cages down to the old road, or pay attention when I drive out of town. It’s not hard to park a truck with a hauler there, and once I’ve loaded up the bike, ATV, and cages, no one will be the wiser. I’ll take you out of here on a plane from a private airstrip, and collect my fee.”
He sighed as if already imagining how he would spend the money. “I’ve been in this business for a long time. Never been hired to make a hit before. But you know, I kinda like it. Branching out is good for business,” he added, laughing at his own joke.
Liam tried to steady his breathing, which was about the only thing he could control. His body remained paralyzed, and he couldn’t even manage to twitch his whiskers. But fortunately, the tracker was still in his mouth, and he hoped with all his heart that it was saliva-resistant.
I’ve got to do something. If he gets us on that plane, we’re dead. If he puts our cages on his ATV, we’re as good as dead. Russ is laid up, and it might take a while for Jeffries to convince anyone to listen—or for them to get here. I’ve got to figure out a way for us to save ourselves.
But at the moment, drugged and frightened, Liam had no clue how to make that happen.
8
Russ
“Hold up a minute! What do you mean the fires and the missing hikers might be connected? And why would a Huntsman be after Liam?” Sheriff Torben Armel held up a hand, and everyone in the room fell silent.
It didn’t take a lot of imagination to see Armel as a brown bear. His tall, solid frame, broad shoulders, powerful arms, and strong chest certainly brought that image to mind, not to mention a thick head of brown hair. His end-of-day stubble rivaled the beard it took a lot of men a week to grow, and Russ suspected Armel had to shave his neck if the pelt of dark chest hair at the collar of his shirt was any indication of the rest of him.
Russ wished to hell his throat was better. Even with shifter healing and medication, he still felt groggy, and it hurt to talk. Drew gave him a pitying look, but Russ knew he didn’t have a choice.
Liam was in danger.
“He told me—” Russ started, his voice a painful rasp.
Rich Jeffries put up a hand. “Why don’t you let me tell the main part, and you can fill in any details I miss?” he asked, trying to save Russ’s damaged throat. Russ nodded and made a circular motion with his hand as if to say “get on with it.”
Fire Chief Saunders, Sheriff Armel, Russ, and Drew listened as Jeffries recounted Liam’s story about the Huntsman his ex had hired, his dramatic escape in Ithaca, and his worry that the hired killer had followed him to Fox Hollow. He added Liam’s concern that the missing hikers and the recent spate of arsons were all connected, which drew deep frowns from both officials.
Russ only had to jump in at a few places, but Jeffries’s recount matched what Liam had told Russ, with only a few more personal details missing.
“And none of you thought to tell us this, why?” Armel nearly bellowed.
“No proof,” Russ growled, finding that pitching his voice lower helped. “It sounds crazy.”
“You’re right about that,” Chief Saunders snapped. Russ had a feeling that if he wasn’t already laid out in a hospital bed, injured in the line of duty, Saunders would have ripped him a new one on general principles.
“Is it possible?” Drew asked, looking from the chief to the sheriff. “Just because it sounds far-fetched doesn’t make it wrong.”
Armel had his arms folded across his chest, but his fingers drummed against his biceps, which Russ had learned was a clear tell that the other man was thinking hard. “I’ve heard about vengeful exes that tried to arrange to have their former partners killed,” he replied. “Takes a certain kind of psycho, but there are all types in the world. So that’s possible…although not something you see every day.”
“We’ve never had this many accidental fires in one season,” Saunders added, “and never arson. Whoever is setting these fires isn’t an amateur. Especially this last one. So the distraction angle is plausible.”
“Don’t forget—the two hikers are also shifters, and they’re both rare types of animals,” Jeffries pointed out.
Armel ran a hand back through his thick hair. “Shit. I don’t know. Maybe?”