Chapter Sixteen
CAM’S STOMACH TWISTED into a knot at David’s words. “What’s the problem, sir?”
“Julio is missing.”
Sedona gasped and gripped Cam’s forearm with her fingers. “How could he be missing? He’s five years old and was guarded by two of Morgan County’s finest officers.”
“You’re right. Two of my men guarded him. Everything has been going according to plan, but we forgot about the human factor. To a child, stepping out into the world to explore is normal. Right now, nothing is normal if it concerns Julio or you, Sedona.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I should have known about this immediately.”
“Not necessarily,” Cam murmured.
“Why not?” she snapped. “Julio is my student, and my ignorance caused this mess. I must know if my students are suffering from my actions.”
“What can you do about it?”
“At the very least, I can quit doing what’s causing so much trouble.”
“Tiger, none of this is your fault. I think you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and got caught up in events that had nothing to do with you.”
Sedona shoved her fingers through her hair. “I wish I believed you. I’m afraid you’re wrong.”
He didn’t blame her, but he knew Sedona Hart. She wasn’t into a lifestyle that lent itself to the criminal underworld. This kindergarten teacher was as innocent as her students. “Do you trust me?”
“Absolutely.” No hesitation in her voice or response.
Excellent. “I’ll figure out what’s going on and why. We’ll find the man behind everything.” If it was the last thing he ever did, Cam would see that Sedona was safe again.
“Julio, too? You’ll protect him?”
“We all will,” Spencer said. “We know how much he means to you, Sedona, and to be honest, we have a soft spot for kids.”
“What a coincidence. So do I.”
“Then you’ll know whatever actions we take are with your students’ best interests in mind.”
She gave a slight nod. “I understand.”
“When we find Julio, we need to talk to him,” Cam said. “Do you think he’ll talk to us?”
“Probably. He considers you one of the safe people since we’re together. Your problem will be his mother.”
Cam frowned. “I can be persuasive when I want to be.”
His teammates laughed.
“Maria is very protective of her children. She may not allow you near any of them.”
“Do you have suggestions?” He already knew where this conversation was going, and he didn’t like it.
“Take me with you when you look for Julio.”
Nope, he didn’t like it one bit. “At the moment, you’re safe right here. If we take you outside of this house, we’ll do our best, but we can’t guarantee your safety.” He shook his head. “The risk is too great, Sedona.”
“I’m willing to take the risk.”
“Is anybody interested in what I have to say?” David Montgomery snapped.
“Yes, sir.” Cam wrapped his arm around Sedona’s waist, taking a chance that she wouldn’t reject him outright because of their disagreement. “Go ahead.”
“You’ll have to decide whether Sedona goes with you or stays with me in the car. I need you at the hospital. That’s the last place he was seen.”
Ground zero. Good. They needed to start there. Cam paused. “Sir, I’d like to bring my teammates with me. They have as much training as I do in Search and Rescue.”
“Bring them. We need every advantage we can get. Montgomery out.”
Cam looked at his waiting teammates. “You heard the man. Gear up and team up. We don’t want a caravan of vehicles to draw even more attention to ourselves.”
The other four members of The Thunderhawks scattered to grab their gear from their rooms or their vehicles.
Cam turned to Sedona. Before he said a word, she shook her head.
“Don’t bother arguing with me. Go get your gear. I’ll grab what I can and be back in a couple of minutes.” Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t leave me behind, Sims.”
“No man left behind,” he recited. “Including my tigress girlfriend.” Even though the thought had crossed his mind.
However, Cam believed she was in danger without The Thunderhawks surrounding her.
If they ended up back in the forest, the going might get rough. “Wear something comfortable but tough.”
She frowned. “For looking around the hospital?”
“No guarantees that’s where we’ll stay.”
“Got it. I’ll be right back.” She dashed from the living room and up the staircase.
His teammates returned in less than a minute. “Where is Sedona?” Spencer asked.
“Changing clothes. I need to grab my gear. I’ll be back in a minute.
” He took the stairs two at a time and rushed into his assigned room.
After a quick perusal of his supplies, he slid his weapons into place and pulled on his bullet-resistant vest at the last second.
Picking up his badge, Cam hooked it onto his belt.
He didn’t know exactly what he was getting into, but no question it was dangerous.
After sliding his Go bag onto his shoulder, Cam left his assigned room and met Sedona coming out of hers.
A quick perusal told him she had chosen her outfit well.
Although she didn’t have hiking boots, Sedona was wearing a lightweight long-sleeved shirt, jeans, and good running shoes.
She also carried a wide-brimmed hat in her hands.
“This is perfect.” He took her hand and walked side-by-side with her down the staircase, and they joined the others in the living room.
“Ready?” he asked the others.
His teammates nodded and slid their Go bags over their shoulders. Spencer fell in behind Cam. “We took a vote while you were upstairs. I won the privilege of riding with you. The rest of our team is riding together.”
When Cam glanced over his shoulder, his medic inclined his head toward Sedona. He nodded slightly and opened the SUV door for her. After helping her inside, he handed Sedona the seatbelt and circled the hood to climb behind the wheel.
The small caravan turned left at the road and headed to Maple Valley’s hospital.
The minutes passed fast as the two men remained alert for trouble mile after mile.
Twenty minutes later, Cam turned into the parking lot filled with police vehicles from several agencies.
He parked near other Morgan County law enforcement vehicles and came around to open Sedona’s door.
With her hand firmly in his, he held up his badge as they approached various perimeters set up by law enforcement.
The one closest to the hospital was manned by one of his coworkers.
“David asked me to come in,” he said to Carl Greenway.
“He’s in the first-floor lobby, waiting for you.” He nodded at Sedona, then looked at his men. “Introduce me to your friends.”
Really? Did he look like he was out for a summer stroll? “Officer Greenway, these are my teammates from the military: Spencer, Dario, Isaac, and Rhys. This is Carl Greenway.” He lifted the barrier tape for Sedona and they passed Greenway.
“Hold it,” Greenway snapped. “Nobody said anything about letting her in there.”
Cam stopped and turned to his coworker. “What did you say?” he asked, voice soft, gaze laser-focused on the man.
“Your arm candy can’t go inside. She ain’t a cop.”
He took a step toward Greenway with his hand clenched. Spencer grabbed one arm, Dario the other.
“No, Cam,” Spencer murmured. “He’s not worth the trouble it would cause you.”
Fury burning a hole in his gut, Cam held up his hands to show that he was in control. Barely. “Sedona is beautiful, but she isn’t arm candy, Officer Greenway. She is mine, and I protect what’s mine.”
Greenway’s face paled. “Sorry, man. I didn’t know you were involved with her. Still, you can’t take her inside a crime scene.”
“The sheriff is the one who called me back to duty. He knows Sedona is with me.”
The officer was shaking his head before Cam finished his calm and reasonable explanation, stoking his temper even higher. He’d had about all he could take of Greenway’s attitude.
Cam moved his hand toward his pocket. “I’m getting my phone.”
Greenway’s mouth gaped. “I know you wouldn’t pull a gun on me or anything. We’re coworkers.”
Then he wasn’t as smart as he believed himself to be. Cam pulled out his phone and called his boss.
“Where are you?” David snapped. “I expected you to be here ten minutes ago.”
“I ran into a problem at the inner perimeter.”
“What’s his name?”
“Greenway.”
“Hand him the phone.”
He did as ordered. “The sheriff.”
The next two minutes were painful for Officer Greenway. The longer David’s dressing down went, the paler Greenway became. Finally, he swallowed hard and handed the phone to Cam. “Sorry, sir. You’re free to go on. The sheriff is on the sixth floor.”
Cam gave a slight nod, threaded his fingers through Sedona’s, and walked toward the hospital entrance.
Inside the building, there was pure chaos on the civilian side of things. Law enforcement officers of every stripe moved about with efficient movement in and out of the first-floor lobby. Two officers who kept watch at the elevators nodded at Cam.
“They with you?” the older of the two officers asked.
“Yes, sir. You can confirm with Sheriff Montgomery.”
The officer waved him away. “Go ahead.”
Once inside the elevator, the silver doors closed silently.
Cam glanced at Sedona. He raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry.
Something was up with her, but what? Was she upset because he’d defended her?
He hoped not, because that would be his default as long as she was with him.
What did it say about him when he couldn’t see himself with anyone else?
Perhaps that wasn’t the issue at all, though.
He’d basically waved a flag out there in the parking lot and announced to Maple Valley that he and Sedona were together now.
Greenway was a lot of things, some of them good.
Besides his oversized ego, he had one downfall.
He loved to gossip. Cam figured the odds were even that the word would spread around town by tomorrow morning.
That could be good or bad, depending on how Sedona saw it.
When they reached the sixth floor, the elevator doors slid open to reveal David Montgomery waiting for them with his hands propped on his hips.