Twister parked so fast the kickstand barely hit the pavement before he was off the bike.“Move!”
I killed my engine, and before I could even swing my leg over, Goldie was already climbing off.“Goldie!”
She didn’t stop, ran straight up the sidewalk, and I caught her halfway to the porch.
She fought me and tried to push me away.“Wheels!”
“Slow down,” I grunted.
“My sister—”
“I know.”
She shoved against my chest.“I have to—”
“I know.”I caught both sides of her face.“Look at me.”
Tears filled her eyes immediately.
“We’re going in.”
She nodded frantically.
“But we’re doing it smart.”
Another nod.
Twister was already on the porch with his gun drawn.Hodge covered the left side of the house, and Magnum moved toward the backyard.Swift checked the neighboring yards.
The door stood open as if Novalea had just forgotten to close it.
Like whoever had come here hadn’t cared if anyone knew.
I stepped inside first with Goldie directly behind me, despite every instinct telling me to keep her outside.
There wasn’t time.
The smell hit first, something sour from an overturned trash can.Then the living room came into view.Every drawer had been dumped, and the couch cushions sliced open.Books were thrown everywhere, and picture frames were shattered.The television lay face down on the floor.
It wasn’t vandalism.It was a search.A methodical one.
Goldie stopped breathing.“Oh...”Her voice broke.“No...”She pulled away from me.“Novalea!”Her shout echoed through the house.
No answer.
She ran toward the hallway.I stayed on her heels.
The bedroom was destroyed.The closet emptied, the mattress flipped, and the dressers dumped.
“Novalea!”she shouted again.
Nothing.
The kitchen was the same.Everywhere I looked, someone had searched.Not for valuables.For something specific.
Goldie was crying now and absolutely terrified.“Nova!”
She disappeared down another hallway, and I followed.
