It was Samwise who found the body. He knew it was there three days before, but I asked him to stay on the trail since it was hunting season.
On the fourth day, Christmas Day, he was more insistent, so I agreed to follow him. We climbed a slight rise, and there it was, heavy and lifeless in the fallen leaves.
Emily quickly stepped behind me, and even Samwise hesitated and cautiously sniffed the ground around the corpse at a safe distance. It was as if they feared that it would spring back to life and catch us at any moment.
At first, I did not see the gunshot wound or the dried blood. The cold weather had preserved the body, and it looked almost peaceful.
It seemed strange that the crows had not violated the scene since it had been that way for at least four days and probably longer, for we had only been hiking that route in the West Barnstable Conservation Area for four days.
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