Page 57 of K-9 in Pursuit

The sled bumped over a rough spot on the trail. “Hey, take it easy!” the mom called to Brian.

“Sorry,” he said, and adjusted his grip on the pole of the sled. “We’re almost there.”

The muffled ringtone from his phone sounded from his jacket pocket. “Is that your phone?” the mom asked.

“I’ll get it later.” He braked to slow as they approached the base area and brought the sled to a smooth halt right in front of the medical clinic. He dropped the handles of the sled and moved to release the straps holding Allie in place. Chase moved alongside to help. “How was the ride?” Chase asked the girl.

Allie managed a wobbly smile. “Not too bad. Though I couldn’t really see much.”

“The medics will take care of you now,” Brian said, as two women in scrubs emerged from the clinic.

“Thank you,” Allie said.

“I’ll get the sled back up to the top of Lift Six,” Chase said.

“Would that have anything to do with a certain liftie working six today?” Brian asked. Chase and the liftie, Cerise, had a not-so-secret relationship.

Chase grinned. “Maybe.”

“Go for it,” Brian said, and moved away, pulling his phone from his jacket as he walked.

His heart beat harder when he recognized his lawyer’s number on the screen. Her message was brief. “Call me.”

He called her number and the receptionist instructed him to hold. He paced back and forth, head down, stomach in knots.

“Hello, Brian,” Pamela Barnes’s voice was clear and calm.

“Sorry I missed your call,” he said. “What’s up?”

“There’s been a new development.”

He waited, mouth dry.

“Are you still there?” she asked.

“Yes. What’s the development?”

“The county prosecutor is convening a grand jury to determine if there’s sufficient evidence to charge you with the murder of Sharee Anderson.”

He locked his knees, which felt in danger of giving way. “I thought they didn’t have enough evidence to charge me.”

“They may have found something new.”

“But what?”

“We’re not entitled to that information unless the case goes to trial,” Ms. Barnes said. “But if I had to guess, it could be they finally got back the rest of the DNA tests on your glove. Maybe they found Sharee’s DNA on the glove.”

“I never touched her,” he said. “I swear.”

“If someone stole the glove in order to frame you for the crime, they may have made sure Sharee touched the glove,” she said. “This doesn’t mean the case is over. But I wanted to give you a heads-up.”

“The grand jury still has to decide, right?” he asked. “Maybe they won’t agree there’s enough evidence to charge me.”

“Grand juries usually go along with the prosecutor, so don’t be surprised if this goes ahead,” she said. “If that happens I’m confident we can persuade a jury not to convict you.”

“Has the sheriff’s department even considered any other suspects?” he asked. “I talked to people who saw Sharee alone downtown at night. One even saw her the night she was killed, talking to another woman.”

“I told you not to investigate on your own.”