Page 82 of Tracking Safety

Now that his son was safely crossing the yard, some of his apprehension bled through.

He glanced at her. “You okay?”

Jenna almost said yes. The word was right there, automatic, the same answer she gave everyone about everything.

Instead of vocalizing it, she swallowed the sentiment. “Luke. When we get inside . . . there’s something I need to show you.”

Something shifted in his expression. “What is it?”

She glanced toward the house and thought about the children inside. Thought about the family who’d taken her back in.

Then she looked at him. “Talk to your family first. I know they’ll want an explanation about Liam. But there’s something you should know. Something new. And I don’t want to keep any secrets from you.”

Luke walked inside and saw his mother was still hugging Liam.

She smoothed a hand over Liam’s hair. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Are you hungry? I made soup.”

Liam nodded into her embrace.

The kitchen still held the smell of the lunch. Bowls sat on the table where they’d been set out an hour ago, the soup gone cold and the bread untouched under a dish towel.

Cora was perched on a stool watching the door with wide eyes, and Jonah had wedged himself against Naomi’s leg, sensing the tension in the room.

“Liam is fine,” Luke reassured everyone. “He took a walk he shouldn’t have taken. We talked about it, and he knows not to do it again.”

Cora slid off her stool. “Liam, you’re not s’posed to go in the woods. Daddy said.”

“Cora.” Luke kept his voice mild. “Not now.”

She pressed her lips together and frowned but didn’t say anything else.

Through the window, Luke saw Wyatt’s truck come through the gate and roll to a stop near the garage. Thunder had his head out the window and his ears up. Wyatt climbed out and looked at the house.

Luke leaned out the door, caught his eye, and lifted a hand. Found him.

Wyatt’s shoulders softened. He said something to Thunder, and the two of them started toward the door.

Luke released his breath.

He should have felt relief. He did feel relief. But the emotion was buried beneath something colder and harder that hadn’t let go of him since he’d seen Travis Henderson standing beside his son.

It’s a dangerous place for someone who doesn’t know where they’re going. All kinds of things can happen.

Tension—and anger—crept up his spine as he replayed the conversation.

He’d looked into Travis’s eyes, and he’d seen exactly what the man wanted him to see.

His words had been a threat against an eight-year-old. Delivered with a toothpick in the corner of his mouth and a smile that dared Luke to prove otherwise.

Luke’s jaw ached, and he made himself unclench it.

Wyatt came inside with Thunder at his heel. The dog crossed the kitchen, gave Liam a thorough sniff, and then lay down across the doorway.

Wyatt glanced at Liam, who was still tucked against his grandma. Then he looked back at Luke. “What happened?”

He took a few steps away, Wyatt following him. He didn’t want to say too much in front of the children.

“Travis happened,” Luke told him.