Lets go already, she snapped at him, pushing through the door and into the throng of reporters waiting for them outside.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

When Barnes turned down the dirt road that Kate now knew was dubbed by the locals as Blood Gulch Road, she had a good idea of where they were headed. She recalled Barnes telling them that there was nothing but woods and a few fields on each side of the road. One of those fields was a particularly large one, called Jones Field.

They arrived at Jones Field by turning down what appeared to be an old logging road of sorts about two miles after they passed the area where Todd Ramsey had found Mercy Fullers credit card. The road was quite bumpy, but Barnes took it with the ease of a seasoned pro. He stuck mainly to the sides, skipping the vast majority of the dips and holes. It took three minutes of this driving to reach the edge of the field. Several state police cars were scattered here and there at the edge of the road and at the opening to the large field.

The field itself was mostly bare, covered in weeds and wildflowers. A few stubborn trees broke the plainness, looking sorely out of place in the middle of the field. From the few police cars to the other side of the field, Kate estimated there was about a quarter of a mile or so of open space. Slightly to the right of center, about two hundred feet away, several state policemen with the canine unit were huddled in a semicircle. Kate, DeMarco, and Foster hurried out to meet with them, wading through the tall grass to get there.

When she joined the group in the field, she saw that whoever had pushed the state PD to get out here with the canine unit had also sent someone with forensics. He was holding a plastic evidence bag in his hands. Inside was a thin Under Armour windbreaker, light blue in color. A smattering of blood adorned one of the sleeves.

What is that? she asked. She flashed her badge as if it were an afterthought.

The guy from forensicsBrent Halloway, according to the lanyard he woregave Kates badge a once-over before responding. She noted that he also wore a digital SLR camera around his neck.

A windbreaker, size small, Halloway said. From the looks of it, it hasnt been out here long. The blood on the sleeve is dry, but relatively fresh.

Were there pictures taken before it was bagged? Kate asked.

Certainly, Halloway said. He handed the bag to the cop closest to him and then took the camera off of his neck. He started rolling back through several pictures until he came to one of the windbreaker as it had been found. As Kate looked at it, Halloway walked her and DeMarco through several of the details.