Page 44

chapter

thirty-two

The search had been going for two hours when the first raindrops started to fall. By then, Nessie and Jax had left Bear and King to keep searching and circled back to the school in case one of the other teams found Oliver.

So far, nothing.

Nessie stood in the parking lot outside the gym, now their unofficial command center, watching the sky darken from gray to charcoal.

The rain started in earnest, fat drops that splattered against the asphalt and turned the dust to mud. Parents who’d volunteered for the search began trickling back to their cars, shaking their heads and offering apologetic smiles.

Sorry, but we have our own kids to get home to.

Sorry, but this weather’s getting dangerous.

She didn’t blame them. She’d have done the same thing in their position.

But the men from Valor Ridge kept going.

She could see their flashlight beams cutting through the growing darkness, methodical and determined.

They’d split into teams, covering the woods behind the school, the river that ran through town, the old railroad tracks, and other places a scared boy might run to hide.

“You okay?” Jax asked softly.

She turned at the sound of his voice, and the concern in his eyes almost undid her. How had she convinced herself she could push him away? Standing here in the rain, watching him organize search parties like Oliver was his own son, she felt like the biggest fool in Montana.

“No,” she whispered, the word barely audible over the wind picking up through the trees. “I’m not okay. My baby’s out there somewhere, probably scared and cold, and it’s getting dark.”

The raindrops were coming faster now, pattering against the asphalt and raising the scent of wet earth and ozone. She wrapped her arms around herself, but it didn’t help the chill that had settled deep in her bones.

“We’ll find him,” Jax said, the same words he’d been repeating for the past several hours. But his voice was steady, certain, and she wanted to believe him so badly it hurt.

“What if we don’t?” The fear she’d been holding back broke free, spilling out in a rush. “What if something’s happened to him? What if?—”

“Hey.” Jax stepped closer, his hands finding her shoulders. “Look at me.”

She lifted her eyes to his, and the intensity she found there took her breath away. Not the dangerous intensity she’d seen the day he punched Deputy Murdock, but something sweeter and more vulnerable. Something that looked dangerously like love.

“I promise you,” he said fiercely, “I will not stop looking until we find him. None of us will. You hear me?”

She nodded, not trusting her voice.

Thunder rumbled overhead. The rain was coming down harder now, drumming against the school’s roof and turning the parking lot into a maze of puddles.

Through the gym’s windows, she could see Ghost bent over his laptop, coordinating with the various search teams. Maps were spread across folding tables, marked with colored pins and search grids.

So many people looking for Oliver. The entire town, it seemed, plus the men from Valor Ridge, plus federal agents she still couldn’t quite believe were here. All because of her son. All because she’d brought her secrets to this place and now they were spilling over onto everyone else.

“This is my fault.” The words scraped her throat raw. “I should have told him the truth about you. About why I couldn’t... why I had to keep my distance.”

“What truth?” Jax asked, carefully neutral. “Who’s Alek, Nessie? And why are there federal agents here?”

She closed her eyes and lifted her face to the sky. The rain was cold, mixing with her hot tears. “I can’t tell you. Not here. Not now.”

“Then when?” Hurt bled through in his voice despite his obvious effort to keep it contained. “Nothing you’ve done is worse than what I’ve done. Nothing you’ve done will make me push you away. I know it’s a lot to ask, but just… trust me, sweetness. Please.”

She opened her eyes to find him watching her, his expression raw and vulnerable in a way she’d never seen before.

How could she explain witness protection to a man who’d already been burned by the system? How could she tell him that everything about her life in Solace was a lie, that even her name wasn’t real?

“I do trust you, Jax.” She reached out and cupped his jaw, his stubble rasping against her palm. “And I promise when we find Oliver, I’ll tell you everything.”

He stared into her eyes for a long moment, his hand coming up to rest over hers on his cheek.

“Okay,” he said finally, and drew her hand away, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.

The sound of boots on wet pavement made them both turn.

“Ms. Harmon?” Principal Martinez’s umbrella was doing little to keep the rain from soaking her blouse and trousers. “I’m afraid I have to get home to my kids. My babysitter has stayed as long as she could. But you’re welcome to use the gym as a base as long as you need. I really am very sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” She didn’t blame anyone at the school. This was all on her.

“If I can find a way to come back tonight, I will.”

“Thank you. We’ll keep you updated,” Jax said.

The principal nodded and hurried to her car, leaving Nessie standing in the rain with the handful of people who hadn’t given up yet.

Nearby, Mariah sat in the front seat of her car, using a flashlight and maps to help Ghost coordinate the search teams while her son slept fitfully in the backseat.

Brandt paced by his SUV, heedless of the rain soaking his suit, his phone glued to his ear as he called in favors and resources, doing his best to keep the press away after a well-meaning teenager posted about the missing boy on social media.

And scattered throughout the growing storm, the Valor Ridge men continued their search.

“Radio check,” Boone’s voice crackled through the walkie-talkie at Jax’s belt. “Alpha Team, report.”

“Alpha Team, nothing yet,” Jonah replied. “Covered the old sawmill and the dry creek bed. Moving to the railroad bridge, then we’ll head up to the road and continue toward the ranch.”

“Bravo?”

“Negative on the park and playground in town,” River said. “We’re going to stop at Nessie’s just in case he found his way there, then we’re heading to the residential area north of Main Street.”

“Charlie Team?”

“Still searching the woods behind the school,” Anson reported. He was with Bear and King. “Found some broken branches that might be fresh, but no sign of the boy. We’re making our way toward Ridge Road, but King seems confused and keeps doubling back.”

Brandt approached them, his face grim. “I just got off the phone with the weather service. We can expect steady rain for the next several hours, and the temperature’s dropping fast.”

“How fast?” Nessie asked, though she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

Brandt’s expression was all professional, as usual, but she’d known him long enough that she could see the concern under his mask. “Low forties, maybe upper thirties by midnight.”

Low forties.

And Oliver was out there somewhere, just in his school clothes. Jeans and a Minecraft t-shirt. Slide on sneakers, no socks. No jacket.She swayed on her feet, and Jax steadied her with a hand on her back.

Brandt noticed, but he didn’t say anything despite the censure in his eyes.

Walker’s voice came over the walkie-talkie.

After finishing up the ranch chores himself to free up his men for the search, he’d arrived a fifteen minutes ago with his dog, Cowboy, who was also trained to track.

“We’ve covered Riverside Park and the old church.

No sign of the kid. Some of the local volunteers are calling it quits. Weather’s getting too bad.”

“Pussies,” was X’s opinion. “A little bit of rain, and they bounce? Like my mama always says, we’re not sweet enough to melt.”

“No, we are not. And we’re not giving up ’til that boy’s home with his mama,” Walker said, and all of his guys called in their agreements.

“Stubborn bastards,” Brandt muttered, but there was almost approval in his tone.

“They don’t quit,” Jax said. “It’s not in their nature.”

Brandt studied him for a moment. “Neither do you, apparently.”

“I care about Oliver. He’s a good kid.”

“Yeah,” Brandt agreed. “He is.” He paused, then added, “For what it’s worth, I’ve been watching your friends work. They know what they’re doing.”

It was as close to a compliment as Brandt was likely to give, and Nessie could see that Jax recognized it.

“They’re good men,” Jax said quietly. “Despite what everyone around here thinks of them.”

A sound from the Valor Ridge trucks caught Nessie’s attention. One of the vehicles was rocking slightly, something scrabbling against the window in a desperate frenzy.

She pointed. “What’s that?”

Jax frowned and walked toward the sound. The thumping against the window got louder as they approached, and Nessie could see the glass fogging up. Then she heard the whining.

“Shit, that’s Echo.” Jax quickened his pace. “Jesus, she’s freaking out. I didn’t know Walker brought her.”

He pulled open the truck door, and Echo practically launched herself at him.

She was panting hard, her eyes wide with what looked like panic.

He caught her and tried to soothe her, but she wasn’t having it.

She wiggled out of his arms and paced to the edge of the parking lot and back, whining the whole time.

“Easy, girl,” Jax said softly and knelt to calm her. “You’re okay. You’re okay now.”

But Echo wouldn’t settle. She jumped back into the truck, then out again, then paced to the edge of the lot, her whole body vibrating with urgency.

“What is she doing?” Brandt asked.

Jax stared at the dog, his expression shifting from confusion to understanding. “She bonded with Oliver the other day. At the bakery. She... she liked him.”

Echo barked once, sharp and clear, then ran back and pawed at Jax’s leg. When he didn’t immediately respond, she trotted a few steps toward the woods, then looked back at him expectantly.