“So do I—but not until somebody proves it is one. In politics perception is everything. If you call my husband’s property a ‘crime scene’ then it is one, and I don’t want it to be one until I say so. So far all we’ve got is an unmarked graveyard—a historical curiosity, just a part of Virginia’s rich historical heritage.”

“And the two extra bodies?”

“Nobody knows yet—and until they do I want you to say so. Is that understood?”

Donovan nodded.

“What else can you tell me?”

“I have a forensic team in place—an entomologist from North Carolina and an anthropologist out of UVA.”

“My alma mater—I approve. Who’s the other one you mentioned— the entomologist?”

“His name is Dr. Nick Polchak.”

“Is he good?”

“He’s the best there is. Between the two of them, I’m hoping to come up with an estimated time of death for each body. Then we’ll search the missing persons reports for those time periods and try to come up with a match.”

“Is that likely?”

“It depends a lot on how old the bodies are.”

“And that hasn’t been determined yet.”

“No.”

“Then it’s possible these two bodies are just historical remains—just like the bodies that were buried beneath them.”

“I don’t think so.”

“But it’s possible.”

“Theoretically, yes.”

“I’d like you to emphasize that possibility until we know otherwise.”

“Fair enough.”

“Your forensic team—this anthropologist and entomologist—they are not to speak directly to the press. Everything is to go through you— is that understood?”

“They’ve already been informed.”

“Good. I don’t want some tech head offering second opinions.”

“Anything else?”

“Just an answer to my question.”

“What question is that?”

“Why do you think I requested you for this assignment?”

Donovan paused. “You want an honest answer?”

“I prefer honesty. It saves time.”