“We’re not driving up into those isolated woods without telling Austin where we’re going,” she said firmly.

“I don’t know if we can trust him anymore, Paige,” I protested fearfully.

“We don’t need to trust him completely to make sure he knows where we are,” she reasoned.

“He may be eaten up with guilt and secrets, but he’s still a sworn police officer.

If Brandon is somehow still alive, or if someone left that note recently, we’re going to need law enforcement backup.”

The thought that Brandon might actually still be alive was almost too big for my mind to grasp.