KEEPING WATCH

When dog trainer Kaitlin Mathers is attacked, Texas K-9 Unit captain Slade McNeal is determined to keep her—and what’s left of his family—safe from harm. But soon Slade realizes nothing’s safe, including his dogs, his son or the beautiful woman who’s opening his heart. When Slade realizes the enemy might be closer than he ever dreamed possible, he vows to see justice served. But can he save Kaitlin before it’s too late to tell her he loves her?

Slade felt the rush of air as she moved away from him. “Hey, wait a minute.”

“You seem to want to be alone,” Kaitlin said, her voice a sweet whisper.

“Not tonight,” he replied. “C’mon and sit with me awhile.”

She stood there, hesitating. He could almost feel the conflicting thoughts rushing through her head. He felt the same kind of warning each time he was around the woman.

But she moved, finally. She went to the kitchen and

put the glass in the sink and stood there for a minute staring out the window. Then she let out a gasp. “Slade?”

“What?”

“I…I think there’s someone out there.”

LENORA WORTH

has written more than forty books for three different publishers. Her career with Love Inspired Books spans close to fifteen years. In February 2011 her Love Inspired Suspense novel Body of Evidence made the New York Times bestseller list. Her very first Love Inspired title, The Wedding Quilt, won Affaire de Coeur’s Best Inspirational for 1997, and Logan’s Child won an RT Book Reviews Best Love Inspired for 1998. With millions of books in print, Lenora continues to write for the Love Inspired and Love Inspired Suspense lines. Lenora also wrote a weekly opinion column for the local paper and worked freelance for years with a local magazine. She has now turned to full-time fiction writing and enjoying adventures with her retired husband, Don. Married for thirty-six years, they have two grown children. Lenora enjoys writing, reading and shopping…especially shoe shopping.

Lone Star Protector

Lenora Worth

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbor in secret. And all the people shall say, Amen.

—Deuteronomy 27:24

To K-9 officers and their canine partners. Thanks for your hard work and willingness to serve. It was a joy to learn more about what you do every day.

Special thanks and acknowledgment to Lenora Worth for her contribution to the Texas K-9 Unit miniseries.

Contents

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

ELEVEN

TWELVE

THIRTEEN

FOURTEEN

FIFTEEN

SIXTEEN

SEVENTEEN

EIGHTEEN

NINETEEN

TWENTY

TWENTY-ONE

EPILOGUE

DEAR READER

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

ONE

“Don’t make a sound.”

K-9 trainer Kaitlin Mathers felt the cold nozzle of the gun sticking into her rib cage, shock and fear pouring through her system like a hot, blowing wind. The man holding her had a raspy voice and wore silky black coveralls and a black ski mask, even though it was June in Southwest Texas. She could feel his sweat breaking through the lightweight material of his clothes, could smell a musky scent that probably came from the heat and high adrenaline. When she tried to squirm away, something cold and metal pressed against her backbone. A zipper, maybe? Determined to keep it together, Kaitlin didn’t move or try to speak. She had to stay calm so she wouldn’t be killed. So she could get away.

Across the K-9 training yard, Warrior barked and snarled from his vantage point inside his mesh kennel porch. Thankfully, she hadn’t put the young trainee inside for the night yet. Someone would hear the barking and come around the corner, wouldn’t they? Please, Lord, give me courage, she prayed, memories of her mother’s death playing through her head.

That’s what you get for working late all by yourself. You’re more like your mother than you realized. But it had never occurred to Kaitlin that someone would be hiding in the bushes right outside the doors of the Sagebrush K-9 Training Facility. Especially since the building and training yard were located inside a locked fence directly behind the Sagebrush Police Department.

The man holding her must have known the risks, but he’d somehow managed to get through that gate. He hurriedly shoved her toward a waiting van, the same dark van she’d only minutes before noticed parked underneath an old oak near the back parking lot.

“I need you to come with me,” he said, his whisper like a knife slicing through her nerve endings.

“Why?” She had a right to ask.

“I’ll explain that later, sweetheart.”

Kaitlin looked at the van, then tried to look back at her attacker. She caught a glimpse of strange, black eyes, another shock wave jolting through her system. Before she could see anything else, he jerked her back around and pushed the gun hard against her side. “Let’s go.”

Kaitlin didn’t think about being silent anymore. If she got in that van, the chances were very good that she’d be dead by nightfall. Just like Mom. But unlike her too-trusting mother, Kaitlin didn’t intend to become a victim. She screamed and started fighting for her life.

* * *

K-9 captain Slade McNeal was halfway to his vehicle when he heard barking. Excited barking. Whirling toward the kennels, he wondered which dog had been left inside them.

Warrior.

He’d just watched trainer Kaitlin Mathers putting the newbie, a strong Belgian Malinois that reminded him of his own missing German shepherd, Rio, through his paces. They’d spoken briefly, and he’d gone back to his office.

But where was Kaitlin now? It wasn’t like her to leave a dog unattended, even kenneled. Warrior was sure upset about something.

The dog kept on barking, the sounds growing more urgent. Something was up. Slade hurried toward the building, his weapon drawn. He passed the kennels but didn’t see anyone. Since Warrior would have a close bond with Kaitlin, it made sense that the dog was trying to warn her about something. Or alert someone else.

“Good job,” Slade said when he passed the pacing, snarling animal. He didn’t try to stop Warrior’s barking.

Then he heard a scream, followed by grunts and shouts.

Slade stood at the corner of the building, then pivoted around the side, his weapon still drawn. About twenty yards away, a man in a dark mask had Kaitlin by the arm, trying to drag her across the asphalt toward an open black van. And he had a gun pointed at her head.

Slade’s heart rushed ahead, pumping adrenaline right along with realization. He recognized this man. The Ski Mask Man, they’d labeled him around headquarters. Slade had been gunning for this guy for five long months. This criminal had some nerve, trying to kidnap a trainer right out of the training yard.

A multitude of angry memories raced through Slade’s head, followed by the taste of victory. Could this case finally get a break? He glanced back at Warrior, then turned his attention back to the scene in front of him. He’d never make it to the locked cage to let the dog out, and he didn’t have time to dig for his keys or call for backup. He could shoot the lock, but what if he hit the dog?

He’d have to do this on his own. “Drop the weapon!” Slade shouted. “Now!”

* * *

Kaitlin gulped a breath of relief. Slade was here. She kept telling herself that over and over. She also kept telling herself that she could handle this because she’d been trained as a police officer. She might be a little rusty since becoming a full-time trainer, but she’d find a way out of this. Somehow. She wouldn’t end up like her mother.

Surprised at Slade’s command, the man holding her pivoted toward Slade, his gun still aimed at Kaitlin. She pulled away, but he held her tight against him, his low whisper a warning. “Do you want to live?”

She did want to live, but Kaitlin wasn’t going without a fight. She’d rather take her chances right here in the training yard with Slade McNeal than go anywhere with this man. Captain McNeal knew his job, and he was good at that job. He’d get them both out of this, and she’d find a way to help him.

Slade advanced a few steps. “Drop the weapon and let her go.”

The man tightened his hold, but Kaitlin could feel the apprehension and indecision in his actions. Did he know the captain? She used the brief distraction to dig in her heels, kicking and hitting and screaming. Taking a chance, she elbowed the man in his side, then wrapped her leg behind his to trip him, causing him to lose the grip on his weapon. The gun slipped out of his grasp and hit the hot pavement. He cursed and grabbed Kaitlin again, holding her like a shield in front of him, his strong grip twisting her shoulders back so hard she cried out in pain.

“I’m taking her with me,” the man shouted.

Behind Slade, Warrior was going wild against the confines of his big wire-front cage, his barks frantic and snarling. Kaitlin watched, afraid for Slade. The K-9 captain held his gun on her attacker and kept advancing, inch by inch.

“Let her go,” Slade shouted again over the barking dog, his finger on the trigger of his Glock 22 service revolver. “Don’t make me shoot you!”

The man stopped tugging and glared at Slade. Holding Kaitlin with one hand, he tried to reach down and scoop up his gun with the other. He seemed to know Slade wouldn’t take the shot with her shielding him.

Kaitlin glanced at Slade, then using all of her strength, kicked the weapon out of her abductor’s reach and, with a grunt, yanked herself away. She fell, the concrete scraping through her khaki pants to tear at her knee. But she scrambled to her feet and did a quick run toward some shrubbery near the building. That left the culprit in full view and diving for his gun. Slade could take the shot and kill the man right where he stood. Kaitlin went on her knees behind the shrubbery, watching as Slade pulled off a round, hitting near where the gun lay, causing the perp to jump and roll.

“Don’t move,” Slade shouted as he starting walking. “I will hit the mark next time.”

Kaitlin held her breath, praying Slade wouldn’t get shot. She should have picked up the gun. But the attacker took his own chances. He grabbed for his weapon, then pivoted and rolled into a ragged hunched-over zigzag toward the van, firing behind himself as he ran.

Helpless, Kaitlin watched from the bushes, her heart caught in her throat. But while she watched, she tried to memorize everything she could about her attacker.

She held a hand to her mouth, watching as Slade dived to the ground to avoid being hit, but got off a couple of rounds before the man returned fire. One of Slade’s shots hit the side of the van, but missed the moving target. The suspect did a nosedive into the open vehicle and the van spun around in Reverse and took off. Two of them. He’d had a getaway driver.

Slade took one more shot, but the van swerved and skidded out onto the side street, then the driver gunned it and disappeared into the burnt dusk. Slade squinted into the sunset, trying to see the tag numbers. All he saw was a temporary tag with smeared letters and numbers. He couldn’t get a read on it.

Nothing to do there. He got on the radio and alerted the switchboard operator. “McNeal, K-9 Unit 601, 207-A averted, back parking lot behind the training yard. Suspect got away. All clear.”

Holstering his weapon, he hurried to where Kaitlin still sat pressing her entire body in between the prickly shrubbery and the building bricks, her eyes bright with fear and relief. This whole event had lasted a couple of minutes, but it sure felt like a lifetime.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked, placing a hand on one of her arms. With a gentle tug, he pulled her out of the shrubbery.

She jerked away, then looked up at him. “Slade?”

“Yeah, it’s me. They’re gone. You’re safe now.”

She nodded and then plowed into his arms and held on for dear life. “Thank you.” Her voice was shaky but getting stronger with each inhale of breath. “Thank you.”

Slade allowed her to hug him close, his fingers hovering in the air before he put his arms around her shoulders and patted her on the back. “You’re all right now. It’s over.”

The woman in his arms clung to him for a while longer.

Slade didn’t try to pry her away. Her whole body seemed to tremble against him. His own heart echoed that trembling, but maybe for an entirely different reason. It had been a long time since he’d held a woman so close. But it hadn’t been so long that he could get past the image of his wife walking out the door and getting in that car.

He wanted to hold Kaitlin and comfort her, but bitter memories tinged with regret pulled him back.

Besides, he knew if anyone saw this, they’d both have some explaining to do. And with a K-9 dog barking and shots fired in the back of police headquarters, the entire department would be rushing around the building any moment now.

He backed up, took her by her arms and set her a few inches away. “Kaitlin, listen to me. You’re okay. I need to ask you a few questions.”

Her shock changed to embarrassment, her face blushing pink against the pale white of her skin. Shimmying out from under his grip, she bobbed her head. “Before I give a statement, I have to check on Warrior.”

Slade stopped her from bolting by standing between her and the fussy dog. “Warrior will be fine for a few more minutes. Listen to me, okay?”

She exhaled, called a command to the animal, then glanced back at Slade. “You need a description?”

“Yes, but first what happened?” He scanned the perimeter of the practice yard and the parking lot. Nobody. But he heard doors opening in the distance and voices echoing out over the headquarters’ parking lot. Maybe someone else had seen something.

Kaitlin glanced toward the sound of running feet. “I heard Warrior barking. He alerted me.”

“I heard him, too,” Slade said as he grasped her wrist. “Let’s move toward the kennels so we don’t get shot by one of our own.”

She let him guide her until they were a few feet from Warrior’s kennel. Then she pulled away and ran to the dog, her key ring jingling as she quickly opened the mesh-wire door.

Warrior bounded out, his frustrated whimpers echoing over the yard. The dog paced toward where Kaitlin had been snatched, then glanced up at his trainer.

“Sit. Stay.”

The order wasn’t as commanding as in the practice yard, but the dog did as Kaitlin said.

Slade saw two uniformed officers push around the building, guns drawn. He held up his hands. “Hey, over here. We had an intruder but...it’s okay now.”

As the officers gathered around, Slade explained what had gone down. “I exited my office and heard a K-9 officer barking. Someone tried to abduct Miss Mathers. He held a gun to her head, but she managed to get away. I pursued the attacker and called for him to halt. He refused and fired back. We both shot off a few rounds, but he managed to make it to the getaway car. Black, late-model van, old with a dent in the front passenger-side door. Temporary tag, smudged and unreadable. Vehicle headed west on Trapper Street. I got off a shot that hit the right back side of the van.”

“We’ll put out a BOLO.”

Slade nodded on that.

“Get a good look at the attacker?” one of the officers asked.

Kaitlin spoke up. “He was wearing a dark mask like a ski mask. His eyes looked...so black, an eerie black. He must have been wearing special contacts because even the whites of his eyes looked dark.”

Slade saw the shudder moving down her body. And felt the hair on his neck rising. This wasn’t the first time he’d had a run-in with a man fitting that description. Last month, he’d glimpsed a masked gunman with blacked-out eyes fleeing Melody Zachary’s hotel suite after a tense standoff that left K-9 detective Parker Adams with a gunshot wound. However, he didn’t let on in front of Kaitlin that this suspect had to be the hooded man who’d been wreaking havoc on his entire department. The body count kept rising due to the heavy-handed work of a local crime syndicate run by a mastermind known as The Boss. And now someone within this criminal’s organization had made a bold attempt right here on police grounds. Five months ago, his K-9 partner Rio had been stolen and now this. Someone was deliberately taunting him.

He wanted this case over and done with before someone else got killed.

Turning to the officer, he said, “That’s an apt description. He was average height, maybe a hundred and seventy pounds, medium build. He wore black coveralls.” Slade stopped, a shiver of familiarity moving down his spine. He shook it off, figuring things had happened so fast he still had a lot of images running through his head. Especially the one of Kaitlin being held a gunpoint.

“There was a wide silver zipper down the front,” she added, her voice becoming stronger. “He had a...raspy voice. He kept telling me I had to go with him.”

Kaitlin kept her hand on Warrior and petted the dog over and over. She was scared but was clearly putting on a brave front. Slade’s heart still thumped against his chest. The image of that masked man holding her at gunpoint would stay with him for a long time.

After the officers took their statements and along with the crime scene unit, covered every inch of the area where the van had been idling, Slade finally told the others he needed to get Kaitlin home.

“I can drive myself,” she insisted tersely, her pupils settling into a stubborn dark green. “Warrior always goes home with me. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m taking you home,” Slade said in his best captain voice. “So don’t argue with me.”

She stared him down, then shrugged. “Then let’s get out of here.”

TWO

Word of the attack spread quickly.

Kaitlin’s cell rang the minute Slade pulled the car into her driveway. The first call came from fellow trainer Harry Markham. “Kait, are you all right? I got a call from Callie.”

“I’m fine,” Kaitlin said, her eyes on Slade. The man was so solid and sure she couldn’t help but feel safe, yet she worried that he’d take this kidnapping attempt to heart since he didn’t take down the culprit. “It wasn’t any fun, but I’m okay, really. Tell Callie—”

Her phone beeped another call. “That’s Callie right now. I’d better talk to her.”

She quickly told her supervisor, Callie Peterson, what had happened.

Slade got out and looked around her yard, then opened the car door for her.

“I’m home and Captain McNeal is here with me. He insisted on giving me a ride. Yes, I have Warrior. He warned me but...the masked man...he grabbed me from behind.”

As she tightened her grip on the phone, Slade tightened his glare on her. “I have to go, Callie. Captain McNeal needs to get home to his family.”

She hung up and let the next call, from her trainer friend Francine Loomis, go to voice mail. “They’re all concerned,” she told Slade. “We’re all close. Like family.”

“You left out the part where you tripped him up and jabbed him in the ribs. Or how you managed to kick that gun away like it was a soccer ball.”

She blinked at the mention of her ordeal. “I went into automatic response, I think. Self-defense and officer training from years ago kicked in.”

“You took a big risk. He could have killed you.”

“He didn’t. Because I knew you’d take him down before he ever reached that gun again.”

His jaw hardened. “Yeah, well, I somehow managed to let him get away.”

Was he implying that she had distracted him? Hard to say. The captain’s expression was a study in frustration. But then, the man was hard to read on a good day. And this had not turned out to be a good day.

“You didn’t let him get away. The perp was returning fire so you had to protect yourself.”

He grunted, his silver-blue eyes doing an intimidating sweep of the neighborhood. When they reached her front door, he turned to her. “Give me your keys.”

Kaitlin did as he asked, figuring it would save time and save her from arguing with him. The man was like a steamroller. He rolled right along doing his job without hesitation, but he sure didn’t like to engage in chitchat. Slade McNeal was always focused and intent on getting the bad guys.

Except earlier, when he held me in his arms.

Or rather, when she’d clung to him like he was the last Kevlar vest and she had dibs. Looking at him now, seeing that coiled bundle of strength and determination in his body language, she tried to put the memory of his solid chest out of her mind. She’d think about Slade McNeal and his silvery eyes and quicksilver moods later when she was alone and couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t thought of him before and often. Her heart went out to him and his little boy, Caleb.

Slade’s wife had been killed two years ago in a car bomb that, according to word around the yard, had been intended for Slade. Then five months ago, his K-9 partner, a beautiful German shepherd named Rio, had been taken from his backyard. That attack had left his elderly father Patrick McNeal—a retired police officer—injured and in a coma for weeks. Top that with a five-year-old son who had withdrawn after his mother’s horrible death.

No wonder the man was grumpy.

Slade opened the door and stepped through, one hand gesturing at her. “Stay behind me. We’ll send Warrior in first.”

She glanced back. “Good idea.”

Kaitlin called the command and willed the still-green animal to do a good job. Since she was purposely training this particular canine officer to help find Rio, she wanted Warrior to impress Slade. The Belgian Malinois, eager to let go of some of his own pent-up energy, hurled past Slade and danced across the hardwood floors of the living room, his nose moving from the floor to the air.

“C’mon,” Slade said, reaching behind to grab her hand.

His touch shot through Kaitlin like a sizzling dynamite fuse. She’d always had a little thing for the captain, but she wasn’t so needy that she’d play this for all it was worth. If the man ever had a lightbulb moment and turned interested, she wanted him to come to her on better terms than her playing a damsel in distress.

She’d never be that woman. Not since the day she’d watched her mother being put in the ground. Kaitlin had learned the hard way to take care of herself. And she needed to remember that Captain McNeal was as tightly wound as a ticking clock. The man lived and breathed his job, especially since whoever had taken Rio kept coming after people they both knew.

He let her go once they were in the living room. “Kitchen looks safe.”

She glanced across the hallway to her tiny efficiency kitchen. “It is, except for my cooking.”

He almost smiled. “I’ll take that under consideration.”

Warrior rushed back, eager for a treat and a good rubdown.

“Didn’t find anything, boy?” Slade asked, his tone softening toward the dog. He looked down at a basket by the door and found a chew rag, then held it out for Warrior. “He might have saved your life today.”

Kaitlin went to her knees on the floor and tugged Warrior close, giving him a gentle hug. “Good boy. What a hero. Your barks warned me.”

The captain looked really tall from this angle. “Yep. And what did you do? You walked right into a trap.”

She stood so he wouldn’t seem so intimidating. “I went around the building to see why Warrior was barking. I saw the van and thought someone might be lost or hurt. That’s when the attacker came up behind me.”

Slade didn’t move a muscle, but she could see the throbbing pulse in his clenched jawline. “You could have called me.”

“I really didn’t have time to call anyone. Besides, I thought you were gone.” She shrugged, tossing her ponytail. “You know what...I didn’t even think, okay? I just acted on impulse, and I wasn’t expecting any kind of danger.”

He stepped back, his cold, blue gaze freezing its way around her tiny house. “Well, you need to think about it now. Whoever that was will probably be back. I don’t think this was a random kidnapping attempt. They waited for the right moment and managed to get through a controlled gate to get to you.”

Seeing the concern etched on his face, she said, “You’re not making me feel very safe.”

“You’re not safe.” He walked to the bay window in her living room. “Your attacker fit the same description of the man who’s been harassing my whole team for months now. I’m pretty sure he or someone working with him is behind the recent string of attempted kidnappings we’ve had. And the string of murders we’ve racked up since the first of the year.”

Shocked, she pushed at her hair. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. You said he had strange eyes, right?”

“Yes. They were all blacked out. Honestly, they didn’t look real.”

Slade seemed to go on alert after that comment. “They probably aren’t real. He’s using a mask and other methods to disguise himself.”

“Why?” she asked, worried now that the crime syndicate might be targeting her. “Why would he come after me?”

He didn’t answer her questions. “You might need protection 24/7.”

Kaitlin almost laughed out loud. “Are you willing to do that?”

“I have to work on this case.” He kept right on staring out the window. “But it might be a good idea to keep Warrior by your side at all times. And maybe you have a friend who can come and stay with you?”

“I won’t endanger any of my friends,” she said, shaking her head. “Warrior will do his job. That’s what he’s trained for.”

“But is he ready?” Slade asked, staring down at the resting dog.

“He seemed ready today. We’ll have to hope so,” Kaitlin replied. “I’m not the type to live in fear, Captain McNeal.”

He came close then, his face inches from hers. “And I’m not the type to let a woman think she’s safe when it’s obvious she’s not, Miss Mathers.” He stepped back. “Get your stuff. You and Warrior are coming to my house tonight.”

Kaitlin couldn’t believe the man. “No, we’re not.”

His tone brooked no argument. “Yes, you are.” Then he held up his hand. “Look, I have a young son and my recovering father there. And two shifts of around-the-clock nurses. You won’t be alone. We won’t be alone.”

Kaitlin thought it over, still reeling. “I don’t want to impose on you.”

“You won’t be imposing. Caleb will be glad to see you. He’s been asking about you...since the last time you babysat him. And it’s just for tonight. Just until I can figure out the next piece of this puzzle.”

Five-year-old Caleb had been traumatized when his mother had been killed in the car bomb. The quiet little boy suffered from nightmares and other issues. Kaitlin had worked a lot with Caleb, using her dogs to bring the boy out of his shell. But it had been a while since she’d seen him.

Wanting to understand what she’d be up against, she asked, “What do you know, Captain? About that man’s creepy eyes?”

He hesitated, almost shut down. But she saw a flare of trust shifting through his expression. “I don’t think they’re his real eyes.”

She let out a gasp. “Contacts? That’s what I thought, too.”

His nod was curt and quick. “I think so.” His gaze moved over her, then he looked toward the big windows. “Call it a hunch, but I’d just feel a whole lot better if you’d come home with me.”

“Isn’t that highly unusual? I mean, do you always invite people in danger home with you?”

“No.”

“Why start now?”

He took a step forward then stopped. “Because this case has me by the throat and...I’m almost certain your attempted kidnapping has something to do with this crime syndicate. I couldn’t live with myself if...something happened to you.” He inhaled, rubbed a hand down his face. “And...because you mean a lot to my son. He feels comfortable with you since you’ve babysat him a few times and allowed the trainee dogs to befriend him. Truth is, he’s been through too much tragedy already...and he’d be devastated if something happened to you.”

Kaitlin couldn’t catch her next breath after that comment. “I can’t stay at your house forever...”

“No, but I can keep you alive if you’ll listen to me.”

She couldn’t argue with that. He’d scared her with his bold words and all this talk of a crime syndicate and a masked criminal. He’d scared her with that tormented need she’d seen hooding his eyes, too. He didn’t want his little boy to suffer anymore.

However, going with Slade would be like stepping across that forbidden line she’d put up between them. She didn’t like mixing emotions and business together. Things could get really messy.

But when she thought about that man’s eyes, she got the shivers. And given the choice of staying here alone or being with Slade and his family...well, there wasn’t a choice.

“I’ll pack a bag,” she said finally. Then she turned and hurried out of the room before she changed her mind.

* * *

Well, now he could add stupid to the list of traits he needed to refine. He had a feeling he’d regret bringing a woman home, kind of like sailors used to avoid having a female on their ship. Nothing good could come of it.

Slade looked around the big living room of the house he shared with his father and his son and a retired K-9 named Chief. The rambling craftsman home had plenty of room for one or two more. But it had been a long time since a woman, other than his father’s team of home health care nurses and Caleb’s after-school nanny, had stayed in this house for more than a few uncomfortable minutes—for what his daddy called a “casserole” visit. Single women and widows loved to bring them casseroles. The women all expected something in return, of course. A couple of them had even asked Slade to the monthly church social.

Slade couldn’t oblige them. It made for awkward visits.

But hey, the food was good.

“She’s pretty and nice,” Patrick McNeal said. “Kind of different from most of the casserole girls.”

Old Chief, retired and getting fat and sassy, lifted his head and sniffed the perfume in the air. Even the dog had noticed this feminine intrusion.

Slade turned from where he was making sandwiches and nodded at his father. “Pretty, nice and now...on some thug’s hit list.” He slapped ham between two slices of white bread. “Why would anyone go after Kaitlin Mathers?”

Papa, as Caleb liked to call him, ran a hand down his white-whiskered face. Still recovering from the injuries that had left him in a coma, he said, “Maybe they need a dog trainer.”

Slade stopped the knife he’d aimed at the mayo jar. “Good point.”

“You think this attack is connected to all the others? Whoever took Rio might need a qualified trainer, too.”

“I’m betting it’s related, for that reason and maybe something more. I haven’t come up with anything else, though.”

Patrick held tight to his walker and turned to go back through the arched opening to his favorite chair in the den. Chief automatically followed him. “You’ll figure it out, son.”

Slade wondered about that. He and his dad didn’t do much chitchatting here in the house. Caleb seemed to get agitated whenever they talked police business. But Patrick had made a connection that shouted at Slade. Someone might need Kaitlin’s expertise. Or any of the trainers’ expertise, for that matter. That someone obviously had taken Rio right out of the backyard. He’d have to beef up security around the training center. Not to mention keep a close watch on his son and his daddy. And he’d need to protect Kaitlin, whether she liked it or not.

Rubbing his hand on the back of his neck, he grunted at the twisted knots tightening his head and shoulders. Maybe he needed to hit the gym a little more to work out some of these kinks.

No, he just needed to catch The Boss. The mysterious leader of the local crime syndicate kept slipping through their fingers, but one way or another he vowed to bring this criminal to justice. Since the day his dog Rio had been taken right out of his yard and his father had been injured, he’d made this case a top priority. And his entire unit felt the same way.

He wanted his frail father to understand what he was trying to do.

He wanted his best K-9 partner back. Rio was part of his family.

He wanted his son to be strong and well and happy.

Then why don’t you spend more time with the boy?

That question hit him hard in his gut. Patrick asked him that at least twice a week. When he’d turned to Kaitlin in desperation after Rio’s kidnapping, the dog trainer and his sometime-babysitter had hinted that it might help for him to take more time with Caleb. Maybe that was why he always got so befuddled and tongue-tied around the woman. Maybe that was why bringing her here wasn’t such a good idea, after all. He didn’t want the woman judging him.

She wasn’t married and didn’t have kids. But she sure had a way with animals and children. She was all honey and sweetness when she wasn’t barking commands at K-9 dogs. Today, after things had settled down, her hair had shimmered like burnished gold in the light of early dusk, but her hazel eyes had remained cool and questioning each time her gaze landed on Slade. Except for that little bit of sympathy he’d seen there in shades of green and brown. The woman had been attacked and yet, she still felt sorry for him?

He didn’t need anyone’s pity.

Slade needed to be a better father, but...it was so hard to relate to his quiet, sad little boy. The boy missed his mother. And Slade felt the weight of guilt pressing like a two-ton chain on his shoulders. He and Angie had been fighting the day she’d died in that car bomb. His wife had been leaving him, probably for good, when she’d cranked the engine.

Slade endured the torment of causing her death each and every day. His daddy told him he should pray about his feelings, but Slade didn’t think he was worthy of asking God to release him of this burden. That bomb had been meant for him. He shouldn’t even be standing here. He couldn’t look his own son in the eye.

And...he had the nagging suspicion that the bomb that had killed Angie was related to this current case. Especially since similar bomb threats had been found at Nicolette Johnson’s former rental. Detective Jackson Worth and his K-9 partner, Titan, had found one bomb in the nick of time to save Nicolette. Her house had been damaged, but that only reinforced how much danger she’d been in to begin with.

Then Jackson had also been threatened with a bomb under his car. Titan, trained to detect explosives, had saved the day again.

They might not be so lucky next time. Too many killings and too many kidnapping attempts had everyone on edge. And after today’s bold attempt, Slade was sure there would be a next time. His bones told him that something else was coming. He only wished he could figure out what.

THREE

Kaitlin had thrown her duffel bag in the spare bedroom, then immediately asked Slade if she and Warrior could go visit with Caleb. The little boy was in his room playing with his trains and trucks, according to Papa McNeal. Slade had nodded curtly, then returned to making some sort of dinner.

Now Kaitlin was watching closely while Warrior and Caleb got reacquainted.

“He’s dif-fer-ent from Rio,” Caleb said, the big word twisting up in his mind but sounding cute when he squinted through it. “And he’s skinnier than Chief.”

“Yes, he is,” Kaitlin said. If she had to be forced to stay here tonight, at least she could visit with Caleb. “He’s still young like you. But he likes little boys. And I’ve told him all about you.”

Caleb’s big blue eyes, so like his daddy’s, widened. “He knows about me?”

“Of course,” she said, her expression animated. “I told him he’d get to come and visit you soon. I’m still training him and you can help with that. I told him how smart you are and that you are very good with dogs. He needs to be gentle with children so you are the perfect person to help him learn.”

Caleb tilted his head and gave her an impish stare. “Am I gentle?”

The innocent question tugged at Kaitlin’s heart strings.

“Yes, you sure are. But you’re also very brave. That’s why I brought Warrior to visit with you.”

Well, that and the fact that your domineering father told me in no uncertain terms that I would come here tonight.

She had Caleb for a distraction, at least. A good distraction. And she’d mostly given in to Slade’s demand so she could see how Caleb was doing. She adored this little boy. He took her mind off what had happened today. He took her mind off the big man in the kitchen making sandwiches, the man who’d gruffed out an introduction when he’d brought her into the house.

“Papa, this is Kaitlin Mathers and her newest trainee, Warrior. You might remember her. She’s visited Caleb and she’s watched him for me at her place a couple of times. We had a prowler near the training yard who tried to kidnap Kaitlin. She’s staying here tonight.”

His father, white-haired and holding on to a walker, had smiled and nodded while Chief had hopped up to inspect Warrior. After the dogs had sniffed each other to their mutual satisfaction, Patrick McNeal had said, “C’mon in, Kaitlin. You’ll be safe here.”

She supposed law officers had their own code of speaking, because she was pretty sure she missed some of the undercurrents of that brief, curt conversation. She’d also heard bits of a whispered conversation when she’d come out of the bathroom.

Caleb didn’t speak a lot, either, but tonight he’d actually talked to her more than the last time she’d seen him. That had been a few weeks ago when Slade had brought Caleb to work for a couple of hours and she’d offered to take him out onto the training yard. She’d promised Caleb they’d find his friend, but Slade hadn’t asked her to talk to Caleb since then. And she’d tried to respect Slade’s decision by not nagging him too much. She always asked about Caleb, though. Now she had a chance to help him again. She intended to keep that promise she’d made to the little boy, somehow. After the incident today, Kaitlin was once again reminded of how life could change in a minute. Something she’d learned after her mother had died.

Taking a quiet minute to thank God that she was safe and here now with this little boy, Kaitlin rubbed Warrior’s soft fur, her gaze on Caleb. “So do you think you two can be friends?”

Caleb bobbed his head, his dark curls bouncing against his forehead. Then he reached up and patted Warrior on the head. “I can show him my secret hiding place. I wuv him.”

“I do, too,” Kaitlin said. She was about to ask Caleb where his hiding place was, but she looked up to find Slade standing at the door with a look of longing and regret on his face. His gaze slammed into hers with lightning-bolt precision, leaving her drained and shaky.

“Dinner’s ready,” he said. Then he turned and hightailed it back to the kitchen.

Wondering what was wrong with the man, and what was wrong with her for caring, Kaitlin gently tugged Caleb to his feet. “Let’s go see what your daddy whipped up for dinner.”

* * *

Slade ladled the vegetable soup the day nurse had made earlier into bowls to go along with the sandwiches. “Hope you like soup. Terri is a great cook. She let this simmer all day.”

Not one for sparkling conversation, he decided to just give Kaitlin the soup and let her eat. After that scene in Caleb’s room, he felt overwrought and disoriented. Truth was, seeing his son smiling and laughing with a pretty woman tore at the hole in his heart. He really should take one of the casserole girls up on attending the church social. Just to get out of the house more. Papa was always telling him he’d never find a woman if he didn’t ever bother to be around available women. Why his dad worried about such stuff was beyond Slade.

Well, they both wanted Caleb to find a mother figure he could trust and love again. Slade didn’t think he needed to be concerned about a female companion for himself, however. His job kept him occupied.

“Smells great,” Kaitlin said. “Makes me think of my grandmother’s kitchen.”

“Where’d you grow up?” Papa McNeal asked, his hands pressed together.

“In Mesquite, just outside Dallas.” She glanced at Caleb, then lowered her voice. “Just my mom and I, but my grandmother lived close by. My father had to...uh...leave when I was a baby and...my mother...passed away when I was a teenager. Then it was just Grandmother and me. But Grandmother had a sister here in Sagebrush, so after I left for college, she moved here to be closer to Aunt Tina. They both passed away just years apart.”

Slade nodded, understanding she had chosen her words carefully because of Caleb.

“You all alone?” his son asked, clearly deciphering what “passed away” meant.

Slade hoped the boy didn’t start asking about his mother. It was hard to explain over and over that she’d never come back to them.

Kaitlin glanced at Slade before answering. “I don’t have any family nearby, but...I have Warrior and I have people I work with and go to church with. So no, I’m not alone.”

Caleb’s gaze moved from Kaitlin to Slade. “And you have us. Right, Dad?”

Slade felt as helpless as a new puppy. He grunted a reluctant, “Yeah, sure.”

Warrior, having heard his name, did a little “Yeah, sure” of his own. That dog was a lot braver than Slade right now.

Papa, looking amused, took his soup from Slade and waited for him to sit down. Then he reached for Kaitlin’s hand on one side and Caleb’s hand on the other. “We say grace before our meals,” he explained.

Kaitlin took his hand, then realized she’d have to take Slade’s on her other side. She shot him a look that shouted “Oh, no.”

So she was afraid of him? Maybe disgusted with him? She probably thought he was the world’s worst parent. Or maybe the world’s worst law-enforcement officer since he couldn’t settle a five-month-long case.

He stretched his hand toward her, all the while preparing himself for the current of awareness he always felt when he was around her. Did she feel it, too?

She took his hand, then quickly lowered her head and shut her eyes.

Slade remembered having her in his arms earlier, remembered seeing that gun pointed at her temple, too. The first memory warmed his soul while the last one stopped him like a cold bullet.

He jerked his hand away before his daddy said Amen.

When he ventured a glance at the woman sitting at his kitchen table, he saw confusion and hurt in her pretty eyes.

Well, that was the effect he had on most women.

* * *

The house was quiet now.

Kaitlin lay on the comfortable bed in the spare room and listened, unable to sleep. Every creak settling in the walls, every twig brushing against the house, caused her to wake with a start. She hadn’t tasted this kind of fear in a long, long time.

She thought about the man who’d brought her here. She should feel safe with him in the house and she did. But she couldn’t get that masked man out of her head.

After dinner, Slade told her he had to finish up some paperwork. Mr. McNeal went to bed when his night nurse, Jasper, arrived. The big male nurse apparently slept in Mr. McNeal’s room. Kaitlin, left sitting, offered to get Caleb ready for bed.

No one argued with her. She enjoyed helping Caleb with his bath and putting on his superhero pajamas. Then he insisted on showing her his favorite hiding place—a big plastic toy box that looked like a miniature house centered underneath the bay window in the dining room. Slade told her it was where Caleb and Chief apparently played and sometimes fell asleep. After demonstrating how he and Chief could both fit inside the little house, Caleb asked her to read to him. So she snuggled up against a Texas Rangers baseball pillow with Caleb and read several books. It wasn’t long before Warrior joined them, content to curl up at Caleb’s feet and stare with adoring eyes at his new friend.

A girl could sure get used to that.

But not this girl and not with this family. Slade McNeal practically shouted “Off limits” each time he looked at her. The man had pulled away from her during the dinner blessing. Did he find her that distasteful to touch? Did he wish he hadn’t brought her into his house? Kaitlin had no answers. None at all. She knew how he’d made her feel earlier today when he’d comforted her after that attack...but she’d never know how Slade felt, good or bad. That man wore a coat of armor like a true knight. And he was good at rescuing damsels, no doubt.

But he needed to work on the Prince Charming factor a little more. Not that it mattered to Kaitlin. She’d given up on men a long time ago, since her work took up most of her time. She poured all of her love on the animals she trained. Maybe she was a lot more like Slade McNeal than she realized.

Now, wide awake and restless, Kaitlin got up and tugged her terry cloth robe over her flowered pajamas. Her throat burned like a parched desert. She needed a glass of water.

Opening the door slowly, so she wouldn’t wake the whole house, she sent Warrior a command to stay. The big dog gave her a reluctant look, then curled back into a ball of fur.

Moonlight guided her up the wide hallway toward the kitchen. Remembering where Slade had put the glasses, Kaitlin found a juice glass in the cabinet and then ran some water from the sink. She quenched her thirst and turned to stare over at the big plastic storage box under the window.

And heard a definite clearing of someone’s throat behind her.

* * *

Slade watched as Kaitlin pivoted, the glass in her hand, and stared out into the darkness. “Who’s there?”

Hating the quiver in her voice, he pushed away from the rolltop desk in the corner of the den and stood. “It’s me. Slade. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

He heard her inhale a breath. “You shouldn’t sneak up on people like that.”

“I didn’t. I was sitting here in the quiet. I didn’t know anyone else would be up.”

She walked into the moonlight and his heart stopped.

Her hair was down and tumbling in a shimmering honey-colored ribbon. Her robe was white but her pajamas had some sort of flower sprigs all over them. She looked young and vulnerable and beautiful.

But he didn’t come out of the darkness to tell her that.

He couldn’t move. He didn’t know how to begin to flirt with a woman. He was old and bitter and washed up.

“What are you doing?” she asked. Then she drained the glass of water.

“Well, I was sitting here at my desk in my house, minding my own business.”

“Then I’ll leave you to it.”

He stood up and caught her before she shot back up the hall. “Hey, are you all right?”

She looked down at his hand holding her wrist. “I thought I was. But...I keep seeing that man’s eyes. I keep remembering that gun at my head.”

Slade didn’t stop to think. He tugged her close. “You’ve been through a bad experience. It’s just nerves. You know you can talk to a counselor, right?”

She backed up and stared at him. “Yes, I know that. And that’s very good advice.”

He let her go. “You mean for myself, too, right?”

“And for Caleb. It might help.”

“We’ve been that route,” he said. “But when he’s with you, he seems better.” He didn’t dare move any closer. “I’ve always wondered how you two bonded so fast, but I think I understand now. You lost your mother, too. What happened?”

A deep sigh shuddered through her. “She was a veterinarian and she was working late one night, sitting with a sick animal. A drug addict managed to talk his way in the back door. He attacked her with a surgical instrument after she didn’t give him the kind of drugs he wanted. She bled to death right there on the floor.”

Slade let out his own wobbly sigh. “Goodness. I had no idea.”

“I don’t talk about it much.”

And Slade had specifically asked her to help his son. “I would have found someone else if I’d known—to talk to Caleb. I mean, it has to be hard for you—”

She backed up, shook her head. “I like being around him, letting him get to know the animals. I don’t mind at all. Talking to him makes me feel better, and I just want to help.”

“I know you do. And you’re very persistent about such things.”

She pushed at her hair, tugged at her robe. “I should just mind my own business.”

He didn’t agree with her, but he didn’t encourage her, either. She was right. But he was glad she pushed at him. Somebody needed to hold him accountable. “I don’t mind you helping Caleb. It’s not that—”

“I’m going back to bed now.”

Slade felt the rush of air as she moved away from him.

“Hey, wait a minute.”

“You seem to want to be alone,” she said, her voice a sweet whisper.

“Not tonight,” he replied. “C’mon and sit with me awhile.”

She stood there, hesitating. He could almost feel the conflicting thoughts rushing through her head. He felt the same kind of warning each time he was around the woman.

But she moved, finally. She went to the kitchen and put the glass in the sink and stood there for a minute staring out the window. Then she let out a gasp. “Slade?”

“What?”

“I—I think there’s someone out there.”

FOUR

Slade leaped into action.

Grabbing Kaitlin, he shoved her away from the window. “Stay inside.”

He had his weapon drawn and was out the front door before Kaitlin could inhale. She stood in the shadows, fear and uncertainty clouding her mind until she took a deep breath. Hurrying down the hall, she called out to Warrior. “Come.”

The dog trotted to her side, his tail wagging and his ears lifting. “C’mon, boy,” she said, heading to the front door. She was about to open it and let the dog take the lead when the handle turned.

Backing up, Kaitlin held Warrior by his fur and quieted him. If the kidnapper had come back, she’d let Warrior deal with him this time. The canine sensed her apprehension. He let out a long, low growl.

The door opened and Slade walked in.

Kaitlin let out a sigh of relief and commanded Warrior to stay. “You’re okay?”

“Yes.” He gave Warrior a quick pat. “Someone ran away when I came out the door.”

“Maybe I just imagined I saw someone. Warrior didn’t alert.”

“You didn’t imagine anything. I heard them running and I found footprints in the dirt by the back fence. I think whoever it was hopped the fence and came right into the yard. You probably saw them before Warrior had time to pick up a scent.”

“They know I’m here, then.”

Slade moved closer. “Look, it could have been a kid out for thrills.”

“Or it could have been that man again.”

She shuddered in spite of the warm night. “I can’t live like this. I won’t live like this.”

He reached for her, but she moved away, everything she’d held in check since being attacked pouring through her. “I had to live without a father. Don’t even know where he is. And then I had to live without my mother. After hearing all the details of how she was murdered, I was afraid but I got over my fears.” Her eyes brimmed with emotion. “I made myself get over all of it when I decided to become a police officer. I might not be a patrol officer anymore, but I learned how to protect myself...and I can still protect myself now. I won’t let them win. I won’t be afraid.”

But she was afraid. Her worst nightmare had always been a fear of ending up just like her mother. She hated the fresh terror coursing through her. How could she control this? What should she do now? Would her prayers save her?

Slade pulled her toward him, his hands on her elbows. “It’s gonna be all right. You don’t need to worry. I’ll put an officer on your house 24/7, I promise.”

She backed away again. She couldn’t depend on this man. She’d been independent for a long time now. “I have Warrior. I’m training him as an all-purpose so he can help you find Rio. And we’ll find the man behind this, too.”

Slade shook his head. “No, Kaitlin. There is no ‘we’ in this. You can’t get involved. It’s too dangerous.”

“I’m already involved,” she said, anger taking over her apprehension. “They’re after me. I don’t know why, but they want something from me.”

“They need your expertise,” Slade explained. “You know how to make Rio do his job. They don’t. That means they want something or someone that they can’t get to, and they need you and Rio to help them.”

“So they’ll just kidnap trainers and animals until they get what they want?”

She saw something there in his eyes, a flicker of uneasiness that surpassed the concern she’d already seen. “What are you thinking, Slade?”

“They’re coming after you for a reason.”

“You said because of my expertise.”

“It’s more than that, I think.” He put his hands on his hips and exhaled slowly. “They must know that you and I are—that we’re close. I mean, I came to you almost two years ago and asked you to help me with Caleb. You’ve been to our house before and you’ve had Caleb at your place when I needed a sitter. They’ve seen us together at the yard and...they’ve probably been watching you with Caleb at the park, walking down the block—”

Kaitlin gasped and put a hand to her mouth. “They wouldn’t hurt him, would they? Slade?”

He hit his hand on the door frame. “I don’t know. We have to consider every possibility.”

A cold calm came over Kaitlin. She refused to give in to the dread that shadowed her like tattered black threads. And she surely wouldn’t allow anything to happen to Caleb. “We have to consider that. If I’m around you and Caleb, then you both could be in danger.”

He looked over at her. “You can’t avoid us. You can’t isolate yourself. We have to work through this together.”

“But you just said I shouldn’t get involved. You can’t have it both ways.”

“You’re right, I can’t. You’re in danger and I need to come up with a way to protect you. But you’re also good at your job. I need you to go about your normal routine. If you keep working with Warrior, we might be able to do something about this.”

“Will you let me do that? Will you keep me informed and let me train Warrior to help?” She lifted her chin. “Don’t shut me out, Slade. This is too important and I’m way too involved for you to go all stoic and righteous on me now.”

A frown deepened his laugh lines. “Stoic and righteous? Is that how you see me?”

Kaitlin didn’t want to pull any punches. “You’re kind of single-minded and intense when it comes to this case. And I get that. Your partner went missing, your dad almost died and now your son might be a target.” She held back a shudder. “You have every right to be on alert, Slade, but you need me. I want to help. If I don’t, this fear will overcome me and I can’t handle that.”

He stood, silent and brooding, doubt flickering in his eyes. “You’re right. I have a lot riding on this. My entire unit, for one thing. My job, my son. And you.”

And you.

Awareness flashed through Kaitlin, a spine-tingling feeling that she couldn’t deny. Did he feel it, too? This thing they had going? She wondered if she was just fixating on the one man who’d taken the time to get to know her over the years and had now possibly saved her life. Or maybe because Caleb was so adorable, she considered his daddy to be the same? No, this was about more than that.

They’d worked around each other for a couple of years now, but they’d both been professional and polite but standoffish. Then he’d approached her about using dog therapy to help Caleb out of his shell. And she’d readily agreed because she did empathize with the little guy since she’d been through something similar. And now they’d been thrown together in an intense brush with death. Being aware of Slade McNeal had gone up a notch or two from admiring him to admitting she was attracted to him.

Did he feel the same way? She decided that didn’t matter right now. She only wanted Slade and his family to be safe. Caleb didn’t need yet another trauma to deal with.

Slade McNeal was as strong as steel and as solid as an oak tree. The strands of silver near his temples matched that steely ice blue of his eyes. He was the kind of man she should run from, and fast. She needed to remember that, no matter the tension between them.

He must have realized what he’d said. “You are a part of this, Kaitlin. I can’t let anything bad happen to one of our best trainers.”

She’d take that, for now.

“Then let me help you. I’m trained to teach K-9 dogs on how to be the best. I know all the rules and I know all the procedures and precautions. And even though I quit the force, I’m experienced in all kinds of self-defense courses.”

He nodded, a curt, quick movement. “We’ll need to put surveillance on your house and the training yard. You can’t be alone. You’ll need someone at work with you at all times and you might need to stay with someone for a while. I can put Melody on this. She’s as caught up in this case as the rest of us.”

“Melody Zachary?” Kaitlin knew Melody. She was a good cop and a great friend who’d recently helped solve her nephew Daniel’s murder. “But she’s engaged now. She’s busy planning her wedding to Parker.”

“Yep, that seems to be going around a lot these days, but she still has a job to do. You can help her with the wedding stuff. You women seem to love that kind of thing.”

Figuring he wasn’t the marrying type, she said, “We all have a job to do.” Then her smile broke. “But it would be fun to help plan a wedding.”

Slade nodded. “I guess that’s a win-win.” He took another breath. “Look, it’s late. We’ve got a lot to contend with. Think you can get some sleep?”

“I don’t know. I’m exhausted but wired. I’ll try.”

He motioned to Warrior. “Take him and go back to bed.”

“What about you?”

“I don’t sleep.”

* * *

The next morning, Slade was back in his office bright and early. He’d dropped Kaitlin by her house to get a few things, then they’d driven in together. The other trainers had been briefed on what happened yesterday, so they knew to stay on high alert. Slade had reported to the chief and now he was about to brief his unit and bring everyone up-to-date. They’d have to retrace their steps yet again to see what they’d been missing.

But when he turned to stare at the big white board where he’d placed all the clues and details they’d managed to collect over the past few months, he couldn’t help but scan the pieces of the puzzle one more time.

His father had been attacked and Rio had been kidnapped. Eva Billow’s son Brady had then been taken because the kid had witnessed the attack. Austin Black and his bloodhound Justice had found the child. And Austin had found love with the boy’s pretty mother Eva. At least they’d gotten one arrest out of that part of the case. Only that lowlife Don Frist wasn’t talking. Nobody wanted to talk, not even Charles Ritter, the high-powered lawyer Don Frist had ratted out. Ritter was sitting in jail. Which meant The Boss was a very powerful and dangerous man.

Then two more thugs had been murdered, and two middle management members of the crime syndicate were also dead. He stared at the mug shots of Andrew Garry, aka Blood, and Adrianna Munson, aka Serpent. They were all snakes in the grass in Slade’s mind. Next up, Gunther Lamont—the Businessman—allegedly the second in command, now dead. Shot by Ski Mask Man. And last but certainly not least, dirty cop Jim Wheaton—who’d been on the syndicate’s payroll—had been taken down by the cops during a hostage crisis.

They were getting closer and closer to The Boss. Slade should thank the man for culling his own criminals to the point of having no one to trust. That made a man desperate and dangerous. The Boss would slip up and when he did, Slade planned to be there to catch him. Trying to kidnap Kaitlin in the training yard and sending a thug to his house last night made this even more personal for Slade. The Boss kept toying with all of them, but he would slip up soon and Slade would be ready and waiting.

As he stood there going over everything in his head, he realized this had always been personal. They’d taken Rio out of his yard and tried to kill his father. And come to think of it, each of his team members had come dangerously close to getting killed, too. But all roads always came back to Slade and his family. Starting with Angie dying in that car bomb two years ago.

As the entire Special Operations K-9 Unit filed in, one by one, Slade nodded and spoke to each. Austin Black and Lee Calloway talked to each other as they headed to the coffeepot.

Valerie Salgado, a rookie who’d more than earned her stripes, laughed at something Jackson Worth said. And one of Slade’s best friends, Parker Adams, nodded to Slade.

“What’s up?” Slade asked when Parker came up to him.

“Can we talk later?” Parker asked. “I need to run something by you.”

“Sure,” Slade replied, curious. “Lunch after the meeting?”

“That’ll work,” Parker said. “Melody might be able to make lunch.” He nodded and took a seat.

Wondering what that was all about, Slade started the meeting. “I know you’ve all been briefed on what transpired yesterday behind the training yard. Trainer Kaitlin Mathers’s attempted kidnapping is now considered part of this case. Ski Mask Man has struck again.”

Everyone started mumbling and talking. Slade held up a hand. “We’re gonna go over every inch of evidence we have and we’re going to pursue every lead. We want Rio back, but more than that, we want our town back. So let’s start at the beginning.”

The team had interviewed a low-level snitch named Pauly Keevers and all he’d told them was that there was something buried in the Lost Woods, a heavily wooded forest on the edge of town that hid a multitude of crime and evil. Pauly was dead now, too, taken out by the syndicate. Then informant Ned Adams was found buried in the woods.

“It looks like The Boss is killing people so they won’t talk.”

Jackson Worth spoke up. “Not to mention the infamous code we’ve tried to break and Daniel Jones’s grave being dug up. And we did find that brick of cocaine. But two or so pounds of cocaine wouldn’t bring about this much crime.”

Not long after setting up surveillance in the Lost Woods, Parker Adams and his K-9 partner Sherlock had helped Slade find a small amount of cocaine, heavily scented to disguise it, in the woods.

Slade went back over that find. “You’re right about that, Worth. It wasn’t enough to cause this amount of secrecy and criminal intent. I believe there must be something else buried out in those woods.”

“A body, maybe?” someone suggested.

Slade nodded. “That...or something worth much more than that small amount of cocaine we found.”

Jackson spoke again. “Makes sense that we need to keep searching. They dug up that kid’s grave, but they’re still looking, too.”

“Agreed, but we have to be careful,” Slade replied. “The chief has given us special permission to stay on top of this, but let’s keep in mind we have to continue to follow procedure and the chain of command.”

Everyone nodded on that.

Parker again reported on how Detective Melody Zachary had solved part of a cold case that involved her sister Sierra and her nephew Daniel Jones. She’d found evidence that proved Jim Wheaton had killed Daniel and that her sister had not committed suicide. She’d been murdered. Did it all tie back to this case?

“No answers there. Dead men—and women—tell no tales,” Parker said.

The body count kept rising. And so did Slade’s blood pressure.

“Let’s go back to that cocaine find,” Slade said, a nagging feeling centered in his gut. “It wasn’t enough to create this kind of violence.”

“More like a smoke screen,” Jackson said. “There has to be something else, something bigger out there.”

“We’ll have to find a reason to have another look,” Slade replied, jotting notes on the board. “We’ll set up more surveillance, too.”

He believed the answers to this case were buried somewhere in those woods. He also believed that one of their highly trained K-9 officers would help him find whatever or whoever was out there. Now Kaitlin was training Warrior as just such a K-9.

“This brings us to Kaitlin Mathers. We’re pretty sure they have Rio, but why try to kidnap a trainer?”

Valerie Salgado raised her hand. “Because they know she’s smart and capable of handling a dog and they know she’s been involved with you and your son. Hit us where it’ll hurt.”

Slade nodded. “I’m afraid that’s it. Which means we have to put a tail on Kaitlin 24/7, for her own protection. And hopefully to find a pattern—someone following her, watching her. She’ll go about her business and continue to train Warrior.”

“I’ll be glad to help with surveillance,” Valerie offered. “And I don’t mind hanging with Kaitlin.”

They talked some more about recent events.

Then Slade stated the obvious. “I think Ski Mask Man might be more than your basic low-level thug.” He glanced around the room then wrote on the board. “The Boss? Is he Ski Mask Man?”

While everyone chewed on that, Slade took one more sweeping look at the pictures and notes on the board.

“I’m pretty sure this whole setup has been aimed at me.” He went back over the facts again, starting with the car bomb. “The Boss wants something that’s buried in those woods, but he wants to make me suffer until he finds it. He’s getting desperate, and that means we’re all in jeopardy. So be on the alert at all times. We can’t rest right now. It’s too dangerous.”

After everyone filed out, Slade turned to stare at the board again. Who was The Boss? And when would he make his next move?

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