Missing in the Mountains

by Julie Anne Lindsey

  Sawyer slid an arm around her back, eyes locked on Miller. Was it possible? “Is there someplace on the Finns’ land where that could be possible? There were three brothers here tonight. That’s more than enough muscle to contain one injured woman.”

  Detective Miller paused. He scooped the ball cap off his head and ran his fingers through messy hair. “It’s a big property,” he said. “Family land. I haven’t been there personally, but I hear it’s landlocked. Good for hunting and not much else.”

  “No neighbors, then,” Emma said. “Secluded.”

  Miller rubbed his chin. “I suppose much of it is. I’d need a warrant to go poking through the home or property.”

  Emma stiffened against Sawyer’s side. “Does that mean you think I could be right? Do you have enough evidence to get a warrant?”

  He tugged the cap back on, swiveled it just right. “Not yet, but I’ll call the station, see if the officers were able to get David to talk, and I’ll take a look at the ATV left in the forest. If I can get a confession or link the Finns to the embezzlement scheme or something else connected to your sister, I’ll have enough to wake up a judge.” He smiled and stood a little taller. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  Emma grabbed onto his hand as he turned to leave. “Thank you,” she breathed.

  Sawyer folded Emma into his arms and kissed her head. What she’d asked of the detective was a long shot, but it was something.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sawyer curled Emma against his chest. She’d showered until her skin was hot and pink, then dressed in sweatpants and a sweatshirt and crawled into bed fighting a tremor. He’d kissed her head and shoulders and wrapped her in his arms until her rigid muscles relaxed. When he’d felt her soft, easy breaths on his arm, he knew she’d finally found sleep.

  She jumped around 3:00 a.m. when the sound of crunching gravel announced that Miller and the crime scene crew had finished searching the forest for clues and were on their way out. One officer stayed behind, keeping watch indefinitely at Miller’s request.

  “It’s okay,” Sawyer whispered. He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers, careful to avoid the yellowing bruise from her mugging, and he snuggled her a little tighter. “I’ve got you.”

  Emma shimmied in his arms, rolling to face him with sleepy blue eyes. “Do you think Detective Miller will be able to get the warrant?”

  “I hope so,” Sawyer said.

  He kissed her forehead and gave her a warm smile, but he hated that the first idea they’d had about where Sara might be was just a guess. It was the first hope they’d had, and after all the bad things that had already happened, he worried about how Emma would handle it if this theory didn’t pan out.

  Emma didn’t speak again for a long while. She drew patterns on his chest with her fingertips, leaving heated trails over the fabric of his shirt. “The judge might not think there’s enough cause to issue a warrant.”

  Honestly, Sawyer didn’t either. Not yet. “I know.” Sara could be with the man who took her and not with the Finns, or she could be at a site not directly related to any of the people they knew were involved. She could be anywhere.

  Emma rolled back an inch and looked up at him in the darkness. “What if you and I take Henry to see the Finns in the morning?”

  Alarm struck through Sawyer at the thought of Emma going within a mile of that family. “I don’t think that’s a great idea.”

  “Why not?” she asked. “If Detective Miller can’t get enough together to justify a warrant, maybe we can. We can stop by and introduce ourselves to the parents, let them know we’re the family their sons broke in on last night, and that my sister’s missing. We can tell them we’re worried about her, and we’re only there to see if they have any idea who their sons have been spending time with lately. Not to accuse them of anything. Maybe they’ll talk to us. They might be defensive toward policemen, but mother to mother, Mrs. Finn should understand my fear and want to help me if she can.”

  Sawyer rose onto his elbow and rested his cheek in his hand. “I wouldn’t want to do anything that could tip the other boys off,” he said. “They know David was caught tonight, but they might not know that we know they were here with him, or that we’re considering the possibility that Sara is being kept on their land. Knocking on their door and introducing ourselves could set off all the alarms, and if she is there, our appearance could be enough to make them move her. Personally, I don’t like a plan with that much risk,” he said. “Not with Sara’s safety on the line. Not to mention, we don’t want to muck up whatever Miller and Rosen are doing.”

  Emma dropped her head in frustration. She rolled back over and settled against him before falling asleep once more.

  Despite her nearness and the steady sounds of Henry’s breaths in the crib beside his bed, Sawyer didn’t sleep. He wouldn’t sleep until his home was secure and all the men involved in the break-in were behind bars. Instead, he spent the hours until dawn devising a way to keep Emma safe while getting a look at the Finns’ land without upsetting the case authorities were building.

  * * *

  THE NEXT DAY was long and quiet. Sawyer arranged an early-morning delivery of enough security equipment to thoroughly lock down the cozy A-frame home. He upgraded the ruined security system and added a feature that would cause flashing lights and an earsplitting alarm in the event of tampering. The chaos would confuse an intruder long enough for Sawyer to drop him. He’d learned the hard way that a system that only alerted the police wouldn’t be enough. His home was simply too far from the nearest police station.

  After lunch he changed the locks and dead bolts on the doors, and reinforced the jambs to protect against an intruder intent on kicking his way in. Emma stopped him from putting bars on the windows, so he ordered bulletproof glass to be delivered in three to five business days. In the meantime, he set up cameras and a silent alarm system along the property’s perimeter that reported to his main computer inside.

  Emma spent the day playing, cuddling and napping with Henry. She’d eaten all her meals with Sawyer, but hadn’t had much to say, except when Detective Miller had arrived with a sketch artist, eliminating their need to make a run to the station. Miller walked the property while Sawyer and Emma did their best to describe the men they’d seen last night. Afterward, Miller had brought her a surprise. Her cell phone was in the bushes along the house, dropped in her escape from the trespassers, instead of in the lake, where she thought it had gone.

  Once Miller and the artist left, there was only endless silence. Whoever said no news was good news had clearly never had to wait on something.

  When Emma slipped into the shower after dinner, Sawyer moved onto the back porch to call the detectives. He started with Detective Miller.

  Sawyer gave the trees around his property another long exam. He doubted he’d ever forget the mess they’d been through last night, and he knew Emma wouldn’t. Maybe it was time to return the A-frame to the company and look for a place to put down roots with her and Henry. A place where they could make happy memories. Someplace near parks and good schools. Maybe Emma would help him find the perfect spot to raise their son together, if he didn’t screw everything up.

  “Miller,” the detective answered.

  Sawyer made a quick pass through the formalities before getting down to business. “Anything new since you left this afternoon? Were you able to get David Finn to talk, or have you traced the ATV to its owner?” Ice fingers dug into the hair at the base of his neck, then slid down his spine. Sawyer rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck, throwing a cautious eye toward the trees.

  “Nah,” Miller said. “Finn’s not talking, but I located the store that sold the ATV.”

  “Great,” Sawyer said, standing straighter.

  “You’d think.” Miller grunted. “The purchase order says the buyer paid cash for the bike left in the trees last night. The
camera over the register is a dummy, and the teenage sales clerk doesn’t remember what the customer looked like because that was the night her boyfriend broke up with her and she vowed to never notice another man again. She only answered the few questions she did because I had a badge.”

  Sawyer dragged a hand over the back of his neck and gritted his teeth.

  “The sales receipt recorded the date and time of the pickup, so I’ve requested security footage from nearby businesses around that time. We might get lucky and catch a glimpse of the truck hauling the ATV away. If I can get a plate on the truck, I can follow the registration back to the owner.”

  Sawyer crossed his arms and scanned the distance again. “Any chance you got that warrant?”

  “Based on what I’ve got?” he asked. “No. I don’t have anything to link Mr. and Mrs. Finn to Sara’s abduction. David might be their son, but he doesn’t live with them.”

  “Where does he live?”

  “Ratty apartment downtown. No signs of Sara,” Miller said. “I checked last night.”

  Sawyer said his goodbyes, then dialed Rosen.

  Rosen was equally unhelpful, but he confirmed the listening device Miller said had been found on Emma’s property. He thanked Sawyer for the message Emma had left earlier providing verbal permission to sweep the house for additional bugs, along with directions to find the hidden key kept in their greenhouse. He had a team out there now.

  Sawyer wandered back down the hall to his room, a little defeated, and waited for Emma to finish in the shower.

  “Goodness!” Emma gasped upon sight of him on the floor with Henry. “What are you doing?” She pressed a palm to her chest as she lowered herself beside them.

  “We’re playing airplane,” Sawyer said, passing their son her way with some enthusiastic jet sounds. “You look beautiful,” he said, dropping a kiss on her nose. “How are you feeling?”

  She shrugged. “Hopeful, I think. I’m almost glad those guys came for us here because now we have the power of two county law enforcement groups helping us look for Sara.”

  Sawyer scooted closer. “I had an idea. Now that I’ve got this place locked down, except for the window bars.” He narrowed his eyes at her.

  She bumped her arm against his. “That was a ridiculous suggestion.”

  “It wasn’t a suggestion. The bars are in the closet now.”

  Emma smiled, her head shaking. “Go on with your new idea, please.”

  “I think the men who were here last night are probably regrouping and planning their next move. One was definitely shot, and I don’t know how big this crew is, but that makes two with a GSW inside three nights, so now might be a good time for us to make a move.”

  Emma settled Henry on her lap and fixed a curious look on Sawyer. “What do you have in mind?”

  Sawyer filled her in on the calls he’d made while she showered, then he suggested what he’d been weighing all day. “I want to gear up and head over to the Finn property at dusk, alone.”

  Emma squinted. “What does that mean?”

  “I don’t want to knock on their door. I don’t want to give them the chance to say no. I want to enter the Finn property at its most remote access point, walk the land, look for outbuildings, abandoned mine shafts, anywhere big enough to hold Sara. I want you to wait here with Henry. You’ll be safe if you stay inside, and Miller’s got a lawman stationed on the property in case you need him.”

  Emma cuddled Henry close. “You’re going on a rescue mission.”

  “Yes.” The idea of Sara being held against her will had weighed on him more heavily every day. He knew that pain and understood those complicated feelings too well. The heartbreaking belief that no one was coming. The guilt and remorse. Sawyer’s decision to shoot the night guard had alerted other unseen enemies, ultimately leading to the capture, torture and murder of his teammates. Sara, no doubt, blamed herself for pursuing the issue at her credit union. “If I find her, I can bring her home. The police can’t even look.”

  Emma set her hand against his cheek and pressed her forehead to his. She sucked in an audible breath.

  “I won’t go if you don’t feel one hundred percent safe here without me. You and Henry are my top priority.”

  Emma sniffled softly, then pressed her lips to his, drawing a deep, involuntary groan from him before she pulled away. “Go,” she said with a smile. “Find Sara. We’ll be right here waiting when you get back.”

  Sawyer got to work immediately, dressing in black and gathering his weapons and ammo. A sidearm in his belt holster. A spare at his ankle. A duffel bag with night-vision goggles, smoke bombs, wire cutters and anything else he thought might help him on his mission. “I might be a while,” he said. “Could be past dawn. I pulled the topography map off the county auditor’s website, and there’s a lot of ground to cover.”

  She gripped his wrists in her small hands, a fervent look on her beautiful face. “Just come back to me,” she said. “I love you, Sawyer Lance, and I don’t want to spend another day without you in my life or in Henry’s. We’re your teammates now.”

  Sawyer’s heart swelled. “I will come home to you,” he vowed, “and if Sara’s anywhere on those hundred or so acres of Finn land, I’m going to find her, and I’m bringing her home.” He slid his arms around her and delivered a deep and assuring kiss before stepping onto the porch. “I’ll wait while you set the alarm.”

  Emma nodded. She punched in the code, and the little activation light flashed red. Armed.

  Sawyer let the officer patrolling his property know he’d be gone awhile, then he jogged to the rented SUV and climbed behind the wheel. Twilight was upon him, but he had a map and a twofold plan: search and recover. Return home to his new team.

  * * *

  NIGHT FELL SLOWLY over Emma’s temporary home. She put Henry to bed around ten and knew he’d stay there dreaming contentedly until dawn. She, on the other hand, doubted she’d be able to sleep until she saw Sawyer’s face again. There were so many things she should have told him. Her heart was full and warm with the knowledge that while she’d retreated into her head for the day, and he’d locked the house down like Fort Knox, he’d also been plotting a way to help her sister.

  By two thirty in the morning, her nerves had gotten the best of her, and she set a kettle on the stove for tea. The pot whistled, and Emma went to pour herself a little chamomile tea. She tried hard to keep her mind off the possibility that Sara would come home tonight, but hope was stubborn, and she’d thought of little else since Sawyer had gone to look for her.

  She filled a cup and inhaled the sweetly scented steam as she raised it to her lips.

  Poised to sip, the lights flickered.

  Emma braced herself against the counter and waited, listening to the wind whistle around the windows.

  A moment later the lights flickered again.

  Moving to the door, phone in hand, she dared a look outside for the officer on guard duty. When she didn’t see him in his car, she dialed the number he’d given her when he’d arrived for his shift.

  The officer didn’t answer.

  Her heart rate kicked into double time.

  Sawyer had secured the home today. He’d barred the door. Installed a high-tech alarm system that would contact the police if the power lines were cut or anyone broke in while the alarm was set, which it was. He’d made every provision short of window bars or bulletproof glass, she reminded herself She was safe as long as she didn’t go outside.

  She stared hard into the night, willing the patrolling officer to appear. Maybe he’d dropped his phone without realizing or had left it in his cruiser while making a sweep of the perimeter.

  The tall grassy field beyond the glass waved to her in the moonlight. Trees arched and stretched. Fallen leaves spun in tiny tornadoes around the yard, but there were no signs of intruders. No growling ATVs. No telltale head
lights or silhouettes of armed men. Just the wind.

  She dialed the officer again. Maybe he’d just missed the call.

  The lights blinked out before the call connected, leaving her in the dark as the call went to voice mail once more.

  “We’re safe,” she whispered. “This is fine. Only a brewing storm.” She turned from the window, determined to stay calm. Sawyer had worked on the home’s wiring all day, replacing the security system, installing new lights and sirens. The wind had probably just knocked something loose.

  But she couldn’t explain away the missing cop.

  She brought up 911 on her phone and debated.

  A loud pop turned her toward the hallway. The sound was loud and strange. Like nothing she’d heard before and very close. The newly installed security lights began to flash in the hallway and living area. An alarm blared in short, sharp blasts. Gnarled fingers of fear curled around her heart and squeezed.

  Henry!

  Emma ran down the hallway to the bedroom, slightly disoriented by the intense, repetitive bursts of light and sound. Her phone’s flashlight beam streaked the walls and floor ahead of her as she gripped the room’s doorjamb and propelled herself inside.

  Light from her phone fell over an empty crib.

  “No.” Air rushed from Emma’s lungs in a painful whoosh. Her mouth dried. The muscles of her stomach gripped. This couldn’t be happening. It wasn’t possible.

  “Henry!” She swung the beam around the room. There were no security lights in the bedrooms, and the continuous flash from the hallway only added to her fear and unease.

  The picture window beside the bed was shattered, cracked into a thousand individual crystals, most of which were now on the floor, glittering under the beam of her light. This was the sound she heard. Someone had broken the glass, and taken Henry.