Page 79 of One Kind Soul

All set, he texted Ben. Forget the tools.

As soon as Ben came back with the utility vehicle, Christian could buzz back to the main part of the property and see how far Nicole had gotten with moving stuff. He checked the time and considered asking her to go to lunch before he dove into some afternoon chores. They may have been by each other’s sides for a couple days in a row, but that didn’t mean he’d had his fill of Nicole.

Where the hell is Ben? The buzz of the utility vehicle should be filling Christian’s ears by now. He started walking toward the farmhouse, figuring he’d run into Ben on the way, hop in the vehicle, drive Ben back to the tractor, then head for Nicole.

As he walked, he consulted the to-do list he had on his phone. There was no shortage of tasks to do when one owned an orchard and a farm, but Christian absolutely loved it. He’d been made for this kind of work. Growing things was in his veins and he was happy to share the fruits of his labor with the community. He still had other things he wanted to do with the property—something more than food production and the few winter activities he’d come up with. While the land was definitely fertile and perfect for farming, more could be done with this incredible gift Old Man Shepherd had bequeathed him.

Christian looked up from his phone, scanning for Ben. He spotted the utility vehicle near a grove of trees, but it was facing toward the main part of the property as if Ben were still enroute to get the tools Christian no longer needed. He didn’t hear the engine either and that little vehicle was loud.

What the hell?

He loved Ben. He did, but if he caught up to him and found him playing a game on his phone, he wasn’t going to be happy.

Christian broke into a jog and when he got within a few feet of the utility vehicle he slowed. “Dude, what are you doing?”

He walked to the driver’s side, prepared to tell Ben to get in the passenger seat, but when he discovered his friend slumped over—no phone with games in his hand—he knew something was wrong.

“Ben? Man, what’s going on?” He got closer and pushed Ben’s shoulder so the man’s body hit the back of the seat. A stream of blood ran from a gash at Ben’s temple. Christian checked to make sure his friend was still breathing and thank God, he was, but whatever had hit him in the head had knocked him out.

Christian scanned around them, suspecting this was Lynda’s work somehow, but he didn’t see anyone in the immediate area. Of course Ben had left for the tools a bit ago and whoever had done this too him would have had a nice head start on an escape.

Fuck.

“Hang on, buddy. We’ll get you some help.”

Gently, Christian moved Ben over to the passenger seat, but as he did so, something hummed.

No. Not hummed.

Buzzed.

Christian stilled as a bee flew around Ben’s head. Then another bee appeared to join that one in circling his friend. Two more joined in and Christian’s heart beat faster. He had to get Ben help, but fear of getting stung had him paralyzed. If he got stung right now, he’d be in deep shit. He had two doses of epinephrine on the property. One in the loft . . . or perhaps it was in the farmhouse by now. One in his truck’s glove compartment. Neither was close enough to do him any good.

He glanced at Ben, not loving the gray hue of his skin or the blood that still oozed from his temple. If he sat still, perhaps the bees would lose interest and move on.

Except there were more bees now.

Where the fuck are they coming from?

Christian knew bees were on the property. Hell, it wouldn’t be the great outdoors without them. Generally speaking, however, he did his best to stay out of their path. One anaphylactic shock incident when he was about fourteen had been enough. He’d only had to use the epinephrine once when he was twenty-five and had stumbled upon a bee nest while hiking with Donovan and Landon. Fortunately, they’d gotten the dose in him then took him to the hospital, but the anaphylaxis itself had been awful.

He’d seriously thought he was going to die.

Figuring perhaps he could outdrive the bees, Christian started the utility vehicle’s engine. It roared to life and suddenly a bunch more bees appeared.

With clammy hands, Christian glanced over his shoulder to see a hive sitting in the vehicle’s dump bed. Bees swarmed around it, no doubt upset their nest had been transplanted. He didn’t blame them, but he also wouldn’t be able to outrun them if he was carrying them with him.

Goddammit.

His heart pounded in his chest. He considered calling Nicole for help—or at least to get her to bring him the epinephrine—but if Lynda was to blame for this, Christian didn’t want to do anything to bring her prey right to her. If he called one of his brothers or Jared, it’d be the same concern. He couldn’t put anyone else in harm’s way.

Getting out of the vehicle, Christian took a few steps away as he considered how to get that nest out of there without getting stung. He approached the dump bed, his gaze locked on those agitated bees. With a quick flick of his wrist, he opened the tailgate then ran back from the vehicle. When that didn’t cause a sting attack, he got back into the driver’s seat.

Ben let out a groan beside him.

“Don’t worry, pal. I’ll get you out of here.”

Christian jammed his foot on the gas and the vehicle lurched forward. He risked a glance back to see the hive had rolled out of the open bed and hit the ground. Bees rose from it like a black cloud and he faced forward, hoping they didn’t follow him.