Page 9 of Scent of Evil (Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue #7)
W hen the blood oozing from her hand caused her fingers to slip, losing her grip on the frame of the ATV, Ginny abruptly fell off, hitting the ground hard enough to make her cry out in alarm.
But as soon as she began to roll down the incline, she decided to take advantage of the moment.
Feeling desperate, she purposefully continued rolling down the hill as far away from the four-wheeler as she could get.
The engine rumbled on for a full minute before Decker must have realized she was gone.
Then she heard a sudden crashing sound, followed by silence.
Decker must have gotten off the ATV!
No! She couldn’t let him catch her.
After a few minutes of rolling down the incline, nearly hitting several trees in the process, she pushed herself to her feet and began to run. She headed down the incline mostly because it was easier, sticking to the thickest part of the trees for cover.
Decker didn’t call out to her, but she could hear his thudding footsteps as he followed. A lump of fear and panic rose in her throat. What would he do if he caught her?
She didn’t want to know.
Swallowing a sob, Ginny forced herself to keep moving.
Decker might be bigger and stronger, but she had a head start.
He also had a swollen knee, which she hoped would slow him down.
It wasn’t easy, but she darted between trees and over small bushes with an agility her soccer coach would be proud of.
Please, please, please. Ginny silently chanted to herself as she ran. Please help me escape. Please!
She ran for what seemed like forever. Farther than she’d ever run while playing soccer.
When she couldn’t take another step, she collapsed behind a large tree and sat with her back pressed against the trunk.
Curling herself into a ball, she rested her head on her knees and gasped for breath while trying to be invisible.
Straining to listen above the hammering of her heart, Ginny tracked the sound of Decker’s heavy footsteps. But then they seemed to stop.
She froze, imagining him scanning the area to find her. Had he seen her? She looked down at her blue shirt, wishing she was wearing something green or brown instead. Granted, her blue shirt was covered in grime, which helped dim the normally bright color.
The seconds ticked by with excruciating slowness. Ginny was afraid to move, as she imagined Decker sneaking up on her, his strong hands grabbing her at any moment.
But nothing happened. He didn’t shoot his gun at her or call her name. As the silence lengthened, she forced herself to stay where she was. The wet ground was soaking through the seat of her jeans. Not that she was dry anywhere else, she thought with a shiver.
When she couldn’t take the not knowing any longer, Ginny quietly turned and peeked around the tree trunk. A wave of relief hit hard when she didn’t see Decker lurking there, ready to pounce.
Yet not seeing him, or anyone for that matter, caused another flicker of fear to wash over her. What if Decker had taken off, leaving her behind?
What if she was still lost in the woods, alone, when darkness fell?
Ginny pushed herself upright, struggling to get her bearings. She’d run down the incline, but that wasn’t necessarily the path her aunt Raine would take. But going up the incline would bring her closer to Decker.
Torn by indecision, Ginny swiped her bloody palm against her jeans, smearing blood and grime along the fabric.
She decided to walk in the opposite direction Decker had been going.
She thought it might be to the east, but she couldn’t be sure.
Maybe she would be able to meet up with her aunt Raine soon.
Before dark? She glanced up at the cloudy sky and couldn’t suppress a shiver. Maybe. Ginny was afraid to imagine what wild animals she might run into if she was forced to stay in the forest alone overnight.
Swallowing hard, she knew coming face-to-face with a mountain lion or a bear wouldn’t be much better than being with Decker.
But it was a risk she had to take.
* * *
“What do you mean, the trail goes in two different directions?” Raine stood beside Justin staring at the wrecked four-wheeler.
“I think Ginny may have escaped.” Justin gestured to Stone, who sat staring up at them intently, as if trying to say something. Too bad the K9 couldn’t talk. “Stone went to the south for a few feet, then turned and headed north for a few feet, then returned here to this location.”
“I hope you’re right about Ginny escaping.” She frowned as she realized what Justin was saying. “So our choice is to either find Ginny or track Decker.”
“Yep.” Justin pulled two plastic bags of clothing from his saddle bag.
“We need to ask Stone to track Ginny.” As much as she wanted to find and arrest Decker, she couldn’t leave her eleven-year-old niece to fend for herself in the forest.
“I agree.” Justin knelt beside Stone and offered the bag of Ginny’s clothes. “You remember Ginny, don’t you, boy? Ginny!” He waited for the yellow lab to sniff the bag, then said, “Search! Search for Ginny!”
Stone instantly headed down the southern path he’d started on earlier, giving Raine the impression that this was exactly what the dog was trying to tell them.
After shoving the bag back in the saddle, Justin gave her a leg up.
Her butt and thighs burned as if they were on fire, but she took the reins without complaint.
Justin vaulted into the saddle with an ease she envied and quickly turned Blaze to follow Stone.
She clucked at Timber, the way Justin did, to encourage the horse to move forward.
Stone intensely sniffed the ground, picking up his pace as he followed Ginny’s scent.
The K9 darted between trees that were so close together, the horses couldn’t fit through, which made following the path Stone was taking difficult.
Several times Justin had to make a wide circle around a cluster of trees to meet up with Stone on the other side.
Yet as they rode, Raine imagined her plucky niece running this way to escape Decker. Ginny was smart enough to know Decker was too big to get through tight places. Hope flared in her heart as they continued down the incline, and she found herself praying for God to continue watching over Ginny.
After a solid fifteen minutes, Stone abruptly stopped at the base of a wide tree, sniffed for several long moments, then sat and barked.
Justin grabbed the stuffed penguin, slid from Blaze, and tossed Stone’s reward. “Good boy! Good boy, Stone!”
The yellow lab leaped into the air to catch the toy, then ran in a circle around a different tree from the one where he alerted.
Raine craned her neck to see better. “What did he find?”
“The ground is flattened back here,” Justin said. He turned to glance up at her. “I think Ginny must have stopped here to rest and/or to hide from Decker.”
As reassuring as that image was, she glanced around in frustration. “Okay, but where is she now?”
“I’m not sure, but Stone will find her.” Justin stood for a moment watching his dog, then held out his hand. “Come, Stone. Hand.”
Stone galloped toward Justin, regurgitating the toy into his palm. Then the dog sat and stared up him expectantly, clearing waiting for the search command. The dog was smart enough to know the game wasn’t over.
Justin took a minute to offer the K9 water, then tucked the collapsible bowl away. “Search! Search for Ginny.”
As he swung onto Blaze, Raine asked, “Do you think it’s safe to call out to her?”
Justin glanced behind them, as if searching for a sign of Decker. After a brief hesitation, he nodded. “Yeah, I think so. I have to believe that once Decker knew he’d lost Ginny, he’d head off in the opposite direction to avoid running into us.”
“Ginny!” Raine yelled as loud as she could. “Where are you?”
After what seemed like a long moment, a weak voice said, “Here! I’m here, Aunt Raine.”
“Stay where you are,” Raine called. She couldn’t see her niece through the foliage. “I’m with Justin Sullivan. We’ll come to you.”
“Okay.” Ginny sounded tired, and her heart went out to the little girl. Had Decker hurt her? She prayed he hadn’t.
The fact that she’d been praying on her own since Justin had offered to pray with her was a surprise. Yet she was too tired and sore to delve into the murky idea of faith and God now. All that mattered was finding Ginny alive and unhurt.
Then she’d make it her mission to find Decker.
Stone followed the scent trail for almost a quarter mile before he let out a sharp bark. As she was behind Justin and Blaze, she couldn’t see where Stone was alerting.
“Are you a good doggy?” a voice asked.
“His name is Stone, and he’s a very good boy.” Justin stopped Blaze and swung out of the saddle before she could do the same. “You must be Ginny.”
“Where’s Aunt Raine?”
“I’m here.” She slid off Timber with far less grace and stumbled forward on weak knees. When she saw Ginny sitting on the ground—dirty, soaked but otherwise alive—she had to blink back her tears. Ginny stood and ran toward her, wrapping her arms around Raine’s waist.
“I’m so glad I found you.” Ginny’s voice was muffled against her poncho. “I escaped from Decker but was so scared I’d be out here all night.”
“Did he hurt you?” Raine asked, fearing the answer.
“Not really.” Ginny didn’t relax her grip. “He threatened to hurt me but didn’t have time.”
“It’s okay, you’re safe now.” She held Ginny close and glanced at Justin who nodded in understanding.
“Praise be to God,” he said in a low tone.
“Yes.” An overwhelming wave of relief and gratitude washed over her. Thanks to Justin and Stone, they’d found Ginny in time.
Maybe God had been watching over her niece all along.
* * *
Justin rewarded Stone for his find, then pulled out his cell phone. When the screen indicated there was no service, he dug in the saddle bag for the sat phone.
His brother-in-law answered on the first ring. “Flannery.”