He didn’t reach for a weapon, but his hand rested heavy on his utility belt.

“Mr. Caldwell, I suggest you keep your hands where we can see them,” the guard said.

His voice was flat and professional.

“You are trespassing,” Nathan said, holding his phone up. “I am dialing the sheriff right now.”

Julian laughed, a dry, grating sound that cut through the whistling wind.

“Go ahead and try, Nathan,” Julian said.

“The storm took the landlines down an hour ago.”

“And we brought a portable cellular jammer in the vehicle.”

“You won’t get a signal out of this valley tonight.”

I looked down at my own phone in my pocket.

The signal indicator showed a hollow, gray circle with a diagonal line through it.

We were completely cut off.

“This is an illegal intrusion,” I said, stepping closer to Nathan.

My fingers were numb against the warm glass of the baby bottle.

The guard with the scar looked at me, his eyes cold and indifferent.

“We are here under legal authority, ma’am,” he said.

He reached into his inner pocket and pulled out a folded packet of papers.