CHAPTER 31
Kori stoodat the edge of the activity and watched paramedics treating the woman they’d found. They checked her vitals, wrapped her in a thermal blanket, and talked to her in low, careful voices.
The woman hadn’t spoken to them since she’d given up the knife.
Who was she? Did she know Mackenzie?
Finding this woman had derailed Kori’s plan to rescue her sister today. With each day that passed, the odds that Mackenzie could survive out there grew slimmer.
Her gut tightened at the thought. But she couldn’t stop picturing her sister out in the woods. Cold. Alone. Hungry.
Just like this woman had been.
At least there were still people out there looking. She hoped and prayed someone found her.
She drew in a long, slow breath as she tried to get her thoughts under control. Giving in to her emotions wouldn’t help them find Mackenzie. That was something Kori told her clients all the time.
Instead, Kori tried to calculate what she knew.
This woman was young. She was hypothermic, frostbitten, and dehydrated. She was too thin and had scars—so many scars.
And she was frightened. But of whom? The person who’d given her those scars?
That made the most sense. After all, the scars were still pink, still new.
And how was this forest connected to all of it?
The isolation would make it ideal for drug operations. Plus, there could be poachers or people doing illegal logging. There could even be squatters.
The possibilities seemed endless.
“I saw you there.”
Kori went still before slowly turning.
The woman looked directly at Kori. Her eyes seemed clearer now than they’d been on the trail. She almost seemed focused, like she’d been saving her energy and words for the right moment.
Kori’s heart pounded in her ears as she stepped closer. “What did you say?”
The woman stared at Kori, her gaze hollow and her breathing still too shallow. “I saw you there.”
Wait . . . had this woman seen Mackenzie? Kori and her sister looked alike. Though their style was different, they had similar facial features. Kori was three inches taller and thinner. But she could see how someone could get them confused.
Was that what this woman was implying?
Kori’s heart hammered harder. “Where? Where did you see me?”
The woman opened her mouth.
“Ma’am.” The medic stepped forward, her voice firm but not unkind. “I need to get her to the hospital. She needs immediate treatment.”
“One minute.” Kori kept her eyes on the woman. “Please. One minute.”
“I’m sorry.” The medic was already reaching for the ambulance doors. “You can talk to her at the hospital once she’s been stabilized. Her heart rate is all over the place. She needs to see a doctor ASAP.”
Panic raced through her. “But she might have information about my sister. One minute. That’s all I’m asking.”
“Kori.” Wyatt suddenly appeared beside her.
