Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Rhett
Cheyenne wanted to sit up all night in the living room instead of going to bed. I agreed but managed to coax her into falling asleep in my arms there. Losing Diablo and her barn had sapped the last of her energy, and she was in a state of grief and exhaustion, even if she wasn’t ready to admit it. I assured her that, with the deputy out front, Ash guarding the back door, and me staying awake with the rifle at my side, it was safe for her to rest for a few minutes.
Thankfully, that few minutes turned into several hours of deep sleep, until her cell phone rang. She instantly jarred awake.
“Who is it?” I asked, tensing. Someone calling at four in the morning couldn’t be good news.
“It’s Claire.” She shook herself and jumped up, answering the phone to have a mostly one-sided conversation while she paced the room.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, my heart accelerating when she finally hung up. If Thomas had hurt someone in my family…
“It’s a lost kid.” Conflicting emotions warred on her face. “A five-year-old out hunting with his dad. He wandered off from the tent in the middle of the night. The dad didn’t realize he was missing until half an hour ago and has no idea how long he’s been gone or where he went.”
“Shit. That’s not good.”
“No, it’s not. Claire is required to respond. She told me it was fine for me to not come, but…”
“But that’s not who you are.”
“None of us make it to every callout,” she said like she was trying to convince herself. “The team would understand.”
“But it’s a missing kid.”
Her shoulders dropped. “Exactly. And, honestly, this kind of thing is my specialty. If it was a lost hiker who had hit his GPS distress signal or a hunter who radioed in from a known location, that would be different. But it’s not. It’s a kid, and he’s lost in territory that I know like the back of my hand. They’re calling in a canine team from another county, but it will be hours before they can get here. And with a kid? Every minute counts.”
“Go,” I said firmly. “I’ll be fine, and I’ll stay here and guard the house. How long do you think you’ll be gone?”
“You never really know. Average time is about five hours, but that’s meaningless. They could find him before I even show up, and I could be back in an hour, or I could be gone for three days.” She sighed. “I probably shouldn’t go, should I? It’s volunteer. They’ll understand.”
But it was clear from the look on her face that not responding went against her very nature.
“Go, Cheyenne. You know you want to. That kid needs you. ”
She bit her lip, considering. “I thought you would try to talk me out of it. Insist that I stay here where you can protect me from Thomas.”
“Are you disappointed I’m not?”
She smiled, despite her exhaustion. “No. Not at all. I love that you support what I do.”
I stood up and put my hands around her waist, pulling her to me. “Will I worry about you? Of course. But I saw you in action the other night. You’re amazing.”
“Thank you.”
“Plus, that team? They’ve got your back. Honestly, I figure you’ll be safer out there than you will be sitting here at a house Thomas has already targeted once. You’ll carry a weapon though, right?”
She winked. “I carry all sorts of things that can be used as a weapon.”
I kissed her gently. “Then go do your thing. Save lives, and kick ass.”
“You’re sure you’ll be okay?”
“I’m doing better than that poor kid is. Go find him.”
“Okay,” she said after taking a deep breath. Her face took on a resolve I’d never seen before. Cheyenne in warrior mode.
I loved it.
She typed out a message on her phone. “I’m letting them know I’m clear to respond.” She took another breath and looked me in the eyes. “I love you, Rhett.”
“I love you, too, Cheyenne.”
Then she went into action mode, throwing on her hiking gear and getting her pack ready. And I tried to pretend I felt as confident as I was acting.