Free The Eagle and the Fox (A Snowy Range Mystery, #1) by Nya Rawlyns Page B

services and getting Petilune out of there?”
    “Yeah, I did initially. Especially when...”
    “What?”
    “Never mind. It’s not important.”
    Josh was pretty sure whatever it was, not important didn’t cut it. They had trust growing between them, but for some reason, the way Marcus cut him off clued him in that there was more to the story, and it wasn’t a happy ever after fairy tale.
    In any case, child services didn’t place kids in their area. Fostering was concentrated in larger towns and cities where the kids could be monitored, after a fashion. On the other side of the coin were the sometimes dubious reasons for folks to take in those lost kids. The idea of it being a business transaction rather than a service dedicated to the welfare of the child made him uncomfortable. He suspected Marcus felt the same.
    It’d be a hell of a lot easier to monitor Petilune’s situation if she was with her family. Except, they hadn’t done a bang up job on that monitoring shit.
    The thought crossed his mind that Marcus might make the perfect foster parent. The man was kindness personified. He treated the girl with patience and tenderness, like she was a priceless gift. He might not realize it, but if any man should have been a father, Marcus Colton was that man.
    That he’d spent nearly twenty years sharing a bachelor pad with his distant cousin and business partner, Tom Henderson, had had some tongues wagging back in the day. He’d been in high school then, so when they first set up housekeeping together, it hadn’t made much impression on him. He’d been more concerned about his own confused feelings to worry about two old guys in town becoming roomies.
    Old guys. Wonder what Marcus would think if he heard me say that out loud.
    Marcus noticed Polly’s place still had the lights on in the back section where she kept a small office for doing her books. Josh anticipated the request and pulled in. Since Marcus knew the woman better than he did, he let him knock on the door. Polly cracked it open. When she saw who it was, she grinned and waved them both inside.
    “You fellas are up kinda late, aintcha? Can I get you anything? Coffee. A beer?”
    Marcus answered, “No ma’am. But we do have a question. And I’m hoping you can keep this to yourself for a time.” The woman looked concerned but nodded for Marcus to continue. “Petilune’s gone missing. We checked her house and she’s not there.”
    Polly snorted. “Bout time that child left that pit of vipers.” She got a cagy expression on her face. “I saw you hustling the gal away from the fracas in the parking lot. Care to tell me what that was about?”
    Since Marcus looked like he was about to swallow his tongue, Josh said, “Not much to tell. The girl was upset by the fighting and Marcus here thought she’d be better off someplace where she could calm down.” He wasn’t keen on saying more than that and regretted having stopped by to ask. But now that they had, there was no turning back. He continued, “She was in the upstairs loft at the store while Marcus and I were shooting the shit outside. At some point, I guess she decided to leave without telling us. I’m sure she didn’t mean nothing by it, but we’re a little concerned is all.” He shrugged, hoping the emphasis on ‘little’ was enough to keep Polly from drawing the wrong conclusions.
    The woman mulled it over for a few minutes, then said, “Well, that child’s not the sharpest tack in the box. I suspect she’s found a hidey hole and will turn up in the morning. Wouldn’t be the first time she’s gone wandering.”
    Josh and Marcus exchanged a glance. That was news to them, and not necessarily of the good kind. But if Petilune had made a habit of disappearing—and heaven knew the kid had more than enough reason to do so—well then, their best bet was to wait and see what transpired.
    They thanked Polly and made a quick escape. Marcus muttered, “Don’t that beat all. No wonder