Where the Crawdads Sing
by Delia Owens
Contents
34. Search the Shack
Overview
Sheriff Ed and Deputy Joe execute a search warrant at Kya’s shack, looking for red wool clothing, records of movements, bus stubs, and the missing shell necklace. They discover a red wool hat whose fibers appear to match those on Chase’s jacket and bag it for lab analysis. The find strengthens the case and could trigger questioning if confirmed, though its conspicuous placement raises doubts.
Summary
On a gray November morning in 1969, Sheriff Ed and Deputy Joe arrive at Kya’s empty marsh shack with a search warrant. Amid Kya’s extensive natural history collections, Ed lists their targets: red wool clothing, a diary or notes of movements, the shell necklace, and night bus stubs. Joe is briefly absorbed by Kya’s scientific notes, but Ed refocuses the search.
After methodically checking drawers, closets, and shelves, Joe finds a red wool hat hanging openly among coats. Ed compares fibers from Chase Andrews’s jacket to the hat and notes the same red yarn interwoven with beige fibers. They bag and label the hat, planning to send it to the lab and to question Kya if the match is confirmed.
Following four hours with no additional finds, Ed ends the search. Driving back, Joe wonders why a guilty person would leave the cap in plain sight, while Ed argues Kya might not understand forensic fiber evidence. Joe’s lingering curiosity about her biology notes underscores the gap between Kya’s knowledge and the investigators’ assumptions.
Who Appears
- Sheriff EdLeads the warranted search of Kya’s shack; identifies and bags a red wool hat as potential evidence.
- Deputy JoeAssists the search; finds the red hat; intrigued by Kya’s biology notes; questions the hat’s obvious placement.
- Kya ClarkAbsent; subject of the warrant; owner of the shack and collections being searched.
- Chase AndrewsDeceased victim; red fibers from his jacket are compared to Kya’s hat.