Page 16 of When You're Home for the Holidays
She grabbed her coat and slipped on a pair of boots that weren’t hers, then flew out the door behind them.
Chapter nine
Rhett
“Penny!”
“Penny! Come on, girl!”
Every second that passed ushered in another stroke of hopelessness. They’d been outside for almost ten minutes now, desperately screaming and sweeping the perimeter of the cabin. Two sets of paw prints mixed in the fresh snow, but it was almost impossible to follow any discernible path from the tracks. The snow was falling too fast, and the wind was pushing the soft powder all over.
Rhett knew screaming was futile—they could barely hear each other as their voices were carried off by the wind. But he didn’t know what else to do.
Haas admitted he had been glancing down at his phone when Penny broke free, so he wasn’t even sure what type of animal she had run after. Was it a deer or a rabbit? Or something more menacing, like a raccoon or a fox?
“Ev,” Tori panted as she ran back over to his side. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears. Her face was screwed up in anguish, and he knew she was trying her hardest not to cry.
Fucking Fielding.
“I know,” he replied, yanking her into his side as if holding her close would somehow vanquish all her fears. “Get everyone back over here,” he commanded. “We need to make a plan.”
Tori took off to find Jake and Fielding, both of whom had headed into the woods. They hadn’t made it far. He could still see the little lights of the cell phones they were using as flashlights.
Rhett lifted his hand to his mouth and let out a wolf whistle. Maddie’s head instantly snapped up in attention when she heard the familiar sound their dad had conditioned them to listen for as kids. He waved her over while simultaneously jogging in her direction, knowing she wouldn’t be able to hear him until she was standing by his side.
“Okay, we need to work smarter. Can you go into the house and round up some flashlights? There’s definitely one in the kitchen junk drawer, and there should be a few more in the basement bedroom or in the loft. We’ll come meet you back inside and make a plan.”
Maddie nodded wordlessly, her bare hands tented over her mouth as she used her breath to warm them. She took off toward the cabin at a quick pace. Or as quick of a pace as the calf-deep snow allowed.
Rhett turned to see Jake, Tori, and Fielding making their way back to where he stood. He tensed as he watched Fielding drape an arm over Tori’s shoulder.What the hell?Was he really trying to cozy up and comfort her right now? He was the one who’d been playing on his phone and let Penny go in the first place.
“You’d think you’d have a little more urgency to your step, Haas,” he clipped out once he knew they were close enough to hear him. Fielding’s head jerked up at the accusation, his arm recoiling in slow motion.
Rhett sneered. A wave of animosity for Fielding bubbled right below the surface, ready to erupt. He felt the heat crawl up his neck as he continued to glare.
The guys stopped a few feet in front of him, but Tori joined him and tucked up against his side.
“Any sign of her?” he demanded, already knowing the answer but needing to hear Fielding admit it. Needing him to feel the failure. To understand the gravity of the pain he had caused Tori.
“We lost the tracks right at the edge of the woods. It almost looks like they circled back toward the lake,” Jake supplied as he bounced up and down on his feet to try to stay warm. He’d run outside without a coat, too.
Rhett didn’t take his eyes off Fielding as he spoke. “This is serious. We need a plan. I say we split up. Jake and Tori, you guys take the Jeep and try to get deeper into the woods. The jogging path is wide enough for a car. Maddie, Haas, and I will grab some real flashlights and follow the paw prints on foot.”
“That’s stupid,” Fielding quipped. “We already told you—the prints stop at the edge of the woods.”
“They can’t just disappear,” Rhett countered. “Obviously you didn’t look hard enough.”
Fielding rolled his eyes. “Obviously you’re a control freak who would rather waste his time retracing our steps than actually finding Penny.”
“Ev, don’t,” Tori warned in an urgent whisper as he released his hold on her and charged toward Haas. Stupid fucker had it coming if he thought he could mouth off and disrespect him. He was the one who had caused this mess in the first place.
“You got a problem with my way of doing things, Haas?! We wouldn’t even be out here right now if it weren’t for you!” Rhett shoved Fielding, catching him by surprise so he stumbled back a few steps. He hadn’t hit him hard enough to completely dislodge his footing, but suddenly Fielding was barreling backward toward the ground. He reached out, grasping for something to break his fall, and caught Rhett’s arm in the process.
Fielding landed on the frozen ground with athunk, Rhett’s body forcing grunts out of them both when he landed on top of the other man. Rhett grabbed for the lapels of Fielding’s jacket, lifting him off the ground slightly before pounding down on his chest. Fielding grunted again, but Rhett didn’t care. He was done pretending to give a fuck about the well-being of Fielding Haas. He closed his fingers into a fist and started to raise his arm, the sheer anticipation of throwing the punch already making the serotonin surge in his brain.
“Bro!” Jake bellowed with enough volume to be heard over the wind. Rhett jerked back at the warning, startled as he realized what he’d been about to do. He moved to stand and help Fielding to his feet, but Haas had other ideas. Within three seconds Rhett was flat on his back, Fielding on top of him, their positions reversed.
Rhett felt the snow beneath him instantly soak through the fabric of his Henley. He tried to suck in a breath but couldn’t drag in enough air with Fielding sitting on top of him and pressing down on his lungs. Somewhere in the distance, he heard screaming. His brain snapped into defense mode as he realized he physically couldn’t get up. He was trapped.
