“Thanks, Kessler,” she said, hanging up. Juniper gave her a few more kisses on the cheek and Maya scratched her ears again. She needed to make one morephone call and then she could head back to town to start gathering more information. The more she could investigate before Kessler arrived the better.
Maya dialed Josh next. He answered immediately. She was ready to tell him about the girl, but he cut her off. “Hang up and just get to the sheriff’s office now.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I know why you’re calling and it would be better if you’re here. I love you.”
The call ended and Maya stared at her phone as if it would magically reconnect. Could this day get any stranger? Could Josh act any more bizarre?
“Don’t jinx yourself,” Maya muttered, putting her patrol vehicle in gear. When it came to Abigail, anything strange was possible.
Chapter Eleven
As Maya accelerated along the curving road, she glanced in her side-view mirror. Another plume of smoke had erupted and was pushing high up into the air. This fire wasn’t going to be a monster. It already was. She focused on the road, hoping Agent Kessler would call her back soon and reassure her that Abigail was in a holding cell where she belonged.
But there hadn’t even been a text since she’d left the pull-off area. Of course, she was also driving through areas with spotty cell service. Some light green heavy-duty trucks going the other direction had crews of Forest Service wildland firefighters. They were going to have a long couple of weeks or even months ahead. Or they could get lucky and if the weather cooperated, they might get control over it quickly. Although with mop-ups the fire response could go on for a while. It was always hard to know.
Maya arrived at the edge of town, driving past her Forest Service building to the sheriff’s office. She made sure Juniper’s compartment was set at a good temperature and then climbed out of her vehicle. Staring back in the direction she had just come from, shecould see several plumes building and pushing their way into the sky. If the winds shifted again, there might be a chance that Pinecone Junction would have to be evacuated. She was glad that she and Josh had grabbed their go-bags.
If this fire burned through the town, Josh could lose his house. They’d been living together ever since Maya’s cabin in the woods had burned down. That was also courtesy of Abigail. It had been her first attempt at killing Maya. From that, Maya learned that Abigail liked to have other people do her dirty work. The kidnapping fit her MO.
She checked Juniper one more time. The Mal was curled up, napping away. Maya had no illusions that she would be tired for long. Juniper was good at taking power naps and then being ready to go again. As she made her way to the front entrance, the doors opened before she could get there. Josh.
As he came closer, Maya saw his expression with tight eyebrows and his mouth in a hard line. Maybe his first fire response was getting to him. Of course, she probably didn’t have a different expression on her face. If anything, she was still wondering about the events that had unfolded this morning.
Josh’s face softened as he came closer. He drew Maya into a quick kiss and ran his thumb over her cheek, caressing it and making her heart beat faster. He seemed more like himself now, but Maya still wondered why he’d been so jumpy that morning. They really needed a vacation and time to talk.
“What’s going on?” Maya asked.
“Let’s go inside.”
Now Maya was even more curious. “Okay. I have some things to fill you in on too. Kessler and some other agents are headed this way along with a marshal.”
“Good.”
“Good?” Maya asked Josh. They entered the lobby and Josh nodded at the deputy sitting at the front desk as he used his key card to let them through the doors to the back.
“Yes, good.”
“What’s going on?” Maya asked, stopping. She was done with not getting information and being kept in suspense.
“Let’s go in my office,” Josh answered.
She followed, still wanting answers. Her irritation grew. Josh closed the door and stared at her. “You’re scaring me.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t mean to. I’ve been busy with the fire response, but I think things are set there and going. Have roads closed, working with state patrol and surrounding county deputies. The first fire crews have arrived and will send reports soon.”
“Stop it,” Maya said, putting her hands on her duty belt. “What’s going on?”
“To add to the chaos, we had a person turn himself in,” Josh answered. He too had his hands on his duty belt. It was the cop equivalent of hands on their hips or crossing their arms. His index finger tapped in a nervous twitch. Maya fought the urge to tell him to stop being so fidgety.
“Don’t tell me...”
“Yes, it’s your father. Eric walked in here this morning and told the front desk deputy that he was turning himself in. Guy is new and didn’t know what to do for a minute. Finally cuffed Eric, patted him down and called your grandfather.”
“Where is Eric?” Maya asked.
“Believe it or not, Pops took the cuffs off and brought him to the conference room.”
