Worry for Sandra cramped her belly as she followed him out of her office. She paused briefly to ask Maggie to call Walters into the office to make the Lizzy Harper arrest as soon as the warrant came through. Her cellphone rang. “Sheriff Alton.”
“We found no trace of the girl. This is a one-bedroom shack, no cellar.” Bradford spoke and she could hear sirens in the background. “We’ll be back at the office in five minutes.”
Annoyed, Jenna sighed. “Okay, thanks.”
She called Kane and gave him the information then walked into her office before striding to the front counter, waiting impatiently for Rowley’s cruiser to arrive. The moment the door opened and Bradford walked in she pounced on the woman. “Where’s Rowley?”
“Right here, ma’am.” Rowley st
rolled through the front door on Bradford’s heels.
“Grab your backpacks and follow me.”
Moments later, she led the way to her SUV with Rowley and Bradford. Once the deputies had climbed aboard, she spun the wheel of her SUV, and sirens and lights blazing headed toward Stanton Forest at speed. “Call Wolfe and tell him I’ll send them the coordinates of the track when we arrive. They can meet us. I want every available person searching for this girl.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Rowley made the call. “They are on their way.”
As the perimeter of the forest came into view, she slid the vehicle around a sweeping bend and headed west. The lines of tall pine trees dashed past in streaks of green. The flashes of sunlight and shadows made the road look like a flickering silent movie. She slowed to search the never-ending line of dark brown trunks for the entrance to the access road. The forest with its abundance of wildflowers appeared beautiful set against an azure sky with the mountains as a backdrop, but she was aware of the potential danger lurking within its dark depths.
She missed the dirt road at first. Long grass partially hid it on each side and she reversed to peer down a track disappearing into the dim forest. After pulling the SUV to a halt, she checked the coordinates on her GPS then sent them in a text to Kane and Wolfe. “Make sure you have your receivers turned on and your earbuds in. I want to make sure we are all communicating.” Jenna slipped from the car then heard a siren in the distance coming fast. “That will be Kane. We might as well wait for him to arrive.”
“You might want to drive some ways down this road too, ma’am.” Rowley’s brow crinkled. “The map has a cabin marked about quarter mile down that road, at the end of a trail more than fifty feet into the forest.”
“Okay. When Kane gets here, we will take his SUV and leave mine here. It will make a good marker for Wolfe when he arrives.”
A few minutes later, sunlight flashed on a windshield roaring around the bend at high speed. The wailing siren did not muffle the sound of the powerful engine in Kane’s vehicle. When he came to a stop parallel to her SUV, she walked to the passenger door and pulled it open. “We’ll ride with you. The cabin is down that road.” She turned to Bradford. “Grab the backpacks out of my car.” She tossed her the keys. “Rowley, bring a rifle.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Bradford collected the backpacks and hauled them to the back of Kane’s SUV. “Will these be okay in there with the dog?”
“Yeah, he won’t touch them.” Kane nodded in the affirmative. “Put them beside mine.”
They all piled into the vehicle and Jenna gave Kane directions as he turned into the forest. She glanced at him. “This is a frightened kid. Turn off the siren but leave the lights on. A kid will approach a police vehicle if they’re lost.”
“I think the trail is coming up on the right.” Rowley leaned forward eagerly.
“Okay.” Kane pulled the SUV off the road beside a narrow trail. “Down here?”
“Yeah, I would say so.” Rowley peered at the map then back at the trail. “Hey, look, there is a signpost some ways down the path.”
Jenna leaped from the car. “Okay, grab your backpacks and leave the rifle. If you find anything, mark the area with a flag and call me. She pulled a plastic bag from her pocket and looked at Kane. “Get Duke.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Kane let the dog out of the car and attached a long leash to his collar. He hoisted on his backpack then walked the dog to her. “Give him the scent then all we can do is head toward the girl’s last known position and hope for the best.”
Jenna opened the plastic bag and offered it to the dog. To her surprise, he gave two short barks then dropped his nose to the ground and searched around. Moments later, he took off down the road away from the cabin. “Oh, that can’t be good. We know she was at the cabin.”
“But maybe she went this way after the woman saw her.” Kane attempted to heave Duke back but the dog barked loudly and pulled at the leash. “He seems intent on heading this way. Do you want me to follow him?”
“Yeah, take Bradford with you.” Jenna glanced at Rowley. “Come with me to check out the cabin.” She turned to call after Kane. “Keep in contact, Kane.”
“Roger that.” Kane gave her a nod, and with Bradford at his side, they followed the dog.
Without hesitation, Jenna plunged down the track leading to the cabin but was soon glad to have Rowley at her side. She could not imagine a young girl walking down this path voluntarily. Deep in the woods, the pine trees and the dense undergrowth seemed to form an impenetrable wall closing in around them. Long shadows fell like prison bars across the track and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up as if in a warning. Apart from their soft footsteps and the creaking of the trees, an eerie silence descended on them. Every muscle tensed as she realized the usual birdsong was missing. Jenna slowed the pace and glanced around in all directions, sensing danger lurking in the shadows. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Something isn’t right. No birds.”
“I see some crows up there.” Rowley frowned. “They are all watching us.” He shuddered. “That’s creepy.”
Jenna sniffed the air and shrugged. “I can’t smell death but crows are a good sign something is dead around here.” She waved him on. “The cabin must be around the next bend. Keep to the tree line. We have no idea what is around the next corner.”
A soft buzzing sound reached her as they walked and the cabin came into view. Astonished, she gaped at the front door. The wooden panels moved like a heat mirage. She took a few steps closer then realized with a shudder that the black mass was a swarm of flies. They crowded over the log cabin and spread across the windows like blinds. “Oh my God, are those flies?”