Because I have to live my life normally. I can’t let them take that from me. And there’s no way I can risk the chance that an animal in need goes unattended. Evenif it is a really stupid decision… one that I shouldn’t even consider.
What would my grandfather do?
Easy. Butch would hike out and do his best to find the raccoon. Plus, chances are that the hiker estimated the distance wrong. One mile can feel like five when you practically have to swim through the humidity.
“Did she sound sure of the distance?”
“Er… no. But she said she’d been walking at a steady pace for a little over an hour when she saw it. And that she found some sticks, laid them in the middle of the path in the shape of an arrow pointing toward where it was.”
I stifle a groan. Depending on how fast she was going, the woman could have made it even farther than she’d guessed in that time.
That’s a long way to hike on the off chance that the animal is still able to be spotted from the trail. Even longer if I do find it and discover that I need to carry it out for medical attention. But I won’t be able to sleep tonight, thinking about it out there in need of help, if I don’t at least try to find it. And it will definitely be a distraction.
Casting a glance at Jake, I find him still in discussion with DA Farber. Given what happened last night, he won’t be happy about me heading that far into the woods alone.
“Sounds easy enough,” I lie. “I’ll swing by the house and grab some gear, then set out.”
“Great. Let me know how it goes.”
Ending the call, I return to Jake’s side just as his conversation with the DA is wrapping up.
“I’ll give you a buzz, let you know what I find out,” Dennis says, holding up a rectangle of paper I recognizeas one of Jake’s business cards.
“I appreciate it.”
“And, Agent Knox, I’ll let you know as soon as we have a court date and I have an idea of when you’ll be needed for your testimony.”
“Thank you.”
A round of handshakes later, Jake wraps an arm around me as we watch the district attorney go.
“Everything all right?” I ask.
“Yeah. How about with you?”
“Just something that Donna needs some help with.”
“You’ve got to go, then?”
“Yeah, I probably should.”
“I’ll walk you to your car.”
My eyebrows shoot up my forehead. That was easier than I thought it would be. I hurry to bring my expression back to neutral, but I can’t deny the rush of both surprise and relief that he isn’t asking about where I’m going and what I’ll be doing after what happened yesterday.
Not to mention it’s an odd thing to say, considering we’re parked next to each other. I keep the thought to myself as we cross the parking lot, figuring his mom’s case has him distracted. Do my best to make my smile genuine as I turn to face him. But the kiss he drops on my forehead leaves a lot to be desired.
He waits as I get settled behind the wheel, buckle my seat belt, and start the engine.
“Drive safe,” he says, his eyes meeting mine only briefly before he presses my door closed.
Something’s wrong. A lot of things are actually, but this something is different. Unexpected. And though I try to tell myself I’m imagining things as I linger at the stop sign watching Jake walk back into the courthouse, I’m sure that I’m not.
CHAPTER 6
I wipe at the sweat dripping into my eyes. Take deep breaths, trying to ease the pounding of my heart. Do my best to maintain a positive inner monologue, trying to convince myself I’ll be okay. But I’m losing the battle. I don’t have much fight left in me.
It’s been a long time since I’ve done this. Too long. It isn’t only that I’m ill-prepared, although there’s no denying that’s true. It isn’t even the heat, which feels like it’s boiling my brain and sucking my will to survive out through my dehydrating pores. It’s that I’m starting to think this is pointless.
