Page 42 of Trail to Trouble

The chief focused on her. “Cici, we’ve got this. Nobody knows this property better than you two. We’ll find him.”

She nodded and then looked at Hannah. “Where did you last see him?”

Hannah quickly explained what had happened and did her best to describe the path she and Hunter had taken.

“I’ve got a boat ready for us,” Cap said.

The four of them climbed into a small boat like the one she’d seen servicing the campsites earlier in their trip. The boat provided little cover for them.

Cici reached down and pulled a handgun from a duffle bag and handed it to her brother, along with a holster. She strapped one on as well. Next to the bag lay two rifles similar to the one the chief had pulled out of the squad car. The chief didn’t say a word about the sibling’s guns. If he was good with it, she was good with it. In fact, she wished she had one, too. She had her conceal carry permit, but Bianca threw such a fit about her taking a handgun on the trip, she’d left it back. With all that had gone on with Sebastián, she should have never caved on the issue.

Though they were well armed, her teeth still chattered with fear as they made their way down the river. Who knew where the shooter was? Who was the shooter? Sebastián? Was he watching them?

ChapterEleven

Cap motoredthem up to the small beach area of their campsite where Bianca lay on a towel in the small patch of sand. She lifted her head and shielded her eyes from the beaming sun.

She pulled a frown, cocked her head to the side, and fixed her gaze on Hannah. “I thought you were hiking?”

Her friend was clueless as to what had happened. Good, Hannah supposed, but she’d have to tell her about Alyssa.

“I was, but...” A sob clogged Hannah’s throat.

“Bianca?” Chief asked.

Bianca stood and walked toward the four of them as they jumped out of the boat.

“Yes.”

“I’m Chief Ricco of the Iron City Police.”

He gestured toward Hunter’s brother and sister. “This is Cap and Cici. They work for Yooper Adventures, and they’re Hunter’s siblings.”

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Bianca asked, then focused her attention back on Hannah.

“Alyssa and Hunter have been...shot. Didn’t you hear any gunfire?”

“What? How?” Bianca squeaked out before her hand flew over her mouth.

No tears like the ones running down Hannah’s face. Just the surprised hand-to-mouth gesture.

After a couple of beats, Bianca lowered her hand. “How is it you’re okay? I don’t understand.”

The tone she used seemed as if she were surprised that she hadn’t been shot, but the other two had been. If Hannah were in Bianca’s shoes, she would have asked how Alyssa and Hunter were doing rather than comment about why Hannah hadn’t been hurt. Odd.

“Alyssa was hit first, then Hunter shielded me from the gunfire.”

“Oh.”

Oh, that was it? That was her reaction to that news?

Bianca’s eyes watered as if the information was finally sinking in.

“Did you hear any gunfire?” the chief asked Bianca.

“No.”

Seriously, how could she not have heard the shots? The falls weren’t that far from the campsite.