Page 74 of Relentless Hearts
“I know you think he had some designs on Willow. Dammit, we need a team dedicated to just the ranch.”
“He’s going to fucking regret it if he did something to her.” He curled his fingers into a fist.
“She’s not on the side of the road.” Colt’s voice came through the walkie-talkie the men carried in every vehicle. “No accidents reported on the police scanner either.”
When they reached town, the feed store was closed, dark and empty. Just as they expected.
No sign of Willow’s truck anywhere.
“Her truck’s not here. The tracker was unplugged.” Even as Decker said it, he knew it to be true. Ice flooded his veins. “Not a malfunction. Someone physically disconnected it.”
His hands were shaking, adrenaline and fear mixing into a deadly weapon of mass destruction.
They searched the area around the feed store, the loading dock, every alley and side street. No truck. No Willow. No signs of struggle, no indication of where she might have gone.
“I’m calling the police,” Theo barked out.
“And tell them what?” Carson’s voice was tight with controlled fury. “That our sister’s been missing for four hours? They’ll tell us to wait twenty-four hours before filing a report.”
“The tracker being unplugged is evidence of foul play.” Theo’s voice rose.
“We call the police, and we lose time while they ask questions we can’t answer yet.” Decker’s response came out cold, tactical, the SEAL taking over where the terrified boyfriend wanted to fall apart. “We need to find Calder Hensley. Cal. The guy from the feed store. The veteran who wanted into our program.”
Carson was right—they needed a bigger team. With Oaks and Gray still in Colorado, they were spread too thin.
Carson’s order grated out. “Find him, Theo.”
“Already on it,” came the reply.
Colt and Theo continued to drive every road, through the small town, the countryside and through the mountain passes while Carson and Decker paid visits to every employee of the feed store. Not one of the five employees knew where Cal lived, only that he drove an old truck that had seen better days.
When the store owner told them the same thing, Decker’s hand snapped out of its own accord. He grabbed the owner by the shirt and backed him against the wall.
“Are you sure you don’t know where he lives? He works for you!”
Carson gripped Decker’s shoulder. “Let him go.”
“Not until he tells me what he knows.”
The man’s face mottled red like he was about to expire. He shook his head frantically.
“Decker!” Carson’s command broke through the haze of rage inside him, and he released the man, stepping back before he could shake him senseless.
The man’s chest heaved and he looked between Decker and Carson “I don’t know where he lives. He was sleeping rough when he first started working for me. Tent on the mountain.That sort of thing. He never gave me a real address. He picks up his check every other Friday.”
They returned to the ranch to continue their search. And Decker was losing his goddamn mind. He paced from one end of the office to the other. When the walls closed in on him, he paced the hall, listening to the team’s voices echoing in spurts as he passed, taking in every word they said.
They worked through the evening and into the night, unraveling every thread they could find on Calder Hensley while simultaneously coordinating with local law enforcement. But as the hours ticked by with no leads, no sightings, no contact, the hope that they’d find her quickly began to fade.
At midnight, Carson sent Decker to bed. “You need to rest.”
His mouth opened on a protest.
Carson cut across him. “You’ve been up for twenty-four hours. You’re no good to her exhausted.”
“So have you.”
“I napped on the plane. We’ll keep working.”
