Page 37 of No Man Left Behind

He kept half of his attention on Elina as she peered at Piper’s phone with her. The other half was on the crowd and their surroundings. Nothing felt out of place.

Piper called out to the crowd. “Before we tell you the results, I want to thank Elina for creating such amazing mascots.”

Elina flushed as the crowd cheered again.

Piper laughed. “From the beginning, I was hoping for a great cartoon mascot. If a town named Phail doesn’t cry out for a fun mascot, I don’t know what does. I never dreamed of having the amazing Paxi design them for us. Thanks, Elina, for creating so many amazing choices. No matter what the town chooses, we’ve got a winner. Okay, let me check the poll results.”

The group got quiet, and Marcus sensed only a happy anticipation.

Piper laughed and showed the phone to Elina. Her eyes widened, and she grinned.

Piper turned her attention back to the group. “We don’t have a clear winner but we do have a tie. Fancy Phail the firefly and Phil Phail the fox.”

Everyone cheered again. Garrett called out. “Do we have a vote-off, or can we have them both?”

It only took a second for Piper and Elina to consult. Elina grinned. “Two mascots it is.”

Which made Marcus smile. Having input into the town meant more reasons for her to stick around. Her gaze found his, and his desire ratcheted up even higher. He wanted this woman.

Forever.

First, he needed to get rid of the others and lock up the building. Then he’d start working on convincing her she wanted to stick around.

Once they had the place clean, he and Elina did a sweep to ensure everything was as it should be. At the back door, he tugged her in for a hug. “Would you like to come back to my house with me? It’s just through the woods here. I’m not trying to pressure you, but I’d like to show you my space.”

Elina leaned back to smile up at him. “I’d love to see your space. I’d love to spend time with you there.”

Desire twinkled in her eyes, and he kissed her softly. “Good to know. I’m imagining a lot of very interesting ways to spend time with you there.”

She laughed against his lips. “I have a whole list of ways for us to spend time together, too.”

His body tightened, and he ran his hands up her arms until he cupped her face. “Very good to know.” He kissed her until he could feel his control unraveling. “Let’s go.”

He’d text Jim or Carl later so the two wouldn’t worry, but for now, his focus was on getting out the door and through the path to his house. To his bed.

He opened the station door and moved to put his body between Elina and the outside. None of them had noticed anything out of place today but he’d never take chances with her safety.

And he was glad he hadn’t. Not with what was on the path. He immediately backed up and closed the door, then flipped the lock.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

Marcus pulled out his phone and steered Elina away from the windows. He called Troy. “I need the team at the station. Front door. Now.”

Then he hung up and tucked Elina into his arms. “We’ve got proof someone is up to no good.”

“What is it?”

He didn’t want her to see it, didn’t want her to even know about it. “Someone butchered some animals and left them in a trail up to the back door.”

She gasped softly, and her eyes filled with tears. “Those poor creatures. Why would anyone do that?”

Marcus pulled her close and kissed her hair again. “I don’t know, but I’m going to find out.”

Chapter12

A Step Behind

Marcus battled to keep his rage under control. Some asshole was threatening Elina, and he was doing it almost right in front of them.

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