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She sighed and shook her head. “You are the only constant in her life. The only thing that hasn’t blown up in her face yet. She just found out her mom is still alive. After everything else that’s going on—which yes, we know all about that—the one thing that should’ve never changed, did. So, you, Cassidy, are the only thing that’s steady for her right now.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked.
“So you don’t screw it up, you big oaf,” she added and patted my cheek.
“Thank you for that. Weston, will you rein your wife in?” I turned to my brother and lifted a brow. He merely smiled and looked lovingly at the woman beside him.
“Never,” he answered as a ringing ended our conversation.
Balancing the newborn in my one arm, I dug through my pocket and pulled out my phone. The contact on my screen set my entire heart into the red zone.
“I need to take this,” I said, staring at the word “Doc” on my screen. “It’s gotta do with what’s going on with Briar.” Tenley gently slipped CeCe from my arms and nodded.
“Go on,” she said.
“We’ll make rounds with CeCe. No one will notice you disappearing,” Weston added in reassurance.
And as soon as they were back to the center of the room, I slipped out of his house.
Chapter 29
CASSIDY
“You were right,” Doc said the moment I answered the call. Pacing back and forth in the hot summer sun, I shook my head as he continued speaking. “I’m grateful you texted me to let me know what had happened, because otherwise, I may not have been as leery of my surroundings.”
“What happened?” I asked, stalking back over to the house and plopping myself down on the porch steps.
“Got to the slaughter house and just things felt off. The door was closed, but it wasn’t locked. I always lock it,” Doc explained. Bouncing my knee to relieve the tension that was building, something else swam in my gut. “So, I grabbed my gun from the truck and went inside. Cassidy, everything’s gone. All of the cows, even my equipment.”
“What?” I gasped, shooting up from the steps. “You’re okay, though right? Nobody was there?”
“I’m alright, Cassidy,” he replied and chuckled. “Don’t worry, though; the lab has everything I was going to send. The rest of the necropsies I had left were just to confirm that they all died from the same thing. And I know they did. Every one that I cut into had this brown discoloration to most of their tissues. There was this dried up, red-brown fluid staining different cavities. All of them had these exact symptoms, even if things were in varying stages of decay. I let Sheriff Jones know that I suspect foul play and made sure that the lab is running strange tests in hopes to pick anything up.”
“They still haven’t called, though, right?”
“Correct. Look, I wouldn’t say this if I didn’t think it was the right thing to do, but you need to take her somewhere else. Somewhere safe. This guy clearly knows where she is and has this entire time. I fear that with all of this extra heat on him, he’s going to escalate because he knows we’re getting close to the proof that we need. Which includes the next step that I’m taking.”
I tipped my head, running my hand over my jaw. “Doc, don’t do anything that could get you killed,” I cautioned.
“I’m choosing to do this on my own, Cassidy. For your family and for this girl. So, don’t stop me from it,” he answered with a sharp reprimand.
“What are you going to do?”
“Sheriff Jones is sending a deputy with me, and we are going to head on over to Briar’s home. I want soil samples of her pasture and to see what else we can find,” he said.
“Doc, what if that’s time we don’t have?” I hesitantly asked. That was at least a four-day trip, if not five, depending on too many extenuating circumstances. Wayde had escalated in the past few days. First the accident, then the guy showing up at my house, and now breaking into the slaughterhouse. He was somehow watching Briar and everything that she did or didn’t do.
“Which is why you need to disappear somewhere for at least four days. Someplace that vehicles cannot get to and that very few people know about. A place that would buy you time and force them to step back and figure out a better way to get to you. Four days. The lab should have results, and by that point, I’ll have at least collected what I need from her place even if I’ve not made it back to Riverford,” he explained, and then crackling silence permeated the speaker.
Apprehension stung the air, filling every orifice that existed. A couple of chickens squawked, a few horses whinnied, and some squirrels chattered, oblivious to the doom that was cramping in on this sunny afternoon. Weight settled heavy on my heart as my eyes scanned a view that would never grow old. Pine trees scratched at the cloudless canvas above, the sun sparkling and bright. A couple of butterflies flitted through the air, seeking the next flower to settle upon. So still, so peaceful, so opposite of what was swirling within my own soul at this moment. Briar was in danger. If I hadn’t gotten in the way either, then Wayde would have succeeded by now and—
“Sundance!” I exclaimed in alarm, spinning around on my heel.
“Who?” Doc asked through the speaker.
“I know a place. You be safe and smart about this. I’ll call you in four days,” I said, not quite answering his question, but there was no time. “Bye Doc,” I added.
“Stay safe, Cassidy. Four days,” Doc replied, and the line went dead.
