Close To Danger (Westen #4)(78)

Outside the cabin, she worked her way around, trudging through the knee-deep snow until she reached the back. Tracks came out of the bushes lining the back walk, headed for the woods.

“Must’ve been a trap door in the house,” she whispered, following them as quickly as she could.

Until she came to a spot that looked like a small force of people had stomped and moved around. Leading away was the pawprints of the animal she’d shot. The human footprints split, some going a short distance with the wolf, then stopping as if they’d suddenly disappeared.

Backtracked. Strong was smart. But not smarter than her.

She studied the tracks around the first bloody one. Some seem to head southwest into the woods, as if heading back toward the road. Some due west straight through the woods into the river beyond. Others were northwest, nearly parallel to the bloody pawprints.

Which direction?

Hannah stood marble-statue still. Listening. Concentrating. Just like Dad had taught her and her brother.

“Tracking isn’t just about seeing your prey. Be patient. Use all your senses. Good camouflage can hide a deer in a thick forest or a grouse in the shrubs, squirrels and birds in trees.”

“How will we find them?” she’d asked in a very soft whisper.

“Close your eyes and listen. Slow your breathing. Let yourself become familiar with all the sounds around you. Identify each one. Look for the abnormal sound. The crunch of a leaf. The snap of a twig. The lap of water where there shouldn’t be any.”

Her father’s words in her head, Hannah closed her eyes and listened, slowing her breath until she no longer heard it.

No cars on the road. No trucks on the highway in the distance.

It was as if the world was frozen in place.

Still she listened.

The wind blew through the trees, loosening snow from limbs. The plop as the mound of white landed in the snow below. The rustle of evergreen boughs. The slight rustle of water in the semi-frozen river.

Twigs snapped to the left.

Northwest.

Eyes popping open, she slowly smiled.

Now, I’ve got you.





CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT


Two parked trucks blocked the turn-off to the creek road that led to Wes’s cabin. Gage pulled in beside them. Cleetus climbed out of his truck, his rifle in hand. Out of the other vehicle came his other deputies, Daniel and the youngest, Jason Clarke.

Dammit. The kid should be sound asleep after working all night. All his men knew they were putting themselves in harm’s way when they hired on, but Gage hated putting such a young officer in the line of fire.

Daniel met him eye-to-eye. “Figured Jason could stay here and keep anyone from stumbling into this mess. Prevent our prey from doubling back.”

Gage nodded and focused his attention on Jason. “You sure you’re good for this? The last thing I need is for you or someone else to get injured because you’ve fallen asleep.”

Jason’s face went completely serious and his eyes alert. “I’m good, sir. Daniel gave me coffee on the way over and I never go to bed before noon these days. You can count on me.”

“Good,” Gage said, clamping one of the younger man’s shoulders for a moment, no further reassurance needed. Then he turned slightly to address all three men. “What did Bobby tell you was going on?”

“She said to meet you here,” Cleetus said. “Something about a sniper after Wes and her sister Chloe?”

“Same here,” Daniel added. “Didn’t ask for more. Time seemed of the essence and figured you’d tell us details when we got here.”

Gage nodded. His men knew when to ask questions, when to act. “The only details I have is that Chloe’s been staying here with Wes the past few days because someone is stalking her. “

“That who we’re tracking?” Daniel asked.

This time Gage shook his head. “No. Not sure this has a damn thing to do with my sister-in-law’s stalker. We’re tracking Hannah from the café.”

“The waitress?”

“Tall, lanky red-head?”

“The new girl?”

If the situation wasn’t so serious Gage would’ve laughed at the surprised looks on his men’s faces. But lives were at stake and they needed to get moving. “The same. Earl saw her heading out this way with a sniper rifle this morning, dressed all in white. I wouldn’t think much of it, but Harriett called in saying she heard shots out this way.”

“Damn,” Daniel muttered, the others nodding in agreement.

The taciturn nurse hoarded words. And she never joked. If she called in about gunfire, there was gunfire. If she called the sheriff, it was serious business.

“So, we’re going to approach with upmost caution, got it?”

“Yes, sir,” Daniel and Cleetus answered.

“Daniel, you go left, Cleetus you’re on the right flank. I’ll take the center lead. Keep your eyes open and your sat phones at the ready. Also, keep an eye open for Harriett. I suspect she’s out here somewhere.”

The three of them headed up the road, scanning the area from right to left for any sign of movement. Gage just prayed Wes had Chloe hidden and was keeping her safe.



*



“So, we’re on the same page on this? Whoever is out there isn’t stalking me. They’re stalking you. Right?” Chloe asked, already reading the truth in his face.