Chapter 47 Braedyn
brAEDYN
Dex reached over, his hand lacing through mine as his other remained on the wheel. The contact was steady, grounding, just like the man himself. His falter two days ago had brought us closer, as if whatever barrier he’d put up between us had been demolished.
Neither of us had put that fact into words.
We’d simply enjoyed being together. With Owen and Yeti.
My dog had fallen head over heels for Dex.
Literally. Every night, she ended up sleeping on top of his head like some sort of doggy halo as I cuddled into him.
We’d been careful to set an alarm, so he was out of my room before Owen woke, but neither of us had wanted to sleep apart.
“What are you smiling about?” Dex asked as his gaze flicked from the road out of town to me.
“How much Yeti loves you.”
Dex grunted. “You mean how she’s trying to smother me in my sleep?”
I laughed. It was the last sound I thought I’d make on a day like today—one where I was returning to the spot where everything had fallen apart. But with Dex, it was somehow possible.
“I told you. She’s got a crush,” I argued.
“Last night, she jumped in the shower with me. That’s just wrong.”
“She was probably worried you were drowning.”
“She’s trying to get me to break my neck. Your dog is a secret assassin.”
Another laugh bubbled out of me. “We gotta get you on one of those funny home video shows. Do they even still have those?”
“Don’t you dare,” Dex warned.
I just grinned.
His fingers tightened around mine. “How are you feeling?”
I wasn’t sure I had an answer for that question. Not in its entirety. “I’m gonna make it through.”
Truth. Because with Dex and so many people who cared about me, there was no way I wouldn’t.
“You will. And I’m with you. The whole time.”
“I know.” And that was the ultimate gift. Not knowing that someone would fix everything in your life—because that was impossible—but knowing they would face whatever came with you, that you’d never be alone.
“Good.” The word sounded more like a grunt than anything else.
My lips twitched. “You don’t have to be grumpy about it.”
“I’m grumpy that you have to go through what you’re about to.”
It was my turn to squeeze Dex’s fingers.
“We do hard things for the people we love. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t good mixed in, too.
Good in the fact that Owen and Skylar are running wild on the ranch with Waylon and Wylder.
Good in the call from Maren this morning that she got all our paperwork in before the courts closed yesterday and thinks we’re going to wreck Vincent.
Good in the fact that I have so many people showing up for me throughout all of this. ”
“Sunshine and pure grit. That’s you, Hellion,” Dex whispered softly.
“You make me braver,” I admitted.
“Good.”
I fought a smile at the second grunted word.
When Dex pulled into the familiar parking area, a handful of cars were already there. I saw Kol, Cora, and Aster standing in a small group off to the side. But the familiar boulder and array of trees, the map and trail sign had my heart picking up speed.
I’d thought about bringing Yeti with us, but the truth was, until we had a lead on where Nova might be, Yeti wouldn’t be helpful. Today was about remembering. Going back to the worst day of my life.
Dex leaned over as he turned off the engine, his lips brushing against my temple. “I’m with you.”
I let out a steadying breath and climbed out of the SUV.
Aster looked up and sent me a gentle smile. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay.” And that was true.
Cora moved to give me a quick hug. “Holly wanted to be here, but her kitchen sink sprung a leak, and she had to wait for the plumber.”
“Bummer. Leaks are no fun.” I was secretly glad she hadn’t been able to make it. Four people were enough. And they were all people I could settle around and didn’t feel I needed to put up a front with.
“Hey, Little Badass,” Kol greeted.
“Not you, too,” Dex complained.
Kol’s lips twitched. “Hey, it fits her.”
Cora grinned. “I agree.”
I turned to Aster, clasping my hands together in front of me and squeezing as hard as I could. “Where do we start?”
She nodded, understanding that I needed to get moving or I never would. “Let’s go back to that day. Start out as you did.”
My mouth suddenly felt dry, and my fingers began to tingle. But then I felt a hand on my lower back. “You’re not alone.”
I wasn’t. I knew it down to my bones. And Nova wouldn’t be much longer either.
Crossing to the SUV where Dex had left our day packs, I hoisted one onto my back. “We parked in that spot there.” I pointed to an empty one. “There were three other vehicles in the lot. A beige SUV, a green Subaru, and a silver pickup.”
“Did you see anyone on the path?” Kol asked.
“A couple. Mid-thirties, maybe. They had a dog. A border collie.”
Kol nodded, making a note.
Aster moved in closer to me, adjusting her pack and looking at home in hiking boots, khaki shorts, and a workout tank. “Let’s key into Nova. Picture her—what she was wearing, how her hair was, every detail you can remember.”
Pain—so much at having to call up her memory. I didn’t do it often because the price was so great. As if drawing her in my mind meant carving her into my very flesh.
“She went to Goodwill before our trip to kit herself out. Bought a whole outfit. It had a purple theme. Tan shorts with purple and pink stitching. A purple tank with flowers right along here.” My fingers ghosted along the hem of my shirt as my vision blurred.
“A purple bandana she wore as a headband, her hair up in a tangled bun. And the locket—”
My voice broke on the last word. The heart locket. The one I’d given her. The one now in the evidence locker at the sheriff’s station. The one with the dried blood on it.
“Good,” Aster said. “That’s so good. Why don’t we start walking? Let your mind wander. Let yourself see that day.”
She made a motion for me to start out first. And it made sense. She didn’t want herself or the rest of the group skewing my memories.
They came in flashes. Snippets of Nova tossing out jokes or shit-talking me along the way. Quick, five-second reels of places we’d stopped or things we’d seen.
As we moved farther and farther down the trail, my chest grew tighter. Because we were getting to the spot. I saw it from a different angle now, but that same peachy-pink hue of the poppies peeked through the trees.
“Here,” I croaked. “Here is where we stopped. I went to see those flowers and then…and then she was gone.”
Something sounded—not from behind me, where the rest of the group was—but from the trees to my left.
I frowned, looking through the forest. And then it got louder.
My blood turned to ice. Freezing so instantly, it burned like frostbite.
My name. Over and over. My name in Nova’s voice.
I was running toward the sound before I could consider the wisdom of it. Toward Nova. Even as I heard Dex shouting from behind me to stop. Even as I heard thundering footsteps. I pushed harder, my muscles aching as I stretched them to their breaking point.
Brambles and branches slapped at my arms and legs, tore at my skin, but I didn’t give a damn. I needed to get to Nova.
A flash of something. Color, maybe? Purple?
I moved toward it and then stopped dead. A purple tank soiled and caked with blood. Shorts you could barely see the stitching on. And a body. Head slumped forward. Limbs unnaturally askew. Hair covering the woman’s face.
I did the only thing I could. I screamed.