Chapter 23
Torin
Before dawn, we make one final circuit between the lodge and Bennett’s cabin.
It’s the third time we’ve covered the same ground since midnight.
I don’t complain. If Hayes somehow learns the cabin exists, he’ll come here right away.
Until then, it’s hidden well enough that he could search these mountains for a month without stumbling across it by accident.
Gunnar shifts beside an old forestry track and crouches to study the ground. I join him. The tire marks are the same ones we found yesterday. No fresh tracks or footprints. No sign anyone’s been through here since the last time we checked.
He grunts, straightening. “Looks clear.”
Orson has been deep in the trees all night long, circling wider than either of us. He’s happiest out here, moving through the forest on four legs with his nose to the wind. Every so often, I would catch a glimpse of his dark shape between the trunks before he disappeared back into the undergrowth.
A few minutes later he rejoins us and shifts. “No sign of anyone.”
The sky is beginning to lighten between the trees. This is when we agreed to split up. Gunnar will take the northern side of the mountain, Orson will circle back towards the lake, and I’ll head home for a few hours before taking over from Gunnar.
“See you later,” I say.
Gunnar nods. “Get some sleep.”
Orson is already shifting again.
“Try not to wander into Canada,” I tell him.
He gives me a look that’s pure Orson even with a bear’s face, then disappears between the trees.
I turn towards home. We haven’t found any sign that the search has reached this far, and the tension that’s been sitting between my shoulders all night begins to ease.
It’s only temporary. Sooner or later Hayes will find another lead.
He’ll keep digging until he uncovers something.
But for now, the cabin is still a secret, the lodge is still hidden, and Hannah is safe.
I smile to myself.
She’s probably still asleep.
Yesterday exhausted her, and after everything she’s been through over the past week, I doubt she’ll wake before Alexandria puts a mug of coffee under her nose.
I smile at the thought. Hannah will insist she isn’t tired, then probably yawn halfway through the sentence.
I’m looking forward to seeing her. Kissing her. Telling her we made it through the night without finding any sign that the search has reached this far. Maybe then we can both relax for a while.
The smell of coffee and bacon greets me as soon as I push open the front door.
Alexandria looks up from the stove. “There you are. Everything okay?”
“Yeah. It was quiet.”
“Thank God.” She turns back to the bacon. “Gunnar and Orson?”
“Still out there. I’m taking over from Gunnar after I’ve eaten and slept for a couple of hours.”
“Coffee?”
“Please.”
She pours me a mug, and I take a long drink.
“Where’s Hannah?”
Alexandria glances towards the hallway. “Still asleep, I think.”
“I’ll get her.”
Her bedroom door is closed. I knock gently.
“Hannah? Breakfast’s ready.”
There’s no answer.
I knock again, louder this time. When I still don’t hear anything, I open the door.
The room is empty.
The bed is made and the clothes she was wearing yesterday are folded neatly on the bed.
I look at the chair beside the window. Her backpack was there yesterday, but it’s gone now. Guess she moved it.
Back in the hallway, the bathroom door is open and she’s not there.
She’s not out on the porch either.
By the time I get back to the kitchen, unease is prickling in my gut.
“Alexandria.”
She turns, drying her hands on a tea towel.
“I can’t find Hannah.”
Her expression changes. She follows me to the bedroom and takes in the made bed, the open closet, the missing backpack. She strides to the closet and opens the door. It’s empty.
“She’s gone.”
The words feel wrong in my mouth.
I go back into the hallway, trying to think. She wouldn’t just leave. Not after last night. Not without saying anything.
My gaze catches on the closed door of my bedroom. A flicker of hope stirs. Maybe she went in there to wait for me, and she’s fast asleep on my bed. I yank open the door.
The room is empty.
My heart sinks.
I take another step into the room.
Something is lying on the floor just inside the doorway. I frown. It’s a sheet of paper, folded in half.
I know before I even pick it up.
My hands are suddenly unsteady as I unfold it.
Torin,
I’m so sorry. Please don’t look for me.
Thank you for showing me what it feels like to be safe.
Hannah
I read it twice.
She left.
She actually fucking left.
“Hannah…” I whisper.
Alexandria comes up beside me. “Is that a note?”
I hand it to her.
She reads it, and her face falls.
“Oh, Hannah.”
“You didn’t hear anything at all last night?”
Alexandria shakes her head. “She was still up when I went to bed. I woke up just after six and assumed she was sleeping.”
Shit. She could have left minutes after Alexandria went to bed. Hours ago.
While I was out there believing I was keeping her safe, she was getting farther and farther away from me.
A raw howl tears through my head.
Mate is gone.
Find her.
My bear surges against me, frantic to go after her, but I need to think.
Hannah told me exactly what she was afraid of last night. Bennett is in custody because he helped her. My brothers and I are patrolling the mountain. Alexandria is calling lawyers. In Hannah’s mind, everyone who gets involved ends up paying for it.
And now she’s decided to fix it.
“Hayes.”
Alexandria looks at me.
“She’s gone back to her father.”
“Why would she do that?”
“Because she thinks she’s the reason all of this is happening.”
The conversation in the kitchen comes rushing back to me.
I don’t want anyone else getting hurt because of me.
“She thinks going back will make it stop.”
I shove the note into my pocket and head for the front door. Even with a few hours’ head start, she couldn’t have made it far. Once I pick up her scent, I can follow it.
I push open the door and stop.
My truck is gone.
Shit.
She could be hours away by now.
Alexandria follows me outside. “So, she’s driving? How long will it take her to get to Cedar Falls?”
“A couple of hours.”
She could already be there. I pull out my phone and call Gunnar.
He answers after several rings, breathing hard. “Tor?”
“Hannah’s gone. I think she’s heading back to Hayes.”
“Shit.”
“She took my truck.”
There’s a pause. “You need mine?”
“Yeah.”
“Keys are in the kitchen drawer. Take it.”
“Thanks.”
“Call me when you find her,” he says.
“I will.”
“And Tor—if she gets to Hayes before you do, don’t go charging in there blind. You have no idea who’ll be waiting for you.”
“I’m not leaving her there.”
“I know. I’m telling you to call us if you need us.”
“Okay.”
“Bring her home.”
“I intend to.”
I end the call and go for his keys.