The moment Nick saw her reaction, he knew he had found the right person, so he simply continued, "I'm sorry to tell you this, but we found Steven's body..."
"Oh my God, how is that possible! Are you sure?"
The girl's cry drew another young man over from nearby. He looked only about twenty, wearing a hoodie, the standard outfit of a street punk.
"What do you want?" The punk hurried over and shielded Gracie, who had instinctively risen from the ground, behind him.
"Take it easy." Hancock flashed his badge. "We're police. We just have a few questions."
"There's nothing to ask. We haven't done anything, we have the right to remain silent, and you can't just harass us." The punk immediately launched into a spiel designed specifically for dealing with cops.
"So you'd like to come down to the station with us?" Hancock had little patience for street kids like him. His expression hardened as he delivered the threat.
"Please don't do this. He's my brother. He doesn't mean any harm."
This time, Gracie stepped in front of the punk. After speaking, she sadly clutched the hem of his shirt. "They just told me Steven's dead."
"What?" Gracie's brother also looked very surprised. "How did he die? You must have made a mistake?"
"He drowned." Nick had stood up by then as well and looked directly into their eyes. "He fell into the river upstream of Multnomah Falls. We found his body not far below the falls. Do you know why he would have been there?"
"No." Gracie's brother looked shocked. His eyes darted around, not because he was lying, but because he was nervously thinking.
Gracie shook her head, her eyes brimming with tears. "All we know is that he seemed to have found a job recently."