“Good.”Connor looked toward a young deputy by the side door Selena hadn’t seen before.“Dennis, you stay here.If Marlene calls, if anyone calls saying they’ve seen her, I want it logged and sent to me immediately.”
Dennis nodded.“Yes, Sheriff.”
Selena said, “Do we have anyone at Marlene’s house?”
“Deputy Wilkes,” Connor said.“Front and back covered.If she circles home, we’ll know.”
The radio popped again.
Arnold said, “Chief, we found a shoe behind the fence line.Looks like it could be hers.”
Connor picked up the handset.“Where exactly?”
“About fifty yards past the Schmidt property.Near the creek trail.”
“Photograph it.Bag it.Keep moving but don’t trample the area.If she cut across there, she may have doubled toward Porter’s Road.”
Selena looked at the map.“That gives her woods, a creek bed, and old lanes.”
Connor nodded.“And a lot of places to hide.”
Cheryl’s pen scratched across the logbook.“I’ll notify Chuck.”
“No, keep moving,” Connor said.“I’ll do it.”He changed channels.“Chuck, possible movement toward Porter’s Road.Shift north.Keep your eyes open.”
“On it.”
For the next ten minutes, the department moved in a rough rhythm.Calls came in.Cheryl sorted them.Connor rejected the useless ones fast and chased anything with shape.Selena fielded a report from highway patrol, then corrected a description when someone said Marlene was blond.
“Dark hair,” Selena said into the phone.“Mid-forties.Gray sweater when last seen, possibly torn.One shoe missing.Frightened and possibly injured, but do not assume harmless.She assaulted a federal agent.”
Across the room, Connor looked at her when she said it.
Selena held his gaze until he turned back to the map.
Arnold came through again, his voice lower this time.“Chief, we’ve got nothing past the creek.Trail’s dry.Too many prints to make sense of anything.”
“Keep searching,” Connor said.“But stay paired.I hate to say this, but she could be dangerous.”
“Copy.”
Connor set the handset down and looked around the room.“All right.We widen.Arnold and Chuck keep canvassing.Highway patrol covers the roads.Dennis stays here with Cheryl to field calls.Selena and I will take the streets between the Schmidt house and downtown.”
Selena nodded.“I’ll start near Porter’s Road.”
“I’ll take the east side.”
Cheryl folded her arms.“Both of you need to eat something.”
Connor picked up his hat.“We find Marlene first.We eat later.”
“That sounded noble in your head, I’m sure.”
“Well, I could stand to lose a few pounds.”
For half a second, the corner of Cheryl’s mouth twitched.Then the worry came back.
Connor pointed toward the radio.“Call me if anything changes.”
