Page 94 of Smokescreen

Olive shifted her thoughts. “When was the last time you had a fire like this out here?”

“There was one in the fall in the Bridger-Teton National Forest. It takes years to recover from these events. Years.”

“But recovery is possible?”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that.” Reid’s voice sounded somber as he said the words.

They reached the Homestead, but Olive couldn’t bring herself to go inside.

Instead, she stood on the porch and stared into the distance. She pulled a bandana over her mouth, trying to protect her lungs.

Everything around her was now hazy and smelled of smoke.

But she didn’t see the flames anymore, which she counted as a good thing.

More helicopters and planes flew overhead, and a red substance dropped from beneath the aircraft.

All they could do now was wait to see what would happen.

She glanced at Reid, who’d gone into the stable and then emerged again.

He paused and closed his eyes, lowering his head.

But it wasn’t despair she saw on his face or in his body language.

No, he was praying, she realized.

Unlike her father, Olive had no doubt Reid’s prayer and faith were sincere.

She hoped God answered Reid’s prayers and this property was saved.

But in her experience, life didn’t usually work like that.

CHAPTER 42

Olive had been standing outside for an hour, the details of her investigation still secondary. All she cared about was this beautiful property and the people and animals who lived here.

The wind shifted again. This time, it brought a cool breeze with it.

The breeze almost smelled like . . . rain. Dark clouds also rolled in.

“Is that . . . ?” Olive looked up at Reid.

His gaze was fixated on the sky in the distance. “I think so.”

Everyone seemed to notice at the same time. They stopped working and stared quietly at the sky.

A moment later, a fat raindrop hit Olive’s face.

Then another.

The next instant, rain began to pour down.

Everyone cheered.

The rain had come! Hopefully, it was enough to extinguish the fire, and the damage wasn’t too extensive already.

It seemed too early to celebrate. But this was definitely a good thing.