Page 43 of Scent of Evil
Decker was still too far away for his peace of mind.
Stone stopped and sniffed a specific area, then sat and barked. Justin pulled back on Blaze’s reins, bringing the equine to a stop. He slid off the machine and moved forward to see what caught Stone’s attention.
Another boot print. Similar to the previous ones Stone had alerted on.
Only one, but he knew that didn’t mean much. Maybe Decker had gotten off the ATV for a moment, while Kluck stayed on the machine.
“What is it?” Raine asked.
“A boot print.” As he spoke, the sat phone in his saddle bag rang with an incoming call. He hurried over to answer, taking a moment to toss the stuffed penguin for Stone. “Good boy!” Then into the phone, he said, “This is Justin.”
“We have Logan in the air; he’ll be in your general location within ten minutes or so,” Griff said.
“Good.” He scanned the sky but didn’t see his brother-in-law’s small plane. “Let him know we’re heading in a southwest direction.”
“Will do, but, Justin, you need to know the fire has pretty much engulfed the cabin.” Griff’s voice was tense. “You and Raine need to head back to the SUV and get out of there. You can’t outrun a forest fire.”
He turned to stare back at the clouds of black smoke. Maybe they were bigger now, indicating the fire was burning hotter than before. “I can’t do that, but would you please ask Trevor to head out with a local cop to pick up the SUV and horse trailer? We’re already down one SUV on the ranch and can’t really afford to lose another one.”
“Trevor already thought of that and has headed out with a deputy,” Griff said. “But, Justin, you need to turn back. I don’t want you and Raine to be in the path of the fire.”
Justin eyed Raine, knowing Griff had a point. The wind coming at their back meant the fire would head that way too. Maybe it was his imagination, but now that they were standing still, the smoke seemed to be growing thicker, stinging his eyes. “I’ll talk to Raine.”
“Don’t talk. Just head back.” Griff’s concern was palpable. “Don’t make me send more Sullivans out to find you.”
“Okay. I hear you. We’ll turn around.” He ended the call and stuffed the phone back into the saddle bag. Maybe Logan would be able to pinpoint Decker’s position.
And maybe Decker and Kluck would soon be surrounded by the forest fire too. He wanted to empathize but couldn’t.
“We can’t turn back,” Raine protested. “We need to find Decker.”
“The fire has gotten out of control.” He held out his hand for the stuffed penguin. Stone gave it to him, then looked up as if waiting for the next command. “Griff says it may be spreading. We can’t stay here; the wind will bring the fire straight toward us.”
Raine’s eyes widened in alarm. Then she twisted in the saddle to look behind them. The large cloud of smoke was enough to convince her of the very real threat. Her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Okay.”
He hated the idea of Decker getting away as much as she did. Yet he couldn’t lead his dog and Raine directly into danger either. He’d never been involved in a forest fire and wasn’t keen to start now. He vaulted into the saddle, turning Blaze in a half circle to head back to where they’d left the SUV. They’d need to backtrack while avoiding the fire.
“Come, Stone! This way!”
His yellow lab eagerly followed.
With the wind in their faces, the smoke scent was strong. The burning in his eyes intensified. Trying to quell a sense of panic, he nudged Blaze into a trot, ignoring the way his gelding shook his head and sidestepped on the trail as if not at all happy they were going toward the fire rather than away.
Animals had good instincts when it came to threats such as a forest fire.
He continued at a brisk pace, making sure Stone was keeping up. He knew the K9 was better off on the ground where the smoke was less dense, but if Stone fell back, he’d have no choice but to carry the dog across his lap the way he had yesterday.
Slowing their ability to get out of the way of the dangerous fire.
The smoke continued to get worse. He steered Blaze away from the wind, knowing he was adding distance between them and the two-track road where they’d left the SUV.
A buzzing sound reached his ears. Glancing up at the sky, he saw Logan’s plane overhead. The plane wagged its wings back and forth in a gesture Justin took to be reassuring him he was on the right path.
At least, that’s what he hoped it meant.
A few minutes later, the sat phone buzzed. He debated stopping to answer but decided against it.
Time was not on their side. They needed to keep moving. They needed to find a way to get around the fire while still getting to the SUV and horse trailer.
