Across the Vanishing Sky (Starlight Grove, #1)(62)

I already had some of the information. Like the fact that the only fingerprints found on Nova’s water bottle were hers and Brae’s. But there was information I didn’t have. Like the disturbances in the dirt where Brae had said the women were right before Nova disappeared.

The report was from the county crime lab and was done by a forensic tech named Olivia Bishop. Her analysis suggested a struggle of some sort. Possibly drag marks. At the bottom, there was a note from Sheriff Miller.

Likely animal attack.





Except the report noted there was no blood on the scene. It was incredibly rare for a cougar or something of a similar size to take on a human simply standing on a trail. If they were running? Sure. The predator instinct could kick in. And I guessed if a female cougar had young in the area, it might’ve attacked.

But there would be blood. Larger drag marks that would continue through the underbrush. And eventually, a body. There was none of that. And it suggested that Nova had either walked out on her own two feet or had been carried.

I kept flipping through report after report. I slowed as I came to a written request for the K-9 team a county over to do a search. Roger had written it up and submitted it to Miller. But the bottom had a stamp that read DENIED and a note beneath.

Insufficient evidence to suggest the use of a K-9 unit would be beneficial. —Sheriff Ezra Miller





What in the actual fuck? A K-9 unit should’ve been one of the first calls. When scents were fresh and there were trails to follow. Hell, if we could’ve had Kol out there, he would’ve found something. I knew it.

A knock sounded on my cabin door, jolting me out of my spiral. I quickly locked my computer screens and opened the camera app on my phone. One of the last people I expected stood on my front steps.

I shoved back from my desk and stood, heading for the door. As I opened it, Kol looked up. He took me in for a moment. “Who pissed in your Cheerios?”

“Sheriff Miller,” I muttered.

Kol’s expression instantly went alert. “He pay you a visit?”

“No, but a little angel dropped Nova’s entire case file in my lap, and Miller was, at best, negligent.”

Understanding bloomed over Kol’s face. “Show me.”

Those two words brought instant relief. “That mean you’re in?”

He grimaced. “I told you I was, didn’t I?”

“That agreement was reluctant at best.”

Kol’s mouth thinned, making his dark scruff twitch. “I’ve been looking into things on my side.”

Everything in me went wired. “You find something?”

As part of the investigative arm of the Forest Service, Kol typically covered cases involving poaching or growing pot illegally on national forest land, with the occasional missing person or accidental death.

“After you show me the case file,” Kol ordered.

“God, being older than me makes you fucking bossy.”

“Not bossy,” Kol muttered. “The boss. There’s a difference.”

I rolled my eyes but led him toward my workspace.

Kol’s face twisted in disgust. “You’re living like a teenager who never leaves his room.”

I followed his line of sight, taking in the crushed energy drink cans, snack wrappers, and other detritus. It was a little cluttered. A cheese puff or two might’ve even gotten lost on my desk.

“I’ve been working,” I grumbled.

Kol arched a brow. “Have you felt sunshine on your face in the past seventy-two hours?”

“Yes,” I clipped. I’d felt it as I walked over with dinner to put on Brae’s grill. And I’d felt it when she smiled at me. And Brae’s sunshine? That was a hell of a lot brighter. It was like baking on a beach for hours but feeling it from the inside.

“Fucking hell. You’ve been spending time with her.”

I glared at my brother. “She’s my neighbor. We’re talking about the case.”

“Sure,” he snapped.

“We’re friends.” Why did that feel like a lie? Maybe because all I could think about was what it would feel like to run my fingers over those tanned thighs. Or what her moans would sound like as I took her. How it would feel to—

“It better just be friends,” Kol muttered. “Now, show me the damn case file.”

Grumpy bastard. I unlocked my computer using the two-factor security: my fingerprint and a password. No one who didn’t have both would ever be able to break in.

Shoving my chair to the side, I let Kol scan the documents. The longer he read, the more thunderous his expression grew.

“What a goddamned waste of space,” Kol growled.

He took his responsibilities, his oaths, and his word seriously. And he had no respect for people who didn’t.

“It’s fucking lazy for sure.”

Kol scrubbed a hand over his face. “I wonder if it’s the tourist factor. It’s no secret that he’s not a fan of the people who flood our town in the summer. Takes cases affecting locals way more seriously.”

“Maybe.” I stared at the screen. “But at this point, I would think it would be easier to throw everything he has at this. It would be less of a headache than having me and Brae breathing down his neck.”

“But he’s stubborn as hell and doesn’t want to be proven wrong. He’d have to eat crow. And there have been instances of tourists getting swept away in the river or falling prey to animal attacks.”