Page 79 of Pick Your Spot

Even counting the rain, it had been a fabulous day and one he would long remember. He loved watching Thea interact with friends and realize theywerefriends, not merely acquaintances. She was a special person, and he was pretty sure she was the only one who didn’t realize it.

Tonight would be the perfect time to tell her he loved her. It was fast but he was more sure of his feelings than he’d been of pretty much anything in his life. He was pretty sure her feelings echoed his, but he wouldn’t expect the words from her. Not yet.

She hadn’t had a lot of love or acceptance in her life. Thankfully, none of her foster homes had been abusive. But she hadn’t experienced love before.

He couldn’t wait to show her that love was the best part of life. That their love would only build over the decades ahead of them.

His family would love her, too. She’d get to enjoy all the variations of love she’d never had. Romantic, family, friends. It was going to be an amazing future.

Yep, tonight was the night he’d tell her.

He managed to yank his focus back to the present and secure the zoom boom with the straps. When he hopped down from the truck, he searched for Thea. He didn’t see her anywhere.

Most of the tools, food, and coolers had been cleaned up and stowed into trucks. Was she in the group huddled under the Worminator’s platform?

Panic raced through his system, but he shoved it down. She’d been surrounded by friends. Nothing could have happened.

But he couldn’t see her.

He grabbed Ford’s arm. “Can you see Thea?”

His buddy’s eyes widened at the fear in his voice, but he didn’t care. Finding Thea was the most important thing.

She wasn’t with the group in the Worminator. She wasn’t in any of the trucks.

He raced to the compost area. Thea wasn’t there but the shed door was unlocked. His heart rate steadied until he looked in the shed and didn’t find her.

He called her name but she didn’t answer. The wind swallowed his voice and he didn’t know how far his call carried.

She wouldn’t have left the job half-done without a reason. Her sticks were stored neatly in the shed but the hose had been dropped a couple of feet from the building. A shovel lay a few feet away.

Panic made him momentarily lightheaded and he had to remind himself to breathe.

Ford and Marcus materialized beside him. The police chief’s frown told him they hadn’t spotted her either. Had she returned to her cabin for something? Possible but with Gammon in the picture, she would have told him before she left.

Marcus took in the scene in front of them. He squatted down and studied the ground. “With the rain, it’s hard to be sure, but it looks like two sets of prints, one set much larger than the other.”

Marcus rose and followed the slight tracks to the back of the shed. “More of the larger prints here. Deeper.”

Shit, shit, shit. Had he stood there longer or was he carrying Thea?

Marcus pointed at the shovel. “No one touch anything until I have pictures. And leave the shovel alone. I’ll check it for prints.”

Knox had to squat down so that his legs didn’t collapse. If Marcus wanted prints, he thought the same thing that was consuming Knox.

Asshole Andy had her.

She wouldn’t have gone willingly. Had he knocked her over the head with the shovel? Was she injured? Unconscious?

Ford’s hand on his arm stopped Knox’s thoughts from spiraling into an even worse area. His friend patted him. “Breathe, Annie. We need you at your best here. Breathe. We’re going to find her.”

They would, but would they be too late? Would it be another mission gone wrong?

“Come on, Annie. Shove that shit out of your head. Focus on the mission. One step at a time. I’ve sent someone to check out her cabin. Someone else is calling her. None of us know the area well enough. We need you.”

Knox nodded and shoved to his feet, shoving the fear aside so he could think. He couldn’t allow his panic to cost Thea anything.

He slapped Dodge on the shoulder. “Thanks. Okay. There are at least four sheds on the farm, along with the three barns and the two farmhouses. The only road off the property is the main one. These side roads don’t lead off the land. We have neighbors to the north and south, but no roads connect the properties.”

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