“Two bars,” Robert said. “Maybe it’ll be enough. I’m calling it in.”
Brooke stopped near her blue SUV, leaning against it like her legs might give out.
Tyler moved closer, not crowding her but staying near in case she needed help. “You okay?”
She looked at him, and he saw the adrenaline crash starting. “No. But I will be.”
That simple honesty struck him. No pretending, no bravado. Just the truth.
“The police will want to talk to all of us. Get our statements about what we saw.”
“I know.” She took a shaky breath. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Neither can I.”
Robert was on the phone now, talking to what sounded like a 9-1-1 dispatcher, giving their location and explaining what they’d found. Sue stood beside him, adding occasional details.
Tyler stood beside Brooke, the perfect August day suddenly feeling off. Finding a body like that was nothing close to right. At least they were out of danger.
She pulled the water bottle from her pack and took a drink, her gaze meeting his over the rim. The look in her eyes sent a wave of something almost unfamiliar through him, a feeling he hadn’t known in years and never expected to feel again.
Chapter 3
Brooke
Brooke leaned against her SUV, grateful for the solid metal at her back. The parking lot felt surreal in its normalcy. Gravel crunched under her feet, the sun warmed her face, and birds sang in the nearby trees. Everything looked as it should. No hint that the world had tilted sideways a few miles back on the trail.
Her hands finally stopped shaking. Mostly. Though she didn’t dare close her eyes. If she did, she’d see them again. The women.
Or woman. The thought of one body divided between two caches made Brooke's stomach churn. She took another sip of water and tried breathing through her nose.
This was wrong. All wrong. She should’ve stayed home. When Gina called the night before to cancel because the hospital was shorthanded, Brooke hadn’t worried. Joe and Steph would still be going.
Not even half an hour later, Joe called. Some kind of emergency had come up, and he had to leave town. He was driving to Billings to catch the first flight to LAX.
She’d called Steph, who, of course, had already heard from both of their friends. Steph said it was fine, that the two of them could still go and she’d borrow her neighbor’s dog to act as their third person. Never hiking alone in bear country was a given, though Steph often ignored the rule when she was in the wilderness during the winter months and the bears were denned up. This time of year, though,they were much too active, and Brooke knew better than to be out here alone. Her friends were bound to bring this up again and again, and she couldn’t really blame them for it.
Brooke always followed the rule of going out in a group. Until today. Steph called at five thirty. She’d caught her toe on the bedstead, and she was almost certain it was broken. It was already swollen and purple. “Let’s try for next weekend,” she’d said.
“Sure,” Brooke had answered before telling Steph to take care of herself.
“See you Wednesday,” Steph had added before hanging up. “Even if I can’t run, I’ll be there to keep you all going.”
No doubt about that. Steph was the organizer of the Basin County Running Club and was an expert at motivating everyone during their weekly gatherings. Unless she was out of town, Steph didn’t miss a Wednesday. She was the main reason the club kept going after what happened in May.
“You need a snack?”
Brooke looked up, startled. Tyler stood a few feet away, holding a granola bar in her direction.
“I’m good.” She reached for her pack, trying to calm her nerves. “I brought things.”
He smiled and nodded, and she let herself relax a little. She hadn’t really looked at him on the trail. Now she noticed his height, the solid set of his shoulders, the calm green of his eyes. And his hands, streaked with grease, caught her attention.
Brooke grabbed her water bottle and took a quick sip, turning away as she realized she’d been staring.
Robert was still on the phone with dispatch, his voice carrying across the quiet lot as he answered questions andgave directions. Sue stood beside him, occasionally adding details. Their Subaru sat twenty feet away, gate open, revealing a neatly organized cargo area.
“You rode with your friends?” she asked Tyler.
