Page 84 of The Sweet Spot
Rosie nods to Jennie. “See? I told you. This one’s a keeper.” Then she frowns. “I hope we won’t be seeing any more of the bad one.”
“I guarantee you won’t be seeing any more of him,” I say as Pumpkin jumps up in bed with me, purring like a squeaky chainsaw as he butts his head against my chin.
“Good,” Rosie says. “I’m going to hold you to that.” Then she looks at Jennie. “Are we having supper soon? I’m hungry.”
Jennie hugs her grandma. “Yes, Granny. I’ll get on dinner right away.”
Chapter 33 – Jennie
Six months later
It’s been an absolutely crazy day. The search and rescue team has been searching all day for a dad and his eight-year-old daughter who went on a one-hour hike this morning at 9 AM and haven’t been heard from since. The wife is frantic, of course.
The McIntyre SAR team is out in full force, and Micah is on stand-by with the chopper in case the missing people can be extricated by air. We’ve got another SAR team out of Estes Park here, as well as local volunteers. There are over thirty people searching for this dad and his daughter.
My contribution to the effort is providing free meals and drinks to the volunteers. Right now, Michelle, Chad, and I are packing up a second shipment of boxed meals to take to the headquarters at the trail head. It’s a chilly day in November, and the searchers need to keep up their strength. In addition to the food, we’re bringing bottles of water and soft drinks, as well as coffee and hot chocolate to replenish the large stainless steel dispensers.
It’s been so busy at the diner today I had to call in two of our part-time servers and an extra cook to help us manage the workload so Michelle and Chad could come with me to the trail head to help me set up.
When I pull the diner’s catering van into the congested parking lot, I spot Chris standing at the hood of his SUV, talking with team leads as they refer to the map. He glances my way and smiles. It’s so good to see him back in his element again after somany months of physical therapy and training after he was shot. He had to pass a thorough evaluation to be fully reinstated.
Seeing him in uniform and a brown leather bomber jacket does something for me. He’s a handsome guy, but in his uniform, well, he’s over the top. I get tingles just looking at him.
After I park the van near the hospitality tent, Michelle and Chad start unloading the boxed meals—deli sandwiches, homemade potato chips, apples, and chocolate chip cookies—and setting them on a folding table. For sandwiches, we brought got turkey and cheese, roast beef, and vegetarian and vegan options. For drinks, Maggie donated bottles of fruit juice, water, and soft drinks in ice-filled coolers.
While they’re putting out the meals, I replenish the stainless steel dispensers with coffee and hot chocolate.
Volunteers who are currently on break waste no time coming to the catering station and helping themselves to the food and beverages.
Once the catering tent is organized, I finally get a chance to go see Chris. Right now he’s meeting with Killian and a woman I don’t recognize. I assume she’s from the other SAR team participating in this search.
I walk up beside Chris and slip my hand in his back pocket. “Fresh food and drink for everyone is in the tent. Any luck?” I know it’s wishful thinking on my part. If they’d found the man and his daughter, we’d all know by now.
“Thanks for the food. I really appreciate it. Everyone does. As for the two we’re looking for, nothing yet.”
It goes without saying that because it’s already dark, and the night temperature is dropping, the risk of exposure to the two missing persons increases dramatically. The fact no one has heard from them in eight hours indicates that something significant has happened. Or else they’d be back at the lodge right now sitting in front of a fire and sipping hot chocolate.
“Do you need anything?” I ask Chris. “Food or coffee?” He’s been at this since early morning, and I doubt he’s had anything to eat or drink.
He shakes his head. “No, I’m fine.” He reaches out to squeeze my hand. “But thanks for asking.”
One thing I’ve learned about Chris is when he’s in work mode, he’s so focused he’s impervious to discomfort.
Killian’s radio squawks as his team members begin to report in as scheduled. Hannah, Maya, and Travis report in first. Then Owen and John.
Nothing.
I notice a woman seated off to the side on a folding lawn chair. She’s got a blanket wrapped around her, and a cup of something hot in her hands. She’s obviously been crying.
“Is she the wife?” I ask Chris.
“Yeah. Her name is Lynn Atkins. The husband’s name is Jeff, and the daughter is Isabella. Lynn has been beating herself up for not going on the hike with them. But she wasn’t feeling well this morning—morning sickness, she’s six months pregnant—and it was just supposed to be a short hike for the dad and daughter, so she decided to stay in their room at the Lodge and sleep in. But when they didn’t return as scheduled, she called the office and reported them missing.”
“She was right to stay in,” I say. “She doesn’t have any business out there. Not on this trail.”
This particular trail is known for being rugged. There are a lot of sharp drop-offs, and sometimes the trail narrows quite a bit. One careless step could lead to disaster.
“I assume they don’t have a sat phone with them?”
