“They’ll have left the cave,” Arthur stated.
“Impossible. I would have seen them leave,” Lee said.
“We don’t have time to argue,” Nhiari stated. “We need to find those boys before it gets dark.” She turned to Lee. “You know these tunnels?”
He nodded.
She walked over and handcuffed him. “You and I will search the tunnels. The rest of you search outside. We’ll meet back here in an hour. If we don’t find them by then, I’ll call in search and rescue.”
“I’ll call Parks and Wildlife now. Get my colleagues to look for them,” Georgie said.
They couldn’t have got far.
Arthur joined Gretchen at the entrance. “The footprints go that way.”
She followed him, happy for him to lead as he tracked the faint prints on the dusty red soil. “Jordan! Cody!” Her voice echoed, but there was no reply.
The ranges threw a deep shadow across the ground as the sun already sank towards the ocean on the other side.
Matt and Georgie climbed the slope of the range to get a better view over the plain and Sam moved parallel to them about ten metres away.
“Jordan!” Gretchen yelled again. “It’s Mum. Come out.”
“The boys were running,” Arthur said. “Their stride has increased. They must have moved slowly until they were out of eye shot and then run.” He sounded proud.
She would be too, after they were both safe with her. “Cody!” She raised her hands to her mouth. “Coo-ee.”
Nothing.
Where were they?
Arthur moved faster and Gretchen had to almost jog to keep up. “Will they hide somewhere?”
“Probably not. They know no one will look for them here. They’ll keep moving. Is Jordan familiar with this area? Is there a walking trail or anything tourists might use?”
“There’s a road up to the top of the ranges,” Gretchen said. “It’s a couple of kilometres from here.”
“They’ll keep heading that way,” Arthur said.
Gretchen wiped the sweat from her brow. They didn’t have any water with them, and neither did the boys. If they ran for too long, they might get dehydrated or heat stroke. “Jordan!”
They kept moving, the silence broken by calls of the boys’ names.
After half an hour Gretchen was out of breath and fear was clawing her control. “Where are they?” she cried.
Arthur turned, gathered her into his arms. “We’ll find them.”
“I’ll head back to meet Nhiari,” Sam called. “You keep going.”
They would call in more searchers.
Arthur rubbed her back. “Jordan’s a smart kid. We’ll find him. He’ll stick to the shade and he knows home is this way.”
“They’re ten,” Gretchen said. “They shouldn’t be out here alone.”
“No, they shouldn’t be. We’ll find them, honey. I promise.” He kissed her forehead and in those simple words, she believed him.
She nodded and stepped back. “Jordan!”
