Kade: Armed and Dangerous by Cheyenne McCray Page A

agent?”
    “Among other things, tracking and cutting sign,” Kade said.
    Kelsey adjusted her glasses as she glanced at him. “Can you ex-plain?”
    “A trail begins when we locate sign of people crossing the desert.” Kade leaned back
     and relaxed against the swing’s cushions. “We usually start our search along roads
     the Border Patrol maintains.”
    Kade loved the light in her eyes when she was obviously in journalist mode, wholly
     focused on what he was saying.
    “What types of sign?” she asked.
    “Sign can be footprints, a scrap of clothing,” he said, “or garbage that’s been discarded.”
    Kelsey scrawled a note on her pad of paper. “How do you maintain the roads?”
    “By pulling tires behind the vehicle.” Kade raised his arms and laced his fingers
     behind his head. “That makes a relatively smooth surface to help us more easily see
     footprints. Even if the UDAs try to eliminate their sign by walking backward, or by
     using other methods, we can usually determine where they’ve crossed.”
    “When you locate sign, how do you know how old it is?” she asked.
    “By a variety of factors.” He found himself studying Kelsey’s soft lips and had to
     make himself get back on topic. “We look to see what effect the weather may have had
     on the tracks, such as raindrops and wind. If it’s been awhile, detail will diminish.
     We can even tell if the UDAs are walking in daylight or after dark.”
    Kelsey glanced from the note she’d written on her pad. “How on earth would you do
     that?”
    “If the tracks head up to a bush, even though the person could’ve walked around it,
     more than likely they were walking at night.” She chewed the end of her pencil, staring
     at her notes. “Any other methods?”
    “Animal tracks assist in aging the trail. Most desert animals move around at night,
     so if we find animal sign on the trail at five o’clock in the afternoon, it may not
     be fresh.”
    He wanted to grin because her expression was so serious. “What happens once you find
     a trail?”
    “We have to describe it to other trackers who haven’t seen it.” He shifted and put
     his arm on the back of the seat. “Rather than relaying several types over the radio,
     we locate the most distinct tracks and describe them.”
    Kade pushed off with one foot and the swing started to rock. “Other agents work ahead
     to find the trail on roads that intersect the path. If an agent picks up the trail,
     he’ll attempt to match the sign described by the agent who originally cut the sign.
     We continue until we catch the UDAs, or until we can’t follow the tracks any longer.”
    She paused while she made a note. “How large are groups that come across the border?”
    “These days twenty to thirty UDAs at a time is normal.”
    For quite a while, Kade continued answering Kelsey’s questions, giving her a better
     idea of what the Border Patrol was about.
    Somehow the interview itself faded away, and they moved on to other topics. He shared
     information with her about the Southwest and his family, and she chatted about her
     job and living in San Francisco. She was amazed at how easy it was to talk with Kade,
     and how much she enjoyed his company.
    A door slammed and then Trent tore around the corner of the house, waving a piece
     of paper. “Kelsey Kelsey Kelsey,” he yelled, then skidded to a stop. “Look what I
     drew.”
    She smiled and caught the paper Trent thrust in her lap.
    “It’s a picture of you and Dad that I drew all by myself. Do you like it?” He hopped
     up and down on one foot, blue eyes flashing and brown hair flying in time with his
     movements. “Do you, do you?”
    With one finger Kelsey traced the crayon figures, surprised at the detail the almost-nine-year-old
     had drawn. In the picture, Kade wore a blue shirt and jeans, with Kelsey in pink,
     and they stood side by side. “It’s wonderful.” She looked from the drawing to the
     boy. “You’re very