Page 85 of Last Chance Christmas

How long had they been out here, anyway? It must be getting close to late afternoon.

A buzz came through Cole’s radio, and he put his finger to his ear.

A figure to their left caught Kianna’s attention. “Who’s that?” She waved her hand to get Cole’s attention.

Titan let out a bark and took off.

The person was still a ways off, but Kianna’s heart beat double-time. If it was Mackey, Cole could make the arrest and end this hunt.

“There’s someone out here on the east side of the forest,” Cole relayed in his radio. He paused, then said, “Copy.”

“It’s one of my buddies.” He waved to the person who was making his way over to them with Titan on his heel.

Kianna’s shoulders dropped. They were so close, yet so far away from finding Mackey.

The officer was decked out in a hat and a scarf that covered most of his face, but Kianna still recognized him from the scene of the car accident.

The name lettered on his jacket read Thomas.

“You couldn’t have come a few minutes earlier, man?” Cole laughed and shook his head.

“This weather is slowing everyone down.” Thomas squinted against the flurries. “Where are the footprints?”

Cole pointed. “Just watch out for the uneven ground. I already had one run-in with the embankment.” Cole turned to Kianna and grinned.

She wasn’t sure what to make of his response, so she smiled but didn’t say anything.

Thomas bent down to inspect the shoe marks. “They appear to be pointing south and following the perimeter of the trail before winding down toward the main road.”

“Shall we?” Cole waved in the direction of the trail.

“No sense losing any more daylight.” Kianna followed Titan and the officers. The movement added warmth once again to her bones.

The German shepherd led the group and stopped every few minutes to sniff the air before returning his nose to the ground. The flurries had tapered off, and a few breaks in the clouds made visibility more favorable.

The gravel path was slick, and a few times, Kianna had to catch herself from falling.

“How close are we to the main road?” she asked. The pine trees continued to grow farther apart, but there was no telling the distance to town due to the minimal traffic. The air was still. Almost serene.

Except, instead of the peaceful hush that blanketed an area after a fresh snowfall, the quiet mocked them.

It whispered that they were trapped in a snow globe with no way out. And the only person who knew the escape route right now was Mackey.

“About five minutes out,” Cole said. “Mackey’s chances of circumventing us are growing.” He grunted.

“This isn’t over until it’s over.” Kianna would not let the convict gain the satisfaction of eluding officials in this town and making a clean break.

She focused on every detail of the area. From the clusters of bushes with red berries on them to the tall tree trunks—wide enough for someone to hide behind. There were even dry patches surrounded by areas of dirt mixed with slush.

Thanks to the precipitation that washed it away, or because someone had disturbed the area?

Titan sniffed the air and halted.

Kianna stopped walking and scanned the area. “Hang on.” She moved to a pile of twigs poking out of the slush and leaned down. “This looks like someone’s watch.” The gold face and brown band stood in contrast to the white snow. Droplets of red tinged the area. Kianna gasped. “Is this blood?”

Cole pulled an evidence bag from his pocket and picked up the piece.

“Titan.” Cole whistled and the dog trotted over. He held out the watch to the K-9, who sniffed it. “Search.”