Chapter Nine – Hannah

Dinner?

Hannah picked up her phone and glanced at the message. It was from Knox. Her stomach erupted, a million tiny bubbles fizzing and popping at the thought of him. His hands, his mouth… Her work, which normally consumed her, took second place to Knox.

Yes. Where? xox

Were the kisses too much? Hannah sent the message anyway. The closeness she shared with Knox was not a thing she could hide, or would want to hide. She was an affectionate woman, and Knox needed to get used to that. Color rose in her cheeks: last night had taught him she was more than affectionate. Passionate might be one more word he could associate with his mate.

Mates. What did that even mean? Hannah knew what it meant to Knox. He was a bear shifter, and Suzie had explained how the whole thing worked. But what did it mean to a non-shifter? Her phone buzzed and she read the next text from Knox with a smile.

I’ll surprise you x

Hannah hit reply.

Can’t wait xox

Grabbing her empty coffee cup, she went out to get a refill and see if Suzie was free. It was late afternoon and they were both catching up on paperwork. After refilling her own cup, she grabbed a fresh cup for Suzie and took it to her office.

“Knock, knock.” Hannah pushed Suzie’s door open. “Coffee?”

“Please, you are a lifesaver.” Suzie placed the piece of paper she’d been reading down on the desk and stood up to stretch. “I could do without this part of the job.”

“Me too.” Hannah sipped her coffee. “Can we talk?”

Suzie came around the desk and perched on the edge. “Sure, what’s up?”

“It’s personal, not professional.”

“Oh, in that case, let me grab the cookies.” Suzie went back around her desk and opened the top drawer, and took out a packet of chocolate chip cookies.

“Thanks.” Hannah took one and ate it while she tried to figure out how to phrase what she wanted to know. “It’s about shifter men.”

“I figured as much.” Suzie gave a knowing smile. “You were glowing when you came in this morning.”

Hannah put her hand up to her cheek. “Really? That obvious.”

“You know what it’s like, we learn a lot from people by their body language and expressions. I used my superpowers on you. Was it good?” Suzie giggled as she took a gulp of her coffee.

“It was very good,” Hannah confessed. “Not just the sex. The connection.”

“I’m so happy for you, Hannah. I really am.”

“So do you feel the same connection? Shifters know they have met their mate. I didn’t expect to feel the same way. Or am I imagining it?”

“No, it’s different with Kit than with any other man. There is a connection. Like a thin thread that connects us wherever we are.”

“That’s just it.” She drank her coffee, trying to decide if she wanted to voice her next thoughts. Hannah trusted Suzie, but somehow to admit she was worried about Knox was a betrayal.

“How is he holding up?” Suzie was broaching the subject for her.

“He’s worried he’s bad luck. Knox hasn’t told me what happened, why he left the army, but something bad happened.” Hannah continued, “He said he would leave if that was what I wanted. He’s scared that history will repeat itself. He believes he’s jinxed.”

“You told him that was garbage, right?”

“I did. I think I got through to him. But without all the details, I don’t want to say the wrong thing.”

“All I know, from what Kit told me…you know how men like to talk? One night shortly after Jamie heard the news about what happened to Knox, he went for a run on the mountain. Some of the other guys met up with him and he spilled. Knox’s squad got ambushed and most of them were killed.”

Hannah nearly dropped her cup. Her hand flew to her mouth as she tried to swallow the bile rising up from her stomach. “That’s terrible.”

“I can understand why he might not want to talk about it,” Suzie said gently.

“I guessed it must have been bad.” Hannah wanted to rush over to Bear Creek and find Knox and tell him she could make it better, that they could build a life and have kids, and he would forget. She wanted to smother him with her love.

“Give him time, let him tell you when he’s ready.” Suzie placed her cup down on her desk. “If you ever need to talk, I’m here, in confidence. I won’t even tell Kit. You know how men like to gossip.”

“Thanks, Suzie. You’re a good friend.” Hannah wiped a stray tear form her cheek.

“So, the sex?” Suzie steered the conversation away from Knox’s past. Instead, they spent the next five minutes laughing as Suzie tried to get all the juicy details about last night’s encounter from a tight-lipped Hannah.

“Some things stay in the bedroom,” Hannah told her friend firmly. She looked at her watch. “I have to get back to work.”

“Remember, anytime,” Suzie called after her as she left the office.

As she walked back down the corridor, her phone buzzed with a text. Hannah took it out of her pocket, expecting a text from Knox with a suggestion for a restaurant. Instead, she saw a message from Sandra.

Please call me when you have time x

Hannah sat down at her desk, concern growing as she tapped her phone and brought up Sandra’s number. She could hardly breathe as she waited for Sandra to answer. Maybe she was overreacting and this was Sandra calling to say everything was OK.

“Hi, Sandra,” Hannah said when Sandra answered the phone. “How are things?”

“Thanks so much for calling, Hannah. I thought we were through the worst. Last night after you left, we talked and talked. I thought I’d gotten through to him. But I’ve just gotten home from work to find Dustin gone.”

“Maybe he’s just gone out to meet up with friends.”

“He left a note.”

Hannah’s heart stalled in her chest. “What kind of note?”

“He said he wanted to be near his dad on his birthday.” Sandra’s voice caught in her throat, but she tried to stay strong. “He’s taken his backpack, there’s some food missing. Chips and snacks, mainly.”

Hannah relaxed a little. “Sandra, do you think he’s gone to the place Lex died?”

“I don’t know. It’s such a long way.”

“Do you know the exact spot?”

“Not exactly. But Sheriff Brad will be able to tell you.” Her breath shuddered. “Do you really think that’s where he’s gone?”

“If he’s taken food, then yes, that would be my first guess. Unless he’s gone to Lex’s grave.”

“I already checked there. I was scared he’s thinking of killing himself.”

“That rules that out. Sandra, this sounds more like a boy wanting to reconnect with his father. Did anything else happen?”

“Not that I know of. He was fine last night. I spoke to him this morning, he even told me he loved me. Then this afternoon I get home and he’s gone.”

“OK, sit tight, I’ll go and speak to Brad, see what he suggests. As soon as we have a plan, I’ll let you know.”

“Thank you, Hannah. Thank you so much.”

“We’ll get him back, Sandra.” Hannah didn’t usually make promises, but she had to do whatever it took to get Dustin home. Gathering up her purse, she scrolled through her phone as she headed down the corridor to Suzie’s office. She tapped the Facebook icon, then scrolled through to Dustin’s profile and checked his newsfeed. “Dammit.”

There it was, this boy Ross Vardy goading him about his father’s death. Somehow he knew it was his birthday tomorrow, and was baiting him to go up the mountain. What if he and his friends planned to ambush Dustin up there?

“Suzie, I have a problem.” Hannah quickly explained to Suzie what had happened.

“I can call Jacob, I’m sure he can track Dustin.” Suzie kept her usual cool.

“Would you mind? I’ll go to Bear Creek and speak to Brad, see if he can pinpoint the cabin.” Hannah formulated a plan of action in her head.

“Sure, I’ll do it now.” Suzie quickly tapped her phone screen and put the phone to her ear. “Hey, Jacob. I have a favor to ask.” She was silent for a moment, and then said, “Oh, I didn’t know you were out of town. When are you due back?” Suzie frowned. “Ten tonight?”

Hannah backed out of the office; they couldn’t wait that long. “Thanks for trying, Suzie, I’ll keep you updated.”

Suzie waved at Hannah and then continued to speak into the phone. “Give me a call as soon as you are back. Thanks, Jacob.”

Suzie’s words reached Hannah as she ran down the corridor. Pushing the door open, she hit the stairs and slowed down. If she twisted her ankle on the stairs, she would be of no use to anyone. Least of all Dustin. Bursting out into the later afternoon light, she looked up trying to calculate how many more hours of daylight they had left. Three, tops. She would need to move fast.

Sticking to the speed limit, Hannah guided her car along the roads heading back to Bear Creek. She didn’t let her mind pull up images of Dustin injured on the mountain. The kid was not going to end up dead like his dad, not if Hannah had anything to say about it. Although he sure was going to get a good talking-to. Dustin was old enough to know better than to scare his mom like this.

When she reached Brad’s office, she found the sheriff waiting, a map of the mountain laid out on his desk. “Suzie called you already?”

“She did.” He waited for Hannah to join him before jabbing a finger at the map. “This is the spot where Lex Linden died. If you look at the rock formations, you’ll see that the cloudburst dropped too much rain for the rivers and gullies to cope. The sides of the valley were already saturated and just slid down. He was buried under several feet of dirt.”

“And that’s where Dustin is going?” Hannah asked.

Brad gave a worried look. “I guess so. There’s a cabin here, it’s open for any hiker to use. Since Lex used to take Dustin hiking up in the mountains, the boy will know this and I’d like to bet that is where you’ll find him tonight. Lex used to teach him survival skills so the kid can look after himself.”

“And Dustin knows the location of this valley?” Hannah asked.

“Yes. At the time of Lex’s death, Dustin came to me and asked where Lex died. It was no secret.”

“Poor kid.”

“I can make some calls, get a team together to track him. Although he’s only been missing for a couple of hours. And he knows his way over the mountain. Chances are, Dustin will come back down in one piece in a couple of days.” Brad folded the map.

“I don’t think we can take that chance, do you?” Hannah asked.

“I can have a team together in a couple of hours. I don’t want to call out mountain rescue, not if we don’t have to. That’s going to bring a whole lot of heat down on an already vulnerable boy.” Brad’s expression showed his sympathy. “But if you want me to, I will.”

“No, you’re right. What if we scare him off?” Hannah put her hands on her hips. “If grown men go tramping over the mountain looking for him, what if he thinks he’s in more trouble and runs?”

Brad raised his eyebrows and shook his head. “I’m open to suggestions that don’t involve putting anyone else in danger.”

“The cabin looks easy enough to find. I’m fit, a good map reader, and I know Dustin, he trusts me.”

“I can’t let you go up there on your own.”

“I know, but what if I wasn’t alone? Knox is a soldier, he’s staying over at Jamie’s house. What if he is willing to accompany me? It means we could get to the cabin quicker.”

“In the meantime, I’ll gather a search crew. We’ll follow you up.”

“But you and your men could scare him off.” Hannah leaned on the desk, imploring Brad to give her a chance. “Look, get your team together. In the meantime, Knox and I can go first. If we find him, then I’ll let you know, and you can back off. If not, then you can take over.” She held out her hand to Brad. “Deal?”

“Deal.” He shook her hand and passed her the map. “Good luck, Hannah, the last thing we need is another tragedy for the Linden family.”

“Thanks, Brad.”

“Oh, you might want to take one of these.” He passed her a satellite phone. “You won’t get normal reception where you are going.”

Hannah nodded. “I hope to not see you later.”

“Understood. I promise if you don’t need us, we’ll stand down. But if you do…”

“You won’t.” Hannah sounded confident, but she didn’t feel it as she left Brad to make his phone calls, and she pulled out her cell phone to text Knox.

Could she count on his support? This would be the first test of their fledgling relationship.