Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
A text from her boss woke Nora from a deep slumber.
She sat up on the couch, instantly awake. She let Chance out to do his business and quickly dressed—with the knowledge she might be about to spend considerable time away from home out in the wild. Her hair was a mess, but easily hidden beneath a woolly hat.
She ate a quick breakfast of granola and yogurt. Inhaled a large cup of freshly brewed coffee. Fed Chance, double-checked the rations of food she’d packed for him and the MREs for herself. Added a couple more packets of each.
People burned a lot of calories in wintery conditions, and who knew what the FBI would think to bring.
They might be an elite, tip of the spear, paramilitary type of law enforcement, but it didn’t mean they knew squat about how to operate in these kinds of extreme environments—or the logistics of surviving in the wilderness.
Last thing she needed was to end up rescuing ill-prepared macho types who thought they could take on Mother Nature at her most aggressive and win.
And wasn’t that why they were all here? Some macho asshole who’d decided the Montana wilderness in March would be a good place for a nine-year-old?
She checked her SIG Sauer P320, decided on a shoulder holster even though the carry wasn’t ideal for ready access when her coat was fastened.
She’d have to rely on HRT for protection most of the time anyway because she’d have to concentrate on what Chance was telling her, not her surroundings.
She hoped the operators in HRT were as good as their reputation suggested, or she’d have to adjust accordingly.
She wasn’t willing to risk her dog’s life if the situation deteriorated into a shootout or if someone thought it would be okay to use him as bait.
Nope.
That she wouldn’t tolerate.
They were all professionals and all bore the burden of responsibility when it came to the legal use of lethal force.
It was not something she took lightly. Protecting wildlife, protecting people was how she saw her role in society. But sometimes that meant euthanizing a rogue or sick animal—or being prepared to take down a dangerous individual if necessary.
No matter how abhorrent she found the idea, Summer’s young life might depend on Nora’s willingness to use her weapon on another human being.
Nora went outside to dig out the front of the garage enough to move the vehicles.
She wore her fleece over her merino wool base layers.
Left off her jacket and snow pants so she didn’t get too hot and start to sweat, which could be a problem as sweat eventually froze and cooled the body’s core temp.
She didn’t bother to clear more than a narrow path of snow from the front steps to the garage.
Then she hauled her backpack, which held enough supplies for her and Chance to survive for at least a week even in the worst weather, out to the truck.
She’d included first aid supplies in case anyone got hurt.
Who knew what condition Summer would be in when they found her?
And they would find her.
Her mouth went dry. It had taken them forty-two days to find her…
She tossed a sled into the back of the truck—a much easier way of moving her kit around in the snow than carrying it. She added her snowshoes and cross-country skis. She wasn’t sure exactly how HRT operated in this kind of environment, but she knew what worked best for her, and she was an expert.
She grabbed Chance’s work leash and harness from the back of the jeep and his collapsible water bowl.
She went back inside, pocketed her emergency satphone, a spare battery pack, and a solar charger.
She eyed her dog, who sat near the front door, tail swishing slowly over the hardwood floor, head held high, anticipation in those deep brown eyes that followed her every move.
He always knew when they were going to work, although this time there were plenty of clues.
She pulled on her black snow pants and olive-green winter jacket, adjusted the thermostat, looked around to make sure she hadn’t left anything on, then went out the front door. “Come on, boy.”
Chance dashed outside, excitement evident in every quivering muscle. He hopped up into the passenger seat when she opened the door of the truck, and she snapped the seat belt clip to his harness.
She set off, grateful for the snow plow hooked up to her old truck, especially when she reached the main highway and found the roads hadn’t been cleared yet.
Conditions were treacherous in the pre-dawn light, and snow still fell softly from the dark sky, filling her headlights with its deceptive, deadly beauty.
Nora drove slowly out to the Sullivan ranch, where the driveway had already been meticulously cleared. Smoke poured out of the chimney stacks of the two main houses.
The black government Suburbans were lined up with military precision outside the red barn, which was the only flash of color in the white, billowy landscape. One of the operators, a tall, pretty brunette with long, brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, ducked through the door into the building.
Nora inhaled a deep breath to calm herself and got out of the car.
She left the engine running for Chance and headed inside.
A large crowd gathered around the map on a table in the center of the room.
Was she late? She checked her watch. Six fifteen. Had they started early?
Sebastian Black glanced over with a carefully blank look. Something about his inscrutable expression made her nervous, but she wasn’t sure why. She hesitated.
“Hey, Nora.”
She turned to see Max Pasdeckie and the other SAR volunteers standing off to one side with their dogs. Had they been briefed already?
She headed toward her friends.
“You okay?” Max’s bright blue eyes were full of concern. His curly blond hair was dark at the ends beneath his orange watch cap.
“I’m good. Am I late? Did they do the briefing? What have they told you?” Even as she spoke, Sebastian Black headed their way, his intense gaze raking her from top to bottom.
“You’ll need snow camo.” He wasted no time with niceties, but she was fine with that. She didn’t care about small talk. All she cared about was the fact his words meant she was going on this rescue.
Her pulse spiked.
“You want her to spray her dog white while she’s at it?” Max’s tone was snarky.
Sebastian turned his hawkish gaze on him. “You’ll all be issued snow camouflage and a ballistics vest and need to keep your dogs as invisible as possible.” His eyes touched on the orange of Max’s hat with a hint of derision. “No neon.”
Max opened his mouth to argue, but Sebastian wasn’t finished.
“We’ll travel on skis where possible. Snowshoes if necessary. It’ll be an arduous undertaking in difficult conditions. Do not volunteer if you don’t think you can keep up.”
“Keep up?” Max sputtered. “What the fuck?”
Sebastian’s gaze narrowed. “This is a search for a little girl in the company of a man who is believed to have murdered two people with a shotgun at point-blank range.” His gaze flicked to her and away.
“We need to find her, but we do not want any harm to come to you or your dogs. I need for you all to be aware of the danger.”
Max glared. Fern gasped, and Jeff gave a fearsome frown. Susan looked askance at her husband, Rob. The others exchanged nervous glances.
Sebastian wanted to scare them, and perhaps he was right to do so, but those tactics wouldn’t work on her. This was more her domain than his, no matter who held the legal authority.
“Operator Black has a point. Search and Rescue teams are volunteers. I’m also a trained law enforcement ranger, so I have to attend this callout.
This search could be dangerous to ourselves and our dogs.
” She looked at her colleagues, at Fern’s unhealthy pallor.
“I know you’re dedicated SAR team members, but this one is different.
This is a hunt for a dangerous fugitive.
No one will blame you if you decide to sit this one out. ”
Fern straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. “I know it might be too much for me physically, but I’d like to help as much as I’m able.”
Nora nodded. She knew how tough and determined and dedicated these people were.
How selfless and smart. She didn’t want to see them hurt.
Nor did she want their contribution disregarded.
She turned back to Sebastian. “The FBI is in charge, but SAR volunteers have a right to be read in on the plans so they can best assess if they and their dogs can deal with the situation.”
All eyes turned to Sebastian.
Nora froze as Max placed a hand on her shoulder and rested it there, possessively. Sebastian took in that casual touch with a cool look. She wanted to jerk away but didn’t want to humiliate Max even though he was being annoying. Instead, she bent to retie her lace—a lace that was perfectly fine.
A barely perceptible glint of humor touched the HRT operator’s expression.
“We can give you some details, but not much, I’m afraid.
We plan to helicopter in and drop off squads in different quadrants to search places where a subject might shelter.
Each squad will have to hike about six miles into their quadrant before they start their searches.
Each squad will consist of five operators and one K9 team attached. Six people total.”
“You mean seven people? Each K9 team consists of two people, one dog.” Max interrupted in a condescending tone.
Sebastian cocked a brow at Nora as if he didn’t usually explain himself and wondered what was wrong with her people that he needed to do so now.
She bristled.
“I mean one handler and one dog, plus five operators. Six people total which is the max our helicopters can take with our equipment load.”
“We usually have an assistant,” Nora explained as Max’s expression became visibly angry.