Page 163 of Rangers Unexpected Return

Something ran across the path.

I aimed.

A deer disappeared into the woods.

Rylie released a breath. “I think my heart stopped,” she whispered.

“Mine didn’t,” Trigger said. “It’s trying to beat its way through my chest.”

Max continued watching the woods.

“He isn’t interested in the deer,” Mace said.

That worried me more than the sound.

We reached the office without seeing anyone. The front door hung crookedly from one hinge, and broken glass covered the floor.

Trigger entered first.

Mace and Max followed.

I went in with Rylie behind me.

The smell of mildew filled the building. Old desks had been overturned, cabinet drawers pulled open, and papers scattered across the floor.

“Someone searched this place,” Mace said.

“Recently?” Rylie asked.

I aimed my flashlight at the dust. “Some of it.”

Several shoe prints crossed the floor. There were too many to separate, but one trail led directly to a door at the end of the hall.

Rylie pointed. “The camp director’s office.”

The brass cabinet stood inside.

It was taller than I expected, with two narrow doors and a heavy lock near the middle. Rust marked the hinges, but the lock was clean.

Too clean.

“Someone has been touching it,” I said.

Trigger examined the floor. “No dust in front of it either.”

“Maybe they tried to open it,” Rylie said.

“Or they’ve been waiting for us to do it,” Mace replied.

I looked around the office. The walls were bare. A cracked window overlooked the lake, and an old desk sat against the opposite wall.

“No wires,” Trigger said after examining the cabinet. “Nothing attached to the lock.”

Mace crouched beside Max. “What do you think?”

Max sniffed the cabinet and sat.

Mace looked at me. “No explosives he recognizes.”