Free Alexis (The Love Family Series Book 6) by Kate Allenton Page B

mess, but I have an idea.”
    “Another one? Why couldn’t you have been a dumb blonde and let the men handle all the hard lifting.”
    She chuckled and smiled up at him. “You wouldn’t have given me the time of day.”
    “True.” He kissed her cheek. “I like you just the way you are. Fire and all. So tell me about this plan of yours.”   
     

 
     
    Chapter 12
     
     
    A week went by, the same day-in and day-out routine. Getting up and watching them consult the map, where one person would remain behind with her while the others went searching. Her nights were filled with Cole, and not just in bed, but talking and spending time together. He was sweet, if a bit bossy. He liked to get his way, and she found an affinity for pushing his buttons by taking back control. She silently knew that he liked that about her, even if he wouldn’t admit it to himself.
    She spent her waking hours in meditation, trying to find the right footprints so she could track down Crompton. She’d sifted through hundreds, if not thousands, during the long waking hours when she was left to her own devices with nothing more than a gun-toting babysitter. Communing with nature was how she sorted through the masses. The trees, the grass, every living thing spoke to her in the wind, telling the secrets of those around her. As long as she focused, the earth would warn her when anyone was near, just as she had for the last two minutes.
    Alexis kept her eyes closed as she breathed in her surroundings, stirring the wind and the smells toward her face to give her direction. It was their last day of searching, the last day they would still come back empty. Crompton was more of a threat than any of them knew. The house fires had increased in numbers. There was no discernable pattern any longer, just a bored pyro taking advantage of misdirection.
    The footsteps moved closer, and she inhaled. It was Smiley’s day to watch her, and yet Tourist was at her back.
    “You must have cut out early,” she said, refusing to break the connection with the ground. She was close, so very close to finding that one footprint that would stand out. The one whose feet left soot and death in his wake.
    “Unlucky for you, I did,” Tourist whispered in her ear the moment a needle was plunged into her neck.
    The clouds instantly darkened, and the skies rumbled as she fought the hand holding the plunger. Lightning struck but not close enough. The wind blew with a startling force.
    “He’s going to love you.”
    Rain soaked her head and her clothes as her world faded to black around her. 
     

     
    Cole walked into the house and straight to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. He was the first one back from their hunt. The others weren’t due for another twenty minutes. He grabbed the water and shut the door, heading to the backyard where Alexis liked to meditate. The yard was empty, aside from the yoga pad where she normally sat. He walked back inside.
    “Alexis,” he called out in the large house.
    He turned, and his gaze landed on the legs lying on the floor in the pantry. He hurried inside and moved the door. Smiley was unconscious on the floor. The back of his head had dried blood. A bag of donuts lay nearby.
    “Shit.” Cole pressed his fingers to Smiley’s neck and closed his eyes, hoping and praying for the beat. It was there. He pulled out his phone and called Stone, telling him to get his ass back and to call the others and the paramedics.
    He threw his bottle in the sink. “Alexis,” he hollered quickly, checking the rooms on his way to the stairs. His stomach rolled as he opened the door to the bedroom, thankful she wasn’t dead and left on display.
    Cole ran his hand through his hair and dialed Landon, calling in the entire search party to meet back at the house. He hurried back downstairs to find Peters eyes fluttering open.
    “Where is she?” Cole asked, trying to help his friend sit up.
    Peters' eyes rolled as he tried to focus. “I don’t