Page 59 of Critical Alliance (Rocky Mountain Courage 3)

He shifted forward, listening to the hammer hitting wood and stone below him. The sound pinged through him and again reminded him of his reaction to Mackenzie’s pain, which was quickly becoming personal to him. He couldn’t seem to shake it.

He remembered what Erin had said about the person who had vandalized the memorial . . .

“It’s personal.”

On that note, he had some questions for his mother. He needed to spend time with her too, but he would prefer to do so when his stepfather wasn’t around.

He texted his mother.

How’s your day looking?

I work the evening shift. How about lunch?

I’ll be there.

He glanced at his watch. Just enough time to stop by Stone Wolf Ranch and see about arranging for Mackenzie to stay in one of the new guest cabins. With Jack and Nathan visiting Terra and Erin frequently, there was often a contingent of law enforcement at the property, and he couldn’t think of a better, safer place for Mackenzie to stay while he helped her work through the deadly exploits or vulnerabilities or whatever else she called them. Someone would have to be a complete fool to try anything at the ranch.

He wasn’t sure which of the detectives had been assigned to the shooter case, but it seemed both Jack and Nathan were invested. On the way down the trail back to his vehicle, he called Nathan.

“This is Alex.”

“I had a feeling you were going to call. Don’t know anything about the intruder yet.”

“What about the shooter on the trail?”

“We have casings. We’ve matched a few to your gun. Two that are no match and could belong to the shooter. If you want to swing by, you can pick up your gun.”

“I’ll be at the ranch later. Can you bring it to me there?”

“Sure enough.”

“I don’t suppose you have automatic license plate readers installed anywhere that could help us in this situation.”

“A bi-county drug task force got awarded a grant to pay for the camera, but it was placed in an area suspected of trafficking—far from here. So no readers in place locally that can help us.”

Yeah. What he suspected.

“What about wildlife or security cameras along that mountain road to the house? Anything?”

“I’ve requested the security feed from a gas station and a small grocery along the highway. You’re talking hours of video, and if you didn’t see the shooter, it’s not like you’re going to recognize her. It’s possible she hiked a few miles down and caught another trail. I’m working on getting possible feed on all the roads that could connect to trailheads. But I wanted the footage in case we want to cross-reference a tip.”

“I appreciate all you’re doing. I got a glimpse of the shooter, enough to know it was a woman, so it’s possible I would recognize her. If I get the chance, I’ll come by to review whatever you get.”

“I’ll have someone cull it down so you only need to look at relevant footage.”

“Sounds good.” Ending the call, Alex climbed into his vehicle. Lord, what am I missing? What else can I do?

Stone Wolf Ranch wasn’t far from the trailhead but was about twenty miles from Hanstech. After a stop at the ranch, Alex could lunch with Mom in Big Rapids, then head to the tech company to wait on Mackenzie.

At the ranch, Alex spotted Owen working with a client and waved, though he doubted Terra’s brother had seen him. Maybe he should have called first, but he knew he’d find at least Erin here, and he wanted to get her input. At the porch, he paused when he heard a vehicle pulling in. Terra steered her forest service SUV right behind his rental car.

He waited for her at the door.

She approached, her demeanor telling him she was clearly still in special agent mode. “And to what do I owe this pleasure?”

“I could ask you the same.” He smiled. “What are you doing here in the middle of the day?”

She arched a brow. “I was working a couple miles away and thought I’d stop in and check on Erin. Actually, Nathan called to ask if I could check on her.”