“I didn’t hear nothing,” one of them said. “Look, we’ve been searching for ten minutes. Maybe she doubled back.”
“And what if she didn’t? Now quit wasting time and keep looking.” The man said more choice words in reference to Naomi.
Micah’s grip tightened on his weapon.
He moved closer, silent now, until he could see the men through the trees.
Two figures in dark jackets climbed a ridge in the distance.
Micah stepped out from behind a tree, his weapon raised. “Sheriff’s Department! Hands where I can see them!”
Both men spun toward him.
For a split second, no one moved.
Then the men bolted to the top of the ridge.
“Stop! Now!” Micah shouted, but the men split up, running in opposite directions.
Micah had a choice—pursue those men or find Naomi.
The decision wasn’t even close.
He let the men go and pulled out his radio. “This is Sheriff Sutherland. I’ve got two suspects fleeing on foot in the woods offCooperstown Road, heading west. Both are white males. One’s wearing a dark jacket, the other a khaki one. Need backup for pursuit.”
He waited for confirmation, then moved in the direction the men had been searching.
If they’d been looking around here, that could mean that Naomi was close.
Micah slowed, his weapon still drawn, and his breathing controlled.
“Naomi?” he called, his voice low but clear. “It’s Micah.”
Silence.
“It’s okay,” he added. “Those men are gone. I’m here now. You’re safe.”
Nothing.
He continued pacing, determined to find her.
As he turned, he spotted a massive boulder with a narrow gap beneath it, half-hidden by undergrowth. Something beneath it caught his eye.
A small patch of color.
Was that . . . ?
Micah moved closer and crouched down.
Naomi was tucked beneath the boulder, her knees pulled to her chest, her face pale and streaked with dirt. Her eyes were wide and her shoulders trembling.
But she was okay.
Relief hit him so hard he almost staggered. “Naomi . . .”
She looked up at him, and something in her expression broke. “Micah.”
“You’re okay. They’re gone.” He glanced over his shoulder then back to her. “Are you hurt?”
“No. I—they were right here. Right above me. Then they came closer and—” Her voice broke off as it shook. “I thought . . .”
“They heard me and ran. But we need to get out of here.”
He helped her crawl out.
Then he glanced over his shoulder, scanning everything around him.
Nothing moved.
But that didn’t mean those men wouldn’t be back.
