Page 14 of Scent of Evil
A sat phone? Her pulse kicked up with anticipation. “Can we try it soon? I’d like to give my boss our coordinates so he can get choppers in the area.”
“Let’s wait for a while yet.” Justin grimaced. “As long as we hear the sound of the four-wheeler, we know he’s on the move with Ginny. I don’t want to stop, giving him any more of a lead than he already has.”
She nodded, understanding his concern. She wanted the same thing, to reach Decker and Ginny as soon as humanly possible.
Yet getting a plane or chopper in the air would help.
“Griff knows what we’re doing, so he’ll arrange for air support,” Justin said. “I’m sure he’s asked my brother Trevor and his K9, Archie, to join the search too.”
She swallowed a wave of frustration. Having Trevor and his K9 behind them wasn’t helpful. They needed to know where Decker was heading and send a team in that way to sandwich him in.
Although she had to admit, the rough mountainous terrain would offer plenty of places for Decker to hide with Ginny even if they did try to get additional hunting parties in the area.
Why hadn’t the guy taken the opportunity to get out of the state? Or even better, out of the country? Kidnapping Ginny had only made things worse for Decker. With the life of a young girl on the line, every law enforcement official in the area would be determined to bring him to justice.
They rode in silence for a few minutes. She strained to hear the four-wheeler, counting off the seconds in her mind. There was nothing but silence.
Had the machine finally run out of fuel?
She was about to mention that possibility to Justin when she heard a rumbling sound. She frowned. It sounded different from the four-wheeler. A lower cadence rather than the higher pitch of the ATV.
Justin lifted his hand to wave. Following his gaze, she realized there was a plane flying overhead. “Who is that?”
“My brother-in-law, Logan.” He grinned. “He had a charter flight today, but he must have either dropped his hunters off or he’s brought them along on a side trip.”
“Can we communicate with him?” As she watched, the plane banked into a curve, making what appeared to be a wide circle. “Has he spotted Decker?”
Justin nodded and patted his saddle bag. “We can communicate, but let’s find a place to stop that has less trees overhead. We’ll need all the open air we can get to access a satellite signal.”
“Okay.” She was torn between the need to keep going and stopping to get information on Decker’s whereabouts. Her aching muscles wanted badly to stop, but fear for Ginny’s safety overrode her discomfort.
A few minutes later, Justin guided Blaze off their current path to the right where there was an open meadow-like area. Timber dutifully followed. Justin swung down, then carefully lifted Stone off the saddle as well. The dog stood for a moment, gave himself a shake, then stretched out on the ground.
Raine slid from the saddle, holding on to it when her knees buckled again. How anyone rode a horse for hours like this on a regular basis was beyond her comprehension. Maybe when they found Decker and Ginny she could ride the four-wheeler back to civilization.
If there was a way to replenish the gas.
“Are you okay?” Justin eyed her as he unbuckled the saddle bag.
“Peachy.” She wanted to cry but managed a half smile. “Can’t wait to get back up in the saddle again.”
He nodded, his blue eyes sympathetic. “I know you’re tired and sore.”
Talk about an understatement. She stayed where she was, clinging to Timber’s saddle for support. “I’ll survive.”
He drew a large bag out and crossed to the center of the clearing. She noticed there were a number of large boulders in the area preventing the trees and other foliage to grow. Glancing upward, she saw what appeared to be more rocks along the slope above. Clearly a larger rock had broken apart, sending smaller pieces sliding down the mountainside.
Pushing away from Timber, she managed to walk to where Justin was working with the phone. She debated sitting on the rock, then decided her bottom hurt too much for that and remained standing.
“If you’re hungry, help yourself to the protein bars I have in my saddle bag.” He glanced up at her, then dropped his gaze to the phone. “It appears as if the phone is having trouble finding a signal.”
Stifling her disappointment at the possible lack of communication with the outside world, she walked painfully to Blaze to find the protein bars. She carried one to Justin, then opened hers, battling a wave of guilt over having something that Ginny couldn’t. Not that starving herself would change that.
Raine knew she needed strength to be at her best to rescue Ginny. She’d pocketed a spare protein bar for her niece for when—not if—they found her.
She didn’t think Justin would mind.
“We’ve got a signal!” His excited tone had her turning toward him. He held the receiver to his ear, and said, “Griff? Can you hear me?”
