Chapter 20
Blake closed the book he’d been reading to the boys and tiptoed out of the bedroom. He paused to switch off the light, then
closed the door behind him. He’d been on edge ever since Paradise got back and he’d heard her whispered comment about putting
off the discussion until the boys were in bed. Her amber eyes were shadowed and her mouth drawn, so whatever she’d learned
from Abby had been troubling.
He went down the hall and found both of the women in his life in the living room. Mom had lit a fire, and the warm glow and
smoky scent made the home feel welcoming. They all loved this little shotgun cottage with its quirky hiding places and cramped
rooms. It was home, and the thought of having to leave it hurt. Mom had given him the bad news that paying their employees
would be a challenge this month. They might have to take out a loan.
He needed wisdom for what to do.
A cinnamon-scented candle flickered on the stand at the end of the sofa by Paradise. He settled beside her and took her hand. “I could tell you got troubling news from Abby today. Spill it.”
“Adams is part of some plot to pick up the park for a song.”
His gut clenched as he listened to what Abby had told her. “I wonder if PI Nicole Iverson was checking for rare earth and
not gas or oil deposits all along. The smear campaign against the park started with Danielle Mason’s body found in the horse
trailer the day you arrived here.”
“And it hasn’t stopped yet.” His mother ran her hand through her dark brown bob. Her blue eyes were shadowed and damp.
He’d been unable to stop events from shoving them into this tight spot. Seeing his mother so broken was almost more than he
could bear. What could he do? How could he fix this?
“She said to hold firm and not sell.”
“I’m not sure how we can do that when we’re teetering on the edge here.” His mother’s voice wobbled.
Paradise laced her fingers with his. “At least we know about the rare earth. If you’re ever forced to sell, you could advertise
that value to prospective buyers.”
Blake squeezed her hand gently. “It sounds like extracting the rare earth elements is a big challenge. We may not have many
takers.”
“Someone is taking steps to keep it quiet, so I think there’s likely to be more interest than we realize.”
His mother rose and paced the floor. “I admit I was a tiny bit tempted when I heard how valuable the rare earth elements were, especially when I did the books late last night and realized how dire things are. But I don’t want to leave here.
This is home for us. It would be more than the boys could handle to yank them away from here.
We have to get on top of these rumors and innuendos circulating about us.
” She swiped tears from her eyes. “I just don’t know what to do. ”
Everything Blake had worked for was disintegrating in his hands, and a sense of failure crushed his shoulders. “I’ll talk
to Hez. Maybe we could sell just the rare earth rights to the unimproved land, and it would give us running capital.”
“It would have us landlocked though, with no room for expansion.” His mom sank back into her chair. “There aren’t any easy
answers.”
A tear slipped down Paradise’s cheek, and she leaned her head against Blake’s shoulder. The enormity of what lay before them
was an unexpected blow. Until today he’d been optimistic about the chances of turning things around. Now he wasn’t so sure.
How would they meet payroll?
He pressed a kiss to Paradise’s forehead. “Did Abby have anything else to say?”
“She’d heard about the scare with the snake and the vandalism to my car. She’s worried about me.”
His phone sounded, and he showed Jane’s name on the screen to Paradise and his mom. “Blake here.”
“Sorry to call so late, Blake, but I finally got ahold of Chad at the place that ran your DNA. I had quite the time finding
anyone to talk to me.”
“Thanks for being so persistent. What did he say about the disappearing results?”
“He said they’d discovered they’d been hacked and were making efforts to shore up their online security. He apologized for
the trouble, then claimed they’d traced the break-in to somewhere in DC, though he didn’t know more than that. No name or
company behind the hacking.”
“Was anything else in the database changed?”
“That’s the strange part. Only that particular result had been tampered with. It’s very odd, and even he admitted he didn’t
know what to make of it. At any rate, he says the results have been uploaded and Paradise should be able to message any of
the possible family connections that show up now.”
“That’s good news,” Blake said. “I’ll have her check the DNA portal. Any word on fingerprints or DNA on the binoculars?”
“We lifted prints and have a match, but I’m sure you won’t be surprised to learn they were used by Lloyd Adams. I’m sharing
the results with the sheriff’s office, and I’m sure they’ll pick him up. If nothing else, he was trespassing and sabotaging
an animal enclosure, but I think it’s likely he killed Ivy. And we also got DNA off the USB drive found in Paradise’s car
the night of the snake incident. It also belongs to Adams.”
So Abby was right—Adams was involved in more than the sabotage incidents at the park. Blake heard a child whining in the background.
“Sounds like Dolly is still up.”
“Sleep regression. The bane of my existence. Hang on.” Jane’s voice held humor and not anger, and she called to her daughter.
“Coming, sweet girl. Mama will be right there.”
Blake grinned when she signed off. Even a police chief dealt with fractious toddlers.
Blake followed Paradise to her apartment, and he checked closets and bedrooms while she made a charcuterie board of crackers, cheese, pepperoni, prosciutto, nuts, and mango chutney.
It might not be a professional job, but it made her mouth water.
With glasses of sweet tea, it would make a nice treat to eat with a movie.
She’d let Blake choose tonight’s selection, which meant she had no idea what it would be.
He had eclectic tastes that ranged from war movies to sci-fi and fantasy.
All that mattered was she’d be snuggled against his side, right where she wanted to be after the crazy day.
“All clear.” Blake dropped onto the sofa beside her and reached for a cracker. “This looks amazing. I don’t even know how
to spell what kind of board it is.”
“I just remember char like a steak and cuterie like it’s cute. But it’s hard to spell for sure.”
“Why not just call it a snack board? Or cracker board? Who came up with a word like charcuterie anyway?”
“It’s French.” She slathered chutney on a cracker and stacked it with meat and cheese. “So what are we watching tonight?”
“I’d rather watch you than the TV.” He coiled a strand of her hair around his finger. “It feels like we haven’t had much alone
time lately. I want to hear how Pawsome Pets is doing. All we’ve done is talk about The Sanctuary. Any interesting cases?”
“My hours are starting to fill up, and someone brought in a pet otter a couple of days ago. The poor thing didn’t have the
right habitat, and I had to lecture the owner on how to do better. I think she might be considering bringing the otter to
the park. They are super cute, but it takes a lot of dedication to provide the right space.”
“Levi would love another otter. That kid is obsessed with them.”
“And a litter of puppies got dropped off. Part Lab and part mongrel but very cute.” Merlin stared at her with disdain at the
mention of the dogs, then hopped up on her lap to remind her she belonged to him. “I got lucky and the next family in that
day took all three.”
“Mom will thank you. The boys would want them too.” His embrace pulled her closer. “Enough talk.”
His mouth covered hers and she forgot all about the problems they faced. She found herself on his lap with her arms wound
around his neck. His breath was ragged when he pulled away and so was hers. “Whose idea was it to wait awhile to get married?”
he whispered.
“That would be all your fault, big guy.”
He leaned his head against hers. “I don’t even know what to do, babe. It feels like the park is slipping away from us. Mom
keeps the books, so I hadn’t really looked into our finances. I was floored when she admitted we’d have trouble meeting payroll
on Friday. I often don’t even cash my check, but it’s still not enough. I could make a lot more money as a paramedic. Maybe
I should get another job and hire someone to drive the safari truck.”
Her stomach bottomed out. “Don’t pay me this week. Pawsome Pets is paying for itself, and the payments should be a good revenue
stream for you guys eventually. What can I do to help?” She had a little money in savings she’d tucked away for their wedding,
but she knew better than to offer it up. Blake would never take it. “I’m practically part of the family—it’s okay to hold
my check just like yours.”
His eyes narrowed. “I’m not taking your money. I’d thought about trying to get a loan, but I’m not sure the bank would go
for it with our current balance sheet. I could get a little cash advance on a credit card, but the interest rate is crazy
and it would only bail us out for a week. I own my truck free and clear. I could get a loan with it as collateral for probably
twenty thousand.” He rubbed his head. “But that just creates more debt. If we could just get more donors, but the bad PR is
scaring them away.”
“Let’s pray about it, right now.” It wasn’t a comment she’d ever thought she’d hear coming out of her mouth, but she’d found herself turning to God more and more since she’d quit blaming him for every bad thing that had happened in her life.
He lifted his head, and his blue eyes were tender. “Could you repeat that? I’m not sure I heard you.”
She elbowed him. “You heard me all right. You pray and I’ll add an amen.”