Page 76 of Forged in Steele

“Have a great day.” Bristol hung up before Liddy could ask additional questions.

Bristol’s phone chimed a text message from Teagan.

Raney says this could be the woman she spoke to. Couldn’t comment on height difference. She said, and I quote, “What I gave the cops was more of a feeling than exact details.”

A feeling? Seriously? Bristol thanked Teagan as Jared’s raised voice came from the living room. Bristol hurried to the front of the house and entered just in time to see Jared shove a hand into his hair as he cupped his phone against his ear.

“What do you mean you lost her?” he demanded.

They’d lost Olive?Bristol’s heart dropped.

“Did you notify the local authorities to get eyes on her?” Jared paced the room and stabbed his thumb into his phone as he looked at her. “An accident with a cement truck cut off the backup team. They didn’t call for an alert on Olive’s vehicle so I need to do that now.”

He tapped his phone a few times and raised it to his face. “Hale. Good. We have a suspect my team was tailing, but they lost her.” Jared shared the location of the accident, and Olive’s vehicle information. “I need you to put out an alert on this woman and get your officers in the immediate area actively looking for her.”

Jared listened, his eyes narrowed. “Good. Let me know if she’s spotted.”

He hung up and slammed a fist into the wall, breaking the drywall. “Did we have better luck with your calls?”

Bristol didn’t want to answer and upset him more, but he needed to know. “Olive’s car is registered to Holloway but no records for Olive Wallace in the general age range of the woman we just saw. Nurse Raney thought Olive could be the woman she saw. She couldn’t comment on the height, and said it was all about a feeling not exact details.”

He looked like he wanted to thrust his fist into the wall again, but maybe his already red knuckles stopped him. “What about Olive being a legit social worker?”

Bristol shook her head. “My contact never heard of or saw her before, and she’s not in the department directory.”

“Then we can’t locate her that way.” He paced the room, sharp, crisp steps back and forth his phone still clutched in his hand. “If the locals don’t spot her car, there’s no way to get to her except through Holloway. So much for that lead.”

He stopped and stared at Bristol, his eyes haunted and dark.

“You’re thinking about the boy you lost,” she said.

He nodded. “This is exactly the same. One careless error and a child died.”

“Not a careless error, and we don’t know that Luna has died,” she said. “The team was doing their job and got cut off. They couldn’t go through that cement truck.”

“You’re right, I guess.”

“And you’re not to blame for the loss of that boy.” She moved closer to him. “I’m the last one to say anything about turning a situation over to God, but I know if you did, you could let it go once and for all. Will you continue to think of it? Sure. Will it cut you in half like it’s doing now? No.”

“I’ve tried.”

She couldn’t very well tell him to try harder when she was in the same situation. She took his hands. “Let’s pray together.”

She didn’t give him a chance to say no, but offered her most sincere prayer for his peace and comfort. When she struggled to find more to say, he took over and prayed for her ability to trust. He squeezed her hands and released them.

He held up his phone. “I need to update Adair. He needs to know we lost Olive.”

Bristol took a seat on the couch and checked her email while he continued to pace. His steps were less frantic, but that haunted look remained in his eyes.

What did she think—that one simple prayer would fix him on the spot?

She knew it could happen. Had happened. And she wanted to believe that her plea had just worked for Jared, but she knew deep anguish could take time and countless prayers to recover from. She was a perfect example. But, and it was a big but, she did feel better about her struggle since the prayer. Maybe God really was working in her heart.

Jared ended his call.

“Adair’s not happy, huh?” she asked.

“Guess my expression is saying it all.” He sat on the end of the sofa.

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