Perhaps, if I tackled things head-on for once, it might actually work out for the best.
I grabbed my phone.“I’ll call Nate and find out what the plan is.”
TWENTY-TWO
MAX
“Just behave as normally as possible,” Nate told Bailey, his voice coming through my headset clearly even though he was miles away.“We don’t want them to catch on that anything is different.”
I held my tongue even though I wanted to point out that Bailey was a terrible actor, and acting like nothing was wrong would be difficult for her.She was too genuine in her emotions.Everything she felt showed on her face.
Instead, I concentrated on adjusting the headset so that I’d be able to hear every breath she took.
I hated that I wasn’t with her.She shouldn’t be out alone in the forest again this soon.But my opinion had been overruled.Nate had suggested that I wait at the Castle River hut along with a handful of armed police officers if I was that worried.
So here I was, waiting with my emergency medical kit and my heart in my throat as the woman I wanted to build a life with intentionally ventured alone into the wilderness to tempt a violent criminal out of hiding.
This was a terrible plan.
In an attempt to distract myself, I looked around.There was a cop stationed by the door, another at the radio, and two more sitting out of view of the windows in case anyone happened to look this way.
Outside, sunlight dappled the stones on the riverbed, and the forest rose around us, alive with birdsong and crickets chirping.
It should have been peaceful.
It wasn’t.
“Drive to the starting point and do everything the same way you usually would,” Nate said, coming through loud and clear.
“What if they know where I’m going, and they’re waiting in the parking lot?”
My stomach tightened at the nerves in Bailey’s voice.She was putting on a brave face, but she was scared.
“I’ll be right behind you,” Nate assured her.“There are other officers on the trail—some hidden and others pretending to be hikers.If anything goes wrong, someone will be there to help, and don’t forget that as long as you have your backpack, we’ll be able to track you.”
“True.”
She had the GPS tracker—a kind of miniature locator beacon like the one she usually carried, but with less functionality—in her backpack.I was grateful for that because I didn’t have as much faith in the police support crew as Nate did.Unless there were cops stationed every few hundred meters, there was no guarantee that they’d arrive quickly enough to be any help.
The only thing that would have eased my mind about this more fully was someone—preferably me—accompanying her.I was no great fighter, but I’d put myself between her and any danger.
Unfortunately, when I’d suggested that I walk with her, Nate had vetoed the idea immediately.According to him, the attacker might hesitate to make a move if she wasn’t alone.
On her own, she presented the most tempting target.
I got up and walked to the window as if I’d be able to see Bailey arrive at the start of the trail even though acres of forest separated us.
“Don’t just stand there,” one of the cops said quietly.“If you’re going to hover, you need to look like you’re doing something.Put the pot on the burner and pretend you’re boiling water.”
I did as she said, tuning in as Bailey spoke into the hidden microphone tucked inside the neck of her shirt, telling everyone who was listening to the feed that she’d turned onto the gravel road and was nearly at the parking area.
“How many cars do you see?”Nate asked.
“Four.A white ute, a forest green Suzuki truck, a silver Toyota, and a white Jeep.”
“All of those are with us,” Nate said.
There was silence for a moment.I lifted the lid on the pot and pretended to check the water inside.Not that I expected anyone was watching me, but this wasn’t my area of expertise, so I’d listen to the people who knew what they were doing.
