Chapter 36
Chapter Thirty-Six
Vance
Claire threw her truck into park at the trailhead and hopped out, taking long strides toward a middle-aged man who was setting up a table underneath a pop-up tent.
“Hank,” she said, reaching out to shake his hand. “You made good time.”
He shook his head, grimacing. “Helps that I live so close, but I don’t know how to feel about someone going missing right in my own backyard. This is a well-marked trail. Makes me worried she got hurt.”
“I know,” Claire agreed. She angled her body, inviting me into the circle. “This is Special Agent Vance Weston. He’s working with me on a case right now. Vance, this is Hank. Hank runs our base command. He’s practically a legend in SAR circles.”
Hank’s weathered face broke into a sheepish smile. “Not a legend. Just someone who likes to push himself. My knees don’t cooperate with search ops anymore though, so I help out here.” He grabbed my hand, giving it a hard shake. “Honored to have you here, Agent Weston.”
I liked the guy immediately. “Call me Vance. Nice to meet you. I hope I can be of some help tonight.”
Claire tossed me her keys. “You can start by grabbing my gear from the truck while I help Hank set up. There’s an orange hiking backpack, plus a smaller black pack. Grab both. They’re in the back of the truck”
“Got it.”
While I retrieved Claire’s things, several other vehicles arrived, including Rhett and Cheyenne, who were towing their horse trailer behind Cheyenne’s truck.
Before long, the trailhead parking lot turned into a full-blown staging area for the search, with map boards and floodlights and a flurry of activity as people checked radios and prepped their packs.
Eventually, Claire’s voice called out above the commotion. Everyone instantly grew quiet and looked at her.
She gave them a brief rundown of who we were looking for and the circumstances surrounding the search before giving assignments.
“So, we know where she was headed, but we don’t know if she made it. That gives us a starting point, but there’s a lot of terrain to cover. I want to run a modified Type II grid. We don’t have enough light for a full sweep, but we’ll work high-probability zones and hope we get lucky. Sound good?”
There were nods around the group.
“Team One, I want you to conduct a hasty search at the campground where she was heading, in case she made it through. There’s a park ranger at the entrance who has been briefed and will let you in.
Start with the primitive campsites, since that’s the location she was aiming for.
He’ll be able to escort you down to her target destination. ”
Three people nodded. “Got it,” one of the guys said. “We’ll radio if we see anything.” They broke away and headed to one of the vehicles.
Claire turned to Rhett and Cheyenne. “Team Two, I want you to cover the loop trail on horseback. I know her friend indicated that she was going to take a shortcut, but the terrain’s a hell of a lot easier on the trail.
Sticking to it would have added some mileage to her hike, but it would have eventually taken her right into the campground and she could have doubled back to her target on the road instead of blazing her own way.
That’s a lot of miles on foot though—too many for most hikers to cover in a single day.
Let’s hope that’s why she hasn’t made it back yet.
She might still be walking. See if she’s still out there and if you can bring her home. ”
Rhett and Cheyenne nodded. “On it,” Cheyenne said before they turned and walked toward their horse trailer.
Claire turned to me and the three other people who remained waiting for orders.
“The rest of us are going to investigate possible shortcut routes. We know where she was headed, but we don’t know where she may have left the trail to try to cut over.
Team Three, you take the lower forest.” She gestured to an area she had marked on the map.
“It’s dense through there, way too easy to get lost, but since she isn’t familiar with the area, she might have thought that was the easiest short route to the campsite. ”
One of the guys gave her a high five and a grin. “Dense forest. My favorite. Maybe I’ll have a chance to use my new machete.”
She laughed. “Glad you’re excited about it, King. But watch that ankle. You’re still recovering. Don’t push too hard.”
“I will. Aren’t you heading out with us?” He gave her a curious look.
“Of course I am. But I’m with Agent Weston today. We’ll be Team Four.” She nodded my way.
The guy flicked his eyes to me, surprise registering. “Oh. You’re going out on the search? That’s cool.”
“I am.” I felt an odd jealousy at the easy chemistry between the two of them. I was out of my element as Claire's partner in this situation, and I liked it about as much as I liked the idea of her going to Cheyenne’s wedding with another man.
“We’ll be heading toward the campground perimeter through the ravine.
It’s the most direct route from the trail to where she was going,” Claire said, grabbing her hefty backpack and swinging it onto her back.
She gave her radio one last check, then grabbed the black backpack and shoved it into my arms.
King whistled. “Most direct, but also most dangerous.”
“Exactly,” Claire said.
King threw his arm around her shoulder and gave her a quick kiss on the head. “Be careful out there.”
“You too.”
Oh, yes. That was definite jealousy I felt—even if I didn’t have the right to.
The guys headed out.
Claire turned to Hank. “We may be out of comms in some low spots.”
“Yeah, I expect you will be,” he said, giving her a stern look. “You know, you don’t always have to take the worst assignment. You could have given yourself an easier one—especially since you’ve got a civilian with you.”
Civilian? I winced.
Claire grinned. “Where’s the fun in that?”
Hank laughed, shaking his head.
When Claire turned to me, all the humor was gone from her face. “If you see anything—a broken twig, a candy bar wrapper, a sock, anything —don’t touch it. Call it out and let me handle it.”
“I am a detective, you know,” I said drily.
“Yes. But you’re not a SAR operator. Out here, I’m in charge. Got it?”
“Fair enough,” I conceded. It was fascinating to see Claire like this. In this world, she was the expert, and she took charge in a way I’d never seen her do. She was bossy, fierce, and confident.
I loved it.
She put her hands on her hips. “Stay ten feet behind me.”
“Why?”
“Because that’s close enough to talk without having to shout, but far enough that we can see clues between us.”
“Alright.” I held up the black backpack. “What do you want me to do with this?”
Her eyebrow shot up. “ Carry it. It has some extra supplies in there. There’s bottled water—you need to stay hydrated.
Also has some snacks and emergency supplies.
” She grabbed an extra radio off the table.
“Clip this to your belt. There’s bear spray in the bag.
You might want to clip that to your belt too.
And there’s an extra flashlight and red flagging tape in the side pocket. We flag anything we see. You ready?”
I took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”
“Then let’s go.”
She turned on her heel and headed toward the trail. Hank came over and clapped my shoulder. “Good luck.”
I eyed him. “Think I’ll need it?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “With that one? Hell yes I do.”
Darkness settled as I followed Claire down the trail.
At first, we followed behind the others.
But before long, Rhett and Cheyenne were out of sight, moving much faster than us on their horses.
Then the three guys turned off the trail into the forested area, leaving just me and Claire.
The teams kept in touch on the radios, letting everyone else know their positions.
Soon, everyone was in place, working their assigned areas—except for us.
After another half hour, Claire stopped, waiting for me to catch up.
“This is where we leave the trail behind,” she said quietly, shooting her flashlight beam into the dirt beside the path to show me what she’d spotted.
“Are those boot prints?” I asked, squatting to take a closer look.
“Yep. This is close to where I planned on cutting over, and that looks fresh. So we’re going to follow it.”
“You called it,” I murmured, judging the size of the print. It was small, about the size of Claire’s boot. “She tried to take the shortest route.”
“Maybe,” Claire interjected. “We don’t know that those prints are hers. Could have been another hiker who stepped off the trail to pee.”
“Could be. But you don’t think so.” I shot her a look.
She nodded, sighing. “Yeah, unfortunately, I’m afraid it’s hers. All too often, people take the shortest route possible without knowing what they’re getting into.”
“Is this path really more dangerous than the rest?” I stood, studying Claire’s eyes the best I could in the dark.
Claire shrugged. “Depends on how you look at it, I guess. There are a hell of a lot of ways for a person to get in trouble out in the wilderness. But the ravine’s tricky.
Lots of loose rocks, uneven terrain, and steep drop-offs.
Plus, there’s the rattlesnakes. They like the way the rocks heat up in the sunlight. ”
“Shit. That doesn’t sound fun.” I was starting to feel very out of my element.
Claire didn’t seem fazed. “Flag the spot. I’ll radio it in.”
I pulled the flagging tape from the pocket of the bag and wrapped a piece of it around a branch beside the prints while Claire made the call. Then she gave me a quick nod of approval and headed off the trail into the darkness.