The house shouldn’t be too far away, but he figured he had about another thirty minutes of hiking. It was tucked back in a remote area. The access road was only open in the summertime and the couple who owned the place liked it that way. They had told Josh and Maya where the spare key was kept and the code for the alarm. Josh also knew the homeowner, Larry, had a gun safe—that he left unlocked.
He hoped Maya and Juniper could find Elena. That would be the best bet, but if they couldn’t, he had to make other plans. Josh had no idea what those plans were. Every now and then he’d stop and listen. He had a feeling someone was following him. It was that sixth sense or intuition that cops learned to listen to, but he never heard anything like the snap of a twig or a loose rock rolling from someone knocking it free. He was probably being paranoid, although he had just witnessed the guards being shot in cold blood.
Continuing, he made good time and saw the house in the distance. He’d never been so happy to see a home in his life. Stopping one more time to listen, he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was someone out there. Maybe he wouldn’t stay here as long as he was thinking. It might be better to change clothes, get water and food, and head out again.
He could go to the camper on Maya’s property when he left this house. He knew there was food there and it was another good place to crash for a short time—and it would be one of the first places Maya would check. He could leave her a note or something to let her know that he was okay. It would be a tough hike through the night. He’d have to find a place to cross the stream, but it was doable. If he left in a couple hours, he could probably make it by morning.
He went up the back stairs and found the fake pinecone that was stashed in the woodpile. After getting the key out, he opened the door and went to the alarm pad, typing in the code before it could go off. It shut down and he breathed a sigh of relief. The house was cold, as the heat was set around fifty-five degrees—warm enough to make sure the pipes didn’t freeze, but that way it didn’t waste energy through the winter when no one was there.
He didn’t know the house well and it was now dark outside. There were flashlights, but Josh waited for his eyes to adjust. If someone really was following him, then he didn’t want to use any kind of light. Once he could see better, he went back to the master bedroom and opened the closet.
There wasn’t much in the way of clothing, but luckily, they had left a few things. Josh found jeans, a long-sleeve T-shirt, and a camouflage sweatshirt. After changing clothes, he wadded up his jail scrubs. Maybe he’d throw those away, but he already felt guilty about breaking into the house. He didn’t know if he wanted to explain to Larry and Debra why striped clothes with the stencil for the local jail were in their trash.
Going through the bedrooms, he found a backpack and put his clothing in there. The kitchen pantry had bottled water and some granola bars. Enough to keep him going for now. Heading down the hallway, a shadow moved in the kitchen.
Josh hadn’t gone to the gun safe yet. It was in the office near the kitchen. He kept his back to the wall and crept slowly to the office door, sneaking inside. The gun safe was in the corner. He went over and opened it. Larry had lots of options, but Josh went with the Springfield. It was a solid choice and reliable. That’s all you really needed when it came to a weapon.
Time to see who had followed him.
* * *
Maya flew down the road that headed out of town.Please let Josh be okay. Please let Josh be okay.She kept repeating the thought as she spotted emergency lights in the distance. Juniper continued to howl in excitement.
“Trust me, girly, if I need you, you’ll get to work. And I have a feeling I’m going to need you.”
Dispatch had continued relaying information about the suspect on the loose—Josh Colten. Maya had a hard time listening to what they were saying knowing that it was Josh. The dispatcher had gone through everything Josh was wanted for, and hearing words like “homicide” and “could be dangerous” seemed so odd when she knew they were talking about him. She was relieved that Pops believed in him too, but there were many other backup officers who might not. There were probably deputies coming from nearby counties to help, and they might shoot first and ask questions later.
Flashing lights everywhere blinded Maya as she found a place to park. “Stay here, girl. I promise, if I need you, I’ll come get you.”
Juniper barked in response, ready to get out and work and feeling upset that she was being left behind. Maya headed toward the busted guardrail where most of the responding officers and other first responders were gathered. She saw Rory in the group and waved. Rory came over to her.
“Fill me in,” Maya said. “What do you know?”
“We’re waiting on Doc to arrive.”
“That’s not good. How many deceased?” Maya asked.
“The driver and prison guards.”
“But Josh is missing? Do you think someone took him?”
Rory hesitated. “I don’t know what I should be sharing since you’re Josh’s, uh, you know…”
“Girlfriend?” Maya filled in. “Just tell me. Please?”
“Okay, sorry. The guards and the driver probably didn’t die from the accident. Doc will make that determination for sure.”
“Then how did they die?” Maya asked.
“They were all shot. Most likely the weapon was a shotgun, but again, Doc will determine that.”
Maya didn’t know what to say. She only had more questions. “Is there a blood trail or anything? Does it look like Josh was shot?”
“It’s dark and I didn’t go down there. I’m just here as an extra person to watch the scene or whatever they need. But the guys who did go down there didn’t say anything about a blood trail. Honestly, though, I don’t know if anyone would be able to see it in the dark.”
“Juniper could smell it. She can track and find Josh.”
“So, um…” Rory hesitated.
