AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER TEN
REED DREW IN a deep breath. Then another. In through his nose and out through his mouth. Calm. He needed to stay calm. For Don’s sake, as much as anything else. He could see Don was seething, but holding it in, nonetheless.
The press conference had just ended, and Reed, Don, and Sierra retreated to the safety of the fire station to collect themselves, while the media packed up their equipment and moved on. They were in the kitchen area of the CFS, and he leaned his hip up against one of the laminate benches. It was after nine in the morning, and Reed was chafing to get back out and help with the search, but he’d been caught up with his boss, helping him field the media frenzy. Eric and Olivia were already out there doing their job, along with the extra four officers from the mainland, and it galled him that he was stuck here. Reed wanted to be there when the tracker dog went back to the family house, to see if it could pick up the trail again. But this was a necessary evil, and at least Sierra had agreed to help them.
“Those fuckers, how dare they imply we’re not doing our job properly?” Don couldn’t hold his outrage in a moment longer. “How dare they say we don’t care about that poor little girl.” Don’s face was turning an interesting shade of purple.
“I know, Sarge, but Sierra did warn us.” He turned and flicked a quick glance at her. She was standing with her back against the wall, out of the way, perhaps letting Don get rid of some of his temper.
“Yes, and thank God she did.” Don snorted, but seemed to lose some of the heat from his temper. “I’m sorry, Sierra, but that was a pack of vultures out there. Hyenas out for blood, and they didn’t really care whose. I know it was a long time ago, but how could you possibly have been a part of that?”
Today Sierra was dressed in long hiking pants, with a pair of weatherproof hiking boots on her feet. Imminently more suitable for continuing the search through the bush. She must’ve borrowed them from her friend last night. She still had on the bulky hoodie from yesterday, and Reed’s pulse spiked briefly as he remembered what she looked like without that large covering. Her slim shoulders and the shape of her collarbone.
“They’re just doing their job, Sarge. You have to remember that. They want the truth as much as we do.” Her voice was quiet and measured. Clearly not wanting to enter into an argument with the police chief.
“I’m not so sure of that,” Don huffed. “But I do owe you thanks. If you hadn’t prepped me on how to answer some of those questions, I might’ve looked like a bit of a fool out there. It’s been a while since I last did a press conference.”
“You did a good job,” Sierra said soothingly.
Actually, Reed had been surprised at how good a job Don had done. He’d remained cool and determined, showed just the right amount of sincerity and compassion. Sierra had remained inside the fire station, out of sight. But Reed stood behind his boss as he faced the wall of microphones and cameras outside, and even he’d felt a little intimidated by it all. By the barrage of questions, and the aggression of some of the journalists. He couldn’t reconcile that mob out there with what Sierra confessed to do. It wasn’t the same thing at all, in his mind.
“And we’ll have to do it all over again this evening,” Don complained.
“Hopefully we’ll have some good news to give them by then.” Reed sincerely wished they’d have something a little more concrete by tonight. If they didn’t, then perhaps the accusations from some of the journalists that they weren’t doing their jobs properly might actually hold some weight.
Don’s phone rang, and he walked over to a corner of the room to answer it. Reed went over to where Sierra was hovering in the corner.
“I’d like to add my thanks to Don’s. You were a good help.” He stood close, mainly because he liked the feel of her presence. He caught a whiff of something floral, shampoo perhaps. It was a cheerful aroma, vital and alive, like her.
“What?” Don’s loud exclamation made Reed look up sharply. “Are you sure?” They both stared at Don, wondering what was going on. “Where did you say this was?” Don’s body-language had gone from rigid and angry to rigid and alert. He stood in profile, and Reed could see his mustache quivering with reined-in exasperation. They listened as Don asked a few more questions, then he gestured for Reed to bring him a pen and paper. He hurried to hand him his own small note pad and pen he always kept in his police vest. “I’m sending Officer Reed Kapua over right now. Wait for him to get there. And please don’t touch anything. And don’t go near the area until the officer gets there.”
Reed stiffened. An icy sliver of fear filled his gut. Oh, no. Please no. Let it not be that. Sierra tensed beside him as they both stared at Don, terrified of what he was going to say.
“One of the search teams just found something. Bones. They think they might be human,” Don said.
Reed expelled a loud breath. Damn, he’d been thinking the worst—that they’d found the little girl’s body. But bones meant the body had been there for a long time, way too long to be little Jessica. He glanced at Sierra and saw relief wash over her face, as well.
“Bones? Human bones?” said Sierra, as if repeating the words might make them more real. “Here, on the island?”
“Yes, I believe so,” Don replied, the irritation plain in his voice. “Which is just what we didn’t need. Another complication. Shit, what’s going on here?” Don’s last question seemed to be rhetorical, and he began to pace to and fro at the end of the kitchen.
“Where?” Sierra asked the question on the tip of Reed’s tongue before he was able to utter it.
“Over by the Glossies nesting area.” Don waved the small piece of paper in the air, where he’d written down the instructions.
“Do you mean the one on Binney’s Track?”
“Yes, that sounds about right.” Don turned to Reed. “I need you to get out there now, and I’ll need your report ASAP. If it is human bones, and not just some dead animal, then I’ll need to get that forensics guy they sent over from the mainland to take a look. With all this hysteria being stirred up by a missing girl and talk of abductions, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s just a dead sheep or a fox.” Don grimaced and narrowed his eyes. “But I know you’ve got some skills in that area, so I trust you to handle it for now.”
“Right away.” He was surprised by Don’s words of confidence. Less than a week ago, Reed had thought he might have a long road ahead to get his boss to trust him. He was the new guy on the block, and it was human nature for Don to want Reed to prove himself before he became an integrated part of the unit. But this sudden nightmarish turn of events was putting the squeeze on them all, and perhaps it was forcing Don to accept him much quicker than he once would. The Sarge was correct, this was a huge complication, one they didn’t need right now. It’d take the focus off the search for the missing girl. But someone needed to get over there and get the situation under control.
“I’ll show you the way, if you like.” Sierra stepped forward. “I know where it is. I’ve worked with the Glossies before.”
Reed hesitated. Was that a good idea? Getting her involved in a search for a missing girl was one thing, but if they were human bones? That was a whole other level. And the implications were far-reaching. It could mean there was a killer on the island.
Don’s phone rang again, its urgent tone cutting through the silence.
“Yes, yes, take her with you.” Don waved in their general direction. “Now get going. I’ve got to answer this, it’s the Senior Sergeant looking for an update, and he’s going to be pissed when I give him this news.” Don turned his back on them and effectively dismissed them both.
