He jumped, ripping his headphones off his head. “Huh?” He shook his head, blinking a few times. “S-sorry. How can I help you?”
“Did a woman about twenty-six years old, five-foot-five, jet-black hair, and green eyes come in with an older man by chance?” I rattled off the question.
“No, sorry, we’ve been really slow.” He gestured to his phone where some animated cartoon with a pirate wearing a straw hat was playing.
“Okay, thanks.” I pursed my lips and nodded, then rushed out the door back into the cold. The sun had gone down now, and time was of the essence. I ran around the block, keeping my eyes peeled for any signs of a struggle while listening to the police scanner.
Voices crackled on the radio. “We’ve got tracks leadinginto the Jasper Wilderness near Bluebell Basin. SAR units dispatched to the area.”
The part of Jasper Wilderness where SAR units were dispatched was a scarcely trafficked area with no trails for hikers. Only experienced backpackers and hunters frequented it, and rarely in November.
It was isolated and quiet. An ideal location to dispose of a body.
My lungs burned as I sprinted to my vehicle, speeding all the way out of town toward the base of a popular trail. I’d park there then figure out how the hell I was going to get to Bluebell Basin.
The trailhead was dark, the pine trees looming overhead and reaching into the night like skyscrapers. There were no police vehicles to be found, and I couldn’t hear the crackle of their radios, so I started walking into the brush with a flashlight.
I was taking a huge risk, creeping into the forest like this when police were looking for a suspect, but it was one I was willing to take, even if it was fucking stupid.
I knew the general vicinity of where they said the tracks were, I was just going to be taking a roundabout way. Probably the best, considering my dad and his coworkers would have questions if I ran into them.
I hiked through the woods, careful not to make too much noise as to not alert Sierra’s father of my presence.
Red and blue lights up ahead told me that I was close to the area, and I continued on, pausing every few seconds to listen for footsteps or a sign of struggle.
Voices up a few hundred feet or so caught my attention, and I moved as quickly as I could without drawing attention to myself. A small clearing was upahead, and I hid behind a tree when a few silhouettes came into view.
“Put the gun down, Spencer,” a deputy tried to reason with the man I knew was Sierra’s father. Prison had hardened him even more. His eyes were hollow, and his appearance gave the impression that he hadn’t shaved or showered in days. I feared what he would do to Sierra if they couldn’t reach a resolution.
On the bright side, she was on the opposite side of the clearing from Spencer. He didn’t have a gun to her head, so she must have been able to get away from him at some point.
“Don’t take another step or I’ll shoot.” His voice was calm, steady; he was a fucking sociopath.
“Drop the weapon!” one of the other officers ordered Spencer as officers raised their guns. “Put the gun down, Spencer, and no one will get hurt.”
“You boys almost convinced me, but I don’t think so.” Spencer raised his gun and pointed it toward Sierra. “I have nothing to lose anymore, so shoot me if you have to, but I’m taking her with me.” His finger flirted with the trigger as he slowly squeezed it.
“Look out for your friends, Hayden. If they’re in trouble, help them, okay?”
My dad’s voice echoed in my ears.
Maybe I wasn’t able to help Sierra before. I couldn’t save her from the pain she endured as a kid, but I could save her now.
“Stop!” The scream ripped itself from my throat as I threw myself forward out of the bushes, in front of his line of fire.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
sierra
Ibraced myself for the white-hot pain of bullets, squeezing my eyes as though accepting my fate.
The sound of three gunshots echoed through the forest, but the pain never came.
