CHAPTER FIVE
At six a.m. the next morning, May saw Owen’s car pull up outside her house. He’d arrived early, so they could start the day with a search. She’d had the idea last night and had messaged him and asked him to go with her.
May lived in a small cottage on the outskirts of town. She’d moved into it four years ago, after her divorce. She’d intended it to be a temporary haven and it had ended up being so comfortable that she’d stayed.
She guessed it was no coincidence that she'd picked a home without any view of the lake. It overlooked rolling fields and was next to a small farm.
After spending a sleepless night worrying about the case, she felt red-eyed and irritable. Also, she felt deeply worried that her hunch wouldn't work out.
The day looked gray and overcast. Glancing at the sky as she hurried to the car, she thought it might rain later.
"Morning, May!” Owen said. “So, what search are you planning? What are we going to look for?"
Quickly, May explained her plan.
"I think Savannah’s phone might be somewhere along the path she took in the woods," she said.
“Wouldn’t the police have found it?”
“The police searched in the dark, on the night she disappeared. They were looking for her. Something small, like a phone, might have been turned off and thrown away by whoever grabbed her, and gone unnoticed. That’s why I want to search again, in daylight.”
"Why do you think it would have been thrown away?" Owen asked, as he pulled away, taking the route that led to Snyder.
"If she was grabbed while she was walking to school, the killer would not have wanted to take her phone along. Phone signals can be triangulated. Smart phones can be tracked to within a couple of yards."
"That's true," Owen said.
"So if this happened, he would probably have turned it off immediately and left it behind. Everyone knows that a phone is a tracking device."
"Absolutely," Owen agreed. "That makes sense."
May wasn't sure. She didn't know if it made enough sense. It could all be a huge waste of time, but it was still worth exploring. She felt worried that she wouldn't manage to find the evidence they so desperately needed. This was a murder. Every moment counted.
"If she was taken from the woods, there are two possible roads from the other side that he could have used," May said, as she directed Owen onto a smaller, rural road that branched off from the main road.
She checked the map she'd printed out last night.
"There's another sand road just past here. Look out for it. There it is."
They turned onto it. The road grew narrower and bumpier as they went. The sun was rising now, looking red and moody behind the gathering clouds, and the wind was chilly.
When they reach the woodland, May got out of Owen's car and set off. The trees were dark, their leaves rustling. The grass was thick and wet.
"Here's where she would have come out of the woods," May said. "This is the shortcut."
"So we're going to work backward now?"
She nodded. "Toward her house."
And then, when they were about halfway along, May stopped dead as something caught her eye.
"Look there!"
Buried in a clump of ferns, just a few yards from where the dirt road petered out, she saw a tiny gleam of pink. It was all but obscured by something dark.
Owen stretched forward. He put on a glove. Carefully, he extracted two items from the ferns.
One was a phone, in a pink, glittery case.