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“I know, but it adds to the excitement.”

Both women laughed then fell silent as Jenny’s voice came in over the radio. “Hi, I was wondering if you could help me.”

Jenny, dressed in clothes sourced from a thrift shop and heavily made up, bore little resemblance to her usual self as she leaned against the bar with one hand on her hip. Slumping, she emphasized her baby bump.

“Sweetie, I’m not sure this bar is the place for you.” Lucy, the bartender who had served Rick and Mike, was restocking a shelf with packets of chips.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. But I’m looking for someone.”

Lucy poured a glass of water and placed it in front of her. “Sister, looks like you already found someone.”

“That’s the problem. The guy I was seeing doesn’t know, and I’m trying to get in touch with him.”

“And he drinks here?”

Jenny shrugged. “That’s what some of his old buddies told me. He used to be a Navy SEAL. You might have met him, his name’s Kane, Gavin Kane.”

Lucy’s eyes narrowed. “Your buddies were here yesterday. Tall, good-looking black guy and his surfer buddy.”

Jenny nodded. “Those are his teammates.”

“Look, there’s no nice way of saying this. Kane is a real piece of shit, and the best thing you could do for your child is to forget him and move on.”

“He’s rough around the edges, but he’s got a good heart. I know him, I know that if I can get in touch with him, he’ll do the right thing.”

Lucy sighed. “Hey, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” She stepped over to the till and picked up her phone. “I’ve got a number for him, but it’s old. I don’t make a habit of talking to him. He hangs out at a logging camp out past Renfrew. But I’m telling you, the best thing you could do is forget him. He’s a real scum bag, they all are.” She scribbled the number on a napkin and handed it to Jenny.

“I think he deserves the chance to make that decision himself.”

“Sure, if that’s what it takes. Look, you’re a good-looking woman. Go find a simple man and live a simple life.”

“Thank you.” Jenny took the napkin, folded it, and put it in her pocket. She gave Lucy a grim smile.

“Good luck.” Lucy returned to restocking snacks.

Jenny fought back the urge to skip as she stepped out of the bar. “Did you guys get all that?”

“Yeah, great work,” replied Mike. “I googled Renfrew, it’s about an hour west of here. There’s probably a dozen or so logging camps in that area.”

“You did great, babe,” added Rick.

Jenny crossed the road, gave her husband a wink as she passed the SUV, then made her way to the Toyota, where she climbed into the back with Saber. The dog lay her head on Jenny’s thigh as she buckled in.

“You go, girl,” exclaimed Maria over her shoulder. “That was amazing. I was on the edge of my seat.”

“Your plan worked,” replied Jenny as she took the number from her pocket and posted it in the shared chat. “Surely now we’ve got enough to track down Kane.”

“I hope so,” said Ali as they followed the boys out of the parking lot. “Because we’re running out of time and this is our last chance.”

In the time it took for them to return to the Airbnb, Deb’s people had run the number Jenny had sourced and emailed the details.

“OK, so the number is inactive,” said Mike. “But we’ve got historical data from when it was live.”

The team gathered around his tablet, which he’d placed on the living room coffee table. On screen was a map Deb had sent through showing locations where the phone had been active. There were clusters of dots across Victoria, Vancouver, and Seattle.

Mike used his fingers to zoom in on a forested area of the west coast. “This is Port Renfrew, the location the barmaid gave Jenny.”

There was a cluster of dots to the north. Mike opened Google Maps and zoomed in on the area. It was clear that those dots were on top of what looked to be a logging camp. As the imagery downloaded, they could make out a wooden pier stretching into the ocean, a large yard filled with equipment and logs, and a track leading to a cluster of tin-roofed buildings.