Page 44 of Eco-Activist's Mountain Men
—and crash hard. My head smacks against a rock with a sickening thud.
The world tilts. Colors blur.
Darkness rushes in.
CHAPTER 15
Jack
It's been a busy day for me. I've locked myself in the office with a thermos of strong black coffee and a stack of invoices, reconciling them against the quarter's bank statement. Honestly, it's not a bad job. Just one that demands full attention. You can't half-ass it while your mind drifts—you need to focus.
By five o'clock, I'm wrapping up the loose ends, starting to think less about numbers and more about dinner, when I hear Southpaw howling. Just once, but loud. That's not like him. Not like him at all.
A few minutes later, there's a knock at my door. Eric steps in, Southpaw trailing behind him, looking dejected.
"Hey, wassup? Did I hear Southpaw howl just now? What's going on with him?"
"Yeah. Er… sorry to interrupt, Jack, but I think something might've happened to Luna. She's?—"
At the mention of her name, Southpaw lets out another bloodcurdling howl, this time right in front of me. I clap my hands over my ears until it dies down.
"Alright, alright, Southpaw. Give it a rest, will you? Luna, you say? No, Southpaw, shush, good boy," I add quickly, seeing himdrawing breath for another. "Hmm. Seems he's worried about her, too. When did anyone last see her?"
"Well, that's the thing," Eric says. "I haven't seen her since she stormed out of the kitchen at breakfast. She's not in her room. Not in the kitchen. I checked around, but no sign. I haven't asked Luke or Toby yet. I thought I'd come to you first."
"Right. Good call. Let's check in with Tobes and Luke. Maybe she's with one of them."
"Doubt she'd be with Luke. Not after this morning."
"Yeah, guess not. But let's check anyway. Even if she isn't, he might've seen her—or knows where she is."
I stand, stretching my left leg, which has gone half-dead under the desk.
We head out to the barn, where Toby’s servicing the knuckle-boom loader before mothballing it for winter. Won’t need it again until spring. He straightens up from under the hood when he sees us.
"Hey, Boss, Prof., what can I do for you? Did I hear Southpaw howling a minute ago?"
Eric and I both nod.
"Yup," I say. "Seems Luna’s missing—shush, Southpaw," I add sharply, just in time to stop another howl. "He wants to go off every time someone mentions her name."
"What… Luna?"
Another howl erupts, echoing off the metal walls. I glare at my younger brother.
"Did you have to say her name out loud?"
"You mean Lu?—"
"Shut it, Toby. Once is bad enough. Southpaw doesn’t need your encouragement. That’s an order."
"Okay, boss."
"So tell me—when’s the last time you saw her, and what was she doing?"
"Who, Lu—" He catches my expression and stops. "Sorry, boss. Let me think." He pauses, frowning. "Nope. Pretty sure I haven’t seen her since breakfast. You know, when she flounced out after Luke called her out about her voicemail, remember?"
"Yeah, we remember. Seems that’s the last time any of us saw her. Unless Luke knows different."
