Disclaimer: I do not own Longmire or any of its characters
"What is life? It is the firefly in the night. It is the breathe of a buffalo in the winter time. It is the little shadow which runs along the grass and loses its self in the sunset"
-Blackfoot
Tarlo did not know what to do. Her father was not home, at the Red Pony nor did he leave her a note saying that he had gone somewhere. This was not like him. He always let her know when he was going, even if it was just to the grocery store.
This raised the next dilemma since Uncle Walt and her father had their fight things had been awkward. Tarlo knew she should go to Walt with this, knowing subconsciously fight or no fight he would find her father, yet on the other hand, she had no way to get there and they were still technically fighting. At the same time, she did not know if Mathias would take her seriously if she reported her father missing. Biting her bottom lip the fifteen-year-old tossed both options around in her mind before deciding to call the tribal police.
"Tribal Police, how can I help you?" Timothy Running Wolf answered.
"Hello, I need to talk to Mathias please." Tarlo responded hesitantly.
"One moment please." Running Wolf replied, tranferring the line to the tribal police chief.
"This is Mathias." the dry voice of the Mathias answered on the second ring.
"Mathias? It is Tarlo Standing Bear."
"Tarlo? What is wrong?"Mathias asked softening his tone slightly. While the older Standing Bear was a pain in his ass, his daughter was not her father.
"Dad did not return home last night. I am scared something happened to him." the teenager confessed to the older gentleman.
"He is not out helping Longmire or at the Red Pony?" he questioned, wanting to cover all bases.
"No, I already checked and he always leaves a note if he is going somewhere. I also tried his cell phone multiple times and there is no answer."
Just as Mathias was going to question the teenager further, one of his officers placed a picture on his desk of Standing Bear's truck flipped on the side of the road. Connecting the pieces together made Mathias pale. If Mathias is right then Tarlo is in danger and her father is in serious trouble. "Okay, Tarlo, I believe you. Listen to me closely, I will be there shortly. I need you to pack a bag for me. You are going to be staying with Longmire until we figure this out." With those instructions, Mathias hung up and grabbing his keys and the picture, he headed to his car to pick up the scared teenager.