“Will we have meetings like this every few days?” River asked.
“I’m not sure,” Emmett answered. “I plan to call the group together when we have new information. I can only hope it’s soon.”
There was a murmur of agreement throughout the faces on the call.
“Stay in touch,” Emmett said. “And be safe.”
“Will do.” Autumn ended the call, eyeing Jordan. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” He scrubbed his hands over his face. “I know it’s not your fault, but it’s hard to accept the fact that these murders have been shifted into high gear now that another woman went missing.”
“I understand.” Autumn’s heart went out to him. “But keep in mind, finding Jenny helped us link all these cases together. We will get justice for you and the other girls’ families.”
He nodded then shot to his feet. “I need to get some work done.” He shrugged into his coat. “Come, Cutie. Leave poor Bear alone.”
“Come, Bear.” She called her K-9 to her side, watching as Jordan and Cutie left. There wasn’t anything she could do or say to make him feel better. Grief was a process she couldn’t navigate for him.
Autumn turned her attention back to the names of perps she’d arrested over the years. It wasn’t easy to switch gears from Mia’s case to her gunman, but she did her best.
The sooner she figured out who was behind these attacks against her, the sooner she could focus her energy on finding Jenny’s baby.
Hopefully, doing that will bring Jordan some peace.
* * *
Jordan headed out to the barn to care for his horses. Brushing and combing them were a good balm to his soul.
Listening as the task force members discussed the case of the three dead girls and the missing Mia had been more difficult than he’d anticipated. He wasn’t the only one who’d lost a loved one, but it also sounded as if the other two girls weren’t close to their respective families.
And that was likely why they’d been targeted.
Why hadn’t he handled things differently? Maybe he should have suggested a move-in trial for a few weeks. Would Jenny have gone along with that? He’d never know, and hated knowing his sister’s life had been cut short.
Cutie chased after a squirrel, barking like crazy when the furry rodent escaped up a tree. He wished again that the puppy would have enticed Jenny to move back to the ranch.
Enough. He knew it wasn’t healthy to ruminate over the mistakes he’d made. Staying focused on the current investigation was more important than looking backward, wishing he’d done things differently.
The phone number Jenny had called nagged at him. The leader of the task force had mentioned their working theory was that someone had offered the pregnant young women help in some way. He could easily imagine Jenny going along with someone who would give her cash and a place to stay. Jenny had insisted she wanted to be independent, but even at nineteen she was just a kid. Too vulnerable and willing to accept things that sounded too good to be true at face value.
Too bad the tech specialist couldn’t identify who’d purchased the burner phone. He wondered if these abductors used a different throwaway device for each missing girl. His heart quickened and he wished he’d thought of that sooner. He made a mental note to let Autumn know, so Eva could check the phone records of the other victims.
Jordan cared for his stallion, Durango, last. The horse was feisty but had good bloodlines. His foals were highly regarded, and breeding mares with the stallion had provided his struggling ranch a financial boost.
Durango reared when he approached. “Easy, boy.” The horse was sensitive to the environment, more so than his gelding. Jordan soothed the animal by brushing him, then took him outside to the corral. Durango reared again, then ran around, tossing his head. Leaving the animal to graze, Jordan headed back inside.
Autumn glanced up when he entered, her gaze searching his. “Everything okay?”
“Fine.” He forced a smile as Cutie ran toward Bear. “I was thinking of grilling chicken breasts for dinner.”
“Do you have chickens?” she asked in surprise.
He cocked a brow. “No, I bought them at the grocery store.”
She flushed, looking more adorable than ever. He shook off the thought. “Truthfully, I have been thinking of getting some chickens,” he admitted. “I started building a chicken coop, but then Jenny went missing…” His voice trailed off.
“Sounds like a lot of work,” Autumn said.
His life was nothing but work, Jordan thought. Shiloh had been right about that. Yet, he didn’t mind hard work. He just wished he had something more. Ironically, Autumn was making him realize how lonely his life had become and he wasn’t sure that was good thing.
