Page 64 of Scent of Death

“Ribs and head.” She grimaced. “I rushed him, and we hit the floor. That’s when the gun went off. He struck me in the head, then kicked me before bolting out of here.”

A red wave of anger hit hard, but he forced it back. “We need to get you both to the hospital.”

“Maureen, yes.” Alexis stroked Denali with her free hand. “Not me. We need to find him. Denali will track his scent for us.”

“She can do that?” Maureen asked in awe. “Find people?”

“Yes.” Alexis smiled. “She’s very talented.”

“You’re hurt,” Griff protested. “You need to be seen by a medical professional. I’ll take Denali. She’ll follow his scent for me.”

“Is that how you found the cabin?” Alexis asked.

“Sort of. We followed the trail of the property ownership and narrowed in on Tyler Jenkins. From there, Denali did the rest.” He squeezed her hand, then stood. “You stay with Maureen. We’ll head out to find Tyler.”

“I’m coming with you.” Alexis pushed to her feet, a steely determination etched on her features. “Let’s go. He already has a head start.”

Since that was true, he didn’t want to waste time arguing. The door opened, and Paul stuck his head in. “Ready?”

“Yes.” He gestured to Maureen. “Ask Cam to stay here with her until our backup and ambulance arrives.”

Cam, who had been standing behind Paul, pushed into the room. “This is my punishment for letting him get past me.”

“No, Cam, that’s not it,” he assured the deputy. “We did our best. When Maureen is safe, you can meet up with us.”

“Come, Denali.” Alexis took a moment to fill a shallow dish with water, offering it to her K9. Denali lapped at the water, then stared up at Alexis. She gestured to the door. “Let’s go outside, okay? I don’t want her to alert in here.”

Griff nodded, and they headed out to the back of the cabin. Paul followed, letting the two of them take the lead. He heard the faintest sound of an engine, but then it stopped. How far had Jenkins gotten? He didn’t know, but they had to try. When they were in the general vicinity of where he suspected Jenkins had kept the four-wheeler, he stopped.

Alexis looked at Denali. “Are you ready to work? Search! Search bad guy.”

Denali instantly lowered her nose to the ground, sniffing the area. It did not take long for the K9 to pick up Jenkins’s scent. When she did, the dog increased her pace, trotting deeper into the woods.

“I wish we knew how much gas he has in the tank,” Alexis said as they hurried to keep up with Denali.

“I agree. He could be miles away by now,” Paul said.

Griff tried to hide his disappointment. “Who knows, maybe he’ll find a place to lie low for a while.”

Alexis grimaced, either from his lame suggestion or her injuries.

Denali leaped over a fallen log. Griff followed, then stopped to give Alexis a hand. She smiled weakly in gratitude. Paul quickly joined them.

“I want you to head back if the pain gets too bad,” Griff said, keeping his voice low in case Jenkins was within earshot. When she scowled, he added, “Please, Alexis. I know Denali will lead the way.”

“I won’t slow you down.” Alexis picked up her pace.

Griff exchanged a look with Paul but didn’t say anything more. Alexis would push herself to keep going until her body failed her. If that happened, he’d ask Paul to stay back with her while he continued following the trail.

More deputies should be arriving on scene soon. Time had passed with excruciating slowness as he, Paul, and Cam had gotten around the cabin to find the Ram truck, but he knew that it hadn’t taken as long as he’d feared.

Still, they needed to find Jenkins. Before he killed again.

Griff lifted his heart in prayer, asking God to guide them on the right path. Denali was a superstar, moving through the woods with ease and determination. The K9 never wavered from her path.

By unspoken agreement, they fell silent as they continued through the woods. After about twenty minutes, Alexis whispered, “Griff? We’ll need to give Denali a break soon.”

“I understand.” He didn’t want to push the dog past her limit. Speaking softly, he continued, “Maybe we should give up and head back to the cabin.”

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