And it was equally frustrating that she couldn’t work on the case until the power was restored.
She crawled in beside Bear. Her K-9 radiated warmth, yet sleep eluded her.
Her thoughts jumped from the work the task force was doing to find the missing Mia to the assailant that had relentlessly targeted her. After about thirty minutes of tossing and turning, Autumm gave up and rose to her feet. She had slept in her clothes, which were hopelessly wrinkled. Shoving her feet into her shoes, she wasn’t surprised when Bear jumped down from the bed, stretched and looked up at her expectantly.
“Gotta go out, huh, boy?” she whispered, reaching for her service weapon. She quietly opened the door, only to be greeted by Cutie.
Thankfully, Jordan was still sleeping. The poor guy had gotten less rest than she had, so she tried to be extra quiet as she drew on her coat and headed for the door. Both dogs pressed against her legs, anxious to go outside. Realizing they’d both be wet by the time they’d finished getting busy, she took a moment to grab some towels from her bathroom to leave inside the doorway. Hopefully, Jordan wouldn’t mind.
As she anticipated, the air was heavy with moisture and the ground was soaked, her feet making squishing noises when she walked. Whatever snow had been left was long gone.
Resting her hand on the butt of her gun, she walked the length of the ranch house, scanning the area. There were many places to hide, though, and she couldn’t see much of anything beyond the house itself with the clouds covering the sky, obscuring the moonlight.
Still, she was certain Bear would alert her if he caught the assailant’s scent. Which gave her an idea.
“Come, Cutie.” The puppy ignored her, determined to share a stick with Bear. With a sigh, she scooped the wet, soggy puppy into her arms. “Stay here, Bear.” She carried the puppy inside, used the towel to dry her off, then set her on her feet. “Be good,” she whispered before closing the door.
Bear stood sniffing the air with interest. She didn’t have water to offer, but there was enough moisture in the air she wasn’t too worried. “Search, Bear. Search for the bad guy.”
Her K-9 seemed to know just what she wanted as he lowered his nose to the ground and began to move in a zigzag pattern. The wind from the storm had died down, but there was enough of a breeze to carry the assailant’s scent.
If he was out here.
This could be nothing more than a futile effort on her part, but she didn’t care. She’d feel better to know the shooter wasn’t lurking nearby.
Bear abruptly picked up his pace, moving quickly toward the wooded area where she knew the intruder had stood firing at them last night. Had Bear locked onto his old scent? Or was the guy hiding out there again?
She pulled her weapon from her holster, just in case. Holding the Glock in a two-handed grip while keeping the muzzle pointed at the ground, she followed her K-9 toward the trees.
Bear didn’t alert, but he was clearly working the scent. Would he take her all the way back to the road where this guy had parked in the past? As the thought crossed her mind, the dog turned and headed in the opposite direction.
It took her a moment to realize Bear was heading for the wooded area directly behind the barn.
She caught up with Bear, putting a hand on his head to slow him down. “Easy, boy,” she whispered, coming to a stop near a thick tree. She knew the assailant was armed and dangerous, and while she wanted to catch him, she didn’t want her K-9 in the line of fire.
For a long moment she watched the barn. Just as she was about to give Bear the command to continue the search, she caught a glimpse of movement.
“Stop! Police!” Protocol required her to identify herself as a cop. She lifted her weapon, aiming at the space where she’d seen the shadow. “Come out with your hands on your head where I can see them!”
Bear growled low in his throat, seconds before she heard the crack of gunfire. She ducked behind a tree, drawing Bear with her, heart pounding in her chest.
The darkness was relentless. Where was this guy?
Another crack of gunfire kept her pinned in place. She’d heard the muffled thud as the bullet struck the tree, missing her by inches. Heart racing, she desperately searched for a sign of the killer to return fire.
Another glimpse of movement caught her eye. Then she noticed a dark figure moving between the trees. She tracked him with the tip of her weapon but didn’t have a clear shot.
Then she lost sight of him.
She hesitated, then gave chase. She didn’t tell Bear to search, but of course her K-9 kept pace alongside her as she darted between the trees, trying to close the gap between them.
An engine roared to life. She frowned, as it didn’t sound like a car and they were still in the woods. Then she saw a single headlight glowing in the darkness, weaving between the trees and knew the intruder was on a small motorcycle.
“Come, Bear!” She turned and sprinted toward her SUV. Thankfully, she had the key fob in her pocket. The engine of the motorcycle sounded small enough that she might be able to catch up with him!
Bear, thankfully, picked up his pace, sensing her urgency. They reached the SUV but as she turned to scan the end of the driveway, she let out a sigh.
They were too late. The sound of the motorcycle engine had faded away.
