Chapter 39
Vaughn checked his cell phone again. Close to 9:00 p.m. No signal now that they'd reached the hills.
What if Kerr was wrong about the location? What if Shelby couldn't stay in contact with him to adjust direction?
Just like Shelby always located the person she sought, Kerr never got lost. Ever. Vaughn sent a brief prayer that his younger siblings wouldn't lose their mojo tonight. Already, Kerr had adjusted direction once based on urging from Shelby.
Even if they reached a location, they had no guarantee that Mariah would be alive.
What if the Brands got to her first?
Shit. He tightened his hands until the horse snorted. Loosening his grip, he peered into the forest. If anything happened to Mariah, he would personally dismember anyone responsible. Plain and simple.
His power surged again, wanting him to move faster.
Something had just happened to increase the danger to her. Did that mean she was still alive? Hurt? What? Damn his stupid power, it was acting like a directionless stagecoach driver, whipping the team into a frenzy but without a clue as to which direction to go.
He wiped sweat off his upper lip.
"Stay calm, my friend." Odie kneed his horse to draw even with his. "We'll find your lady. You must trust the process. Your brother and sister can do this."
Vaughn ground his molars until his jaw ached. "It's hard to know that she's out there, alone, in danger."
After a pause, Odie studied him with ancient eyes. "I know precisely what you mean."
"What do—?"
Kerr lifted his arm up with a fist, military style, and they all stopped.
As they reached a forest road cut, Garrison whispered, "Anything?"
"We go on foot from here," Kerr said. "Keep it quiet. I thought I heard something."
"How close are we?" Vaughn's gut twisted into a snarl of knots.
"Close. Tie 'em up, bro." As soon as their horses were secured, Kerr motioned to them as he walked into the forest. "Footprints," he whispered.
Multiple sets.
Something edged into the periphery of Vaughn's vision. Dark and light. Shadow and movement. He peered into the woods. Nothing visible. Every nerve went on screaming alert, making his skin crawl. "There's something out here, guys."
"I feel it, too." Garrison's jaw had gone rock-hard under the shadow of his hat brim.
"Keep going, we're almost there," Kerr whispered.
Another fifteen minutes of bushwhacking up and down draws, jumping small streams, and they reached a cliff edge. Vaughn braced against the headache and reached out with his power. Nothing distinct, but the mental ability pulsed again. She was close. Still alive. He hoped.
But in serious danger.
Frigid air scythed in and out of his lungs.
As they came to a high point, Kerr held up his fisted hand again. Everyone stopped. He pointed.
There, a hundred feet ahead of them, two dark figures scrambled over the edge.
His power all but dragged Vaughn forward. Mariah. Those men had to be tracking her.
"Stop, man. I'll go in first, undetected," Kerr said. "You know, with my little trick?" He pulled off his duster and hat and set them on the ground.
