now. The broken rung was barely visible in the gloom. “I wouldn’t have seen the break then even if I tried.”
“How did she sound?”
“Terrified, and Meg doesn’t scare easy.” Goose bumps crawled across Donna’s back and down her arms. She moved into Bob when his arm circled her shoulders, hating herself for wanting his comfort.
“She must either have screamed in the loft or as she fell. Even if the blow didn’t knock her unconscious, the landing would. We measured twenty-four feet from the loft to the floor.” Gresham voiced his thoughts. “She couldn’t jump up and run after a fall like that, even if she didn’t break anything, which is highly unlikely.”
Donna’s knees gave way, and Bob made a grab to hold her up, catching her under her arms. He eased her to the floor and pressed her head between her knees.
Heart pounding in her ears, Donna could barely hear her own question, “So, you think someone carried her off?”
“It seems the most likely scenario. We’ll take a blood sample, of course. Is her type on file anywhere?”
“Yeah, at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Little Rock. She told me she had an emergency appendectomy when she was thirteen. They should still have it in back file.” Meg would try to get away if she wasn’t too injured to move. Donna choked back her sob and took a deep breath. “No vehicles were nearby, or we would have heard them. We didn’t pass anyone on the way up the mountain. It was real quiet until the storm rolled in. They must have been on foot. You need to get the dogs in here.”
He took her hand and she allowed him to help her to her feet. “I made the call, Mrs. Andrews. I’m good at my job.”
“So I’m told, Mr. G. I’d hate to call my father-in-law a liar, so you find my friend and you find her fast. You really wouldn’t want me on your bad side.”
“I don’t suppose I would.”
This time she got his full smile. Perhaps he was stronger than he looked if her threat didn’t bother him—or stupid. She didn’t think he was stupid, and for Meg’s sake, she hoped she was right.
* * * *
The dogs went crazy inside the barn. Their handlers didn’t know what to make of their behavior. They caught the scent easily enough from Meg’s dirty clothes which Donna provided. They ran a pattern from where the truck sat to the house and back to the barn, but no further. They had three different handlers each with a different breed of scent hound: bloodhound, blue tick, and redbone. All had multiple rescues under their collars, but still ended up singing to the ceiling in the barn. Their mournful howls, eerie in the twilight.
“She’s not dead! She’s not. I’d know.” Donna cried and beat on the judge’s hard chest with her fists when they unloaded the cadaver dogs. “They can’t give up on her, they can’t.”
“Sweetheart, calm down. They aren’t giving up, they’re just following protocol. She’s been missing over seventy-two hours—”
“Don’t you think I understand that?” Donna snapped.
“There’s nothing more we can do tonight. Let’s get back to town and get you in a warm bed.”
“I can’t.”
“Donna, listen to me.” Bob held her face in his hands, forcing her to meet his eyes. “They’ll need you to go over evidence for the next few days while the search continues on the mountain. You can’t do that if you’re exhausted. The best way for you to help Meghan is to take care of yourself. Eat. Sleep. Do you understand?”
No, she didn’t understand, not any of it. Therein lay the problem. Nothing made sense. If Meghan fell from the ladder, she should have still been laying at the foot of it when Donna arrived. Hell, she was probably unconscious before she even hit the ground. Donna grimaced again remembering the bit of scalp the tech had pulled from the beam. Meghan hit the timber hard. Even if someone had been waiting to carry her away, they would need to pick her up and cart her out. Donna should have
“How did she sound?”
“Terrified, and Meg doesn’t scare easy.” Goose bumps crawled across Donna’s back and down her arms. She moved into Bob when his arm circled her shoulders, hating herself for wanting his comfort.
“She must either have screamed in the loft or as she fell. Even if the blow didn’t knock her unconscious, the landing would. We measured twenty-four feet from the loft to the floor.” Gresham voiced his thoughts. “She couldn’t jump up and run after a fall like that, even if she didn’t break anything, which is highly unlikely.”
Donna’s knees gave way, and Bob made a grab to hold her up, catching her under her arms. He eased her to the floor and pressed her head between her knees.
Heart pounding in her ears, Donna could barely hear her own question, “So, you think someone carried her off?”
“It seems the most likely scenario. We’ll take a blood sample, of course. Is her type on file anywhere?”
“Yeah, at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Little Rock. She told me she had an emergency appendectomy when she was thirteen. They should still have it in back file.” Meg would try to get away if she wasn’t too injured to move. Donna choked back her sob and took a deep breath. “No vehicles were nearby, or we would have heard them. We didn’t pass anyone on the way up the mountain. It was real quiet until the storm rolled in. They must have been on foot. You need to get the dogs in here.”
He took her hand and she allowed him to help her to her feet. “I made the call, Mrs. Andrews. I’m good at my job.”
“So I’m told, Mr. G. I’d hate to call my father-in-law a liar, so you find my friend and you find her fast. You really wouldn’t want me on your bad side.”
“I don’t suppose I would.”
This time she got his full smile. Perhaps he was stronger than he looked if her threat didn’t bother him—or stupid. She didn’t think he was stupid, and for Meg’s sake, she hoped she was right.
* * * *
The dogs went crazy inside the barn. Their handlers didn’t know what to make of their behavior. They caught the scent easily enough from Meg’s dirty clothes which Donna provided. They ran a pattern from where the truck sat to the house and back to the barn, but no further. They had three different handlers each with a different breed of scent hound: bloodhound, blue tick, and redbone. All had multiple rescues under their collars, but still ended up singing to the ceiling in the barn. Their mournful howls, eerie in the twilight.
“She’s not dead! She’s not. I’d know.” Donna cried and beat on the judge’s hard chest with her fists when they unloaded the cadaver dogs. “They can’t give up on her, they can’t.”
“Sweetheart, calm down. They aren’t giving up, they’re just following protocol. She’s been missing over seventy-two hours—”
“Don’t you think I understand that?” Donna snapped.
“There’s nothing more we can do tonight. Let’s get back to town and get you in a warm bed.”
“I can’t.”
“Donna, listen to me.” Bob held her face in his hands, forcing her to meet his eyes. “They’ll need you to go over evidence for the next few days while the search continues on the mountain. You can’t do that if you’re exhausted. The best way for you to help Meghan is to take care of yourself. Eat. Sleep. Do you understand?”
No, she didn’t understand, not any of it. Therein lay the problem. Nothing made sense. If Meghan fell from the ladder, she should have still been laying at the foot of it when Donna arrived. Hell, she was probably unconscious before she even hit the ground. Donna grimaced again remembering the bit of scalp the tech had pulled from the beam. Meghan hit the timber hard. Even if someone had been waiting to carry her away, they would need to pick her up and cart her out. Donna should have
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