Page 7 of Scent of Evil
Thankfully, Stone’s energy hadn’t abated much since they’d headed up the mountain, but he suspected the dog would tire soon. The tire tracks were spotty, and he’d rather use Stone’s nose for as long as possible than depend on the tracks alone. Especially if Decker got wise to their tactic and made circles or doubled back to confuse them.
He glanced back over his shoulder to see a weary yet determined expression on Raine’s face. “How old is Ginny?”
“Eleven.” Her eyes closed briefly, then she added, “She’ll be twelve in November. Decker grabbed her when she was nine.”
Nine. He swallowed hard. “How did she get away?”
Raine shook her head. “It’s a minor miracle if you ask me. She was walking home from school after soccer practice when he approached and grabbed her. He dragged her toward his car when something distracted him. Ginny kicked him in the privates and took off running. She ran through the woods and out onto the highway farther down from Decker. A family of four found her, and she told them about the man who tried to abduct her. Thankfully, they called the police. Ginny provided a very detailed description of him and the car he was driving. They found and arrested him.” She paused for a long moment. “Ginny testified against him in court. He was sentenced to ten years but only did two before he managed to escape.”
He grimaced. Decker’s escape should not have happened. But hearing the story of how Ginny had survived the previous abduction attempt gave him hope. The poor kid was probably scared, but she’d escaped him once before. He firmly believed she’d find a way to do so again. “Sounds like she’s smart. I’m sure she’ll find a way to stay safe this time too.”
“I hope so.” Raine didn’t look the least bit reassured. “He didn’t have a gun last time, the way he does now, though. That changes things.”
He was forced to admit that was true. The weapon was a problem in more ways than one. “We’ll keep praying for God to watch over her.” Justin and his siblings were big on faith and the power of prayer. Ever since their parents had died in a plane crash six years ago now, they’d grown closer to God and to each other.
“I guess.” Again, she didn’t look convinced.
He wanted to press the issue, but Stone took an abrupt turn to the south, forcing him to tug on the reins to follow. The whine of the engine was about the same, indicating they were keeping pace but not gaining on their quarry.
Part of that was by design. They’d been riding for almost an hour, and he’d hoped the four-wheeler would eventually run low on gas. The Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue Ranch had used four-wheelers, too, for some of their searches, along with snow machines for the winter months. But in his humble opinion, it was better to be on horseback than dependent upon fuel. They typically carried an extra gas tank just for that reason.
He hoped Decker hadn’t thought that far ahead.
Finding Decker and Ginny was only part of the problem. The convict had Ginny as a hostage and that would change things. They couldn’t just stroll up and arrest him.
No matter how much Raine wanted to.
He pulled out his cell phone for the second time since they’d left Ginny’s home, grimacing when he noticed there was still no service. He took solace in the fact that the police knew the general direction they were headed and that by now they should have been in contact with his brother-in-law, Griff. Hopefully, additional resources were on the way to back them up.
But that didn’t change the fact that for now they were on their own.
Would Griff send choppers or small planes to assist in the search? He scanned the cloudy sky, then decided it was still too early for an air response. The closest airfield was in Yellowstone, unless Griff called on private plane owners, like his sister Jessica’s husband, Logan, for help.
Logan would jump into his plane without hesitation. Logan loved being in the sky and would want to do his part in aiding the search.
As he glanced up again, though, the clouds seemed to be getting darker. He frowned in concern. A thunderstorm would not only slow them down, but it would also likely obliterate what was left of Decker’s tire tracks.
Realizing he needed to save Stone for that possibility, he reined in Blaze and threw his leg over the saddle to dismount. “Here, Stone. Come here, boy.”
The yellow lab lifted his head, his ears pricked forward. Then the K9 wheeled and trotted to his side.
“Another break?” Disappointment laced Raine’s tone. “It’s only been a few minutes since we last stopped.”
He didn’t answer, waiting for Stone to trot back to him. He bent and scooped the seventy-pound yellow lab into his arms. Then he carefully draped the dog over the saddle. “Stay.”
Stone stared up at him, his dark-brown gaze seeming to hold reproach. This wasn’t the first time Justin had ridden with Stone on his horse, but that didn’t mean his K9 enjoyed traveling this way.
“What’s wrong? Is he too tired to continue?” Raine asked as he remounted the horse, settling behind Stone. Once he was situated, he lifted the dog, shifting the K9’s weight so that Stone was cushioned across his lap.
“No, but I’m giving him a rest anyway.” He nudged Blaze into moving forward, then gestured at the sky. “See those clouds rolling in from the west? If it rains, we’re going to lose the tire tracks.”
“What? No! We can’t lose Decker.” Raine’s voice rose in alarm.
“We won’t.” He flashed what he hoped was a reassuring grin. “Stone will be ready to go when we need him.”
Following the tire tracks wasn’t as easy as he made it out to be, and twice he thought he’d lost them when they’d abruptly shown up again. The terrain was soft in some places but hard in others. Typical for fall when the temperature cooled dramatically at night, even in early September.
A few minutes later, he realized the sound of the four-wheeler engine had stopped. His stomach tightened with the fear that they might lose Decker. With Stone lying across his lap, turned enough that the K9’s spine was pressed against his abdomen, Justin didn’t urge Blaze into a trot. The choppy gait might dislodge the dog.
