Chapter 27 #2
She gasped when she saw Dodger running along the tree line, easily keeping pace with the truck. What in the world? Before she could yell at the wolf to go home, he veered into the trees and disappeared from sight.
Tanner had said Dodger did things like that. She wondered what it meant for half a second before turning her focus back to the road and pressing the accelerator even harder.
She made it to the house in minutes. Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking as she ran up the back porch steps of Rainbow’s Edge.
The text from Nanabelle had been so frantic, so unlike her de facto grandmother’s usual cheerful messages.
She could barely think straight. All that mattered was getting to her.
Bursting through the back door, she entered the kitchen, chest heaving. The house was quiet. That might be a bad sign. She braced herself to find Nanabelle on the floor, bleeding.
“Nanabelle! I’m here! Where are you?”
At the sound of her voice, barking erupted, though it sounded odd. She cocked her head but couldn’t concentrate on its location as she took a few more steps into the kitchen, circling the island, and froze.
Nanabelle wasn’t there. Had she managed to crawl somewhere else? But then there would be blood on the floor, right? Unease crept slowly into her chest. Maybe her grandmother’s injuries weren’t as bad as the text made them sound. If that were the case, she wished Nanabelle had called her.
Maybe she had cleaned up and gone to lie down. That would be just like her, trying not to worry anyone. She probably just forgot to send a follow-up text. That had to be it.
Junie checked Nanabelle’s bedroom next. That room was also empty. Her unease twisted tighter into real panic. Something was off. It felt all wrong. The barking had grown louder, but there was still no sign of Pup. An urgent need to get back to the cabin hit her hard.
A low grunt came from the front room. Junie headed that way, heart pounding. Why would Nanabelle have gone there? They always used the kitchen door. Sure enough, she could see the top of her grandmother’s curly silver head just visible over the back of her favorite armchair.
“Nanabelle, thank god I found you.” Junie ran around to the front of the chair.
A rush of elation crashed into confusion. Nanabelle’s hands were tied in front of her so tight they were red and beginning to swell. A strip of fabric gagged her mouth. Her eyes were wide with terror, and a small cut on her forehead still bled.
Junie’s stomach clenched. She was going to be sick.
Before she could scream, a voice came from behind her—casual and ice-cold.
“Hello, Juniper.”
She spun around at the same time the barking erupted into growls with the distinct sound of frantic scratching letting her know that Pup had evidently been shut into the coat closet by the front door. But that wasn’t what scared her out of her mind. No, that was caused by the man who’d spoken.
Preston stood in the doorway, holding a gun.
Tanner and Javi rode back toward the cabin in silence, the tension in his shoulders finally starting to ease.
The hunt had gone clean. One steady shot from his rifle and the rabid wolf was down.
The immediate threat to the herd was gone, at least for now.
They would still need to move the bison into the holding pens for checks and sweep the area for any other sick animals, but they had acted fast. He pulled his phone from his pocket to check the time and frowned at the missed call from Junie.
His stomach tightened into a hard knot. He had forgotten to turn his ringer back on. Fuck. He switched it on quickly and was about to check his voicemail when the phone started ringing again.
He assumed it was Junie, but the number on the screen was a local one he did not recognize. He answered.
A woman’s voice came through, frantic and nearly hysterical.
“Oh god, Tanner? This is Angelina from Wilder Wealth. I tried to stop him. He wouldn’t listen.
He stormed out of here like a crazed bull.
I don’t know what set him off. He was looking at something on his computer, and then he just…
he went into a rage. The only thing I caught was him saying that Junie couldn’t get away from him that easily and that those Daniels couldn’t take anything away from him that he couldn’t get back.
Then he left. I didn’t know what to do. I know I should have called sooner, but I didn’t know what to do.
I think maybe Junie’s in danger. Is she with you? ”
“Call the sheriff,” Tanner replied, voice flat, before hanging up. He kicked Halo into a hard gallop. The big horse surged forward beneath him as fear and fury roared through Tanner’s veins. He switched the call to speaker and dialed Boone.
His brother picked up on the first ring. “Damn it, Tanner, why weren’t you answering your phone?”
“That doesn’t matter. Just listen,” Tanner bit out, leaning low over Halo’s neck as they thundered across the pasture.
“I just got a call from Angelina, Preston’s secretary.
She said he’s gone off the deep end and stormed out of the office.
He’s coming for Junie. I need you to reinforce the gate and tell Grant to put the whole ranch on high alert. ”
Boone’s voice came back grim. “That’s why I was trying to call you. Putting the ranch on high alert won’t do any good. Junie left.”
Tanner’s blood ran cold. “What the hell do you mean she left?”
“She took off in your truck. Will Doherty was at the gate. He thought it was you at first and opened it. The second he realized it was Junie, he tried to stop her, but she blew right past him. He said she was driving like a bat out of hell. We don’t know where she went.”
Tanner’s jaw clenched so tight it ached. When he got his hands on her, he was going to blister her little ass so red her great-grandchildren wouldn't be able to sit down for a week. But right now none of that mattered. All that mattered was finding her and making sure she was safe.
He pulled out his phone again and opened the tracking app he had installed on her phone weeks ago. He had told her it was just one more layer of protection to keep her safe, and she had agreed. The little dot on the screen gave him a spark of hope.
Rainbow’s Edge. It was not far.
He told Boone what he saw. “I’ve got the location. She got a message from Belle Quimby saying that Belle had fallen and hit her head. She’s probably on her way there right now. I’m headed that way too. If Preston’s coming, he’s most likely headed for the ranch and not Rainbow’s Edge.”
“I hope you’re right. But brother, be on your guard.”
Be on your guard. No shit.
“Boone, send an ambulance just in case Junie needs help with Belle.”
“Copy that,” Boone said before disconnecting.
Tanner urged Halo faster, the big horse stretching out beneath him as they raced toward Rainbow’s Edge.
Wind whipped past his face. His heart hammered against his ribs with every stride.
The only thing that mattered now was getting to Junie before Preston did.
He would tear the man apart with his bare hands if he had to.
No one was going to touch his babygirl. Not today. Not ever.
He leaned lower over Halo’s neck and pushed the horse harder, the cabin and everything he had built with Junie burning bright in his mind. He was coming for her. God help anyone who got in his way.