Page 59 of Fierce Protector

He crushed her against his chest and stamped her mouth with a hard kiss. “Be safe. Go straight there and come straight back. Promise me, Demi.”

“I promise.”

He released her body but held her prisoner with his blazing stare.

In that heartbeat, she saw the emotion in his eyes, and she knew. She knew how he felt about her…and she knew she felt the same.

The next few minutes were a whirlwind as she drove to the Springvale Ranch. Her mind spun. Wolves on the Gracey. Another attack.

And love shining in Ledger’s eyes when he told her he didn’t like being away from her.

Reaching the ranch, her headlights panned over the paddock, where she spotted a lone horse inside. With all the caution that Ledger had managed to instill in her, she left the vehicle running, and guided by the headlights, she approached the fence.

The horse let out a harsh whinny.

Demi looked around. “Where’s your owner, Maple?” She glanced at its back haunch. Sure enough, there was a gash, freely bleeding.

It wasn’t like Mr. Vale not to be with his animal, especially when he just made the call. And why wasn’t the horse in the barn? Maybe Mr. Vale went inside to prepare a clean stall for the mare.

With a gentle, reassuring pat on Maple’s side, she walked toward the open barn door. “Mr. Vale?”

As soon as she stepped through the door, her gaze fell on the man.

Lying facedown on the floor.

With an ax in his back.

She clapped a hand over her mouth. Terror ripped through her.

Her first instinct was to get out of there. The killer could still be lurking around. She didn’t want to die, and she had a life to protect.

But the horse shouldn’t be left alone either. She needed to tend to it, but her child came first.

She rushed to her SUV, peeked in the back to ensure it was all clear, and locked herself inside. With shaking hands, she dialed Ledger.

Chapter Thirteen

In the faint glow of the flashlight Ledger held, he glanced around at the faces of his brothers. Colton and Hunter stood with rifles resting on their shoulders. Wolfe was loading his weapon while the woman he loved, Livia, huddled close to him, hands thrust in the pockets of a huge canvas barn jacket.

Webb met Ledger’s gaze. “We’ll split up in pairs. You and me.” He flicked his finger between himself and Ledger.

He gave a brisk nod. Just then, Colton’s phone buzzed. He slapped it to his ear. His voice when he answered was gruff. “Nox. Yeah, Ross. We’re actually all gathered together to hunt a wolf that attacked some cattle. I’ll put you on speaker.”

He swiped his thumb over the screen. When the deep voice of Ross Wynton projected from the speaker, everyone stilled.

“A wolf attack? Is that normal in your part of the mountains?”

Colton looked to Webb.

“Not unheard of, but it’s rare. I’ve never seen it on the Gracey.”

“Here on the Wynton Ranch, we don’t have much trouble with wolves, and we aren’t too far from you.”

“Ross, this is Ledger Bell. The veterinarian and I darted three wolves tonight. Another one a few days back.”

“I see. Well, I won’t keep you from your hunt. But my team uncovered a bit of information that I didn’t want to delay in sharing.”

“We’re listening.” Colton swept his gaze around the circle.

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