Claire chewed on a knuckle as she stared out the window, ignoring the idle chitchat between Eli and Alex. It was probably for her benefit, a distraction from her worry. Her stomach burned and she pressed a hand to it, wishing they could drive faster.

When they were turning off the interstate about twenty minutes from her parents’ property, Eli called the county sheriff again and put him on speaker. “Any luck yet?”

“I was just about to call you. A helicopter pilot working the fire circled your area and spotted something. A large tent.”

Eli turned back to look at Claire and asked, “Is there a reason a tent would be on your property?”

“No.” Raising her voice, Claire asked, “Where is it?”

“By a pond.” The sheriff’s reply came through with some static. “It’s a good-sized tent, maybe ten by ten or bigger.”

Claire bit on her lower lip, thinking hard to remember. “There are two ponds on the property.”

“Both have access roads?” Eli asked Claire.

“Only one does. The other is about a half mile off the main drive. You can get to it on foot or with an off-road vehicle.”

“Can you have your deputy meet us at the entrance to the property?” Eli asked the sheriff. “We’re about fifteen, twenty minutes out.”

Eli ended the call, then turned back to Claire. “Can you show me the ponds on your phone?”

Claire brought up a satellite photo of the property and handed over her phone.

Eli studied the screen for a moment and returned her phone, then pulled a couple of two-way radios from the glove compartment. One he handed to Alex, who slipped it into his jacket pocket, and the other Eli clipped to his belt. He reached in again and pulled out several gun clips, handing two to Alex before slipping a couple into his own jacket, a black windbreaker emblazoned with the Phoenix logo.

Alex turned onto the property a few minutes later. The deputy’s vehicle, a dusty mid-sized SUV with all-terrain tires, was parked a hundred feet ahead, and the deputy climbed out of the vehicle as Alex parked behind him.

Claire wrinkled her nose at the smell of smoke as all three climbed out of the Explorer. She looked up at the gray sky, the smoke so thick it was dimming the sun.

“How far away is the fire?” Eli asked the deputy.

“About twenty miles.”

“Let’s drive as close as the road will take us, then split up,” Eli suggested. “Alex, why don’t you and the deputy try the pond near the southern boundary? Claire, you and I can hike to the other pond.”

“We can take mine.” The deputy gestured toward his SUV. “It’s better equipped for the terrain. The road’s rough on this part of the property, more like a logging road.”

Once they were inside the deputy’s patrol car, they drove for several minutes before Claire told the officer to stop.

“Eli and I can get out here,” she said. “You two will see the other pond a little further down the road.”

“Radio once you guys get there,” Eli told Alex as they got out of the SUV.

Alex nodded. “We will.”

Claire and Eli climbed out, and the deputy’s vehicle crunched on gravel as it continued down the road.

Claire led the way as they crossed the road and started up the ridge facing them. The terrain was rocky and had steep areas that took some effort to climb, making Claire glad she’d changed into jeans and hiking boots before leaving home. Despite the miles she ran a few days each week, she was breathing hard as they crested the top, but Eli had barely broken a sweat.

Claire looked down at the floor of a small valley. There was no tent in sight. Pointing, she said, “There’s the pond.”

“Let’s get closer,” Eli said, and Claire followed as he carefully picked his way down the ridge. They passed the pond and climbed another small ridge.

At the top of this one, Eli halted Claire. “Stay behind me.”

She frowned in confusion before following his line of sight. Behind a cluster of trees, tan-colored canvas was visible, and a chill ran through her.

Eli radioed Alex, keeping his voice low. “We’ve found it.” He described the route they’d taken.

“Can you tell if anyone’s inside?” Alex asked.

“Not yet.”

“We just made it to the other pond and there’s nothing here. We’ll head toward you.”

Tucking his radio into his pocket, Eli said, “I’d like to get a closer look. Can you stay here, out of sight?”

After Claire promised that she would, Eli started down the hill. He was almost to the bottom when the front flap of the tent opened and a large man exited.

A bird squawked nearby, startled into flight, and the man turned around. He spotted Eli, whipped a pistol from his waistband, and fired off a shot in his direction.

Eli ducked, taking cover behind the trunk of a large pine tree. Seconds later, he peered around the tree and fired back. Claire’s heart pounded against her ribs as she watched. Someone else was coming out of the tent now.

At the sight of Grayson, her heart stopped.

His wrists were bound in front of him and he was being shoved forward at gunpoint. When the man holding the gun emerged from the tent, Claire gasped.

Oh my God. My father’s chief of staff is behind all this?

As Peter Cooley shoved Grayson in the opposite direction of Eli and the large man, Claire held her breath, pushing aside her shock and the deep sense of betrayal that threatened to pull her under. She couldn’t break down now . . . there’d be time for that later.

Forcing herself to remain calm, Claire glanced around. Could Eli see what was going on? Given his location, probably not.

Her fingernails bit into her palms as her mind spun. She had no radio, and there was no way she could get to Eli. Not safely.

She had to do something to help Grayson. Now, before he and Peter disappeared from sight.

Crouching so that Peter wouldn’t see her, she moved as quietly as she could through the brush parallel with him and Grayson, struggling to come up with a plan. The only thing she could think of was providing some sort of distraction that would allow Grayson to get away.

Rejecting the idea of yelling, she snatched a stone from the ground. Now she just needed to get closer. Tall grass grew along the ridge. She used it as cover as she made her way down.

Once she was within yards of Grayson and Peter, she ducked behind a tree and said a quick prayer that the rock would make it where she intended.

Taking a step forward, she hurled the stone. It hit a tree several feet away from Grayson and Peter, making a loud thud against the bark before bouncing to the ground.