Page 70 of Junkyard Dog

Setting a stack of paper plates beside Bo, Alex straddled the picnic table and opened a bottle of water. “Sheep’s Pass is close. We’ll start there and make our way to the Keys.” He frowned as the lights of a vehicle turned onto the campsite road and passed over them and pulled into the site across from them. “Damn. I was hoping we’d be the only ones… Ah, hell.” He gripped his water tighter as the door to the familiar truck opened.

Bo straightened up from the stove. “Is that—”

“Yup.”

His throat tightened as Charlotte stood beside her truck, her shoulders squaring before she turned toward them and walked across the dirt path, stopping beside the SUV.

The need to run slammed through him, but whether it was to run away from her or toward her, he didn’t know.

She looked so goddamn beautiful in her uniform; it physically hurt to look at her.

“Welcome to Joshua Tree,” she said, her voice stronger than his would be. She knelt down and locked her eyes on the back of the vehicle. “I’m just grabbing your plate number for our system and dropping off some information packages about the park.”

Bo took a step closer to him as Ryan stood and approached her with his hand extended. “I can take those.”

Charlotte rose to her feet and passed a handful of papers to Ryan, her face tilted away from Alex, hidden by the brim of her hat and the faint light of the lantern.

Not that it mattered.

He knew every curve of her face, every freckle, every expression.

Seeing it here, now, would only add to the plethora of images of her that cycled through his mind on a loop.

“You’ve probably heard we’ve had a string of murders in this area,” she stated, stepping back out of the light and clasping her hands behind her back. “We’re asking campers to remain vigilant to their surroundings, report anything suspicious to one of the stations listed on the back of the brochure, and to travel in groups of two or more at all times.”

Alex looked over at the truck, his jaw tensing when he confirmed she was once again alone on the trails. Unguarded. He shrugged Bo’s hand off as it settled on his shoulder. “Why isn’t Max with you?”

Her breath hitched before she continued her spiel, her thumbs hooking into the cuffs of her shirt and tugging her sleeves down over her hands. “We’re also reminding visitors to stick to established paths and to clean up all traces of activity prior to leaving the area. If there are no questions, have a great night and enjoy your stay at Joshua Tree.”

He hopped off the table and took a step toward her. “Charlotte.”

She pursed her lips, finally turning to look at him. “Question?”

He took another step, his stomach knotting when her eyes hardened and she retreated back. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

Bo swore under his breath while Ryan watched Alex with a mixture of wariness and concern.

She stilled for a moment, her attention on the empty campsite beside him. “One minute.” She turned her back to him and walked over to her truck, wrapping her arms around herself in a familiar defensive move that knocked him in the gut every time. “Go.”

“You know why we’re here,” he said quietly, stopping a fraction closer to her than needed.

“Yeah, I figured as much when I saw the three of you together.” She gave him a tight smile, her gaze averted. “Hopefully you’ll have more luck than the FBI.”

He reached to her instinctively, yanking his arm back at last minute and shoving his hands into his back pockets. “I don’t want you out here alone until we catch the guy.”

Her attention locked on something just past his shoulder and she yanked her keys from her pocket. “You don’t really have a say in that, do you?” When he didn’t respond, she exhaled and straightened her hat. “I’m turning a blind eye to you three. Clean up after yourselves, don’t get yourselves killed while I’m on shift, and don’t make me regret this.”

She got into her truck and pulled the door closed, backing out of the site without another glance his way. He watched the taillights until they disappeared into the darkness, digging his knuckles into his chest in a futile attempt to relax that tension that had settled there, to relieve himself of the constant ache he’d endured since he’d walked out of her apartment.

Scanning the darkness with the faint hope she’d doubled back to him, he took a deep breath and returned to his campsite, silently accepting the burger Bo handed him.

Chapter Twenty-Five

“How much fuckingarea can one guy cover?” Bo groaned, waving off the map Ryan was holding. “Skull, Chasm, Keys…why don’t we start crossing off the places we haven’t scented him and go from there?”

Alex spun his car keys on his finger and continued to stare out into the desert. “His stench is too strong around here. He has to be keeping a local base and traveling out to pick them off,” he murmured, forcing his thoughts away from the ranger he knew was driving the trails alone. “What towns had bodies parts dumped this week?”

Ryan passed the map over, the three towns circled in bright red marker. “The FBI set up to the north,” he said, tracing a line from their campsite. “Their focus on the cities will keep them out of our hair unless another body turns up around here.”

---