Page 20 of Scent of Evil (Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue #7)

As Stone went to work, sniffing the ground, Justin swung up on Blaze. Then he urged the horse forward, following Stone.

They made it all the way to the cabin before Stone alerted near some bushes directly across from the back door.

Justin rewarded the K9 by tossing the stuffed penguin.

The dog responded by running in a circle, shaking his head from side to side with the toy.

When Justin jumped down and held out his hand, Stone dropped the toy.

“Good boy, search! Search Decker!” Justin climbed back into the saddle as Stone headed into the woods.

Raine ignored the pounding in her head as she urged Timber forward, following Justin and Blaze. Her discomfort didn’t matter.

They desperately needed to find Decker.

* * *

Justin was grateful Stone was leading them away from the heat radiating off the burning cabin behind them.

It went against the grain to leave the fire burning, but they couldn’t waste any time.

Bad enough they’d had to find Raine’s weapon, then contact Griff prior to heading out.

He didn’t like knowing Decker had a head start.

Or the possibility that Decker had escaped with Kluck.

The sooner Logan was able to get eyes on the mountainside, the better. He trusted Stone’s nose, but if Logan was able to pinpoint a specific location, they could pick up their pace to reach him. Especially if the two men were togther.

The good news was that Stone was hot on Decker’s trail.

There was no hesitation as the K9 moved through the forest. The convict must have been sweating as he’d headed into the woods.

Or the branches scraped skin cells that were enough for Stone to follow.

The Sullivan K9s possessed between two hundred and three hundred million scent receptors, which made them excellent trackers.

Combined with a high play-and-prey drive, they were amazing at finding their quarry.

Decker wouldn’t be able to hide for long.

He couldn’t hear the four-wheeler, though, maybe in part because the wind was coming in from behind them. That could mess with Stone’s ability to stay on the trail too. Had Decker gone that way on purpose?

Maybe. The convict certainly knew they had Stone’s help.

He nudged Blaze into a trot to keep pace with his K9. A quick glance over his shoulder indicated Timber was following. Raine’s expression was solemn, and he hoped she wasn’t in too much pain. She gave him a nod as if to reassure him she was fine.

Satisfied, Justin swept his gaze over the area, looking for tire tracks.

There weren’t many, and he was concerned that without Stone, they wouldn’t be able to follow Decker’s path.

He’d thought that maybe with the added weight of Kluck, if they were together, the indentations would be significant.

When the wind shifted, the faint rumble of the ATV wafted toward them.

Decker was still too far away for his peace of mind.

Stone stopped and sniffed a specific area, then sat and barked. Justin pulled back on Blaze’s reins, bringing the equine to a stop. He slid off the machine and moved forward to see what caught Stone’s attention.

Another boot print. Similar to the previous ones Stone had alerted on.

Only one, but he knew that didn’t mean much. Maybe Decker had gotten off the ATV for a moment, while Kluck stayed on the machine.

“What is it?” Raine asked.

“A boot print.” As he spoke, the sat phone in his saddle bag rang with an incoming call. He hurried over to answer, taking a moment to toss the stuffed penguin for Stone. “Good boy!” Then into the phone, he said, “This is Justin.”

“We have Logan in the air; he’ll be in your general location within ten minutes or so,” Griff said.

“Good.” He scanned the sky but didn’t see his brother-in-law’s small plane. “Let him know we’re heading in a southwest direction.”

“Will do, but, Justin, you need to know the fire has pretty much engulfed the cabin.” Griff’s voice was tense. “You and Raine need to head back to the SUV and get out of there. You can’t outrun a forest fire.”

He turned to stare back at the clouds of black smoke.

Maybe they were bigger now, indicating the fire was burning hotter than before.

“I can’t do that, but would you please ask Trevor to head out with a local cop to pick up the SUV and horse trailer?

We’re already down one SUV on the ranch and can’t really afford to lose another one. ”

“Trevor already thought of that and has headed out with a deputy,” Griff said. “But, Justin, you need to turn back. I don’t want you and Raine to be in the path of the fire.”

Justin eyed Raine, knowing Griff had a point. The wind coming at their back meant the fire would head that way too. Maybe it was his imagination, but now that they were standing still, the smoke seemed to be growing thicker, stinging his eyes. “I’ll talk to Raine.”

“Don’t talk. Just head back.” Griff’s concern was palpable. “Don’t make me send more Sullivans out to find you.”

“Okay. I hear you. We’ll turn around.” He ended the call and stuffed the phone back into the saddle bag. Maybe Logan would be able to pinpoint Decker’s position.

And maybe Decker and Kluck would soon be surrounded by the forest fire too. He wanted to empathize but couldn’t.

“We can’t turn back,” Raine protested. “We need to find Decker.”

“The fire has gotten out of control.” He held out his hand for the stuffed penguin. Stone gave it to him, then looked up as if waiting for the next command. “Griff says it may be spreading. We can’t stay here; the wind will bring the fire straight toward us.”

Raine’s eyes widened in alarm. Then she twisted in the saddle to look behind them. The large cloud of smoke was enough to convince her of the very real threat. Her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Okay.”

He hated the idea of Decker getting away as much as she did.

Yet he couldn’t lead his dog and Raine directly into danger either.

He’d never been involved in a forest fire and wasn’t keen to start now.

He vaulted into the saddle, turning Blaze in a half circle to head back to where they’d left the SUV.

They’d need to backtrack while avoiding the fire.

“Come, Stone! This way!”

His yellow lab eagerly followed.

With the wind in their faces, the smoke scent was strong.

The burning in his eyes intensified. Trying to quell a sense of panic, he nudged Blaze into a trot, ignoring the way his gelding shook his head and sidestepped on the trail as if not at all happy they were going toward the fire rather than away.

Animals had good instincts when it came to threats such as a forest fire.

He continued at a brisk pace, making sure Stone was keeping up. He knew the K9 was better off on the ground where the smoke was less dense, but if Stone fell back, he’d have no choice but to carry the dog across his lap the way he had yesterday.

Slowing their ability to get out of the way of the dangerous fire.

The smoke continued to get worse. He steered Blaze away from the wind, knowing he was adding distance between them and the two-track road where they’d left the SUV.

A buzzing sound reached his ears. Glancing up at the sky, he saw Logan’s plane overhead. The plane wagged its wings back and forth in a gesture Justin took to be reassuring him he was on the right path.

At least, that’s what he hoped it meant.

A few minutes later, the sat phone buzzed. He debated stopping to answer but decided against it.

Time was not on their side. They needed to keep moving. They needed to find a way to get around the fire while still getting to the SUV and horse trailer.

Then he realized Trevor may have moved the SUV off the two-track. Was that what Logan was trying to tell him?

He spotted a creek and turned Blaze toward it. Water would be good for multiple reasons—or the animals and to give Raine and him a chance to wet down their clothing. They’d need to have damp fabric over their noses and mouths to filter out the worst of the smoke.

Stone jumped over a log and reached the creek first. He led Blaze around the fallen tree, then swung out of the saddle. Blaze eagerly moved toward the creek to drink.

Raine dismounted, too, leading Timber closer to the creek so he could drink as well. “I think the smoke is getting worse.” Her hoarse voice bothered him. Breathing in the thick smoke wasn’t good.

“I have an extra shirt.” He rummaged in his pack and pulled it out. Kneeling at the creek, he submerged the shirt, then wrung it out. Standing, he held it out to her. “Tie this over your nose and mouth.”

She frowned. “What about you?”

“I’ll use mine.” He stripped off his shirt and knelt at the creek. “Get in, Stone.”

Stone looked at him for a moment, then jumped into the water. Good thing labs liked to swim. When he had his shirt dampened, he retrieved the sat phone. The last call had been from Griff, so he quickly returned it.

“Logan has eyes on Decker but can’t tell if the guy is alone on the ATV or if he has a fellow traveler,” Griff said.

“Glad Logan sees Decker,” he repeated for Raine’s sake. “I hope he can watch him for a while longer, before the smoke from the fire gets too bad.”

“Afraid not, the firefighters are at the cabin, but the blaze has started to spread to the trees. I hope you and Raine are getting out of there.”

“We’re trying.” He wasn’t surprised the fire was spreading. “Did Trevor get to the SUV and horse trailer in time to prevent them from being damaged?”

“Yes. He wants you to know he’s heading east on the highway you took to reach the Kluck cabin since the wind is coming from the west. He wants you to know he’ll be on the highway for as long as possible waiting for you and Raine to get there.”

Justin understood his brother was worried about them and would likely stay longer than was safe. “Tell him thanks and that we’ll get to the highway as soon as we can, but if the fire gets closer, he needs to bug out of there.”

“I will, but he probably won’t listen. Be careful, Justin.” Griff sounded concerned too. “I know there was a storm last night soaking the trees and brush, but that doesn’t mean the fire won’t spread quickly.”

“We will. Thanks.” He ended the call and shoved the phone back into his saddle bag.

Raine had the shirt tied around her face, and he quickly did the same with his own shirt.

Then he took a moment to double-check their coordinates.

They had made decent time so far but still had several miles to go before they’d reach the highway.

Especially since they’d need to take an angled approach to stay ahead of the fire.

Pocketing the GPS, he turned to his K9. “Come, Stone.” The lab came out of the water and shook himself to get rid of the excess moisture.

He was about to help Raine get up on Timber when he noticed she’d used the fallen log as a stepping stool to manage the mount on her own. He swung up on Blaze, turned the horse from the creek, and nudged the animal with his heels. Blaze shook his head again in protest but then settled down.

Stone followed their path as he led the way across the rocky mountainous terrain. He tried to go faster but had to slow down to navigate around boulders and other fallen trees. Several times, Blaze shook his head and sidestepped in protest. His horse did not like their situation.

He wasn’t a fan of it either. He mentally kicked himself for heading out to track Decker. He should have anticipated the fire would rage out of control.

It was too late for regrets now. All Justin could do was to push forward and pray for God to guide them to safety.

The roar of the flames grew louder, and when he glanced to his left, he saw the flickering flames traveling along several half-dead trees.

Then the smoke began to obscure his vision.

Breathing through the damp fabric of his shirt wasn’t easy, but it kept the worst of the soot from going into his lungs.

He angled the horses away from the smoke, but even changing directions didn’t work. He turned even farther, knowing the path would take them parallel to the highway rather than toward it.

His chest tightened as the temperature around them rose. Sweat slicked down his chest and back, but he ignored it.

“Stone, are you with us?” He panicked when he momentarily lost track of his K9. Blinking hard to clear his watering eyes, he scanned the ground until he finally caught sight of the dog.

Of all of them, his K9 seemed the least affected by the fire.

Blaze stumbled. “Easy, boy.” The last thing they needed was for one of the horses to be injured. Blaze moved forward without favoring one leg over the other, but Justin knew they couldn’t keep going for long.

Blaze fought his grip on the reins, wanting to bolt through the forest to escape the smoke and fire. He glanced back to make sure Timber wasn’t giving Raine any trouble. They seemed to be doing okay, but that was when he noticed the fire jump from one set of trees to another.

His breath caught in his throat as he realized they were surrounded by flames on two sides now. He urged Blaze into a trot, desperate to put more distance between them and the burning trees.

How much longer would it take for the fire to engulf the area around them? He was very much afraid they were about to find out.