Vivian came up behind her, gently squeezing her arm, before taking the pie from her hands. “This is beautiful but looks too hot to eat at the moment.” She set it on the table. “And Ms. Lily is looking tired. I’ll take her to bed while we wait for the pie to cool.” She lifted Lily from Reed’s arms and bustled out of the room.
Emma backed toward the kitchen. “I’m gonna wash the pots while we wait.”
“I’ll help you by drying.” Reed rose and joined her at the sink. He picked up a dish towel. “I noticed the construction you’re doing on the north side of the property. Is that going to be the training facility?”
“Yep. I’ll do the initial training with the dogs, but once they’re ready to be paired with a handler, there has to be additional training with them together. The handler will have to stay for a few weeks. I want to make that process as easy as possible, so I’m building small homes for them on the property.”
“How far along are you?”
A strand of hair fell into her face. She pushed it back with her shoulder since her hands were covered in suds. “I’m about half done. Another month or so and we should be in operation.” She scrubbed the pot and the hair fell in her face again. This time she attempted to blow it out of the way. “It helps that Uncle Jeb didn’t clear huge swatches of the woods on the property. They’ll be useful for the initial training. Once the dogs are more advanced, we’ll use the nearby national park.”
Reed’s fingers skimmed the side of her face as he tucked the annoying strand behind her ear. Her breath hitched. “Thanks.”
“Sure.” He took the clean pot from her. “Will you breed the dogs yourself or buy them?”
“Actually, we’re going to take dogs from the animal shelter. Most people aren’t aware that SAR canines don’t have to be purebreds. Sadie isn’t.” At the sound of her name, the dog raised her head. Emma smiled at her. “SAR dogs need specific traits like agility and a good nose. The pups that don’t make it through the training program, we’ll adopt out to loving homes. Vivian’s good with accounting and fund-raising. She wants to handle the paperwork, which will free me up to do the training.”
“It sounds amazing, Emma.”
“It’s a lot of work, but like I said before, God put this mission in my heart.” She peeled off the kitchen gloves. She hated to ruin their easy conversation by bringing up a tough subject, but there would never be a great time to ask. “Reed, what happened to Bonnie?”
He let out a sigh, long and low. “She—”
Reed’s phone trilled. He glanced at the screen and stiffened. “I have to take this. It’s Dispatch.”
He answered, walking to the other side of the kitchen. There were a few tense moments of silence. Emma sent up a prayer that whatever had happened God would watch over the innocent.
Reed hung up and turned to her. “I need you and Sadie to come with me. We’ve got a missing girl in Fairhill National Park.”
SIX
In a missing person case, every second counted.
Reed’s SUV bumped over the dirt road heading deeper into Fairhill National Park. Dusk was shifting into twilight and fireflies flickered in the trees on either side of the road. He ached to push down on the gas pedal, but the vehicle’s suspension wouldn’t survive.
“I’ve never been to this park,” Emma said. She gripped the handle of the passenger seat as Reed swerved around a divot in the road. “Does this road lead to the main camping area?”
“No. Camping is allowed anywhere in the park, not just the designated areas. Molly—that’s the missing girl—her dad is something of an outdoorsman. He likes to rough it.”
She slanted a look his way. “You know the family?”
“Not well, but Derrick owns the hardware store in town. His wife is a teacher at the elementary school.”
“How long has Molly been missing?”
Reed glanced at the clock, the knot in his stomach tightening. “About two hours. Derrick was smart to call us in early.”
They rounded the bend and a campsite came into view with a family-size tent, fishing poles and a fire pit. One deputy was off to the side with two young children. Austin was near the tree line talking with Molly’s parents. He broke off when he spotted Reed’s vehicle.
Emma hopped out and opened the back seat to release Sadie from her specialized belt.
“We’ve got a missing eleven-year-old female, Molly Hanks.” His chief deputy skipped the pleasantries and jumped straight into a report. “Last seen wearing black jeans, a gray T-shirt and purple sneakers. She disappeared while her parents were making dinner. They did a quick search of the nearby area and didn’t find her. The park rangers were called in and they did a more extensive search but haven’t located her yet.”
“Where was she last seen?”
“She was reading over there.” Austin gestured toward the far side of the clearing. A novel, split open to save the page, rested on a fallen tree trunk. “I’ve called in for assistance from the state troopers, as well as the Texas Rangers. The nearest SAR team has also been alerted, although they’re a couple of hours away.”
“Emma and Sadie are trained in Search and Rescue. They’re going to give us a head start.”
Austin tossed her a brief smile. “Good to see you again, Emma. Appreciate your help.” He turned back to Reed. “This could be more than Molly simply wandering off and getting lost. We could be dealing with a possible abduction.”
Reed shoulders stiffened. “How so?”
“Derrick isn’t Molly’s biological father. He’s her stepdad. Apparently, the family has had issues with Molly’s father in the past. He’s a drug user and recently lost his visitation. According to the mom, he didn’t handle it well.”
“Got a description on Dad?”
“Name’s Vernon Hanks. Last known address is in Willowbend.”
