“Naw. I think I’ve got it handled. Gia said she’d be back in the morning, but I should be good. I’ll just sleep in the bunkroom.”
Trey nodded. “Well, I need to get him … back in the house.” He was grateful he’d recalled what he’d nearly said. He figured telling Billy that he needed to get the man to bed was probably a little TMI for the situation. Not to mention Trey’s sanity.
Hell, he deserved a pat on the back for handling things so well this far.
“You ready?” Trey asked Magnus.
That seemed to shake him out of his stupor because he shook his head as though dislodging something, then looked at Billy. “Did they get their meds?”
“Yep.” He tilted his head in the direction of the monitor. “I was logging it when you came in.”
“What about tomorrow? Who’s comin’ in to relieve you? Do they—”
“It’s handled,” Trey and Billy said simultaneously.
Magnus’s eyes narrowed as he looked between the two of them.
“Fine.”
“If you need anyth—”
“I’ll just holler,” Billy interrupted with a smirk. “Go on, now. Get some rest. You’ve got another long day ahead of you tomorrow.”
Trey guided Magnus toward the door, then followed. He stopped short when Billy said, “Magnus, I hope you find Ava. If there’s anything I can do to help … I’m here.”
Magnus’s head tipped forward as though it had become too heavy to hold up. “Thanks.”
Trey nudged him toward the door, then outside into the cool evening air. They’d had an unseasonably warm day, but according to the weather reports, the temps would be dropping into the freezing range mid-week as another cold front blew through. Trey didn’t have to think about what that would mean for Ava if she was out there somewhere, wandering around alone, maybe hurt.
He closed the door behind him. No sooner did he turn than he found himself up against a firm body.
“Boyfriend?” Magnus whispered roughly.
Trey skimmed his face in the dim light from the exterior spotlight. It was cast partially in shadow, making it impossible to read whether Magnus was pissed or relieved that he’d said something so juvenile.
“I didn’t—” Trey’s words were cut off when Magnus pressed his lips to his.
“Don’t take it back,” Magnus whispered. “Not tonight, please.”
Trey nodded, pulled back.
“Did you mean it?”
“I don’t say things I don’t mean, Magnus. You should know that by now.”
He heard Magnus’s sigh and released his own heavy exhale in relief.
“Come on,” Trey insisted. “You need sleep. Dawn comes early, and we’ll need to be back out there.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Wednesday, March 16, 2022
AFTER MANAGING TO SLEEP FOR SIX SOLIDhours, Reese was up with the rest of the team on Wednesday morning. They headed out at first light to resume their search for Ava March.
While Magnus took his team, as well as a handful of Brantley’s cousins, with the dogs back to the area where they’d found the rug, Reese and the rest of the task force, minus Trey, continued going door to door. They had decided to split up to cover more ground. Reese was on his third house of the morning, this one belonging to Gloria Steiner, a sixty-seven-year-old retired ER nurse and grandmother of three.
He walked up onto the wraparound porch, went to the door, and knocked gently on the wooden screen door.
