“I assumed he had slipped and fallen into the raging creek at the bottom of the ravine,” Austin stammered.

“We searched the whole area for hours in the storm.”

“Did you ever find his body?” I demanded.

“No,” Austin admitted softly.

The devastating answer hung heavily in the air between us.

Outside, the rain kept beating steadily against the metal roof of the storage building.

“Then how could you possibly tell me he died in that crash?” I sobbed.

“Because that’s what the department officially concluded,” he whispered.