Tainted Trail by Wen Spencer Read Free Book Online Page B

guilt in Rose’s voice.
    Plastic milk crates made makeshift bookcases. The diverse selection of notebooks, magazines, and paperbacks were all tucked into Ziploc freezer bags of various sizes. The two Hillerman mystery novels were Alicia’s, as was a fat, tapestry-covered daily planner. He took the planner out, unsnapping the leather band that kept it closed. The book all but exploded, stuffed to overflowing with inserts and paper.
    He flipped through the planner. There was a notepad in the back, a plastic pouch containing small fossils, a business card holder, an address book—yes, he was listed under the “O’s” with smiley faces around his listing—a paper pouch for receipts, and a photo album. The photographs included several school photos of Kraynak’s daughter, Sasha, a family portrait of the Kraynaks—Alicia included, one each of her dead parents, a trimmed Polaroid of Max prior to the graying at his temples, and three pictures of Ukiah himself—ages thirteen, seventeen, and twenty according to his driver’s license and the date they were taken.
    In his last two pictures, he hadn’t aged more than a couple days. In comparison, Sasha’s school photos showed the change that a year made in a child. Why had no one ever noticed how alien he was? Or had they, and just never commented to him?
    Most of the planner’s bulk, however, was made up of a fat day-per-page calendar covered heavily with yellow notes and one red flag marking last Sunday. Ukiah checked Monday, found it blank. He flipped through Tuesday and Wednesday and found them blank too. He flipped backward for a few days. Alicia filled the pages with her life; nothing sinister seemed to lurk under the surface, waiting to snatch her away the moment she was alone. He put his thumb to the edge of the pages and ruffled them by so each page registered in his sight only a second, and he counted back the days by odd numbers. No pages were missing.
    â€œShe had a phone with her,” Rose was saying. “I thought if she got into trouble, she’d call for help.”
    Ukiah closed the planner, struggled a moment to get it snapped tight, and replaced it into the plastic bag. On top of the crates, he was only mildly surprised to find her jewelry case. Alicia never wore makeup; she flattered her vanity with earrings. Gems, semi-precious stones, and minerals dominated the collection. Many he recognized as ones he had seen her wear. There was a new influx of stone animal fetishes, dreamcatchers, and other Native American–influenced earrings. He closed the lid. Her jewelry-makingtools sat in the box under the jewelry case, along with bags of various beads and wires.
    â€œAre you sure she has the phone with her?” Kraynak was asking. When Rose answered that she was positive, Kraynak asked why.
    â€œWell, we both have satellite phones; they’re a must for a geologist,” Rose explained. “We recharge them when we drive to Pendleton. I charged mine going to town on Saturday, and she charged hers coming back. When we were out on Sunday, she forgot to get her phone out of the van, but it’s not there now.”
    â€œYou sure she didn’t take it out and still forget it in camp?” Max asked. Alicia’s memory was almost as bad as Ukiah’s was perfect.
    â€œWhen she didn’t turn up at lunchtime, I tried calling her. When I called, I didn’t hear her phone ringing here in camp. It rang a couple of times and then dropped me into her voice mail. I thought it was weird, she should have been able to hear it and answer if she was carrying it. So I started to look for it here in the camp, some place I couldn’t hear it ring.”
    â€œAnd you didn’t find it?” Kraynak asked.
    â€œNo.”
    Ukiah gazed about the tent. It was filled with little homey touches that reflected Alicia’s hand. A dreamcatcher hung from the center post, to catch her common