Page 35 of Storm Warning

After grabbing the supplies from his truck, Hawk set out, heading into those forbidding woods.

God, please hide me in the shadow of your wings.

“Don’t let this jerk sneak up on me,” he mumbled to the air. That made twice he’d prayed in one day, as if he believed God had not already written him off.

After what seemed like hours but was probably less than an hour, he’d checked every cabin again. Though he didn’t want people to open their doors to a stranger, he’d knocked lightly to do what he called a “cabin check” and informed them the sheriff’s department was on the way and notto open their doors for anyone, despite the fact they had opened the door to him.

Exhaustion pulled at him as he pushed forward to the last cabin that he planned to visit. He couldn’t forget they’d already done this earlier in the evening, checking each of them.

But this last one. This was Cabin 12. Collin Barclay, a.k.a. Jo’s abductor and Remi’s likely attacker, had stayed there. Hawk doubted he would find the criminal inside. He would be an idiot to return after what he’d done to Jo.

Hawk hid near a tree and watched for movement inside. He might have already given himself away long ago as he checked other cabins. After a few minutes he decided it was time to go for it. He should wait for the sheriff’s department to arrive and let them do their job and gather evidence, but if Collin decided to come back, he could scrape all the evidence. Though he could already be too late, Hawk wanted a piece of that for himself.

He stalked up to the cabin and banged on the door. It creaked open because it hadn’t been fully shut. Perfect. Too perfect. A trap? He didn’t care as he stepped inside and shined the light into the darkness. He sensed no one was here. It was unoccupied. Completely empty. The place had been cleared out.

No iPad with Remi’s image rested on the desk. He hadn’t thought he would find it. Collin would probably have cleared out the moment he took Jo and hid her in the bunker.

Hawk searched the bedroom, the bathroom, and the closet. Nothing. Unfortunately, that familiar churning in his gut started up. He couldn’t explain it, but something was off here. John had suggested Hawk come to Cedar Trails Lodge, insisting that he would find the answers he sought. Hawk had thought he meant that by getting rest he wouldget peace of mind. And that clarity would help him find his way in the mess he’d created.

But now he got the sense that John hadn’t meant that at all. Hawk wasn’t sure he was ready to face the storm—metaphorical or otherwise—but he stepped out of the empty cabin into the darkness. He turned on his flashlight.

Pain ignited in his head as he slumped to the ground.

Stunned, he couldn’t move. He blinked a few times, wondering if he was dead already. Water pricked at his face and eyes as he looked up. He’d dropped his flashlight, and the beam lit up the woods around him.

A shadow filled his vision.

The ghost of his past that he’d been chasing stood over him.

“What are you doing?” the man asked.

Hawk struggled to respond as a million thoughts slammed into his mind. John had been right. Hawk found answers and what he’d been looking for at Cedar Trails Lodge.

“I’m ... protecting her.” He finally ground out the words.

The man shifted closer, taking in Hawk’s face. “You’re in the wrong place. Back out of this.”

“I can’t do that.” Hawk started to climb to his feet but struggled with dizziness.

“You get up, and I’ll end you.”

He didn’t doubt the man who had long evaded him.

15

Hawk hadn’t reported in on the radio. Furious, Remi rubbed her arms. She thought he understood that if he didn’t, she would come looking for him. And he didn’t want her out there, did he? So, why in the world hadn’t he responded to his radio when she tried him?

Jo paced the small space, also eager to be free of the office prison, while they waited on law enforcement to arrive.

“I need to go look for him.” Going out into the storm meant leaving Jo, and it meant that something hadn’t gone right. Hawk could be hurt.

Or worse.

Remi had to help him if he was in trouble. She yanked her coat from the rack.

“If you go, then I’m going,” Jo said.

“You’re not in any condition to keep up.”

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