BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. (AP) – The extraordinary manhunt for the former Los Angeles police officer suspected of three murders converged Tuesday on a mountain cabin where authorities believe he barricaded himself inside, engaged in a shootout that killed a deputy and then never emerged as the home went up in flames.

A single gunshot was heard from within, and police believe the suspect is inside, but the cabin rubble was too hot for authorities to immediately go inside.

If Christopher Dorner, as authorities suspect, the search for the most wanted man in America over the last week would have ended the way he had expected – death, with the police pursuing him.