Peril on the Ranch

by Lynette Eason

  “Of course. You’re all up-to-date on your emergency placement status, so that’s a good thing. I’ll have to take her to the doctor for a checkup, do some other paperwork, of course, to make it all official and legal, but that won’t take me long. I can email it to you later this afternoon.”

  “Perfect. Now I just need to get the crib put together.”

  “I can do that,” Mac said.

  “I haven’t interviewed you, yet,” she reminded him.

  “Oh. Right.”

  “Have you done a lot of ranch work?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Granted, not a place as big as this one as I was working a full-time job as well, but I used to have my own small ranch before life happened. Now I’m something of a drifter, but I’m harmless.”

  “I know. Your background check came back clean.”

  “Well, that’s good to know,” Cheryl said. “I’ll need a copy of that for the file.”

  Isabelle nodded to Cheryl, then turned back to him. “As long as you can do the work, you’re hired.”

  Mac blinked. “Just like that?”

  “Just like that. Now, that was the easy part.”

  “Isabelle?” The husky voice caught his attention and he noticed two boys standing in the doorway. “What’s going on?” the taller one asked.

  “Zeb, Danny,” Isabelle said, “this is Mac. Mac, this is Zeb Hammrick and Danny Billings. Guys, we had a little excitement this morning. I’ll fill you in later, but for now, Mac is going to be working around here.”

  “Cool,” Zeb said. “Welcome to the ranch.”

  “Thanks.”

  Zeb looked up at Isabelle. “We’re hungry. Is it okay if I make pancakes? Ms. Sybil already left for that doctor’s appointment today, remember?”

  “Of course. I’ll be there in just a bit. And you might want to hurry a bit. The school bus will be here in about thirty minutes. Take Katie with you, will you?”

  The kids disappeared back into the house and Isabelle bit her lip while the baby snoozed on her shoulder. “That was scary, y’all. These kids have suffered enough trauma in their lives. And while Katie seems to be unaffected and the boys didn’t see any of it, they don’t need this kind of thing.”

  The officers exchanged a glance. “What do you think he was after?”

  “I have no idea. Probably money or something he could easily pawn.” She glanced at the infant in her arms. “Or the baby, maybe? I don’t know why.”

  Mac shoved his hands into his pockets and eyed the officers, then Isabelle. “Because it means he didn’t get what he was after.”

  Isabelle nodded, the dread in her eyes letting him know she understood immediately where he was going with that statement. She drew in a deep breath and raked a hand over her ponytail. “And you think he might come back.”

  TWO

  Isabelle shuddered at the thought that the intruder might return to finish whatever his objective had been. Had he thought no one was home when he approached in the early-morning hour? Or had he been watching and knew she was basically alone with the children in the house and thought he could take what he wanted without fear she’d fight back?

  He would have been correct if it meant protecting the children. She swallowed at the visual her imagination produced. Okay, then. “What if he was the one who left the baby and then changed his mind?”

  “That’s not what the note indicates,” Grant said. “Like you suggested, he was probably just looking for something to steal and you surprised him.”

  “But why didn’t he just run when he realized I was here?”

  Regina shrugged. “He might have been strung out and desperate. We won’t know until we catch him and ask him.”

  “Well, I hope that’s soon.” In the distance, she could see signs of life in the bunkhouse attached to the barn. Two dogs, Milo and Sugar, bounded out of the small living quarters and sprinted toward them. She pointed. “That man heading this way is Cody Ray,” she said for Mac’s benefit. “He runs the barn and takes care of the horses. We have a lot of people who board with us.” Milo and Sugar barked and tumbled over each other, playing tag in the open space. “The black Lab is Milo and the border collie is Sugar. They belong to Cody Ray, but they’re great with the kids.”

  Cody Ray reached them, a frown on his face and questions in his eyes, while the dogs approached with wagging tails. “What’s going on out here?” he asked.

  Isabelle made the introductions and brought him up to speed on the events of the morning. His ruddy face paled. “I didn’t hear a thing. And the dogs didn’t alert to anything wrong.”

  “You were too far away, Cody,” Isabelle said. “The whole thing lasted less than five minutes.”

  “What about Sybil?”

  “I had forgotten in the moment, but she was gone before the sun came up.” Relief flickered in his eyes and Isabelle smiled. His soft spot for the widowed cook wasn’t any secret. She turned to the officers. “If anything else comes up, I’ll call, I guess.”

  Regina nodded. “I don’t live too far from you, Iz. You know you can call me anytime.”

  “I know. Thanks, Regina.”

  “We’re going to head out,” Grant said. “Let us know if you think of anything else. We’ll also make it a point to drive out here two or three times a day for the next few days.”

  Isabelle nodded. “That would be great, thanks.”

  After the officers drove away, Isabelle let out a long, slow breath. “All right, let me get the kids off to school and we’ll sit down and talk about things.”

  “And I’ll take the baby to the doctor,” Cheryl said. “I’ll bring her back as soon as we’re finished.”

  Isabelle nodded. “I’ll be ready for her.”

  Forty-five minutes later, Isabelle sat in her small office off the den. After Cheryl had left, she’d shown Mac his living space and he’d seemed pleased and grateful for the nice area. He’d be staying in the furnished mother-in-law suite attached to the main house with his own room, bathroom and den. The separate entrance meant he could come and go as he pleased without worrying about disturbing her or the children.

  And now she had to go over her finances so she could decide what to buy for the baby. Isabelle had a few toys for an infant Lilly’s age, but she’d need diapers, more formula, some jars of baby food and, at the very least, a week’s worth of clothing. Fortunately, there was a children’s consignment store on Main Street and Isabelle planned to head there as soon as Mac had signed the employment papers.

  A knock on the door pulled her attention from the computer screen. “Come in.” Mac stepped inside and she waved to the nearest chair. “Please, have a seat.”

  “Thanks.”

  While he got settled, she studied him. He had dark curly hair that looked finger-combed, but she liked it. Dark eyes and olive skin made her wonder about his heritage. Whatever it was, he was a very handsome man and she found herself drawn to it.

  Isabelle cleared her throat and slid the papers across the desk in front of him, then handed him a pen. “I’m the one who should be thanking you. Again.”

  He smiled and scribbled his signature across the bottom of the various forms. “Glad I was here.” He pushed the documents back to her. “Just out of curiosity,” he said, “how many people applied for this job?”

  “Five. And I’ve canceled the three remaining interviews.”

  He blinked. “Why me?”

  “You chased down a would-be burglar, and you look honest.”

  A huff of laughter escaped him. “You’re hiring me because I look honest?”

  “Well, that, and your background check came back squeaky clean. Your résumé said you’re a former police officer?”

  “Yes.”

  “And you wanted to get off that line of work because...?”

  His green eyes stayed on her but went dar
k and he lifted a hand to rub his strong jaw. “It was time for a change.”

  She knew he was hiding something. But her gut said it was something personal, not something that would affect his job or something she needed to worry about safety-wise. At least she was mostly certain of that. However, he was entitled to his privacy, so she let it drop. “I can understand the need for change.” She shifted her gaze to the papers in front of her. “Just one more question. Your résumé is rather short. How long were you at your last couple of jobs?”

  He nodded. “After I left law enforcement I followed the rodeo circuit for a while. Did some bull riding and roping. I won some and lost some. I had a hard hit in the last one and figured I’d get out while I was still in one piece. From there, I worked with a construction crew for eight months while we built houses in a new neighborhood. Once that was done, I wanted to move on and decided to look for another job in this area. I saw your ad in the paper and...here I am. In Timber Creek, North Carolina.”

  “Yes,” she said, her voice soft. “Here you are. How long do you think you’ll stay?”

  For a moment, he looked away and then studied his hands. Finally, he looked up. “You’re right. I’m honest. I can’t say how long I’ll stick around, but I’ll do my best work while I’m here and I’ll give you a month’s notice before I leave.”

  She bit her lip, wondering if she should tell him he wasn’t the right man for the job after all, but...

  Again, the feeling that he was running from something flitted through her mind. However, she also felt like she could trust him. “All right, then. Thanks for being straight with me.” She snagged a paper from the desk and handed it to him. “This is the current list of things that need to be done around here. The most important is putting together the crib for Ms. Lilly. I keep one in case I get an infant.” She shot him a wistful smile. “It’s been over a year since I’ve had a baby in the house. Most of the kids I get are older.”

  “I can put it together. No problem.”

  “Great. Then there’s the kitchen window and the replacement of the fence in the south pasture. The one out there right now is falling down and dangerous. The wood for the new fence was delivered yesterday. It’s behind the barn and covered with a blue tarp. If you want to make that the third thing on your priority list, that would be great.”

  “Of course.” He tapped his hand with the paper, then met her gaze. “I’ll understand if you want to rescind your offer.”

  “I don’t.” She smiled. “Oh, one more thing. We have an annual event called A Day at The Ranch. It’s a combination of amateur rodeo, calf roping, too much food, and lots of games for the kids. The whole town usually comes out and we have a blast while raising money for the ranch—which is registered as a nonprofit. I can tell you more about that later, but everything is coming up fast, so I wanted you to be aware there’s a ton of work to do.”

  “Then we’ll get it done.”

  “Excellent. Thank you.” She blew out a sigh. Some of the heavy stress she’d been weighted down with slid from her shoulders. “Well, now that we’ve got that taken care of, I’m going to head into town to get a few things. Anything you need while I’m there?”

  “No, nothing. Thanks.” He looked slightly dazed by the fact that she hadn’t sent him on his way, but then he cleared his throat and rose. “I’ll board up the kitchen window and get that crib put together while you’re gone, then get started on the fence.” He paused. “Unless you’d like for me to go with you?”

  “No, that’s okay. Regina and Grant seemed to think if the guy shows up again, it’ll be here. I’m probably safer in town than staying here, so I think we’ll be fine. And I’ve already called Gary Knight, who owns the glass place in town. He’s going to send someone out to replace the pane. He said it might be tomorrow before he could get out here, though, so plywood will work for now.”

  Mac nodded and stood. “All right.”

  “I think I’m also going to pick up one of those systems that have cameras you can monitor on your phone. At least until someone can get out here to put a more sophisticated system in. But at least there’ll be cameras.”

  “That’s a good idea. Just having those in sight might be a good deterrent.”

  “Exactly what I was thinking.”

  “All right. You be careful. You have my number if you need something.”

  “Of course.”

  He turned to leave then stopped and nodded to the framed diploma on the wall. “You’re a doctor?”

  “Of psychiatry.”

  “And you run a ranch and take in foster kids.”

  “Like I said, I understand the need for change.” She shrugged. “I was at a private practice for a while, but Josiah and I had dreams that involved this ranch and kids who needed to know someone loved them.”

  “I see. That’s very admirable. You think you’ll ever go back to private practice?”

  “Maybe one day. For now, I believe I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.”

  “Then that’s all that counts. Be careful driving into town.”

  He disappeared through the door and she stared at the empty space for a moment. Why did having his number give her such a good feeling? Why did his telling her to be careful give her warm fuzzies? And what was it about him that had drawn her to him so fast? The fact that his first instinct was to protect her and chase down the intruder this morning? Or the fact that he tried to hide the pain she sensed lurking beneath his serious surface?

  She sighed and rubbed her eyes. It didn’t really matter. She needed help and he was there to do it. That was all that she needed to worry about right now. Her phone buzzed. “Hello?”

  “Hey, this is Cheryl. We should be finished with the doctor in another fifteen minutes or so. I need to get Lilly dropped off with you ASAP and get out to another call.”

  “Okay, I was heading into town anyway to grab a few things. I’ll meet you at the doctor’s office and pick her up.”

  “Perfect. And Isabelle?”

  “Yes?”

  “Be careful.” The deep seriousness in the woman’s voice tightened Isabelle’s nerves. “I’m not positive, but I think I saw someone sitting on a motorcycle outside the doctor’s office, watching.”

  “Did you call the police?”

  “I did. By the time they got here, the guy was gone and we were back in a room.”

  “Okay, thanks for the heads-up.”

  She hung up and headed for her van, her mind spinning. It had been an exciting morning, to say the least. And now this? She couldn’t help wondering what she was getting herself into.

  * * *

  Mac walked to the window of the room that Isabelle had designated as the nursery. Small enough to be considered a large closet, it would suffice for as long as Lilly needed a place to sleep. From his position, he watched Isabelle climb into the Honda Odyssey and shut the door. Once her taillights disappeared around the curve near the end of the drive, he pulled the parts of the crib from the closet and laid them out on the floor along with the directions.

  His heart pounded at the sight of the pieces, the memories taking him back almost two years to a time he’d done his best to forget. A time of happiness and anticipation that had been wiped away in a single night. “Why, God? I just wish I could understand why.”

  When the familiar silence descended, Mac backed from the room and raced out of the house. Cody Ray looked up from where he was trimming one of the bushes back from the porch. “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah.” Milo and Sugar sprinted over, butting him and asking for ear scratches. Mac obliged, even as he breathed in deep, wrestling his emotions into submission. “Uh...yeah. Just trying to figure out which thing is the priority. Putting the crib together or boarding up the kitchen window.”

  “I’d say the window. Supposed to rain this afternoon.”

  “Rig
ht. Thanks. I’ll go take care of that now.” He could do that without having a breakdown. Hopefully. He gave the dogs one more pat.

  “Got some plywood in the barn. Leaning up against the wall next to the saddles. Do you want me to grab it?”

  “I can do it.”

  “Tools and nails are on the workbench just outside the office. You’ll spot them.” Cody Ray went back to his snipping.

  “Thanks.”

  Boarding up the window took him all of fifteen minutes once he had the Skilsaw set up, and for every one of those minutes, he never stopped thinking of the pretty widow with the gaggle of children. She’d captured his attention in a way that hadn’t been done since—well, since. Suffice it to say it had been a long time. He nailed the last corner in place, then turned to look out over the pasture in the direction the guy had run this morning. The officers hadn’t bothered to go look for the guy once Mac returned to tell them he’d seen him hop on a motorcycle and ride away toward the highway beyond the woods.

  But...

  “Hey, Cody Ray!”

  “Yeah?” The man had moved to the bush on the other side of the porch.

  “I’m going to go check something out in the woods. I’ll be right back, okay?”

  “You need any help?”

  “No, I’m good. Thanks.”

  “Sure thing. Just watch out for Duke.”

  Mac stopped. “Duke?”

  “The bull. He’s always in the back pasture near the tree line. Isabelle keeps him there because he can be temperamental and she doesn’t want the kids near him. She’s got a buyer coming out sometime this week to take him off her hands. Until then, he’s banished and the kids are forbidden to go near him.”

  “Good to know. I’ll keep an eye out for Duke.”

  Mac jogged to the tree line and stopped just inside the wooded area. Just like he’d done a few hours earlier. He walked the path he’d run and scanned the ground, hoping to see something. Anything that might help him figure out who the hooded figure was.

  It had rained two days before, and while the pasture had mostly dried in the sun, the ground beneath his feet was still damp. He remembered the patch of mud that had almost taken him down and continued to trek his way toward it.