Page 7 of Shadow Sabotage
He relented with a nod. “Alright. Call in if you need anything.”
I gave him a reassuring nod.
“Deputy Hawkins will keep the scene secured,” he said, raising his voice so the others could hear. “The rest of you should get some sleep. Plan on meeting back here at eight sharp. And I know I don’t have to say this, but not a word toanyoneabout what—who—we may have discovered. This goes nowhere. Got it?”
We all nodded our understanding. News like this would spread like wildfire if we weren’t careful.
The others packed up their supplies and headed up the hill, leaving me at the bottom, listening to their low voices slowly fade away. Then there was just that unique silence of the wilderness—a quiet filled with the small noises we normally tuned out when other humans were around. Twigs cracking in the distance, the chirp of crickets, the small rustling noises that meant critters nearby.
It was my favorite kind of quiet. The kind where you could finally hear yourself think.
But it felt unnerving tonight.
Movement in the trees startled me. Then Cheyenne appeared from where she’d apparently stayed close by, waiting for the team to leave. She took a wide path around the area I’d marked off, quiet as she looked at the uncovered remains.
“Want me to stay with you?” she asked, nudging me.
“Nah. No reason to make Rhett sleep alone. He’s probably worried sick up there, waiting for you to come back.”
“We can both come down here,” she said quietly.
I waved her off. “Best to keep Ash up there, away from the scene. I’ll be fine. I promise. It’s no different than any other day at work.”
She wrapped me in a hug. “Just give a shout if you change your mind. You don’t have to do this alone.”
“It’s fine,” I said, acting like it was nothing. And I was convincing enough that we both believed me.
But when Cheyenne finally trudged back up the hillside to where Rhett and Ash were waiting for her beside a warm fire, reality set in.
I was alone in the cold, underneath a dark sky, keeping vigil for the scattered bones of a girl who had disappeared without a trace.
And when I finally allowed myself to doze off, I dreamed of all the faces of the ones I’d searched for—and failed to bring back alive.
I startledawake at the sound of twigs snapping. It was dawn, not yet time for everyone to gather, but low voices and movement on the trail told me that people were headed this way. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and blinked, trying to orient myself. It had been a mostly sleepless night and my body was crying out in exhaustion.
I relaxed when I caught a glimpse of Cheyenne’s red flannel shirt moving through the trees. She and Rhett must have gotten up early and decided to check on me. If I was lucky, maybe they had brought hot coffee—and food. Bacon, sausage… My stomach rumbled just thinking about it.
But when Cheyenne emerged from the trees, she was accompanied by a stranger.
Unlike my gigantic brother, this man was toned and athletic in a way that looked built for speed. He moved with a precision that reminded me of the sleek movements of a mountain lion. He had a chiseled face and piercing blue eyes that stared me down as he approached.
Everything about him looked expensive, from the leather jacket he wore over a black T-shirt and dark jeans to the high-end hiking boots on his feet. His rich brown hair was neatly groomed on the sides, with a classic wave on top.
He looked like Hollywood.
Not Wildwood.
Cheyenne hung back, shooting me an unreadable look as he walked up to me and crossed his arms.
He scanned me up and down. “Who are you?”
“Deputy Claire Hawkins,” I said, scrambling to my feet as I noted the DCI badge on the black leather belt that hung low on his hips.
“Where’s your uniform?”
I snorted, unable to help myself. “Where’s yours?”
A flash of humor seemed to flicker in his eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it had come, making me wonder if I had imagined the whole thing. He stared at me with an unimpressed look that urged me to explain myself.
