“Rural community, most the people on this street have a P.O. box. The cops talked to the neighbors, most anyone can tell them so far is the same family has lived here for at least fifteen years. The closest neighbor who actually knew them is dead. Granddaughter said something about a husband and wife, but they were killed in a car wreck a year ago.”
Considering there were plenty of signs suggesting the house was occupied, either someone moved in or there had been surviving family.
“Phillips will get the lawyers to release the paperwork then we can go from there.” Harrington opened his door and got out.
Reese followed.
One of the people in a jumpsuit walked over with a handful of paper shoes and gloves. Reese took a pair and put them on.
Clumps of dirt, rock, and grass gathered on the lawn. The dispersal of the debris painted the path of chaos. The rain had erased the hard edge of the ruts cut into the earth, but they were too deep to be completely destroyed.
There was no way this was one Anubis unless it spun in circles chasing its tail.
Reese headed across the front yard following the cluster of torn ground to the back side of the house. Rear porch, some old pots with dead flowers, and a barn at the bottom of the sloping field where more people moved in and out. Generator-powered lights escaped through the gaps between the slats.
Tracks leading from the barn crisscrossed with more coming from the direction of the neighbor.
“Colonel?”
Harrington stood at the corner of the farmhouse, leaning close to a woman who spoke into his ear. He nodded then walked over.
“You do realize I have people to trudge through the grass.”
“Then why did you give me the booties?”
“To reduce contaminating the crime scene.”
Reese opened his arms. “See, I’m putting them to good use, then.”
“This isn’t a lab, Dr. Dante. And you’re not a forensics technician.”
“You’re right. But I already know what I’m looking at and that puts me miles ahead of most of these people.”
Three personnel carried a metal case of supplies to the barn. A few more shot photos of the ground inching their way across the field between the houses.
Harrington shook his head. “Our missing Anubis left the facility four days ago. This scene is at least three days old. Is that enough time for him to get this far?”
“Like I said, they’re fast.”
“That’s a lot of miles. Even moving fast, he would have had to go nonstop.”
The colonel had no idea what fast was in terms of Anubis. Reese knew, and he still couldn’t wrap his mind around it. “Yes, it’s enough time. The fact they don’t have to sleep for weeks means its more than enough.” For a beta who could enter Phase three like Nash Kelli, it would take a fraction of the time of others. The only downfall, being longer than a second in Phase three at any one time led to temporary memory loss.
Reese counted the sets of footprints, using the best of them to measure against his foot. The prints leading from the barn toward the house outsized the others twice over, confirming his suspicions.
“Nash wasn’t the only Anubis.” Reese indicated the largest set with a wave of his hand. “I’m pretty sure this one is Nash, the others…. The prints are about the same size as the ones in the lab left by the unknowns.”
“And the timeline means those couldn’t have been made by the same ones from the facility,” Harrington said.
Which meant there were more. But how many more? Reese followed the smaller tracks a few yards toward the other house. “I’m pretty sure they traveled from the site with the body to here.”
The colonel waved over one of the people in a white suit. He took the man’s flashlight. The guy flicked a look at Reese who shrugged. Harrington aimed the beam at the ground, bringing another patch of light to an already well-lit yard.
Reese returned to mapping the tracks until he was able to pick out distinct sizes between the prints. “I think there were at least three.”
Harrington did not look amused. “How the fuck can you tell how many Anubis came through here?”
“The size differences in the prints confirm it.” The unknown man started to smile.