Page 67 of No Broken Promises

Forgoing the radio in my cruiser, I pick up my phone and call into dispatch. This time Poppy answers on the first ring.

“Is he there?” Her worry is palpable, and it actually hurts me to give her the update.

“No.” The admission burns.

“Fuck.” Poppy starts typing in the background. “I’ve updated the CAD, and I’ll let the others know.”

“I’m heading to the house now.” This time I hang up, and then I dial Parker’s phone.

“Remy?” She hesitates, hope and fear stretching between us for a millisecond.

“He’s not here.” I keep my eyes on the road, rather than on my phone where I want them to be while I wait for her answer.

“He’s not here, either.” She sobs. “Please, Remy. Help me find him.”

I don’t hang up even though I’ve pulled up to the house. I can already see her there, in the front yard, clutching Linc’s arm in the early morning light, and I just about lose it.

“We’re going to find him,” I reassure her through the phone and watch her face as she hears my words. The way her eyes seek out mine across the yard, through the window, ignoring every other person there.

I hang up and get out of the car after grabbing my gun, badge, and a few other things I usually have on my utility belt including a flashlight. As soon as I am out the door, I find myself flanked by my father and Parker’s uncle as I let Daisy out of the back.

“Where else would he go?” Dad speaks first. “I’ve called in every officer, and Jake’s got the state police on the way, too.”

Jake nods. “Everyone’s here or on their way here.”

“He wouldn’t go anywhere but here or the cemetery.” I speak with a confidence I don’t have. “Nox isn’t stupid, Dad. He never ran away that first time either. He was a sad kid who just wanted to talk to his dead dad. Nox wouldn’t run away in the middle of the night.”

“No,” Parker adds as we get to her. “He wouldn’t.”

“I’m going to go to Rose’s house and have Daisy track Nox from there,” I tell Parker, ignoring everyone else except her. “You know you have to stay here, right? In case he’s out wandering in the woods.”

I’ve known Parker almost her entire life. I know when she’s trying to be strong for someone else. I know what each and every expression on her face means. I’ve spent my life learning everything there is to know about her. I spent every night overseas hoping for the chance to make things right, even if I fought it. So when Parker’s eyes narrow slightly and her nostrils flare, I realize that she knows I’m lying. Nox isn’t wandering.

Parker has a stalker. Someone I should have taken seriously, except I was too busy letting myself fall into the habit, the routine of having the woman I love and the son that should have been mine living with me.

There’s a reason every law enforcement agency in the county, and more, are all descending on her house.

Nox has been kidnapped. There isn’t a doubt in any of our minds, but I have to keep Parker as calm as possible.

“I’ve got her,” Linc says suddenly, appearing at Parker’s side. “Go, Remy. I’ve got her.”

His eyes, intense and blue, shadowed with regret, dart to Parker and then back to me.

“Daisy, time to go to work.”

She immediately tenses at my side, and we start around the side of the house toward the backyard. Since Rose only lives three houses down, we’ll go through the back and try to pick up Nox’s scent. With one last look at Parker, I walk away.

Nox’s jacket is still clutched in my hand, and I don’t even remember taking it from my cruiser.

Daisy ignores everything, all the noise and chaos happening behind us, and gets to work. She digs her nose into Nox’s jacket and stays there, breathing deeply for longer than a minute. Honestly, though, Daisy knows Nox. Daisy loves him. There is no doubt in my mind that she can find him anywhere, as long as there is a scent to pick up.

“Ready, girl?”

She huffs, shaking her head slightly, and then jerks her head toward the woods. For about thirty seconds she sniffs the air, then starts trotting away.

I follow on her heels, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of Nox’s blond hair sticking out against the grass or trees.

Daisy stops at the edge of the woods and starts to growl ferociously, alerting and making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I come to a halt right next to her, thinking we must already be at Rose’s house, where his scent would linger.

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