Page 214 of Rangers Mountain Rescue

---

Desperate.

“You don’t know that,” she whispers again.

And this time—

I don’t argue.

I just hold her gaze.

Let her see it.

The truth of what I’m about to say.

“They won’t get the chance.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Real.

Then I straighten.

Turn back to the team.

“Tracks,” I call out. “Anything.”

“Got something!” one of the guys shouts from the far side of the yard.

We move immediately.

Fast.

Focused.

Aspen right beside me.

Always beside me.

The beam of a low light cuts across the ground.

Boot prints.

Fresh.

Dragging marks.

My eyes lock onto them.

There.

That’s him.

Not walking steady.

Not keeping pace.

Being handled.

---