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Static hissed before Logan’s smoke-raw voice came on. “We’ve got three crews working a grid pattern where Nova went down. No flare sightings or radio contact so far.” He hesitated. “It was an inferno tearing through. Odds aren’t favorable that?—”
“Don’t. Don’t say it.” Booth choked on the words.
He cleared his throat. “Did teams confirm if she got her shelter deployed?”
“Negative. JoJo saw her chute catch fire before losing sight completely.”
Booth scrubbed a palm down his face, beating himself up all over again. Why hadn’t he stopped Nova from going on that jump? Or gone with her? At least they’d have been together right now.
Hindsight shredded his heart.
Sheriff Hutchinson’s words echoed in his mind. Sometimes, Booth, the best way to protect those you care about is to let the law do its job. He was right.
He ran a hand through his disheveled hair. “I should’ve stayed with her. She needed me, and I walked away.”
Aria shot him a glance. “We’ll find her. Just stay focused.”
Booth turned and looked out the window. Images of Earl’s charred remains popped unwanted into his head.
Sure, he might find Nova, but what if he was too late?
Nova urged Abilene forward. Her hands gripped the reins as the horse navigated the uneven terrain in darkness. She let Abilene lead the way. The horse picked her way through the underbrush, maneuvering around rocks and fallen branches.
Henry had said to trust the horse, and that’s what she was doing. She had no other choice because she was tired, hungry, and utterly lost.
“I trust you, Abilene.” Nova patted the horse on the neck. “And I trust You, God.”
A branch whipped past Nova’s temple. She winced and pressed her bandaged arm to the sting. A thin line of blood bloomed on the bandage. “Okay. That wasn’t your fault, but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t drive me into the branches.”
Abilene nickered in response.
The forest around them was alive with the crackle of approaching wildfire. The scent of burning wood and the distant roar of flames hung in the air like a warning.
Another rib-jostling stride caused Nova to clamp her jaw tight, stifling a groan. Pain blazed from her ankle, but she dared not slow Abilene.
The makeshift splint provided some support, but she couldn’t put any weight in the stirrup. Abilene’s every step sent sharp pangs radiating up her leg and through her ribs.
The horse seemed to sense her condition and moved with a deliberate slowness that allowed Nova to endure the ride.
As they moved, Nova’s mind raced with thoughts of Booth.
The information Henry had shared sounded like another ultrafantastical story. The Brothers. Russian sympathizers. Revenge. A missing nuke…It was hard to comprehend the magnitude of the danger they faced.
She couldn’t shake the image of Booth standing in the crosshairs of assassins, oblivious.
An ominous glow lit up the sky where the wildfire raged, creeping closer by the hour. Nova had no doubt the flames would soon find their way to her. She’d been considering how to outrun the fire’s advance, same as every wildfire.
Her shoulders knotted, imagining fire nipping at Abilene’s heels. She reached out and stroked the horse’s neck. “Don’t worry, girl. We’ll find our way.”
As if in response, Abilene jerked her head and swished her tail.
Then another sound broke the quiet rhythm of the horse’s hooves. Was that…
A plane engine rumbled in the distance.
Her gaze snapped upward, scouring the bare snatches of sky visible through breaks in the canopy.
The plane droned overhead. Nova’s heart raced. She needed to be seen, to attract attention and bring help. Signaling the plane meant rescuers could fly Nova back to the base.