"Long way down there," Fred commented, as he cautiously peered over the side. The observation mirrored Dean's thoughts precisely.
"He couldn't have fallen all that way and survived," he answered.
"Maybe he bounced on some of that snow and it broke his fall."
"There wasn't near as much snow early yesterday and it's too loosely packed to provide much of a cushion. Besides, the last fifty feet is still straight down."
"Maybe the rope didn't bust loose until he was part way. She could have partially cut it."
"Either that, or someone up here waited until he was out of sight before they took out the knife. That would be less risky and make more sense."
"Kind of lets you off the hook, don't it?" the old man said with a smile. "If Shipton was far enough over the edge, close enough to the bottom and the river to survive the fall, how could he see you hacking away at his rope? If he wasn't that far, how come he's still around to point fingers?"
"Good observation," Dean answered, nodding in agreement. He walked back from the edge and looked around. Even though the position was more isolated than a number of the other starting points, it still was in relatively plain view of the walkway, both up and down stream.
"Someone would have to be damn gutsy to sit here and hack away at a rope and hope no one saw them," Fred said. Dean smiled at a pair of climbers rounding a bend in the trail and waited for them to pass before responding.
"I suppose no one would pay much attention," he answered. "Most of the climbers have partners up here with their gear, ready to help. There aren't many fools climbing alone. The big problem would be hoping no one remembered seeing you."
"It was snowing pretty heavily about that time. Makes recognizing anyone a tad more difficult."
"Yes,' Dean said. "And damn near impossible to see anything from down below, even if the overhang didn't block the view." He added, "It conveniently covers up any footprints or evidence up here too. I'm surprised anyone found the knife in the snow." He took one last look and started back down the path.
As Dean and his stepfather neared the bridge, they looked up to see a uniformed City of Ouray police man pointing at him. Next to the officer was a stern looking man in a suit and tie, arms crossed, staring straight ahead.
"Cheezit, the cops!" Fred said.
"Ten bucks says I know who he's looking for," Dean answered.
"No takers here." Just then, the man waved the cop away and began moving toward the pair, but not before giving a nod to second man Dean hadn't noticed. The partner, the younger of the two, began to circle to his left. Dean supposed this was his idea of being subtle while trying to cut off the open path.