Page 13 of Sutton's Shadow

Wyatt and Graham surrounded her, both studying the image as she maneuvered the device. “There,” she said, hovering the drone over a spot of color attached to a bush.

Graham shouted for the deputy, who jogged over. “What color jacket did the kid have?” Graham asked Ian.

“Red,” he answered immediately. “Did you find something?” Sutton held out the controller for Ian to view. Ian pulled out his cell and brought up a photo of the seven-year-old kid they were looking for. Thankfully, it was a picture of the kid in his jacket. A bright red that matched the swatch of cloth caught on the bush. “Could be a match,” Ian remarked.

Sutton punched a few buttons on her phone, bringing up her GPS to give them the exact coordinates of the spot. Wyatt had never been so impressed with a woman and her toys in his life. Well, aside from Emma. Emma had always impressed him, but she’d had training. Both with the Coast Guard and then the Nighthawks. Emma was an impressive woman.

But this woman beside him was knocking his socks off. She differed greatly from the impression he’d had of her back in Jolene’s.

This Sutton was confident and sure.

This Sutton was using her knowledge and skill to help them find a missing kid.

This Sutton wasn’t hiding behind her hair. She’d even pulled her long locks into a low ponytail. When had she done that and how had he missed it? With her hair back, her cheekbones emerged more pronounced. And Wyatt spotted an endearing little beauty mark on her left temple near her eye. He felt a sudden desire to place his lips on that tiny mark.

There’s a missing kid, he chastised himself, forcing his attention back on the screen as Sutton continued the grid search he’d started. Graham had moved back to the maps to give the team their assignments. Ian brought the parents over to him and Sutton. Wyatt greeted them and assured them the Nighthawks wouldn’t stop searching. Sutton was concentrating too hard on the screen to offer a greeting. She effectively blocked out the people surrounding her as she worked the controls.

After about thirty minutes of searching, the drone used its RTH, the automatic return-to-home feature when the battery was low. “There should be another battery in my bag,” Sutton said to Wyatt. He ran to her car to search for the battery, surprised she had so many spares. Spotting other batteries for the controller, he grabbed them all. Couldn’t hurt to replace the ones in the controller as well. He just hoped the charge in her phone would last. After changing out the batteries, she sent the drone back out. The Nighthawks had joined the search on foot, starting near the coordinates where they’d spotted the red cloth and working out from there.

Sutton continued the search from the air right where she’d left off. Wyatt stayed with her. A second pair of eyes. Now, if he could keep his focus on the screen and not the exotic flowery scent of her perfume, he’d be golden. But the scent was intoxicating—a promise of midnight pleasures. And his body was responding, hardening at the most inappropriate time.

After a few minutes of Wyatt trying to block out the effect Sutton was having on him, the parents thankfully distracted him with a few questions as they waited for word from the team. He patiently answered their questions, but soon perceived a change in Sutton’s posture.

She made eye contact with him and bit her bottom lip. Her eyes slid to the parents as she tilted the screen away from their line of sight. What had she found that she didn’t want the parents to know?

Wyatt adroitly drew Ian’s attention, communicating with a few covert hand gestures for him to distract the couple. Moving closer to Sutton, he placed a hand on her lower back and moved her a little farther away from the parents. “What is it?”

Biting her lip again, she turned the screen to him. She’d done it. She found the kid. He was lying on the ground in the fetal position. Unmoving. Now Wyatt understood her concern.

“He’s not moving. The light or the noise from the blades should have woken him, one would think,” she whispered, worrying her lip between her teeth again.

He moved his hand on her back in a circular pattern, hoping to comfort her. “I don’t know,” he answered. “Let’s pull up the GPS and alert the team.” Once Wyatt sent the text to the Nighthawks with the coordinates, they kept watch on the kid until the low battery forced the drone to return to them. All they could do now was wait for word from his team.

Forty minutes later, Wyatt got the text. The kid was alive! Just exhausted and a really deep sleeper. Sutton laughed her relief. He couldn’t help but join in with her. It had been a tense forty minutes. By the time the rest of the Nighthawks, with the boy riding Graham piggyback style, made it back to the parking lot, the kid was wide awake and raring to go. The parents forced him to calm down long enough for the EMTs to check him over. Aside from being a little cold, the kid would be fine. The good news put the team in a jovial mood. And in those situations, the team usually ended up at Jolene’s to celebrate a success.

Wyatt helped Sutton pack up her toys. “You’re welcome to join us at Jolene’s,” he offered, handing her the spent batteries. She looked a little uncertain, the strong and confident Sutton slipping away. “Natalie and the rest of the women are meeting us there,” he rushed to assure.

She gave him a small smile after zipping her bag closed. “Okay. Sounds like fun.”

“All right if I ride back with you?” he asked, not wanting to assume.

“Of course.” She pressed the button to lower the tailgate, and they climbed into her SUV.

“You’re pretty good with that drone,” he remarked as they pulled out of the parking lot. “Not sure I would have spotted that piece of cloth.”

“Thanks. I’ve had lots of practice,” she answered, then chuckled. “Well, not practice finding lost kids. Just the flying.”

“Not sure we would have found him so fast without you.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” she said, shooting him a skeptical look. “Natalie told me about how you all found her missing students a few years ago. From the way she tells it, you guys pulled off that miracle in a few hours after the deputies and the town had spent days searching.”

Shrugging, he peered out the front windshield, embarrassed by the praise. Like Graham, he didn’t do the job for the accolades or glory. He just wanted to help people. “Just doing our job,” he stated simply. Now if only he could find his sister as easily. With that thought, the high from finding the kid fled his body and was replaced with worry and anger.

“Well, even if it is just a job, you guys are heroes.” Sutton smiled briefly before it slid away. A shadowy sorrow settled into her features. He wondered what had made her so sad so suddenly. Was she thinking of her fiancé? She must have thought of him as a hero while he’d been alive. The temptation to ask her, to probe into her emotions as a distraction for his own turbulent thoughts, enticed him, but they had arrived at Jolene’s.

After climbing out of the car, they strolled across the lot to the door. He held it open for her to enter before him. As soon as they were inside, they parted from each other. He went to where Finch and Evan sat, and she stayed on the other side with the women.

He watched as Natalie greeted her with a big hug. Graham also hugged her, and there was the twinge of jealousy again that he didn’t understand. He had no designs on the woman. So why did he want to be the only man who could touch her? He should focus more on finding his sister, not his inappropriate lustful thoughts for his friend’s woman.

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