“Depends on their parents, but it’s not safe for the children to be shifting right now. Jonathan is a real problem.”
“So how heated did it get last night?” Chase asked.
“Very, but I’m worried about what might happen if he gets them to dig too deep.”
“Clayton is looking for prints.”
“So he did get the Rancher’s Committee involved? I would have taken care of him if he’d come alone, but that would only make it worse for all of us. He’s going to be a real problem. It’s only a matter of time before he figures that shifters are in the area.”
Katlyn downed her shot, choking for a moment before she was able to recover. “That won’t be good. What if the Shifter Patrol comes into town?”
“They’ll have a war on their hands. I won’t stand by and have them harm my pack,” Nate said.
“That’s the last thing we need. There has to be some way to defuse the situation,” Brendan said.
“Hopefully, you’ll be able to keep out of the fray with your neighbor, Brendan, and keep the new teacher safe.”
Brendan put his arm around Katlyn. “I won’t allow anyone to harm the new teacher,” Brendan winked.
“I better get back to look out. Since Clayton’s on the job, most likely he’ll be stopping by to question me.”
“I really need to head back to our ranch now,” Brendan said as he headed for the door with Katlyn and Chase in tow.
Once they were back in the SUV and back on the main road, Katlyn said, “Thanks for not telling Nate about our involvement.”
“He’s not an idiot. I can’t image anyone hereabouts wouldn’t know that I’d stake a claim on you since you moved to the ranch.”
“How arrogant of you. I never planned to sleep with you and Chase. Last night I was just upset.”
“And horny.”
“That, too. Ever since back in the club when we were interrupted, I’ve wanted to see it through, but I really tried to stay away from the both of you.”
“Just as we were trying, but you sure make it difficult with that pouty mouth of yours. It begs to be kissed.”
She sighed and felt an overwhelming desire to ask Brendan to pull over so they could resume last night’s activities, but felt bad about even thinking that when she didn’t know how Tessa was doing.
When they arrived back at the ranch, there were strange cars in the drive. Clayton approached the driver’s side door and said, “Can I show you something, Brendan?”
The trio climbed from the SUV and into Clayton’s truck and he drove to what must have been the north fence area since that’s all they’d been talking about. They piled out and approached the fence where Clayton pointed out blood that was pooled on the ground. “When was the last time you and your cattle were out here?”
“A few days ago, but we weren’t personally here. The ranch hands were manning the herd that day.”
“Who, specifically?”
“I’ll have to ask Paige since she was in charge of doing that yesterday.”
“It appears that this fencing has been fixed recently.”
“Yes, I told you someone had tampered with the fence a few times. I think that was also fixed for the second time a few days ago.”
“Think?”
“Yes, the three of us were attending to the schoolhouse that was in need of repairs.”
“Were you there all day?”
Brendan swept a hand through his hair. “What’s going on here, Clayton? Really?”
“I’m just doing my job, Brendan. It’s nothing personal.”
“So what do you think happened to Jonathan’s sheep?”
“They either wandered over here and were killed, or dragged over here and killed. I’m not sure which, but I’ve taken samples. That’s quite a bit of blood. It seems to lead to that clump of trees up ahead and that’s where the trail ends.”
“Did you check for tracks?”
“There’s plenty tracks hereabouts, including the tracks of a mountain lion and some that downright puzzle me. Do you have a llama?”
“A llama?” Katlyn said.
“Yes, we have a guard llama. Is that a crime?”
“I’d like to take a look at him to determine if there’s blood on his hooves or legs. He might be responsible for killing the sheep if they wandered over here and he felt it would be a threat to the cattle he was protecting.”
“A guard llama?” Katlyn asked. “I’ve never heard of that.”
“They’re quite useful and protective and have all but eliminated the presence of wolves and foxes,” Brendan explained to Katlyn.
“So, where did you say your llama is now?”
“I’m not sure. I’d have to ask Angus where he is today for sure since he moves the herd to a different pasture every day.”
Brendan pulled out his two-way and spoke into the mouthpiece. “Angus, Clayton’s here and is asking to see the llama for evidence of blood.”
Dead silence, and then, “Sure thing, Brendan. You’ll be able to find the llama in the back pasture.”
Clayton strode back to his vehicle and they all climbed in, tearing off in the direction of the back pasture. “You can slow down, Clayton. What’s the rush?” Chase asked.
“I want to get this investigation over is what. Jonathan is the type that can cause trouble. I’d hate for the governor to think I’m not doing my job here. I might be replaced.”
“Jonathan is a windbag,” Chase spat.
“Yes, one that lost livestock. You should be able to empathize with him, having lost a few calves yourself.”
“Yes, and what are you doing on that front?”
“Not much I can do.”
“Since you’re so sure I had something to do with Jonathan’s missing sheep, what are you planning to do about our missing livestock?”
“What would you have me do?”
“Check out his place for my calves like you have my property.”
“I just followed the blood trail. If your llama killed that man’s sheep, where are the carcasses?”
“Seems like you’re jumping to conclusions,” Katlyn said. “Shouldn’t you at least check out the llama before you make assumptions or ask any more questions?”
“I’m not pinning this on anyone at this point. I’m just trying to do my job.” Clayton nodded as they arrived at the back pasture and a brown llama was, in fact, guarding the herd. His ears twitched and moved slightly, a loud and agitated noise echoing toward them although his mouth remained closed.
“That’s enough to scare me away,” Katlyn said. She now knew with certainty just what type of shifter Angus really was. All his talk about protecting the cattle meant he must shift into the form of a llama.
The llama began to herd several calves as Clayton approached. The llama charged and spit at him. “Hold still, boy.” Clayton tried to coo to the animal.
“You’re dreaming. You’re entering his domain,” Brendan said.
Clayton ran away when the llama came at him again. “He doesn’t appear to have any blood on his legs, so that shoots that theory. Can I search the rest of your property for the sheep?”
“It seems like you already have. If a predator killed those sheep and dragged them off, you won’t be finding them.”
“True, but I’d still like to take a look around.”
“Clayton, I’ve been very tolerant here, but I never gave you my permission to search our ranch at all, and you did it anyway. Before we even made it home, I might add.”
His eyes narrowed. “Paige gave me permission.”
“She doesn’t have the right to do that and you know it.”
“I thought she ran the ranch for you.”
“I’m not going to stand here and explain to you how this ranch is run and by whom.”
“I don’t want any trouble with you, Brendan. I’m just trying to do my job. Loss of livestock is a pretty serious thing and I hope you’re not holding back on me.”
“That’s quite an accusation,” K
atlyn said.
“I just know he won’t be so willing to go along with it if we decide to open season on mountain lions.”
“That’s very presumptuous of you.”
“My men took a few casts of mountain lion tracks near the north fence.”
Katlyn stood her ground. “It could be any animal, for all you know. You don’t even know for sure that was sheep blood.”
“I’ll have the tests done when I get back.” Clayton went back to his vehicle and they all climbed in. “I’d like to question Paige before I leave.”
“Why didn’t you do that when you came?” Brendan asked, agitated.
“I didn’t know then that she was out in the north fence area the day those sheep went missing.”
The rest of the ride to the main house was silent and Katlyn was very worried about how Clayton’s questioning of Paige would go, since she was guilty as hell, in Katlyn’s opinion.
Chapter Eleven
Paige met them at the door, welcoming them inside. “Did you find what you were looking for, Clayton?” she asked sweetly, leading them into the living room.
“Not exactly, ma’am,” Clayton said. “I’d like to ask you a few questions before I leave.”
“Please sit, Clayton. Would you care for some sun tea?”
“That sure would be great.”
Paige disappeared into the other room and returned with five glasses filled to the rim with ice cubes and a pitcher of tea on a silver platter. She set it down and poured the tea into the glasses, handing one to Clayton while the others helped themselves.
“This is sure great, ma’am,” Clayton said as he took a sip. “This sure is great-tasting, too. I can’t make tea worth a damn. I sure miss having a woman around my house.”
Paige played along. “It won’t take long for a handsome man like you to find yourself another wife.”
“Afraid I’m a little too old for that now. The most I have to look forward to is sipping tea in the company of a beautiful woman.”
Brendan cleared his throat. “I thought you were here to question Paige.”
“Sorry. Yes, Paige I was wondering if anything happened when the cattle were out near the north fence?”
“The ranch hands reported back and told me the fence was damaged and that a few calves were missing. The fence has since been fixed.”
“I thought you were out there that day.”
“Oh, no. I have a skin allergy. I can’t ever go out during the day,” she said coyly as she sipped her tea. “I’m more of a night owl.”
“If you could direct me toward the ranch hands that were out there that day, it might be useful.”
“I could, but I’m so bad at names.”
Clayton downed his tea and nodded. “I think I have everything I need for now, but if those sheep were killed by a mountain lion, I expect your full cooperation with hunting him down.” He walked to the door and asked, “I’d sure love to buy you a drink at the saloon sometime, Paige.”
“Sounds great, but I’m pretty busy this week.”
“Another time, perhaps. I’ll give you a call sometime, if that’s okay.”
“Please do, Clayton.”
When the sound of Clayton and his men’s vehicles rumbled out the drive, Brendan jumped up, towering well above Paige. “Why on earth did you give Clayton your permission to start poking around?”
“I hardly had a choice. You know as well as I do that refusing to go along with Clayton’s investigation would look bad for all of us.”
“I could have at least have made sure there weren’t any tracks out there. Now Clayton is insistent that I know more than I’m saying.”
“Stop being such a worrywart. His investigation will go nowhere since a mountain lion didn’t kill those sheep.”
“No, you did that,” Katlyn said frankly. “Now it seems like you put us in quite the predicament.”
“Us?”
“Katlyn’s our mate,” Brendan explained. “And she has a right to be concerned. Especially since Clayton sounds like he wants a mountain lion to fall for the missing sheep.”
Paige sat down again. “Katlyn, I never killed those sheep. They were already dead when I found them. There was no sense in letting good blood go to waste so I brought them back here. I discarded their carcasses.”
“So now we’ll never know what killed the sheep,” Brendan said.
“It wasn’t a mountain lion the way those sheep were mutilated, but whatever killed them didn’t stick around to drink their blood or eat their flesh. Strange, really.”
“How soon after they were killed did you come upon their carcasses?” Katlyn asked.
“A few minutes. I might have scared whatever kind of animal it was off, but I never saw it.”
“And it didn’t try to attack you either. Strange,” Chase said.
Katlyn’s heart pounded as she asked, “Can I see Tessa, please. I need to see firsthand if she’s okay.”
“Very well, but you might not like what you see.”
Paige led the way upstairs and down a darkened hallway with dim lights about every ten feet. The walls were painted red and it was surprisingly cold and drafty for Wyoming. She then pulled a skeleton key from her pocket and unlocked the door. Upon entering, Katlyn choked back a scream. Tessa was lying motionless in bed wearing a white silky nightgown, IV tubing affixed to her hand that was dripping blood from a bag hooked to a pole.
“What on earth are you doing to Tessa?” Katlyn made a move to rip the needle out of Tessa’s hand.
“I wouldn’t do that. She really needs the nourishment during this phase.” Paige sat on a chair near Tessa. “She should be up and about in a few days.”
“Paige medicated her for her own safety,” Brendan said. “I know it’s hard, but that’s why we didn’t want you to see Tessa until she’s back to her old self.”
“I-Is she a v—”
Paige nodded sadly. “I had hoped that wasn’t going to be the case, but there’s no going back now. I’m so sorry, Katlyn. I really never meant for this to happen.”
Katlyn’s anger returned full force. “Back to her old self? She’s never going to be her old self again, because of you.”
“I promise it’s not as dire as it seems,” Paige assured Katlyn. “She’ll adjust to her new life and I have a friend who’ll be able to supply her with blood.”
“You’ve turned my friend into a blood-sucking monster and nothing you can say will make me think otherwise.”
Katlyn raced from the room, tears blurring her vision. Paige seemed sincere, but it was hard to deal with knowing that Tessa was now a vampire. How could she not blame Paige for her part in Tessa’s condition?
Angus caught her just as she ran outside.
“Hold on, now. What’s going on?”
“Tessa ... she’s really ill and it’s all my fault for leaving her alone with Paige, and now Tessa’s a vampire.”
Angus squeezed Katlyn’s shoulder. “I’m really sorry about that, too, but Tessa will recover soon.”
“And then what?”
“Haven’t you asked Paige about how it will work?”
“No, I’m just so angry right now.”
“That wouldn’t be good for you or Tessa. Her survival hinges on Paige whether you like it or not, but we have bigger things brewing here at the ranch. I’ll walk you back to the cabin. It’s going to be an eventful night.”
Brendan said, “Stay with her, Angus. I’m counting on you to protect Katlyn tonight.”
“Protect me from what, exactly?”
“The sheep attacks couldn’t have happened by anyone from this ranch and Chase and I will be out in full force tonight.”
Chase strode out of the house. “The Shifter Committee scheduled a meeting in a half-hour.”
“I expected as much,” Brendan muttered. “Watch over Katlyn until we get back.”
“Not happening. I’m coming with you,” Katlyn insisted.
“You can’t. You’re not a shifter.
”
“It didn’t matter earlier, and I teach shifter children. It’s not like I’m clueless about the goings on around here.”
Brendan sighed. “Fine, but remember you’re only going as an observer.”
* * *
A half-hour later, Brendan pulled into the drive of the Shady Creek Ranch, stopping at a large barn. When they walked inside, Katlyn was overcome with the shine of the mahogany floor. This barn didn’t house animals of any sort, other than the half-animal shifters who were packed in the room.
Paige was also along for the ride, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, her body completely covered in a long-sleeved shirt, slacks, and gloves on her hands. This gave Katlyn some hope. If Paige was able to go out during the daylight hours, perhaps Tessa would be able to do that when she recovered. She was told that Angus was watching over Tessa, which relaxed her since she had the feeling that he cared for Tessa. Katlyn tried her best to do as Brendan had suggested and just observe. There was a bar on the right and a bartender began to set drinks down that were picked up by a group of large men standing there.
Katlyn walked nearer to Brendan and Chase as the men stared at her. Annabelle waltzed into the room and behind a podium, dressed in a blue business suit. She slammed the gavel against the wood of the platform and announced, “Grab a drink and sit down. We have business to attend to of great importance.”
Brendan and Chase sat down with Katlyn in the middle, forgoing the drinks, but Paige shot over to the bar in a hurry, coming back with a glass of red wine. She sat opposite Katlyn, who averted her eyes. She knew she’d need to get over her anger eventually, but nothing close to that would be possible until she knew Tessa would be all right.
When the table was packed with men and women, Annabelle stared right at Katlyn. “What’s the meaning of this, Brendan? Why is the schoolteacher here?”
“She’s part of the Shadow Creek ranch now and deserves to know what really is going on.”
“What is really going on, Brendan?”
“Clayton is investigating, and after preliminary tests, he’ll be sanctioning a hunt.”
“A few of our neighbor’s sheep have disappeared with a blood trail leading on our property,” Chase explained. “There were also mountain lion tracks.”
Katlyn (M/F/M red-hot menage shifter romance) Standalone (Shadow Creek Shifters Book 1) Page 10