Then Someone Else Appeared in the Woods

Natalie told police that she and Eric stopped near the creek.

They argued.

Eric handed her the folder.

Then they heard footsteps behind them.

A third person approached.

Eric suddenly told Natalie:

“Run.”

She asked why.

Eric said:

“Because he followed me.”

The third person moved toward them quickly.

Eric stepped between him and Natalie.

A brief struggle followed.

Natalie said one man shoved the other into a fence.

She ran.

When she looked back, both men were gone.

She spent more than an hour hiding behind an equipment shed before approaching another house.

Police Asked the Obvious Question

“Who followed Eric?”

Natalie answered:

“I couldn’t see his face.”

“Did you recognize his voice?”

“No.”

“What did Eric mean by ‘he followed me’?”

“I don’t know.”

Detectives asked whether Eric had been watching Jonathan Pierce.

Natalie said she had no idea.

Then her phone records revealed something unexpected.

Eric had called Pierce three times that afternoon.