Teeth and Bone

Chapter 3

Annoyed was too weak a word to describe exactly how Andie was feeling at that moment. It had been a taxing week of preparation, an exhausting day of travelling to the closest village and then trying to find someone to take her up to the site that had caused much fear in the locals, and what did she get in return for her troubles?

A group of people stomping around an area that was now covered in police tape, not a care in the world about the destruction they caused as they tarnished and mutilated her historical site.

No, annoyance didn't fully cover her feelings.

She was seething.

Her short temper had gotten her into trouble many times but now it would work in her favour in ridding the cave of these pests.

She dropped her bag close to the entrance of the cavern, stomping her way over the middle of the room and, not yet shouting, raised her voice, reinforcing it with steel. "Just what do you think you are doing?"

There were four people in the cave: two of which Andie could clearly tell were local police - their uniforms giving away their status. The others were dressed normally but carried themselves with an air of superiority. Detectives, she guessed.

Andie wasn't ignorant, she had kept up with the media coverage of the site and knew all about the death of the man (which was clearly not a publicity stunt) and knew they were simply doing their jobs in aiding the ongoing investigation.

But she was too tired and irritated by the acts of humanity in general to prioritise rational thinking primarily. She just wanted to know what the hell was going on. So she stood there, glaring at each and every one of them in turn.

"Sorry, what?" The man who spoke had bright blond hair and his face was frozen in a grin, an expression now turning into confusion.

"Do you want me to repeat myself?"

The man knew not to irritate the angry woman, but he couldn't go without getting some answers. This was a closed scene of course.

"Look, this is a confidential case. You cannot be here."

Andie tilted her head menacingly. "Are you sure about that?"

He gulped and looked at his partner for help.

The woman looked at Andie stoically. "I don't care who you think you are but whatever you're here for, this case takes priority, okay?"

Andie looked at them critically, not caring about the officers who were slowly backing away from her angry presence. She tried to tone down the ire in her voice and work through the process logically. "I understand you must be here in order to search for any clues linking to the disappearance of the primary suspect in the case of her husband's death but you are not treating this place like the historical site that needs to be preserved." She looked around and grimaced at the sight of the ruined marks on the floor that were centuries old. Another layer of dust and rock covered the room, hiding the cavern's secrets further from her view. "It's more than just a crime scene and extra precautionary measures have to be taken. It's my job to find out as much about this place as I can and your activities have made it that much harder. I don't wish to be a hindrance but my boss clearly stated that a day after investigations closed I had time to properly investigate the origins of this site."

She needed her space, clear of distractions while she looked around. It would do to have it invaded by these people who saw no worth of a historical site. Besides, the investigation was closed, she had been informed of this when reaching the town. She wasn't trying to be rude and abrasive - that was just her personality - but these little snippets into the past had to be preserved. After all, it was only by understanding the past we could understand the present and predict the future.