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Mack shook his head. “I’ll get warrants out for Eleanor Dumaresq and Hank Stewart. But you and I will sit down and have a serious talk after all this is over.”
He nodded. Mack had to catch him first. “If we move now, we might still find them.”
“I’ll get the ball rolling. And you’d better hope like hell nothing has happened to that other kid. Or the psychic,” Mack growled, then spun and stalked toward his car.
Jon pushed away from the wall and walked inside.
Evan stared up at him, eyes wide and full of a fearful desperation. “You have to go now. Aunt Maddie needs you.”
He squeezed the kid’s shoulder again. “I made you a promise. I’ll bring her back.”
Or die trying, he thought bleakly, and turned away.
MACK GLANCED UP AS JON WALKED OUT THE DOOR. “BEN’S staying with the kid, and I’ve organized more local help. I’ll meet them up near the cabin.”
Jon pulled up his coat collar to stop the rain from dribbling down his neck. “I’m coming with you.”
Mack studied him for a moment, gray eyes hard. “Give me one good reason why you should.”
“Eleanor’s a sorcerer.” He gave Mack a bland smile. “I know magic. You don’t.”
It was hard to tell whether Mack believed him or not, simply because there was no reaction from the man. But after a moment of silence, he nodded. “Get in.”
Mack climbed in and started the engine. Jon got into the passenger side and glanced at his watch. Two and a half hours gone. Maddie and Hank could be anywhere by now.
“Anyone would think from your behavior that you cared for this woman,” Mack commented. The rear tires squealed as the car sped off.
Jon smiled grimly. “I barely know her.” Which was both the truth and a lie. He probably understood Maddie better than he understood himself. And he sure as hell liked her more than he liked himself.
Mack lit a cigarette and took a long puff. “That’s not what I meant,” he said, exhaling.
Jon glanced across at him. “Just drive, Mack. I’m not in the mood to have my life analyzed right now.”
The big man gave him a sharklike smile and planted his foot to the floor.
THEY’D MISSED THEM. JON KNEW IT THE MINUTE MACK pulled the car to a halt. Though why he was so sure, he couldn’t honestly have said. Ignoring the stares of the local police, he walked across to the road leading up to the cabin. The heavy rain had quickly turned the mud to slush, but it was still thick enough to capture the imprint of a tire that had slid in the turn onto the road. He ran a finger around the outline of the track. They’d missed them by about ten minutes, if not more. The rain was beginning to wash the deep prints away.
Mack squatted down beside him. “Recognize them?”
He shook his head. “No. But they’re recent.”
“So our quarry has probably flown.” Mack stood up and studied the muddy driveway. “We’ll go check, anyway.”
“They might have left something for us.” Jon rose to his feet, hoping like hell that that something was a ransom note and not a body. Either way, he had to know before he gave chase. “We’ll have to walk, though. I doubt if the cars will make it up the hill in this rain.”
Mack nodded in agreement and motioned for the local officers to follow. Jon led the way, listening to the wind whistling through the dripping pines. There was no sign that Eleanor was still in the area. When the cabin came into sight, Mack pulled him to a halt and Jon bit back his impatience. The man was only doing his job. He stood in the shadows of a pine and watched the cabin. There was no noise or movement to be heard. The place had to be empty—or at least empty of life.
His gut clenched painfully. Maddie had to be alive. Surely Eleanor wasn’t stupid enough to get rid of a potential hostage?
“Stay here,” Mack ordered, checking his gun.
Jon nodded. Until he knew if Maddie was okay, he would obey. He watched the four men run across the clearing to the front of the cabin. He watched as they smashed the door open and tumbled inside. When no gunshots or snarls met their appearance, he walked down to join them.
Mack glanced up as he entered the cabin. “Our birds have flown, but they left us a note.” He offered the sealed plastic bag to Jon.
He scanned it quickly and frowned. They wanted an exchange—Maddie for Evan. But that didn’t make sense. Why not just go find another kid if they needed two? Why did they need Evan back? But at least it meant there was a chance that Maddie was still alive. At least she wasn’t dead on the old worn floorboards. The relief he felt was frightening.
He handed back the note and tried to remind himself it didn’t mean she was still alive. “Let’s go find the bastards,” he muttered, and spun around.
