Page 243 of Taken Away

“He should be right back,” she added. “He said to make yourself comfortable.”

“Thanks.”

Chloe smiled and stepped back into the hall.

She pulled the door partway closed behind her.

Burke waited, listening until her footsteps faded toward the front of the building.

Only then did he look again at the loafers.

He could still see the print in the mud outside Mabel’s house.

That partial impression near the side path.

Not a work boot.

Not a sneaker.

Something with a flatter sole. A narrow edge. A worn, shallow pattern that had seemed wrong for the wet ground around Blackwood.

One loafer lay slightly on its side, exposing part of the sole. The tread was worn nearly smooth at the ball of the foot, but not completely. Along the outer edge, a thin ridge remained. At the heel, the rubber had a shallow crosshatch.

He pulled out his phone and angled it toward the exposed sole.

There it was.

Not exact.

But close enough to make the hair rise on the back of his neck.

Close enough that he couldn't dismiss it.

A lot like the print in the mud.

Burke studied the sole for a moment longer.

Then the floorboards creaked in the hall.

He straightened.

The door opened.

Walter Grady stepped in with Moose beside him.

The Great Pyrenees entered first, enormous and white, his paws damp from outside, his tail moving in an easy sweep. Walter followed in a pair of muddy work boots.

He stopped when he saw Burke standing near the door.

“Sheriff.”

“Walter.”

Walter’s gaze flicked toward the loafers.

Then back to Burke.

“I didn’t realize Chloe had already brought you in.”