16
Kinsley’s thoughts held her in place, and she hadn’t reacted as rapidly as Dev. He shot to his feet and raced to the door, tapping his foot as he let a cold, smoke-filled breeze blow in while he watched outside. He was transmitting his nervous energy to Kinsley, and her palms began to sweat. She rubbed them down her pant legs. If she had to shake hands with these team members, she didn’t want to gross them out and embarrass herself.
Colin joined his brother at the door and shook hands with a tall guy with dark hair and a close-cut and perfectly groomed beard. Colin released his hand and gestured at Reid on the porch. “Nolan Orr, meet Shadow Lake Survival owner, Reid Maddox.”
“We need to swap horror stories about starting a business sometime. I’d love to learn from your mistakes.” Nolan chuckled then moved inside.
“My little brother, Devan,” Colin said. “We call him Dev.”
Nolan gave Dev a once-over and shook hands. “Not so little.”
“Thanks for coming.” Dev pumped Nolan’s hand for only a fraction of a minute, then stepped back to let him in while the next person entered.
“Abbs, is that you?” Dev’s voice rose as a petite woman with reddish hair, a cute nose, and big eyes stopped next to him.
“In the flesh.” She laughed.
“Abby Day.” Dev shook his head. “I almost didn’t recognize you with the short hair and color change.”
She ran a hand through her cute pixie haircut with wispy bangs. “A change of hair for a change of job.”
He blinked at her. “No more sheriffing, and you’re on the team now?”
“Not sure sheriffing is a word, but yeah.” Her smile disappeared. “I resigned from my position to work with Nolan a couple of months ago.”
Dev opened his mouth as if he wanted to ask additional questions, but another dark-haired, bearded guy stepped up behind her and eased her forward.
“Come on, pipsqueak. Quit hogging all the limelight.” He held out his hand. “Gabe Irving at your service. Never a big-shot sheriff but a former Oregon State Trooper.”
“Then you’re more in my league,” Dev said. “My brother might’ve been a fed, but I was a Clackamas County deputy.”
“Then you speak my language, bro, and we should get along just fine.” Gabe clapped Dev on the back and stepped into the room, his gaze instantly taking it all in, including making brief eye contact with Kinsley. She felt the intensity of his assessment clear to her toes. This guy had very likely been an excellent state trooper.
The fourth team member, another guy with dark hair and a beard—what she was beginning to think was a prerequisite for the men who worked on this team—shook hands with Dev. “Hayden Kraus. Former Customs and Border Protection. And the last one in, so you can close the door and keep some of that smoke outside.”
Colin gave a quick nod to Reid, then closed the door tightly. “We’ll be meeting at the dining table. Go ahead and have a seat.”
Dev crossed over to Kinsley and rested his hands on the back of her chair. “This is Kinsley Pearce. We’re here not only to talk about finding Caldwell but about her protection too. Nolan, you can do the introductions.”
“No need for that.” Kinsley made sure to smile, even if her nerves were threatening to get the best of her. “I caught everyone’s name on the way inside.”
The team members looked her over, eyes burning with interest. She’d expected a bunch of buff guys, but she hadn’t thought one of them would be a woman. Based on her petite stature, Kinsley wouldn’t peg her as a law enforcement officer, except for the look in her eyes.
The same look the three men had in spades. All three had dark hair and close-cut beards but none of them wore wedding rings. All three had dressed in the same basic uniform as the woman—a black, long-sleeved T-shirt with the team logo on it, and black khaki cargo pants. And all three had that look about them. The look Kinsley had seen time and again when she worked with law enforcement officers, male and female, on the job.
She’d never been able to put her finger on whatitwas, but she did know that it indicated they were always on. Always looking at their surroundings. At the people they met. Assessing and evaluating. They had to be that alert on the job if they wanted to stay alive.
Most people didn’t think about the danger law enforcement officers faced on a daily basis. They didn’t realize that a routine traffic stop could go south in a minute, and their lives could be snuffed out just like that. Just from not reading the situation right. Just from being tired or getting lazy.
And in her experience, even if they left the job or took time off, they never lost that level of situational awareness the average person didn’t carry. Added stress to their lives for sure. And stress for those around them. But thank goodness there were men and women like these four sitting in front of her, the Shadow Lake team as well, who were willing to risk their lives and live with that stress.
Nolan clasped long fingers together on the tabletop and glanced between Dev and Colin. “So, what do you need from us?”
Dev stood upright and provided details on Kinsley’s overall situation and specifics on Spencer Caldwell. “We have no idea where he’s gone, and we don’t have the resources to locate him. We thought since your agency specializes in missing people, that you might be willing to locate him for us.”
“Well, you’re in luck.” Nolan gave Dev a smile. “We have a light caseload right now and would be glad to help you. Just know, missing persons investigations are obviously not planned in advance, so if one comes up, we might have to back off to take the job.”
“Understood.” Dev’s shoulders dropped, belying his words. “Did Colin talk to you about your rates?”
