Silent Night by Colleen Coble Read Free Book Online Page A

looked mutinous. “I can take care of myself. I had Mace in my bag.”
    Kade glanced at Bree. “We have to get Mason in on this.”
    Bree’s gaze was faraway. “Do you think you could find the cabin? I’d love to bring closure to Frannie’s parents. I talked to them after the search. Such a nice family.”
    Lauri bolted upright. “I don’t know exactly where it is, but I have one of her sweaters in a bag in my room. I wanted to try to see if Samson could find where she’d been.”
    Kade leaped to his feet. “Let’s go.”

    Bree went to grab her search-and-rescue backpack out of the entry closet. Samson began running around and barking when she got out his search vest. He was so excited he kept sliding on the polished wood floors. She slipped the vest on him. He was always eager to work.
    Kade took out his cell phone. “I’ll see if Naomi will keep Dave.”
    Bree pulled her snow gear from the closet. “Davy will be disappointed if you. don’t fly the airplane with him. Lauri and I can handle this, right, Lauri?”
    Kade frowned. “I’d like to come along in case there’s trouble.”
    She tried to signal her concern to him in her gaze. “What kind of trouble could there be? Even if he was some kind of criminal, Garrick is dead. We’re just going to see if we can find his lair, maybe find Frannie’s remains.” Bree had met the worried parents a month ago. She still had their phone number, and she’d love to be able to give them some closure. “We’ll be back as quickly as we can.”
    Kade still frowned. “What about calling Naomi? You need a partner.”
    “I’m her partner and I’ve got Zorro,” Lauri said. “He’s not as well trained in search-and-rescue as Samson, but we’ll be a team. Please, I want to do this.”
    Kade took a deep breath, then released a slow exhale. “Okay. The two of you are perfectly competent.” Kade pressed his lips together, then kissed Bree. “Okay. I’ll take care of Dave. Call me the minute you hear something.”
    Lauri stood on tiptoe and brushed her lips across his cheek. “Thanks, big brother.” She called her dog over to her. “Got an extra search vest? I didn’t bring his with me.”
    “Sure do.” Bree rummaged in the closet and pulled out a bright orange vest.
    Lauri slipped it on, and Zorro nearly preened. “Let’s go.” She yanked on her coat and rushed through the door.
    Kade still looked worried, so Bree hugged him. “You wanted her to grow up, Kade. I’m proud of her. She went on the hunt for a good cause. I know sometimes it seems she’s all about what she wants, but this time she just wanted to help. Something has changed her.”
    “I know you’re right.” He hugged her, then released her. “Be careful out there. The temperature has come up some, and you might get buried by snow sliding off tree branches.”
    “We’ll be fine. We have Samson.” Her dog whined at the mention of his name, then went to the door and stood waiting. She smiled and put her hand on the doorknob. “My prince is calling.”
    “Here, I thought I was your only prince.”
    “No, you’re the king.” She blew him a kiss, then joined Lauri, who was tying her boots, on the porch.
    The sun shone today, glinting on the snow and ice. Bree sat in a cold chair and laced her snow boots. “What drove you to do this, Lauri?”
    Lauri tucked her long brown hair into her knit cap, then tugged the fabric over her ears. “Just what I said. I’ve watched you and Kade, you know. It might look like I chaffed against the restrictions—and I did—but I still noticed what you did and said. The more I’ve seen, the more I’ve wanted to be a person like you, Bree. One who cares about other people and puts others first.”
    Bree straightened. “I think there’s more to it than that. Though it’s very flattering, something special must have triggered you to get involved in this mystery.”
    Lauri pulled on bright-blue gloves. “I was home at Thanksgiving, and we were