over the years, was tempered by the presence of a skinny, red-faced man with a crew cut in the passenger seat. Wylie Smith had been hired to fill Garza’s deputy position when Garza rose to sheriff, and the new man hadn’t made many friends since. Before coming to Blanco County, Wylie had been stationed in Houston with the Harris County Sheriff’s Department, and he had brought along the cynicism, sarcasm, and attitude of superiority that so many big-city residents seem to pack with them when they come to the country. But Marlin had to admit that the forensic training Wylie had received in Houston would be valuable to the case.
“What we got, John?” Bobby Garza asked, shaking Marlin’s hand. Wylie surveyed the landscape and offered no greeting.
“Lester found one of his hunters dead near his blind this morning,” Marlin replied, picking a careful path toward the body. “It’s Bert Gammel.”
Garza and Wylie both nodded somberly as they stared at the corpse.
Marlin said, “Took a round right in the chest. Plus, he’s hunting with a two-seventy automatic. I didn’t find a shell casing, so I guess we can assume he didn’t fire.”
“Do me a favor, will ya, and don’t assume what we know at this point,” Wylie said. “Leave that to us to figure out.”
Marlin gave Wylie a cold stare, but before he could reply, Garza spoke up: “Well, it doesn’t hurt to go into this with a fresh eye, but Marlin was first on the scene, so let’s hear what he has to say.” Marlin wished Garza had added asshole to the end of that last sentence.
Marlin checked his notes and quickly ran through Lester’s report, then summarized what he himself had discovered so far. He discussed the narrow alley between the trees and ended with the likely-looking hiding spot where the killer had carried off the ambush.
“So you just took it on yourself to begin the investigation?” Wylie asked. “Decided to start without us?”
“Well, it wasn’t what I’d call a real thorough bit of detective work, Wylie. I saw what I saw and decided to give the area a look. Anyone could have figured it out. Even you.”
Wylie’s face turned a vivid red.
Garza spoke up again: “Cool it, both of you. I don’t need you at each other’s throats right now.” He turned to Marlin. “John, it sounds like you did what any of us would have done. Now let’s see what you found.”
Marlin led them to the fenceline and the three men crossed the barbed wire. Marlin pointed out the makeshift blind under the cedar tree, drawing their attention to the puddle of tobacco spit.
“There’s our DNA,” Garza said, giving Marlin an approving smile. “Hell of a job. Anything else?”
“I saw a partial boot print over there between a couple of cedars. That’s all, so far.” He looked at Wylie. “I decided to leave the area and wait for reinforcements.”
“Great,” Garza said. “Good work.” He turned to Wylie. “Wylie, you’re the lead dog on this one. You’ve got the most experience in this area, and I’m hoping we can all learn a couple of things. So, how do you want to proceed?”
Wylie looked around and made an exaggerated gesture with his hands. “My first question is, where is Lester Higgs?”
Marlin said, “Took off about twenty minutes ago. Said he had some ranch work to do. I think he went back up to the barn for some supplies. I told him a deputy would be in touch.”
Wylie snorted. “You let our first witness just wander off? He could be on the phone right now, telling half the county what happened.”
Marlin swallowed the anger that was rising in his throat. “Listen, I asked him not to discuss—”
“Yeah, right,” Wylie interrupted. “I’m sure that’ll stop him. Smart move.”
Marlin opened his mouth, but once more Garza interceded: “Wylie, would you just back off a minute? Lester’s a good man. If John asked him to keep it
“What we got, John?” Bobby Garza asked, shaking Marlin’s hand. Wylie surveyed the landscape and offered no greeting.
“Lester found one of his hunters dead near his blind this morning,” Marlin replied, picking a careful path toward the body. “It’s Bert Gammel.”
Garza and Wylie both nodded somberly as they stared at the corpse.
Marlin said, “Took a round right in the chest. Plus, he’s hunting with a two-seventy automatic. I didn’t find a shell casing, so I guess we can assume he didn’t fire.”
“Do me a favor, will ya, and don’t assume what we know at this point,” Wylie said. “Leave that to us to figure out.”
Marlin gave Wylie a cold stare, but before he could reply, Garza spoke up: “Well, it doesn’t hurt to go into this with a fresh eye, but Marlin was first on the scene, so let’s hear what he has to say.” Marlin wished Garza had added asshole to the end of that last sentence.
Marlin checked his notes and quickly ran through Lester’s report, then summarized what he himself had discovered so far. He discussed the narrow alley between the trees and ended with the likely-looking hiding spot where the killer had carried off the ambush.
“So you just took it on yourself to begin the investigation?” Wylie asked. “Decided to start without us?”
“Well, it wasn’t what I’d call a real thorough bit of detective work, Wylie. I saw what I saw and decided to give the area a look. Anyone could have figured it out. Even you.”
Wylie’s face turned a vivid red.
Garza spoke up again: “Cool it, both of you. I don’t need you at each other’s throats right now.” He turned to Marlin. “John, it sounds like you did what any of us would have done. Now let’s see what you found.”
Marlin led them to the fenceline and the three men crossed the barbed wire. Marlin pointed out the makeshift blind under the cedar tree, drawing their attention to the puddle of tobacco spit.
“There’s our DNA,” Garza said, giving Marlin an approving smile. “Hell of a job. Anything else?”
“I saw a partial boot print over there between a couple of cedars. That’s all, so far.” He looked at Wylie. “I decided to leave the area and wait for reinforcements.”
“Great,” Garza said. “Good work.” He turned to Wylie. “Wylie, you’re the lead dog on this one. You’ve got the most experience in this area, and I’m hoping we can all learn a couple of things. So, how do you want to proceed?”
Wylie looked around and made an exaggerated gesture with his hands. “My first question is, where is Lester Higgs?”
Marlin said, “Took off about twenty minutes ago. Said he had some ranch work to do. I think he went back up to the barn for some supplies. I told him a deputy would be in touch.”
Wylie snorted. “You let our first witness just wander off? He could be on the phone right now, telling half the county what happened.”
Marlin swallowed the anger that was rising in his throat. “Listen, I asked him not to discuss—”
“Yeah, right,” Wylie interrupted. “I’m sure that’ll stop him. Smart move.”
Marlin opened his mouth, but once more Garza interceded: “Wylie, would you just back off a minute? Lester’s a good man. If John asked him to keep it
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