Chapter Five

Kate and her friends parked their bikes against two trees right around the corner where they’d last glimpsed the Mystery Rider in the distance. “Are you sure this is a good idea, leaving our bikes here?” Kate asked no one in particular.

“Yep,” Colt said casually. “No one is going to steal four bikes at once, and they’ll be in sight all the way up the road. If we find where the horse turned off, we can come back and get them. But it’s going to be hard to see any prints if we’re riding. We need to walk and keep our eyes on the ground.”

“Okay, I guess that’s smart.” Kate edged to the side of the road. “So do we split up? Two of us on each side?”

Melissa crinkled her nose. “I didn’t think about that. I’m not sure why I assumed they’d turn off this direction, but you’re right, Kate. They could as easily have crossed the road and disappeared on the other side.”

“Right.” Colt beckoned to Tori. “You want to come with me, and Kate and Melissa can check this edge?”

Kate threw him a questioning look. He knew Tori and she were best friends, and that until last night, she’d been struggling with trusting Melissa. Was this some kind of test, or didn’t he want to walk with Melissa? Either way, she couldn’t very well say no. They’d already made Melissa feel like she wasn’t wanted recently, and Kate couldn’t do that again. “Sure. Come on, Melissa. You might be right, and we’ll be the ones to find where they left the road.”

Melissa grinned at Tori. “Or sprouted wings and flew over the treetops.”

Tori smacked Melissa’s arm. “We didn’t see any wings on that horse, so I don’t think that’s gonna happen.”

Melissa smirked. “I was thinking of something a little spookier.”

“Like I’ll be scared. Dead people don’t come back to life anyway.” Tori exhaled dramatically. “Come on, Colt. Let’s go check out the other side of the road and see if we can solve this mystery.”

“What’s with her?” Melissa retorted. “I was only joking. Besides, my mom said reincarnation might be true. She’s been checking out different religions lately and telling me some of what she’s learned.”

Kate’s stomach lurched. She hadn’t expected that they would talk about stuff like that. What should she say—that Melissa’s mom didn’t know what she was talking about and was listening to people who didn’t know God? That might offend Melissa. But Kate couldn’t lie and pretend she didn’t care or didn’t have an opinion, when she agreed with Tori.

As they started along the edge of the road, Kate was thankful they needed to keep their eyes on the ground. “She was only telling you what she believes.”

“Yeah, well, how is it any better than what anyone else believes?” Melissa stuffed her hands in her jeans pockets and scanned the hard-packed dirt.

“She and I, and Colt too, believe that the Bible tells us what’s true. It says that once a person dies, they don’t come back. They either go to heaven or hell. Except Jesus did, and there have been people raised from the dead, but I mean it’s not normal.”

“So what … you guys are religious nuts? I always knew there was something different about you.” Melissa’s tone had drifted back to its old snideness, but somehow Kate sensed curiosity as well.

“No, we’re Christians, that’s all.”

“So, religious nuts. Kooks,” Melissa said in a sly voice, as if testing to see if Kate still wanted her around.

Suddenly Kate got it. All this time, she’d been thinking about herself and her friends, worried that Melissa was out to get them, when God had sent Melissa to them so they could tell her about Him. Wow. That was cool! Kate couldn’t help it. She laughed.

Melissa jerked to a stop and glared. “So now you’re laughing at me? Maybe I’ll head home.”

Kate tried to control her giggling. “No. I’m sorry. I wasn’t laughing at you. I admit, it does seem funny that you’d want to hang out with kids you think are kooks, but that’s not it. I was laughing at myself for being so stupid.”

Melissa swung around, her mouth pressed in a firm line. “Explain.”

“All this time I’ve been thinking you hated us and you were mean. Well, maybe you did hate us a little at first, but I don’t think you’ve ever intentionally been mean.”

Melissa crossed her arms over her chest. “What exactly are you saying?”

Kate kicked at a pinecone. “You said your mom is searching and checking out different religions. I’m wondering if maybe you’re searching for what makes the three of us happy. You said you noticed we’re different. We didn’t cut you off when we found out you don’t have money, ’cause it doesn’t matter to us. We like people for who they are and how they act, not for the stuff they have.” She hunched a shoulder. “And I guess part of that is how we’ve been raised. But all three of us know Jesus personally—like, He’s our friend—so I think it goes past how we were raised, if that makes any sense.”

Melissa dropped her arms to her sides. “Not even a tiny bit. I figured you’d start yelling at me when I said you were kooks. That you’d tell me to get lost and that you don’t want me to hang around anymore. I don’t get you, Kate Ferris. Not at all.”

Kate looped her hand around Melissa’s arm. “Maybe you will if you hang around long enough. Now let’s see if we can find those hoofprints. Colt and Tori are way ahead of us, and they haven’t found a thing yet, so I think we’re going to get lucky soon!”

Melissa at first froze at Kate’s touch but then smiled. “Sounds good to me. Let’s go.”

They scanned the roadside for several yards with no results. The brush and trees grew thicker in this section, making it harder to see the ground. Kate and Melissa had covered another short section when Melissa stopped abruptly and grabbed Kate’s hand. “Look.” She pointed toward the dense brush.

Kate stared but didn’t see anything unusual. “What? There’s nothing there.”

Melissa released her hold on Kate and gestured. “You’re not looking high enough. See that low-hanging branch beyond the brush?”

Kate concentrated. “Yeah. And?”

“There’s a small piece of black fabric caught on the end.”

“Wow! You’ve got great eyes to spot that.”

Melissa ducked her head. “My dad always used to say I could find anything that was lost. We’d better holler at Tori and Colt so they don’t get too far ahead.”

“Right. I’ll get them. You keep your eyes on that branch.” Kate jogged up the road until she wasn’t far from her two friends. “Hey, guys. We think Melissa found something. Unless you’ve found tracks, you might want to come check this out.”

Colt and Tori ran across the gravel road, and Colt reached Kate first. “What’s up? You find hoofprints?”

“No.” Kate pointed. “Maybe something better. The brush was too close to the road, so we didn’t see any tracks. Come on, I’ll show you.”

They raced one another back to the spot where Melissa waited, then stopped. Tori shaded her eyes against the summer sun peeking through the branches. “What are we looking for?”

Melissa explained and started to walk toward the branch, but Colt held up a hand. “Wait. Let’s make sure there’s no poison oak or bramble bushes before we plow through this thicket. Better yet, is there an easier way around to where that branch is hanging?” He searched the ground around the clump of brush and grunted. “This way. There’s a narrow path past this tangle of weeds. It goes around the big, thick stuff and comes out on the other side, not far from that tree.” He led the way, and the girls followed; then they halted under the tree.

Tori squinted at the branch hanging about four or five feet above their heads. “So you think the Mystery Rider went under here and snagged her hood?”

Kate smiled at Melissa. “Yep. And we wouldn’t have found it if it hadn’t been for Melissa.”

Colt extended his fist and gave Melissa a fist bump. “Way to go. Now what?”

Kate froze. She’d been so excited about their find, she hadn’t thought any further. “I’m not sure. Maybe see if we can find tracks and follow them?”

Tori glanced into the woods that darkened as they grew denser. “Um … really?”

Melissa touched Tori’s shoulder. “Yeah. But it’s okay if you don’t want to, Tori. We’ll understand.”

Tori’s eyes widened. “Thanks, but if you guys are going, I am too. We’re in this together, right?”

Kate grinned. “Right. You’re my best friend, and I’m not leaving you behind. I think Melissa’s right. I say we follow the path, if there is one, and see where it leads. We’ll all watch each other’s backs. Agreed, Colt?”

He stared up at the branch with the piece of cloth caught on the tip. “I’m in.” He waggled his brows. “Let’s go see what we can scare up. I’m ready for an adventure.”