readjusted her own chair so that they could see eye to eye across his desk. Mutt reacquired her spot at Kate‘s right hand, maintaining her Muttly sangfroid. Haynes was wearing a poker face, she might have been alarmed, aghast, amused, or all three at Kate‘s effrontery. She exchanged a glance with Truax, and there was a quality of intimacy there that made Kate wonder at the closeness of their association. It could be merely that they were longtime coworkers. Which would not necessarily preclude a romantic relationship. She looked from one to the other from beneath lowered lids. Truax was wearing a wedding ring. Haynes was not.

About Mr. Gammons, Kate said. He does work here?

He does, Truax said. Or he did.

Did?

He hasn‘t shown up for work in, hell, a month? Truax buzzed his intercom. Lyda? Yes, Vern?

Bring up Dewayne Gammons‘s personnel file, would you?

A brief pause.

Lyda? Did you get that? Root out Dewayne Gammons‘s personnel file and bring it up to my office pronto.

Right away, Vern, Lyda said.

Her voice over the speaker sounded different this time, hesitant, maybe even a little fearful? A few moments later the dark, plump young woman appeared in Truax‘s doorway, manila file folder in hand. Kate watched her as she walked across the room and wondered if she was always that pale.

Kate, this is Lyda Blue, everybody‘s right hand around here. She and I have worked a couple of Global digs together. Lyda, this is Kate Shugak, the chair of the board of the Niniltna Native Association and someone to whom we want to give every facility, you understand?

Lyda gave Kate a long, unsmiling glance. Yes, Vern.

Lyda is from Bering, Vern said, like he was expecting Kate to pin a medal on him for hiring local. He took the folder from Lyda and gave it to Kate without looking at it.

She accepted it without opening it. You say Mr. Gammons hasn‘t shown up for work in how long?

Vern looked at Lyda. Lyda said, Almost a month. She nodded at the file. It‘s all in there. Date hired, last day on the clock, date terminated.