Critical Pursuit Read Online Free PDF

back in thedesert outside of Lancaster, leaning against the post she’d been tied to and crying.
    Shaking away the memory, she focused on the facts and went back to her desk. The first hours were the most important. She rubbed her forehead, her gaze running over the audience of stuffed animals. Milo’s words again echoed in her mind: “Never give up until we’ve got a body, dead or alive.”
    She thought about Heather and refused to admit that things didn’t look good for the little girl. She still considered the search active, but it had been a month and all leads had dried up.
    This kid in Utah had gone missing hours ago. It was fresh. They had a chance to find him. And a search will go miles toward getting my mind off the shooting.
    Chewing on her lower lip, she thought about the drive   —a long one, but doable.
    Brinna picked up the phone and dialed Sergeant Rodriguez’s number, crossing her fingers in the hope she was awake.
    With a sleep-slurred voice, Rodriguez okayed Brinna’s off-duty trip to Utah. With the shooting tentatively labeled clean, if any questions came up, they could be asked when she got back, the sergeant said.
    Brinna thanked Rodriguez, knowing her sergeant would fight for her if the need arose, and hung up. She looked up the number of the authorities in charge of the Utah boy’s search. It took a while to get connected to someone in charge, but when she did, he said that they’d welcome her help. The terrain was rough on the dogs, and they could use another one.
    Brinna rubbed her face with both hands, glad she had a mission to complete after all the drama of her shift. The drive, instead of a kayak paddle, would help her wind down. She had six days to devote to the Utah kid . . . if they didn’t find him before she got there. She looked at the clock and decided that since she was still amped up, it might be best to leave now and stop someplace on the road for a nap if she needed it. She and Hero could be in Bryce Canyon ready to join the search early tomorrow morning.
    “When we join the search, with any luck, we’ll be two for two and start a streak,” she said to Hero.

6
    JACK CLOSED his open files and began to power down the computer for the day when Lieutenant Gary Hoffman walked into his cubicle.
    “Afternoon, Jack. How’s it going?”
    “It’s going, Gary. That’s about all I can say.”
    An uncomfortable silence followed. Jack knew people weren’t sure what to say to him, but he never tried to make it easier for them.
    “I’ve got some news for you,” Hoffman said finally, after clearing his throat. “Not sure if you’ll think it’s good or bad.”
    Jack stood and held the lieutenant’s gaze but said nothing.
    “Opie’s coming back. He’ll be here on Monday.”
    Jack sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. He’d only been filling in for Opie. He’d hoped the position would last until the sentencing. But if Opie was clear to come back to work, Hoffman’s visit told Jack that he could no longer hide behind a desk and avoid active police work.
    “So where are you going to put me?”
    Hoffman folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t have much choice. You aren’t considered light duty. And unless you tell me you don’t want to work homicide anymore, you’ll go back to full duty with your partner, Ben.”
    Jack felt his mouth go dry. Going back to work with Ben was a two-edged sword, both distasteful edges. Ben was a Christian who never stopped preaching. Jack had been like that before he lost Vicki. His faith died in the car with his wife and daughter. Now Ben’s empty Christian platitudes choked him like thick flare smoke. And then there were the bodies.
    “No other option?” he asked, wetting his lips.
    Hoffman shrugged. “Patrol.”
    Jack blew out a breath. He’d been a patrol officer when he met Vicki. The move to homicide came shortly after they were married; it was the position he’d dreamed of since academy days. A year ago he would