He approached the others and focused his attention on Magnus.
“There’s blood, but it’s not a significant amount.”
“Meaning?” Gia asked, her voice a bit too high.
“Meaning if that is her blood, she could’ve survived.”
“Could’ve?” Magnus’s face turned a shocking shade of green.
“She’s not here,” he repeated, stepping closer and lowering his voice. “Last night, when the senator was out here, he didn’t find what he was lookin’ for. Which we’re gonna take as a good sign.”
Magnus nodded, but Brantley could tell he wasn’t listening.
“So what now?” Trey inquired.
“We keep lookin’. There’s a chance she walked away from here, so we need to keep trackin’. She could be out there somewhere.”
“I need to get the dogs some water,” Gia noted. “Might be a good idea to trade them out. Bring Sarge and Aurora.”
Magnus nodded, his gaze still on where the rug had been found.
“I’ll go with her,” Randy stated. “You want us to take Tesha with us?”
Brantley looked to Reese for a decision. He saw the man’s surprise, but he waited for a response.
“Yeah. I think she could use a break.”
Brantley stepped over to Magnus, blocked his view of the rug. “Look, man. This isn’t easy, but it’s not over. She’s not here, which means she’s somewhere. We keep lookin’ until we find her.”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
Brantley pulled a bottle of water from one of the many pockets on his tactical pants. He passed it over. “Drink this, and let’s keep movin’.”
Perhaps he sounded harsh, but he knew how easy it would be to get lost in your own head in a situation like this. Magnus was terrified for his friend, but now they had a glimmer of hope. If she had been dumped, she either walked away or someone found her and took her somewhere. Now it was a matter of finding her. And he was crossing his fingers that she was still alive.
Chapter Twenty
DAY TURNED TO NIGHT, ANDMAGNUS’S HOPEdwindled.
Admittedly, he’d nearly lost his lunch when he’d come across that rug in the middle of that damn field. The field he now knew like the back of his hand, thanks to hours of trekking over the terrain looking for signs that Ava was alive. He would’ve still been out there if it weren’t for Brantley calling it quits. Magnus had wanted to punch the man in the face, but he figured the only thing that would do was break his hand on the guy’s granite jaw.
He understood the reasoning, sure. The team Brantley had pulled together was tired, having spent hours out in the sun poking through knee-high grass. So he got it. At least, he did after he’d made his way back to his SUV and realized his legs were like noodles, his muscles overtaxed from all the walking.
“Come on,” Trey said when they pulled up to the house. “Let’s get some food and a shower.”
Magnus’s gaze swung over to Trey, who was driving since Magnus’s mind wasn’t in any shape for something so complex. “You’re stayin’?”
There wasn’t an ounce of hesitation when Trey said, “Yeah.”
“I don’t have much in the way of food,” he admitted, wrangling with the door handle to get out.
It took a minute for him to calm down enough to pull the handle, then he was stepping out. His knees were jelly, but he managed to remain upright.
“I need to check on the dogs,” he said, starting toward the kennels.
Trey pulled him up short with a hand on his arm. The next thing Magnus knew, he was being herded toward the back door of the house.
“It’s bein’ handled,” Trey told him. “Gia said Billy’s stayin’ overnight, and your day crew’s well aware of the situation. They’ve got it covered. Once I get you settled, I’ll go see if anyone needs anything.”
