34. Search and Rescue

As soon as Noah laid eyes on his older brother in the tavern's parking lot, he marched toward him and barked his name. Reece's head was bent as he listened to a woman in search-and-rescue gear, and he held up his finger, indicating Noah needed to hang tight. But he didn't want to hang tight. His body vibrated with the need to push his way through his back door and search for his woman and his dog. Instead, he hovered impatiently behind Reece and let his eyes roam over the damage.

Bright lights bathed the back of the building, and Noah's eyes recorded soot smudging the red brick. The door itself appeared charred and ragged along its bottom, as if an animal had gnawed the wood. What was left of the threshold was a blackened mess. Other than this bit of visual evidence and the noxious smell of smoke hanging in the air, the bar appeared untouched. Inside, shadows moved in and through the back hallway, the reflectors on their gear occasionally illuminated by the light.

Meanwhile, the woman talking to Reece appeared to be giving him orders. When she finished, Reece gave her a bob of his head. "Understood."

As the woman walked away, Noah stepped beside his brother. "Who's that?"

"The incident commander. Her name's Chelsea."

"She's not with San Juan."

"Nope. She volunteered to take over."

Noah's raucous alarms bells clanged louder. "I thought you were the incident commander."

"Not for every mission, and especially not this one." Noah's eyebrows flew to his hairline, and Reece laid a steadying hand on his shoulder. "I'm too close to the situation. Despite the size of this town, we have protocols, and even I wouldn't put me in charge. Look, I know what you're thinking, but she's really good at what she does, and she's got this under control."

"So what's she done to find Hailey and Chance?"

"We're working on that. We're a little shorthanded."

"Then I'm going inside to take a look."

Reece tightened his grip. "No, you're not, and I'll give you three reasons why. First, priority one was looking for civilians, and we found none. I was in there, and I checked every nook and cranny. The place is empty. Second, we must be a hundred percent sure it's safe before non-emergency personnel can enter. Third, we've called in an arson investigator, and we need to preserve the scene so he can do his job."

The word "arson" shouldn't have stunned Noah, yet it did. He'd considered it fleetingly, along with other potential causes for the fire, but its impact hadn't slammed into him until just now. The reality conjured an evil he couldn't begin to fathom.

He swallowed the lump in his throat. "You really think it's arson?"

"I'm no expert, but it's pretty clear someone set this fire deliberately. The good news is they weren't successful. There's smoke damage, but otherwise the place looks intact. The only physical damage is what you see right here." He pointed toward the back door.

"Did anyone notice Hailey's phone? I've been trying to call—"

"Because it's still inside, with her keys and her purse." Reece's expression told Noah the words pained him to say.

Before Noah had a moment to ponder the disturbing news, a familiar figure lunged through a small crowd that had gathered, making a beeline for Noah. "Boss! Are you all right?"

In a pair of red snowflake footy pajamas, Dixie looked as though she'd hopped out of bed mere moments before. Silver pins holding her hair in place winked in the floodlights, and her face was devoid of paint. Her pale lips quivered, and she began patting Noah's arms and shoulders. "You're okay, right?"

He grasped her hands and squeezed them. "I'm fine, but we can't find Hailey or Chance." The calmness in his voice shocked him. It sounded as though it came from someone else and from far away.

"Oh no!" she cried and spun in circles, as if woman and dog might be lingering in the parking lot and had merely been overlooked.

Noah glanced at his brother. "I have to find them." The emotion he had caged cracked through his thin veneer of control and transformed his voice into a croak.

"Dewey and I will help," Dixie squawked.

Reece gave her a half-smile. "Might be better if you change into something more suited for the outdoors, Dix."

"I know that," she snapped and speed-waddled away.

"Come back here when you're ready," Reece called after her, "so we can tell you where to go."

"I'm tired of being told where to go." She flapped a hand while Noah stared after her. Would she and Dewey be a help or a hindrance? It could go either way.

"Reece, I'm searching on my own."

"I reached Charlie, and he's on his way. I need you to wait for him. You're in no condition—"

"To drive. Yeah, I know, but I'm doing it anyway," Noah bit out. "I can't stand around here and do nothing." Every square inch of skin on his body itched.

Reece used his big brother voice, pushing Noah's sanity to the brink. "I don't think that's a good idea, Noah."

"And I don't give two fucks."

A figure strode through the crowd and blinked against the bright light. "Hey, heard you need some help." Deputy O'Brien, in civilian clothing, hitched up his jeans. His belt was missing, his shirt untucked, and his hair looked like he'd stuck his finger in an electrical socket. The sour smell of alcohol drifted off him.

"Rough night?" Reece chuffed.

Shane snorted. "Nah, it was a great night until I got a whiff of what's going on." He slid his gaze to Noah. "I'll drive."

Reece pulled himself to his full height, which beat Noah by an inch. "I'm getting a whiff of you, dude, and I don't think you're in any condition to drive either."

"I'll do the driving." Neve appeared in a down jacket and snow boots, her curls tucked under a knit cap. She marched right up to Reece, and though she was a foot shorter, she leveled him with a death glare. "And don't you dare tell me I can't, Reece Hunnicutt. Hailey is my friend, and I love that dog."

Reece's mouth opened, closed, and opened again.

"Yeah, I thought so," she huffed and rolled her eyes. "Boys!"

"Noah's with me!" a new voice hollered. Where the hell had Micky come from?

Amy scurried behind him. "I'm in too!"

Noah couldn't decide whether to tear his hair out or kiss every member of the three-ring circus surrounding him.

Reece shrugged. "Your call, bro."

"Let's split up. I'll go with Neve." She seemed like the only sane one out of the bunch. Besides, the girl had the driving skills and nerves of an ice road trucker. "Amy, go with Micky. Shane, are you sober?"

"I just blew a point oh-three. I'm legal."

Neve let out a little gasp. "You used your own breathalyzer? Can you do that?"

Reece side-eyed her. "Unimportant. He's sober, and we need all the help we can get. Let's go over who's covering what territory."

Neve's mouth thinned into a tight line, and the daggers in her eyes gave away her thoughts even though she bottled them up.

As Reece pulled out the map, a huffing, puffing Ursula burst into the parking lot. "I'm here to help."

Noah reacted, not thinking, and charged toward her. "You're the one who did this!" Shane caught him by the shoulder and hauled him backward.

Her eyes flew wide. "You think I-I …" She flung her hand toward the back door. "How could you believe I'm capable of doing such a terrible thing?"

"Because you're the one who's been leaving notes on our cars," he bellowed.

Confusion knotted her features. "Notes? Whose cars? What are you talking about?"

Doubt crept into his whirring mind. Ursula was a decent actress and an accomplished manipulator, but was she talented enough to fake surprise this easily? She hadn't even fallen back on her wobbly lip or other usual facial props. More importantly, was she capable of setting a fire?

Shane stepped between them, facing off against Noah. "I don't think she did it," he said in a low voice.

Noah butted his chest against Shane's, but he didn't budge the deputy. "Then you'd better go arrest Bruno Keating and put the fucker behind bars, where he belongs!"

Shane held his ground. "Noah, go look for your girl. That's your only job right now. You let me worry about mine."

Neve's small hand pressed against Noah's bicep. "Noah, this isn't helping Hailey. She needs us working together so we can find her."

Reece lifted his chin in Ursula's direction. "Thanks, Urse. We could use the extra help."

Wide, wary eyes watched Noah as he shoved his hands through his hair. Neve was right. He needed to pull himself together.

With a curt nod, he let her lead him away.

Hailey's teeth clacked together as she pulled more sappy boughs over herself. She couldn't swallow to coat her parched throat, and her head pounded. She lay curled in a ball beneath a stand of enormous pines reaching toward a jet-black sky. Looking upward was like peeking through an aperture because the treetops blocked most of her view. The few stars she spied were dim pinpricks, offering no illumination. The moon was either a sliver or slung so low it cast no light to help her find her way—if she could even figure out where that path lay.

"You're supposed to stay in one spot so searchers can find you, dummy," she murmured, her breath billowing white in front of her face. "Then again, no one knows that you left or where you went. Double dummy."

Yeah, she was a complete and utter idiot. She had run off willy-nilly without any direction, without paying attention to her surroundings, and without alerting anyone about the fire. Without leaving word behind. Without pausing to grab her phone or extra clothing.

In her panic over Chance, she'd lost her mind and lit out. She couldn't stand the thought of him shivering and alone in the dark, so she'd gone after him, only to end up in the very same condition without having saved him. He was probably curled up somewhere just like her. Her heart contracted as she thought of him lying out there somewhere, scared and cold.

She fought her rising anxiety. One side of her brain told her to get up and move or she'd die where she lay. The other side warned her to stay put. But she was so damn cold—she could barely feel her feet. She kept her fingers tucked inside her coat, but they throbbed every time they warmed up. What were those survival tips Noah had taught her when they'd been stuck together in his truck? Her brain blanked out most thought except the feel of his warm body beside hers.

She was clueless when it came to surviving in these conditions. It might be spring, but at ten thousand feet, the temperature was cold enough to kill her—one more reminder that she was no mountain girl.

Noah.

If only she could will him here right this instant. His face floated in front of her, and she imagined his arms surrounding her, holding her close, keeping her warm and safe. She loved him so much. A smile curved her lips, and she drifted.

Her eyes snapped open. Get up! Don't fall asleep! Find Noah! She possessed a slim sliver of wits—enough to know going to sleep was bad.

Struggling mightily, she pulled herself upward, leaning against a tree trunk for support as she hauled up one leg, then the other. She panted from the exertion. Looking around, she tried to get her bearings, but the trees and the dark obscured her vision. She cinched her arms around her body as she tried to hold in heat.

Think, Hailey, think!

If she could find the main road … When had she left it and where? Retrace your steps. But it was dark, and she'd already tried that once, or was it twice? She was getting herself more lost.

Rustling beyond the trees jolted her fully upright. What if a predator was watching her, stalking her? Oh God, she didn't want to die from being ripped to shreds!

Another thought pierced her muddled mind.

"Chance? Is that you, buddy? Come here, boy."

A low growl answered her. She took a step back, two, but the noise seemed to follow her. She froze and strained to hear. A stirring of leaves lifted the hair off her scalp.

Keeping the trees within reach, she crept sideways, fumbling as she searched for limbs to climb. Of course, if a bear was after her, it would simply chase her up the tree faster than she could shinny.

A comforting thought.

The low rumble tracked her as she continued her slow sidle. She widened her eyes in hopes they would pick up light in the gloom. Then again, she might be better off not knowing when the beast pounced.

Her mind chose that moment to leap to the creature in the movie Predator, and her heart slammed itself against her chest wall. She couldn't hear above her own ragged breathing.

Sagging against a tree trunk, she slowed her panting. Quiet encircled her. The sudden lack of sound was more unsettling than the noises had been.

You're letting your imagination take over.

Pushing herself off the tree, she stood on shaky legs, willing them to hold her up. Then she heard it. Breathing, heavy, not human.

Everything happened all at once.

Noah scoured the wall of trees as Neve maneuvered her truck along the dirt track in the woods above the rec center. "Why would they be out here by the rink?" The thing had been drained weeks ago, not that the fact added to or subtracted from his confusion.

"I don't know," she answered evenly, "but it's our area to search, according to Reece, so that's the plan we're sticking to."

Noah's phone rang, and Charlie's golden retriever face flashed on his screen. Noah answered without a greeting. "Where are you?"

"About an hour out. I finally got into cell range. I've tried calling you, Shane, Reece—everyone—every few minutes without any luck. Now listen so I can get this out before we lose the connection."

"I'm with Neve. I'm putting you on speaker." Noah slid her a sidelong glance. "It's Charlie." She acknowledged him with a nod, and he hit the speaker icon. "We're listening. Go."

"I installed the cameras late yesterday, and I was testing them out when I ran into a glitch, so I shut everything down before heading to GJ."

"Okay?" Noah hadn't realized his brother had finally taken delivery of the cameras, let alone rigged them, but why the hell did this matter now? Especially since they didn't even function?

"Like I said, I thought I'd stopped them from recording, but the bug kept everything rolling. It's smart technology and has some kind of built-in warning system that signals you when it detects something way outside the norm or in conjunction with something else, like smoke or heat. But it was on a delay—the glitch again—so I only got the alert a while ago, after I started heading back to Fall River." Charlie's voice grew more excited.

Noah sat forward, and his pulse kicked up several notches. "Yeah?"

"Noah, I saw who tried to burn your place. It's the same person who left the notes."

"How do you know?"

"Because they left another note tonight, right before they set the fire. Did anyone check Hailey's windshield?"

Noah exchanged a look with Neve, who shrugged.

"Her car was there, but I wasn't paying attention to it, so I don't know if there was a note. Neve didn't see one either."

"I'll have Reece or Shane check."

"Charlie, for fuck's sake, who did you capture on the camera?"