Page 149 of Hard Rain

Whip smiled.

“Funny. I didn’t hear you complaining when you were wrapped around me.”

“It’s longer,” he insisted.

“It sure is.” Whip’s grin widened.

Damn it.

Axel adjusted in his seat and stared through the windshield.

“So… about Oktoberfest.”

Whip’s soft chuckle followed them into the Lakeview Sheriff’s Office parking lot.

The other vehicles rolled in beside them.

Knox climbed out of one SUV while Sheriff Mercer and Grant stepped out of another. Detective Foster slammed his door, already shaking his head before Boone reached him.

The jokes died the second Axel opened his door.

Rain hammered the parking lot as they crossed to the sheriff’s office.

The blast of warm air hit Axel the second he stepped inside, chasing away the damp cold that had settled into his jacket.

Boone didn’t slow down. “Office.”

They peeled off wet jackets as they followed him down the hall. Mercer grabbed the door, letting everyone funnel inside before closing it against the weather.

Boone’s office was crowded in seconds. Marshals shoulder to shoulder with deputies, Grant leaning against the wall, Foster claiming a corner near the whiteboard. Someone shoved a fresh pot of coffee onto the desk.

Boone waited until everyone had found a spot.

“All right.”

He nodded toward the county map Beth had pinned to the wall.

“The three Oregon locations Cutter gave us came up empty, but we haven’t searched the surrounding properties.”

Sheriff Mercer stepped closer to the map. “Like the Zuckerman place outside Fort Rock.”

“Exactly,” Boone said. “Old man Zuckerman passed away last year. His kids have all but abandoned the property.”

Whip tipped his head toward the map. “The barn backs up to one of the places we searched. It’d be a good place to hide.”

Boone nodded once. “Tomorrow, we start clearing every neighboring property on our list. Tonight, you’re staying at my place. It’s five minutes from Fort Rock.”

“What about Fierce?” Knox asked out of the blue.

“Who?” Grant asked.

Boone’s eyes settled on Knox, then shifted to Whip before landing on Axel.

“What am I missing?”

“Fierce showed up while I was looking for Whip,” Axel said. “You might want to call the Secretary of Defense.”

A muscle ticked in Boone’s jaw.