“No vehicles are getting through until morning.”

Pierce swore under his breath and ended the call.

“They must be holed up somewhere on the mountain,” Pierce said to Marcus.

“Is there an old cabin or a hunting lodge on this property?”

“There is the old mill by the creek,” Benjamin said, his voice hollow.

“My father built it in the seventies.”

“It has an independent generator and a landline.”

“That’s where they are heading,” Marcus said, adjusting his gear.

“I’ll take the snowmobile and head down the ridge.”

“I’m coming with you,” Benjamin said, taking a step forward.

“No, you aren’t,” Marcus said, putting a firm hand on Benjamin’s chest.

“You need to stay here and protect the girls.”

“And you need to look at this.”

Marcus handed me the tablet, pointing to a secure legal database link that had just updated.

My eyes scanned the legal document that had been uploaded to the state database only minutes ago.

The filing timestamp was from nine o’clock tonight.

“What is it, Elena?” Benjamin asked, noticing the change in my expression.

“It’s an emergency petition,” I said, my heart sinking.