Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense March 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 by Dana Mentink (good fiction books to read .txt) 📕

nodded and shifted the radio function to the text feature. His fingers stilled. Who would he call? If Perry or anyone in the sheriff’s office was involved, then Maya had reason to be concerned for Nora’s safety. He’d need to tread carefully. And while he didn’t trust Maya fully, she had led them out of the mines and given them a way to call for help. He took her assurances to heart that all evidence would be destroyed if he called in the wrong people. The closest FBI office was in Coeur d’Alene. Was that too close? If Carl was on the take, it was possible the drug ring had an FBI officer also on the payroll. Maybe that was the real reason behind Tommy’s killer having never been brought to justice.

“Can…can we text Bobby to see if he’s okay? I told him to run to get help.” The strain around her eyes overwhelmed him. He was ashamed to admit that after the fight with Carl in the tunnel, he’d forgotten about the shots they’d heard on the river. Another set of engines revved nearby, causing them both to still. Without his holster and in the middle of nowhere, his earlier bravado about keeping her safe seemed to drift away with the clouds.

He took a deep breath. “Do you think you’re up for more hiking? I know the way back to the highway from here. Once we get a little farther away from whatever is going on here, we’ll make some calls.”

“Who will you call?”

He’d been hoping she wouldn’t ask. “From what Maya told us, whoever is in charge was also here when Tommy was murdered.” He reached for her hand as they traversed a path covered in pine needles.

“So that rules out Zach as a likely suspect. Besides, he got injured, so he probably can’t pick us up. But Perry—”

“Helped get us the only lead we have. He gave us the lead that the gun used to shoot us from that bank was the same gun used to shoot Tommy.”

“But maybe he did that just to throw off our suspicion. He’s got broad shoulders like the guy who tried to attack me.”

“He’s got an athletic build, sure, but an average height.” Henry tried to shake off the irritation every time she mentioned Perry’s shoulders. “Plenty of guys can match that description. Like me,” he added half-heartedly.

“No.” She shook her head and stomped forward.

Her reaction gave him pause. “No? No, what?”

“Your shoulders are much broader.” She waved a carefree hand over her shoulder. “Never mind.”

He fought to ignore how pleased he was with her observation. Before they’d dragged up the past guarding his heart had been easier. Any temptation to flirt or care what she thought would’ve been far from his mind. He needed that hard edge back now more than ever. Not only for his sake but also to keep her safe. “Nora, whoever comes to pick us up—”

“Call whoever you want. I just want to make sure Bobby is okay.” She lifted her chin, a determined gleam in her eyes. “We can pretend we don’t know anything. We heard gunshots—we can say that much, right? It doesn’t reveal we know all about Maya, Carl and the drugs. So we say the gunshots made us get off the river. We took a trail and got lost.”

He cringed and gestured to the left, to a path down the hillside behind the trees. “Maybe skip the last part. I can’t admit to getting lost. I’m a ranger.”

“Hurts your street cred?” she asked with a laugh.

“Something like that.” He nodded, the easy humor they’d shared gone. “We can work on our story on the way down.” The words gripped his heart with new meaning. He felt certain that they’d never get a second chance to start their story again.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Nora stared at the door in the sheriff’s backseat, wondering if it was locked like that when he transferred prisoners. It turned out she and Henry had wasted time arguing about who would pick them up. When they’d gotten far enough away from the revving engines, the only person they could reach was the sheriff himself.

The man had definitely been around since before Tommy had been killed, and as he and Henry discussed the events—an edited version—of the day, she wondered if Henry considered the sheriff a suspect, as well. He certainly was in a powerful position.

“So, we’ve got two missing men,” the sheriff explained. “Perry hasn’t been seen since after he dropped Zach off at the urgent care clinic to get a tetanus shot and stitched up—”

“He was hurt that bad?”

“Oh, you know. Nothing worse than you see in a typical whitewater season, but Zach is playing it up as injury in the line of duty. His wife will be spoiling him rotten, mark my words.” The sheriff chuckled and shook his head. For a potential suspect, the sheriff sure didn’t seem like the type to be a drug lord and a murderer.

“Who’s the other missing man?” Henry asked. Nora’s gut clenched.

“Bobby Olson, but it’s too soon to call out—”

“He was shot at,” Nora blurted. “We heard—”

“Every available man went out on the river to look. That is why I’m the only one available to drive you back. But it’s too soon to panic. Let’s give it a few more hours. I imagine, like you, Bobby probably found his way back to land, and Perry probably got caught up following a lead without a cell signal to check in to his office.” He waved at Henry. “You know how these things work. We can’t go jumping on assumptions. There’s no sign of blood or foul play so far.”

There certainly was foul play all day when they were out on the river, but Nora held her tongue. The sheriff pulled up next to Henry’s truck in the lodge parking lot. They got out wordlessly, aside from a wave of thanks.

Henry walked alongside her, unusually quiet. “You probably can’t wait to get changed