Chapter Twelve
The following week, Kian walked briskly across the parking lot, climbed into his truck, and drove out onto Main Street. As he drove, he kept thinking about seeing Gretchen. He’d been so busy the past week that he never had a chance, and he knew, without a doubt that she would be angry with him. Again. Suddenly, he spotted two men getting into a blue pickup truck and nearly slammed on the brakes in shock. It was them.
He pulled over, parked and watched them through his mirrors as they drove past him. He made sure to tilt his head down so they wouldn’t recognize him. After a few cars had passed by, Kian carefully merged back into traffic and followed the truck from a safe distance.
He couldn’t believe it when they turned onto Gatlin Road. It seemed like they were heading back to an area they were familiar with, regardless of the potential consequences.
Kian stayed far enough behind not to be noticed but never let them out of sight. When they eventually pulled off onto the shoulder of the road, Kian drove past them and continued until he rounded a bend. Then, he pulled over and waited for a moment before turning around and heading back in their direction.
He parked his truck near where they had parked their vehicle and then turned into Gretchen’s driveway. His first priority was letting her know that those men were out there again.
Kian got out of his truck, pulled on his protective vest and strode up to her front door. He wanted to fall to his knees and beg her to come back to him when she opened the door, but her expression told him that she was not happy to see him.
“What are you doing here?”
“Could I come in for a minute?”
Gretchen sighed, opened the door wider, and motioned for him to enter. He strode past her and turned to face her.
“Those men are back,” he began, but she gasped before he could finish.
“I followed them from town. I’m going to confront them, but I need a gun, Gretchen. Mine is at home.”
“Why? Don’t you always carry it with you?”
“I usually do, but I was moving things into my house and didn’t want it on me. It’s in my safe.”
“You can’t go after them alone.”
“I’ll call for backup when I’m sure it’s them.”
“You’re not positive it’s them?”
“I believe so, but I need to be certain before I confront them.”
She stared at him for a moment before nodding and walking over to the gun cabinet. She retrieved the gun and handed it to him along with a box of ammo.
“Thank you. Stay inside and keep Lobo with you.” Kian looked around. “Where is he?”
“He’s in the bathroom. I have to clean his paws off; he was playing in the mud.” She gestured toward her floors, which were covered in pawprints. Kian couldn’t help but grin at the sight.
“Okay.” He stared into her eyes. “Gretchen—”
“You’d better go. Find those men and get them arrested, then we’ll talk.”
Kian sighed. “Alright. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
She opened the door for him and after sighing again, he walked out, stood on the porch, then jogged down the steps. He stopped beside his truck, loaded the gun, stuck the box of shells into the back pocket of his jeans, then walked into the forest.
As he entered the woods, Kian surveyed his surroundings. He knew those men were out here somewhere. He slowly made his way through the trees, stopping to glance around every few feet. It was quiet. Way too quiet for his liking.
Holding the Smith and Wesson .357 Magnum revolver in front of him, he moved cautiously, stopping when he heard a noise to his left. Slowly, he cocked the hammer and placed his finger on the trigger as he spotted one of the men moving through the trees. Kian’s stomach clenched as he knew he was right to follow the truck. He recognized him as one of the two who had attempted to kill him.
Taking care not to step on any twigs or branches that could give him away, Kian heard a gun being cocked and froze as the barrel was pressed against the middle of his back.
“We probably should have made sure you were dead the first time,” the man threatened. “But we won’t make that mistake again. Toss the gun, get on your knees, and put your hands on your head.”
With a sigh, Kian lowered the hammer and tossed the gun aside. Reluctantly, he got down on his knees and placed his hands on his head.
“You do realize that I’m a livestock agent?” he said.
“So what? We knew you were the first time. The vest kind of gave it away,” replied the man with sarcasm.
“I’m law enforcement,” Kian stated calmly.
“I don’t care if you’re with the fucking FBI,” the man sneered. “No one will find you out here.”
Kian couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Someone found me the last time,” he pointed out, scanning the area for any signs of the other man.
“Yeah, well whoever found you last time won’t be so lucky this time,” said the other man approaching them from the right. Kian sighed as the other man joined them and stared at him in disbelief. “How in the hell did you survive?”
“Pure obstinance,” Kian replied.
“We knew you were following us. Do you think we’re stupid?”
“Do you really want me to answer that?” Kian said, then grunted as the man kicked him in the back, making him fall face forward onto the ground.
“You’re a real pain in the ass, Agent. We’re done dealing with you,” one of the men said as he pulled him back onto his knees.
Kian scanned the area wondering what he could possibly do when he spotted Gretchen sneaking toward them using the trees as cover. Thankfully, with the snow gone, she was harder to spot in her camouflage gear, but she shouldn’t be out here.
“So, what do we do with him this time, Barney?” the second man asked.
“There’s a cliff on the other side of the road,” Barney replied. “We’ll take him there and toss him off. I don’t want any bloodshed here. We can’t chance it that his body would be found if anyone came looking for him.”
“Alright,” the second man agreed. “Let’s get moving. Get up,” he ordered Kian, keeping his gun trained on him. “And move slowly.”
Kian stood up and glared at the man in front of him as they began to take him away. He still held onto hope that Gretchen would somehow intervene and rescue him from their clutches, but the thought scared him to death. He’d die if something happened to her.
“What did you do with all my stuff? Including my truck.”
“It’s all in a pile that we burned. Even the truck.”
“You won’t get away with this.”
The men laughed mockingly. “How many times have we heard that, Jerry?”
“Too many to count. Let me tie his hands first. If he makes any sudden movements, shoot him.”
“You can bet MDOL will know where to look this time. Why would you come back to the same damn place?”
“Good hunting here,” the man called Barney said with a laugh.
Kian felt the man, remove the weapon from behind his back. He heard the sound of it being put away, but he knew he couldn’t make a move. The other man was ready to shoot without hesitation.
“How many wolves have you killed?”
“We didn’t keep count. Do you know how much those pelts are worth to the right people?”
“And you couldn’t wait until hunting season?” Kian snapped.
“Nah, neither of us are allowed to hunt.”
“Why not?”
“Because we were caught spotlighting years ago. A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.”
“Bullshit,” Kian growled.
“I think he’s upset, Barney.”
“That’s too bad. He’ll be dead soon, so it won’t matter what he thinks. Let’s go.”
Suddenly, all three men turned around at the sound of a bolt-action rifle cocking. Kian saw Gretchen standing there, aiming the rifle at them.
“Let him go and back off,” she commanded.
“You can’t take us both on, little lady.” One of the men sneered.
“First off, I am not a little lady, and I wouldn’t bet on it if I were you. When I was thirteen, I won a shooting competition for using a bolt-action rifle, and I’ve been using it daily since I was eleven. Now, it’s possible that I can’t take down both of you, but I can definitely get one of you. You can choose which one of you gets shot.”
“I’ll kill him,” the man with the gun said as he pressed it to Kian’s temple.
“And I’ll still shoot one of you. While I’m doing that my dog will have enough time to take down the other one, even if you run. So, either tell me which one to shoot or let him go and put your weapons down.” She stared them down confidently. “Take some time to talk amongst yourselves.”
“What dog?” one of the men asked.
“Lobo,” she called out, causing both men to pale as the dog growled softly behind them.
“I’d listen to her if I were you. Trust me, you don’t want to mess with her. I’ve been on her bad side, and it’s not pretty,” Kian chimed in with a smirk. But Gretchen just rolled her eyes at him.
“You’re still on my shit list, Doyle,” she retorted dryly, then looked at the men. “And believe me, you don’t want to join him.”
“I don’t think she knows how to use that rifle, Jerry,” Barney said skeptically. “She’s just bluffing.”
Kian watched as Gretchen grinned confidently. “It’s a 30.06 bolt-action rifle with five rounds loaded right now. I’ve known how to use it for a long time. Do you want to test me?”
“Yeah, go ahead, test her.” Kian added with a grin. “One of you will get shot and the other will get bit. Pick your poison.”
“Put your weapons down!” Gretchen yelled.
Kian saw the two men exchange a look and he knew they weren’t going to follow her orders. One of them aimed for Gretchen while the other took aim at Lobo, making the dog yelp in pain. Then, they both ran off in different directions. It happened so fast that Kian didn’t have a chance to react, but then he ran toward Gretchen.
“Gretchen! Untie me.” He turned his back to her and felt her untie the rope from around his wrists, then he pulled her into his arms.
“I’m fine. He missed.” She looked past him. “Oh, my God! Lobo!” She rushed over to her dog with Kian following close behind.
They both dropped to their knees next to the dog, tears streaming down her face as she ran her hands through his fur.
“Where did he get hit?” she asked desperately.
Kian carefully checked Lobo and found a slight wound on his front leg, letting out a sigh of relief.
“He’ll be okay. It just grazed his leg.”
Gretchen sat back on her heels and cried. Kian pulled her into his arms for comfort.
“He’s going to be fine; I promise, baby.” Kian reassured her. He watched as Lobo got up and limped over to Gretchen and licked her face.
She hugged him tightly before looking back at Kian. “We have to go after them.”
“You’re going back to the cabin. I’ll call this in and then I’ll go after them.” He looked at his phone. “I have a signal here.”
“No—”
“Yes,” he said firmly. “I won’t risk you getting hurt.” He gently held her face in his hands. “I love you, Gretchen. I can’t bear the thought of losing you.”
She gazed into his eyes and nodded. “I love you too, but you better come back to me, Agent Doyle. If you think you’ve seen me mad, just wait and see what happens if you don’t return.”
Kian smiled. “Yes ma’am. Don’t open the door for anyone but me or another agent. Now go.” He helped her up and she walked with Lobo through the woods toward the cabin. Lobo was limping, but Kian knew that Gretchen would take good care of him. He was just relieved that the dog had only sustained a minor injury.
He quickly picked up his weapon then ran into the woods, looking for the men. After crossing the creek, he stopped behind a tree and called the department telling them he found the men, and he needed backup now. Then after taking a deep breath, he peered around the tree, and after seeing one of the men running down a hill, he ran after him.
****
Gretchen’s nerves were shot. Kian was out there alone, but she couldn’t risk going to help him and potentially drawing the men’s attention away from him. She knew he would be worried about her, and she didn’t want to add to his stress. She prayed that he had been able to call for backup, but she knew he had to get to the spot where he could get a signal.
“Come here, Lobo. Let me take care of your leg, baby.”
The dog followed her limply as they made their way to the bathroom. After making sure the wound wasn’t bleeding heavily, Gretchen gently washed it with lukewarm water to remove any dirt or bacteria. Then she dried it off and applied an antibiotic cream before wrapping it in gauze to prevent Lobo from licking it.
“Okay, big guy, let’s go back to the living room so I can keep an eye on you and make sure you don’t mess with the bandage.”
As time passed without any sign of Kian, Gretchen’s stomach twisted in knots with worry. She hadn’t heard any gunshots but that didn’t mean anything; there were plenty of other ways to kill a man.
Tears streamed down her face as she thought about Kian out there all by himself. Surely more agents had arrived by now to help him.
She couldn’t lose him. They had just professed their love for each other and although she had been angry earlier, she wanted him in her life.
“If only I hadn’t been so stubborn about wanting him to come see me,” she muttered to herself.
She regretted being so tough on him about not showing up; when what he needed was support and encouragement, not an angry woman pushing him away.
He had a job to do, and it wasn’t just about finding these criminals; he also helped ranchers and farmers protect their livestock from harm.
“Gretchen, why did you have to be so difficult?” she scolded herself.
She wanted to run outside and search for him, but she knew she couldn’t. If there were other agents out there helping him, she would only be in the way. Plus, Kian would drop everything to make sure she was safe. He would put her safety before his own.
Shaking her head, she forced herself to stay inside just as he had instructed her. But she couldn’t shake the fear that they might kill him this time. If she hadn’t shown up earlier, they probably would have killed him already.
Her heart sunk into her stomach when she saw one of the men make Kian get on his knees and kick him. She almost shot the man right then and there. They probably didn’t think she was capable or willing to use a gun, but they didn’t know her very well. She would do whatever it took to save the man she loved.
Feeling overwhelmed with worry, Gretchen closed her eyes and said a prayer for Kian and anyone else who might be out there helping him. She didn’t know if Killian was with him, but if he was, she knew he would have his brother’s back. She just hoped no one got hurt.
Unable to sit still any longer, Gretchen began pacing back and forth before walking toward the window to peek outside. The sun was shining, and it was a beautiful day, but danger lurked out there somewhere and she had to remain hidden in her cabin.
Letting out a heavy sigh, she sat back down on the sofa before getting up again. She was so anxious and restless; if she didn’t calm down soon, she feared that she would drive herself insane. A sob escaped from her throat as she made her way back to the window.
Opening the door, Gretchen listened carefully for any signs of danger outside. All she could hear were birds chirping in the trees, but she knew better than to let her guard down.
She closed the door, made herself a cup of coffee and wished she had something stronger to get her through this.
****
Kian felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and checked it to see a text from his brother.
I’m here with four other agents, Sam and two deputies and two FWP men. Give me your coordinates.
Kian sent them and waited for their response. He knew the poachers were close by, waiting for an opportunity to either circle around him or make a run for their truck. Another text came through from Killian.
We’re on our way.
They’re north of me. Kian replied.
Got it.
A few minutes passed before Kian spotted Creed McBride off to his left with his weapon at the ready. He heard a twig snap behind him and turned to see his brother and Hud Anderson approaching from behind.
“Are you okay?” Killian asked in a hushed tone.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I think they’re hiding behind those boulders up ahead. They might try to make a break for their truck,” Kian responded.
Hud grinned. “If they do, we’ll be ready. Luke, Beau, and Logan are already there.”
Kian chuckled. “Good. I think we can move in closer now. I saw Creed.”
“Sam and Nevada are positioned to the right, and the two FWP guys are with them,” Killian reported, nodding toward the right where Kian spotted them.
“I’m pretty sure we have them surrounded then.” Kian agreed.
“Let me text Sam and see what he wants to do.” Killian pulled out his phone and sent a message to Sam. It didn’t take long for him to receive a reply. Killian chuckled as he read it aloud. “Sam said to move in. He wants those jackasses.”
Kian and Hud laughed in agreement.
“Where’s Gretchen?” Killian asked Kian.
“She’s at her cabin... at least she better be.” Kian replied with a slight frown. “She saved my ass again. Those guys had me trapped, and they were planning on throwing me off the cliffs across the road. But Gretchen showed up with her rifle and Lobo, and when she threatened to shoot them, one of them fired at her and the other shot at the dog. She wasn’t hurt, but Lobo got grazed by a bullet. I think he’ll be alright though.”
“Damn, those guys are real pieces of work,” Hud said angrily.
When two shots rang out, the men instinctively ducked, but quickly stood back up when they saw Sam, Nevada, the FWP men, and Creed walk toward the boulders. Kian let out a sigh of relief as he watched the two poachers being led up the hill in handcuffs.
“Thank God,” Killian said with a grateful smile.
“I second that,” Hud agreed as he holstered his weapon, followed by Killian.
Kian lowered the hammer on the revolver and tucked it into the back of his jeans.
“Where’s your service weapon?” Killian asked Kian.
“I didn’t have it with me. I was at home unpacking when I realized I needed to get some things from the motel room. I saw those guys drive past me. I followed them and went to Gretchen’s cabin to get her revolver,” Kian explained.
“Wait... Gretchen has a gun, along with a rifle?” Hud asked in surprise.
Kian grinned. “Yes, this Smith and Wesson .357 Magnum revolver.”
“Damn... are you sure you want to be with this woman?” Hud joked.
“There’s no question about it.” Kian replied with a grin as they awaited Sam’s arrival.
****
Gretchen’s body tensed as she heard a gunshot, then another shortly after. Her stomach churned with fear, and she couldn’t stop the tears from streaming down her face. She collapsed onto the couch, covering her mouth with her hand. How long had she been sitting there when someone banged on her door? She was too scared to answer; it could be another agent telling her that Kian was hurt or worse. Or maybe it was Kian himself standing on the other side of the door. She shook her head, unable to move.
“Gretchen, baby, it’s me,” Kian’s voice called through the door.
She jumped up and ran toward the door, opening it quickly and throwing herself into his arms. She sobbed against his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her.
“It’s okay, baby. We got them,” he whispered, but she couldn’t stop crying.
“I was so scared. I’m sorry for being mad at you.”
“It’s alright. I know it won’t be the last time. Hey, Lobo,” Kian greeted as he looked over Gretchen’s shoulder at the dog. “I knew you’d be taken care of.”
Lobo wagged his tail in response.
“It wasn’t too bad,” Gretchen said.
“How about you go back to my place with Lobo and wait for me? I have to work in the morning.”
“You can’t stay now?” Gretchen asked, disappointment evident in her voice.
“No, baby. I need to go to the office and make a report for Sam. The interrogation will take place at MDOL since Sam doesn’t have a place to do it. I want to be there when they interrogate the suspects.”
“Okay. But I need your key.”
Kian took a step back and retrieved his keys from his pocket, removing the housekey and handing it to Gretchen.
“I’ll get an extra one made for you later,” he promised.
“I can do it on the way there. I’ll stop at The Feed Store,” Gretchen suggested.
“Sounds good.”
“Kian?”
Gretchen spotted Killian walking toward them and ran down the steps to give him a grateful hug.
“Thank you for being there for Kian,” she said, still holding onto him.
“You’re welcome. A lot of us were there.”
“I heard two shots.” She turned to look at Kian.
“One of them shot at Sam, but he fired back, and got one of them in the arm. No one was seriously hurt. They surrendered as soon as Sam told them they were surrounded and had no way out.”
“Thank God,” Gretchen breathed out, feeling relieved.
She walked back to Kian and hugged him tightly again, her fears slowly dissipating.
“Is she alright?” Killian asked.
“She’ll be fine. She’s tough,” Kian said.
“I’m sure you’re right. I’ll see you back at the office,” Killian said, nodding at Gretchen before walking away.
Kian kissed Gretchen on the forehead. “I hate to go, but I have to. Just pack some clothes and I’ll see you there later.” He cupped her face and made her look at him. “I’m not sure how long it’ll take, so if it’s too late, just go to bed. I’ll be there.”
Gretchen nodded, tears still in her eyes. “Okay. I’ll wait for you.”
“I hope so and don’t plan on leaving for a while.” He quickly kissed her lips before running down the steps and disappearing into the woods.
Gretchen watched until he was out of sight before entering the cabin. Lobo was lying on the floor, looking up at her expectantly.
“We’re going to stay with Kian now. Let me pack some things for both of us.” She laughed when Lobo placed his head on his paws and let out a big sigh.
After packing a bag for herself and grabbing Lobo’s food bowls and some food, she leashed him up and led him to her car. She knew he would listen to her while they were here and, in the vehicle, but once they arrived at Kian’s place, she was certain he would want to explore and run off. She placed his belongings in the back of the SUV and closed the hatch before driving into town.
After getting a key made at the Feed Store, she drove to his house. As she pulled up the long drive, she couldn’t help but admire the stunning beauty of the house. She anxiously anticipated seeing it fully furnished.