6
“Good boy.” Rowan crouched next to Thor and ran her hands over his soft black ears.
His gaze was locked on the dozen deputies congregating on the east side of Sophia McLeod’s backyard. His chest vibrated with a low whine. He was eager to get to work.
“In a minute, Thor. Noelle’s getting something for you.” Detective Marshall was inside the house seeking scent articles for Thor so he could track Sophia and Zack. The back door opened, and Noelle stepped onto the patio, two plastic bags in her hands. Thor rotated one of his ears her way without removing his gaze from the deputies.
“Do you want him to smell both now?” Noelle asked.
“No. One at a time. Sophia first.”
“Are all the deputies out of the gully?”
“Looks that way,” said Rowan. “I haven’t seen anyone else come out in the last few minutes.” She’d asked for all the law enforcement walking a grid to come out. Thor didn’t need them in his way. Now there were more than a dozen fresh human scents he’d have to sort through—not that she had any worry about his abilities.
Noelle handed her a bag. “That’s a T-shirt and shorts from Sophia’s laundry basket.”
Rowan held the bag open for Thor to examine. He nosed in it for a few seconds, and Rowan unhooked his leash. “Find it!” He sprang off the patio and did only two sweeps before his head jerked and he ran straight toward the gully. Rowan and Noelle jogged after him.
“That was fast,” said Noelle.
“Yep.” It was fast. It was rare he found a scent that quickly.
“He didn’t even sniff the dried blood on the patio,” said Noelle.
“I didn’t direct him to look for that.”
“Amazing.”
Some calls of encouragement sounded from the deputies as Thor passed by.
“Please be quiet!” Rowan said as she went past the group. She glanced at Noelle. “Have two of them follow a ways behind us and tell the rest to stay here.” Rowan sped up to keep Thor in sight.
“Garcia and Jenkins,” she heard Noelle say. “You’re with us, but stay back fifty feet. The rest of you, stick around. Don’t wander.”
There were a few sounds of disappointment. People always wanted to watch Thor in action.
It is pretty awesome.
Rowan crested the gully and saw Thor waiting for her at the bottom. “Find it!” He ran twenty feet along the gully, then circled back and ran in the opposite direction. Rowan stepped carefully down the bank. The slope wasn’t too steep, but there were numerous tree roots and loose rocks. There were dozens of shoe prints in the dirt. When she’d arrived, Noelle had told her the searchers hadn’t found any prints in the gully yet, but clearly the searchers had left plenty of their own.
Noelle had speculated the gully search was a waste of their time, that the vanishing blood trail was a ruse. Thor had destroyed that theory within a minute of starting his search.
Rowan reached the bottom and headed east after her dog. She suspected whoever had taken Sophia had kept to the grass and short ground cover, planning not to leave footprints.
Is Zack with her?
Abruptly Rowan wondered if Thor could be following an old trail. Maybe Sophia had taken a walk in the area recently. She shook her head. Thor would follow the most recent scent, which would be the strongest. He wouldn’t have left the yard if Sophia’s last steps had been to return to the house.
“Noelle,” said Rowan. “Sophia’s car is missing, so it could mean that the attacker took it since it appears she went this way.”
“I was wondering about that too,” said Noelle.
After a few minutes she spotted a some colored plastic ribbons tied to brush. The searchers had marked where they’d left off when they were ordered out of the gully. Without their scents, it should be a bit easier for Thor to follow Sophia’s. But Thor kept a steady pace past the markers, sweeping back and forth along the gully.
It makes no difference to him.
Pride filled her.
A hundred yards past the markers, Thor circled and backtracked a bit, darting back and forth.
He lost it.
“What’s he doing?” Noelle asked in a low voice, jogging a yard behind her.
Thor tossed his head and scrambled up the bank.
“Never mind,” said Noelle.
The trail went up the path of least resistance. Understandable, if someone was carrying or pulling Sophia. Rowan followed her dog, and her knee protested at the gentle climb. She ignored it as she scanned the ground for footprints. Thor stopped at the top, watching her progress. Panting, she reached her dog, and he was off again. Behind her, Noelle and the two deputies went up the bank with ease.
They’d emerged at the rear perimeter of a housing construction area several blocks from the school. The starts of a few home foundations circled a cul-de-sac. It was quiet; work had stopped for the weekend. Thor circled a bulldozer near the curb and then moved onto the blacktop of the cul-de-sac. He ran another ten yards on the new street and then reversed direction. He made several wide sweeps, running across the dirt of the construction and zipping across the blacktop to the budding foundations on the other side. His pace slowed and he circled again.
Rowan directed him farther up the street to search. He trotted, his nose up as he zigzagged, but he eventually worked his way back to the center of the cul-de-sac. The last place he’d moved with confidence. She directed him to check the five home foundations. He obeyed, but his earlier enthusiasm had waned. Rowan saw it in his carriage and the lift of his paws.
It’s gone.
“I think they got into a vehicle here,” said Rowan.
“But he’s still searching. He’ll pick up the trail.”
Rowan shook her head. “He’s only looking because I asked. His body language tells me it’s gone.”
“Makes sense to have a car waiting here,” said Noelle. “No cameras in this area. And that bulldozer would provide some cover if a car parked beside it.” She strode over to the bulldozer and scanned the dirt. “Looks like ten different vehicles have been here. One might be ours, but it’s going to be hard to find among all these construction tracks.”
A crackly voice sounded from one of the deputies’ radios. The woman thumbed her shoulder mic and told the voice to go ahead.
“Is Detective Marshall with you?”
“Affirmative.”
“She needs to return to the house,” said the voice. “Zack McLeod was just dropped off. He spent a few nights at a friend’s.”
Noelle met Rowan’s gaze, both speechless.
Thank goodness Zack is okay.
Zack sat on the edge of the back seat of Noelle’s SUV, his feet on the street and Thor planted between his legs. Thor loved kids and had given Rowan several subtle leash pulls in the boy’s direction before she’d relented. Now Zack stroked Thor’s fur with one hand. The boy was all long, gangly limbs and had shaggy hair that he kept pushing out of his eyes. His red, tear-filled eyes.
Pain squeezed in Rowan’s chest as she watched the twelve-year-old. He was understandably distraught at the news about his mother. Noelle had refused to let him into the house, not wanting him seeing the blood and destruction.
“We can get whatever you need out of the house,” Noelle had told him.
The detective had spoken with the mom who’d dropped off Zack. The woman said the two-night stay had gone smoothly. There had been no school on Thursday or Friday, and the boys had played video games most of the time, eaten a lot of pizza, and slept in until 11:00 a.m. After lunch today she’d had Zack text his mom to tell him he would be home in a while. There’d been no reply.
Before the friend’s mother left, Noelle advised her to keep her house locked during the day and to call the police if she noticed any strangers near her home.
The warning had startled Rowan.
Zack could be a target.
“Zack, is there an aunt or uncle’s house you could stay at for a few days?” Noelle asked. She leaned against her vehicle next to the boy.
He shook his head, still petting Thor. “No. I could stay at my grandpa’s, though.”
Noelle’s face went blank, and Rowan swallowed hard. Zack hadn’t been told about Rod McLeod’s death. He’d been crushed by the news of his mother, and the detective hadn’t been ready to pile on more sorrow.
Noelle pushed off the vehicle and strode past Rowan, shock in her wide eyes. Rowan followed and grabbed her arm, turning the detective to face her.
“You have to tell him. He needs to know what happened to his grandfather. Stalling will only make it worse.”
“How do I break it to that distraught kid that his grandfather was murdered?” Noelle’s voice cracked. “I can’t. Not right now. Give me a few minutes.”
Rowan studied her gaze. Clearly the situation had struck a deep chord with Noelle. The levelheaded detective’s lips were quivering.
Something personal has rattled her.
“I can do it,” Rowan offered. “Do you mind?”
Noelle shook her head, tears in her eyes. Rowan immediately returned to Zack before the detective could change her decision.
Rowan slowly lowered herself to a crouch beside the boy and took one of his hands, her gaze meeting his. “Zack, I’m really sorry. I know it’s been a shock to learn your mother is missing, and I hate to tell you this, but you need to know that your grandfather has died. He was found this morning.”
The boy stared at her, confusion in his gaze.
Thor pressed against Zack’s legs, just as he did against Rowan’s when she was upset. The boy pulled his hand out of hers and slid out of the vehicle to sit on the ground, wrapping both arms around Thor and hiding his face in his fur.
How many times have I done that when I’m upset?
Her dog was a great source of comfort.
“What happened?” he asked in a muffled voice.
Rowan paused, wondering how much to tell him. “We don’t know yet. But the police are trying to find out.”
Zack lifted his head, and Rowan brushed away two dog hairs that had stuck in a tear track. “Police? Why the police? Wouldn’t it be a doctor?” Understanding filled his eyes and his face fell. “Someone hurt him.”
Rowan nodded.
“He used to be a police officer,” Zack said slowly. “I always worried someone would get mad and shoot him.”
Rowan had had the same fear since she’d started seeing Evan.
“Did the same person take my mom?” Fear raised his voice, his eyes wide. “Are they going to kill her too?”
Rowan put her hand on his arm. “We don’t know, Zack. It could be someone completely different.”
He emphatically shook his head. “No. It’s not a coincidence. Grandpa said to never believe in coincidences.”
“I don’t either,” said Noelle, her voice under control. She’d moved to stand behind Rowan. “We’ll figure out what happened.”
“Where am I supposed to go?” He looked from one woman to the other, his arms still around Thor. “My stupid dad is in prison—not that I’d ever agree to stay with him anyway. I don’t have any other family here.”
“Let me talk to Detective Marshall and see if we can figure something out.” Rowan pushed the hair out of his eyes, giving him a warm smile before she stood. “Thor, stay.” She followed Noelle to the other side of the SUV. “Have you called child services?”
“I did while you were breaking the news to him. They don’t have anyone to pick him up and asked if we can transport him to a group home.”
Rowan’s mouth fell open. “Transport him? That sounds like he’s a felon! Drop him off at some unfamiliar place where he knows no one? We can’t do that. The boy doesn’t know what happened to his mother, and his grandfather is dead. Could he go back to his friend’s house? The one who just dropped him off?”
“I asked the mom when she was here. I didn’t tell her what happened, but I said Zack might need a place to stay for a few days. She can’t take him because they’re leaving town this afternoon. They have a flight to San Diego.”
“I’d cancel the damn trip. This is more important!”
“She didn’t know that. And I wasn’t about to catch her up on the day’s events.”
“Shit.” Rowan took a couple of steps and kicked at the dirt, her heart aching for the boy, who seemed to be alone. “Maybe Evan will have an idea.”
“Evan?”
Both women turned. Zack stood near the back of the SUV, Thor at his side. Guilt swamped Rowan as she wondered how much he’d heard. “Evan Bolton,” said Rowan. “He’s a detective working on your grandfather’s—and your mother’s—case.”
“I know Evan,” Zack said. “He’s one of my mom’s friends. He worked with Grandpa.”
“Yes, that’s him.”
“Does he still have Oreo?”
“The little dog? Oreo lives with his sister’s family now. Her three kids love him very much.”
“Charlotte, Theodore, and Molly.”
Rowan gaped at the boy in surprise.
Zack looked down at Thor. “I’ve met them a few times at the sheriff’s department picnics and family days. They’d come with Evan. My grandpa always took us, and it was a lot of fun,” he said softly. “Theodore is cool.”
Rowan wasn’t positive of Evan’s nephew’s age, but she estimated he was a year or two older than Zack. An idea blossomed, and she glanced at Noelle. The detective shook her head and motioned for Rowan to follow, moving out of the boy’s hearing distance.
“Zack could still be a target,” said Noelle. “That’s not fair to Evan’s sister and her family. It could put them in danger.”
“He could be a target at a social services group home, which would endanger a lot of people—and kids,” Rowan argued. “Have you met Bridget and Victor? They live on a farm in the middle of nowhere, completely off the grid. No one would think of looking for Zack there.”
Noelle was silent, indecision flickering in her eyes, and Rowan knew she’d made a strong argument. “And Zack knows the kids. He won’t be with strangers.”
“I’ll check with Evan,” Noelle relented. “It depends how his sister feels. They need to know what they could be getting into.”
“It’d be best for Zack,” said Rowan firmly. “They’re good people, and the kids will help distract him.”
“We’ll see.” Noelle was still uncertain.
“What’s the next step to finding Sophia?”
Noelle glanced at Zack, checking that he was still far enough away. “I’ve got deputies knocking on neighbors’ doors and asking about cameras and anything the residents might have noticed. I’ll send some to the construction site road. There were a few finished homes far down that street. Could get lucky with camera views there. We’ll also talk to Sophia’s coworkers and friends. Try to find the connection between this case and her father’s death.”
“They’re probably related,” said Rowan.
“They’re absolutely related,” said Noelle. “I have no doubts. Coincidences like this don’t exist. Zack’s a smart kid to see that.”
Rowan studied the boy. He was testing Thor, giving sit and lie-down commands, a small smile growing on his face as her dog eagerly performed. While Thor was on his stomach, Rowan said, “Roll over.”
Zack’s face lit up as the dog promptly obeyed.
The boy needs to be with friends. And a dog.