Chapter 18

 

Flint K-9 Search and Rescue
February 5, 12:30 p.m.

 

WE WORKED STEADILY for an hour, trekking through the undergrowth with Phantom constantly on the move up ahead. Jack, Hogan, and I were largely quiet during that time, but I could sense Hogan’s growing frustration. Megan and the other women had now been missing for over twenty-four hours. Every hour that passed without us finding them made it less likely our search would be successful.

The one thing we had on our side today was the weather. It was beautiful out, and – apart from the reason why we were here – I couldn’t think of a place I would rather be.

Since setting out that morning, I had yet to hear Brock’s voice. Did that mean we were moving farther from the shooter? I didn’t think so. The first time I’d heard him, we had been just out behind the hotel. Would the shooter have been out there talking to Megan? I sincerely doubted it. Which meant it must be something else that was triggering these bizarre echoes. I just wished I could figure out what it was.

At twelve thirty that afternoon, just as we were finishing up with a good-sized swath of search area, Hogan got another call.

“Keep going,” he told Jack and me. “I’ll catch up.”

Jack and I walked behind Phantom in silence for a couple of minutes. I loved watching Phantom work. She was a natural athlete, every move fluid and graceful. The shepherd continued along the snowy terrain, her focus entirely on the search. Behind us, I could hear Hogan on the radio. He didn’t sound happy, though I could make out no words.

When he came back, I braced myself for bad news.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“More stonewalling from the Feds,” he said. “We’re still not getting a clear answer on whether they know where Frank Mooney is. He’s supposed to be under surveillance, but no one will tell me if that’s actually true and, if so, where he is now.”

“If you don’t find anything out soon, I can call some of my contacts there,” Jack offered. “I made some enemies before I left, but I still have a few people I can check in with.”

“That would be good,” Hogan agreed. “Thank you. I’ll take whatever we can get at this point.”

“So no word about Whippet?” I asked.

“It looks like she’ll be fine. They think she ate something, but it’ll be a while before toxicology comes back. In the meantime, Michelle was on it fast enough to get her the help she needed. They won’t be back in the field today, though.”

#

The afternoon wore on. Shortly before one, we reached a narrow trail of snow and ice that skirted along a frozen waterfall, one of many in this park. Hogan had been called away a couple of times as he tried to help marshal the warden service’s dwindling forces. Jack had taken a quick break to answer nature’s call, which meant I was on my own. Phantom moved closer to the edge of the waterfall, peering down below. I went to her, following her gaze with my own.

Water frozen mid-stream hung like crystals, some of them as much as a foot thick, while down below portions of the fast-moving creek still flowed. It wasn’t a huge drop, only about twenty feet, but it was high enough to be deadly if one of us fell. I ordered her back, keeping my distance as well.

“It’s pretty stunning, isn’t it?” someone asked behind me. I started. When I turned, Chase stood watching me.

“What are you doing here? I thought you were working with another team.”

“Got separated,” he said with a shrug. “I’m lucky I found you. I could have been wandering out here for hours.” The response sounded rehearsed. He didn’t even try to inject some realism into his tone, and I realized that right now, for whatever reason, he wanted me to know who he was. Beyond the façade he’d built for years now, he wanted me to see the darkness he hid from the rest of the world.

“What’s she looking at?” Chase asked, nodding toward Phantom.

My focus shifted below once more, trying to see whatever it was that Phantom had spotted. The dog seemed to decide that, whatever it was, it wasn’t worth her attention. She moved and left me standing there.

“Check out that spot there,” Chase said, pointing to a narrow overhang of rock that looked out over the whole scene. “Come on – I bet we’d get a great view from there.”

“That’s all right. I can see just fine from here.”

“Afraid of heights?”

“No,” I said evenly. I held his gaze, willing myself not to look away. “I’m not afraid of much, actually.”

“Really? Hmm.” He paused, seeming to consider my words. “That sounds like a challenge to me.”

I couldn’t hide my surprise – shock, even – at his words. Had he really just said that out loud? He studied me, appearing to enjoy the reaction.

“Didn’t Sally tell you I like games during your chat?”

I wet my lips. Phantom had moved on ahead, and Jack still wasn’t in sight. Suddenly, a shiver of fear inched under my skin. “I told you: Sally didn’t tell me much of anything this morning. It was an innocent, unexpected meeting. We parted ways, and I never saw her again.”

“Did she tell you that she doesn’t like me? That she tried to convince Violet not to marry me?”

“No,” I said. His eyes darkened.

“Why are you lying to me?”

He stepped closer. I held my ground. He was tall, over six feet, broad and muscular. A man who took his time at the gym seriously.

“I’m not lying. Step back, please,” I said. I kept my tone even, but my anger was rising.

“Or what?” he said quietly.

“Or I’ll make you take a step back,” I said.

A grin touched his lips, and a spark of something – arousal? – sparked in his eyes. I fought the urge to wipe the look off his face.

“I’d like to see that,” he said.

Before I could respond, or push him back, or throw him over the side of the damned waterfall myself, Phantom’s barking pulled us back out of the moment.

Rather than her usual double bark to alert me to a find, she let loose with several throaty woofs and low growls that raised the hairs at the back of my neck. This wasn’t an alert; it was a confrontation.

“Phantom!” I shouted.

More snarling followed, along with growls that I knew didn’t belong to my dog. A fresh rush of adrenaline had me pushing past Chase to get to my dog. On the way, I caught a quick glimpse of his face again, and almost stopped at the cruelty there; the cool cast of his eyes, and the venomous smile.

I felt his hand at my back before I could react – a quick brush, barely making contact at all, but he caught me at just the right angle. My foot hit the patch of ice beneath me, and lost purchase.