Page 71 of Colton On Guard
His short bark of laughter made her smile.
“I’ll be back,” he said. “The river isn’t too far away, but I probably won’t hear you if you holler for me. Please call or text if you need anything. But only if it’s urgent.”
She loved that he tacked that last sentence on. “What could be urgent out here?” she said and then thought of bears and wolves and even an angry moose. Pushing those images out of her head, she watched until he and his dog disappeared from sight.
“You never know,” Parker replied. “Just be careful. Cell service is iffy at best.”
Once Parker and Revis had left, she glanced all around the campsite one more time, just in case. All quiet, all calm. And still rustic. One deep breath and then another. She leaned back, exhaled and closed her eyes again. Slowly, she felt all the tension leaving her body.
JB felt it, too. Still curled in Genna’s lap, the little dog began to quietly snore.
In the peace and quiet, she must have dozed off. A loud crash from somewhere in the woods startled her awake. JB jumped down and, completely disregarding the leash trailing after her, took off in the direction of the sound, barking urgently.
“June Bug!” Genna jumped to her feet, grabbing for the leash. She missed. Calling for JB, which the dog ignored, she ran after her. Heart pounding, she hoped and prayed the little minx wasn’t pursuing something dangerous.
Leaves and twigs cracked under her feet as she ran. JB had crossed the hiking path and run down the first of several inclines. Aware she had to be careful—but also knowing she needed to catch JB before something awful happened—Genna kept going. Holding on to saplings, skidding down the slope andpraying she didn’t fall as she followed the sound of June Bug’s frantic barking.
Whatever this was couldn’t be good.
Finally, she caught sight of her dog. JB had stopped in one spot, though she continued barking at something hiding in the brush. As Genna drew closer, a chill raced up her spine. The spot where JB stood appeared to be mere feet away from the edge of a particularly steep drop-off.
“Baby girl, come here,” Genna begged. She wished she had some dog treats or something she could use to lure JB to her. Still barking and intent on whatever she’d found, the little dog ignored Genna.
Moving slowly so she didn’t startle her pup, Genna crept closer. All she could do was hope whatever JB had cornered wasn’t something big and vicious.
A shape stepped out from behind the tree. Genna gasped. “You!” That was all she got out before they grabbed her and shoved her off the cliff.
CHAPTER 15
Reeling in a good-sized salmon, the sound of shrill barking broke the quiet of the late afternoon. In the act of tying the fish on a line and placing it into the water, Parker froze and listened. Frantic barking, again and again. Since they were alone in the woods, he could vividly imagine what kind of creature the dog might have discovered. It might be something small. But then again, it might not be.
Revis had also been listening, head cocked. He glanced at Parker, almost as if asking for permission.
“Go,” Parker ordered. “Find JB.”
The dog took off. Parker briefly debated gathering up his gear, but in the end just left it and ran. Revis had already disappeared from his sight.
And then he heard Genna scream. The shrill sound was abruptly cut off, which seemed even worse. JB however, continued barking.
Heart pounding, Parker increased his speed. He knew this area like the back of his hand. Judging from where the barking seemed to be coming from, he thought he had a good idea of the location. It was where the hiking trail made a sharp turn before continuing to make a zigzag path up the steep face of a rock cliff. The terrain there grew tricky, the path even narrower. Most hikers turned around at that point, unless they were into rock climbing. Parker had only gone up there once and that had beenenough. He sure as hell hoped Genna hadn’t tried making it up with her dog in tow.
JB’s continued frenetic barking meant at least she was alive.
Still running, Parker reached camp and found it empty. JB continued barking from somewhere in the distance. He realized he couldn’t hear Genna calling for help, though he was aware that could be a bad thing, too.
If June Bug had gotten into some sort of trouble, he knew Genna would be there trying to rescue her. “Genna!” he called, stopping to try to catch his breath. “Where are you?”
She didn’t respond. But a moment later, Revis reappeared, running a quick circle around Parker before heading back the way he’d come. The big dog slowed and looked over his shoulder, almost as if watching to make sure Parker followed.
“Genna!” Parker called again. “June Bug!”
The little dog had stopped barking. Parker’s heart sank, hoping that didn’t mean something awful.
Revis appeared, standing on the trail ahead. He woofed once, likely urging Parker to hurry.
Once he’d caught up with his dog, the two of them continued together. The plateau sat ahead, the trail’s sharp turn to the left, a staggering cliff face to the right. And no sign of Genna.
Then JB appeared, squeezing out from under a bush. Though she whimpered, she looked unharmed. “Where’s Genna?” Parker asked then mentally scolded himself since he knew the dog couldn’t answer. “Genna!” he called again.