Page 35 of Ambush

He used his key at the first gate. “How’s it going with Paradise? You enjoying working with her?”

“She’s okay. A little reserved but pleasant. She’s good at whatshe does. Serena had a cracked paw pad, and Paradise spotted the problem. She dosed her with an antibiotic, and Serena thanked her for it.”

Serena was the best grizzly and reciprocated their affection by showing off for them. “Sounds like she’s settling in well.”

“How are you dealing with her being here?”

Blake heard the personal curiosity in her question. The fact he and Paradise had dated once must have made its way through the employees. “She’s a good vet, and I’m glad she’s here. She’s going to be an asset and will help out anywhere we ask her.”

Lacey didn’t probe further, and they reached the back of the hyena enclosure as the vocalizations grew louder. He approached the fence and peered through the dark into the corners of the space. The clan of three stood staring toward a dark corner where a tupelo tree loomed. The dominant female, Clara, ruled the pack with a steel will and decided who ate and who was driven off. The male ate last, and Blake often had to separate the sexes to ensure he got enough food.

He studied the odd behavior of the animals warily, watching that dark corner. Hyenas usually only feared lions, so he couldn’t puzzle out what type of animal hid in the darkness of the big tree. Maybe it was another hyena.

He walked the length of the enclosure looking for breaches in the perimeter and found one low in the fence. He shone his phone flashlight at the small hole and frowned. “I think this has been cut.” He squatted and studied the metal links. Drops of blood clung to the blunt edges of the fence as if something had been forced through. Had the rabbit been pushed into the enclosure? If so, for what reason?

He stood and continued to search the perimeter. The hyena habitat had several enclosures where they were able to segregatethe clan when various areas required cleaning or the animals had to be separated. In the last space, he spotted a gate lock left open.

Someone had come through here. Had they distracted the animals with a rabbit while they sneaked through? His gaze went out over the vast expanses of The Sanctuary, and it clicked. The other side of the hyena enclosure made for an easy access from outside the park. Zebras and wildebeest roamed in their large grazing habitat. There was no danger in walking through the animals there. The hyenas were the danger, and if they were distracted, an intruder could access the buildings.

The intruder had entered here.

***

A lion roared in the distance, and Paradise sat up with adrenaline racing through her. She swallowed past the constriction in her throat and forced herself to lie back on a pillow that still held the all-too-enticing scent of Blake. Levi muttered in his sleep and rolled closer. The warm little bundle of boy relaxed her, and she snuggled him closer.

When she was in the last foster home, the family’s two-year-old daughter used to creep into her bed in the middle of the night. Paradise had forgotten how comforting a child could be. She hadn’t allowed herself to dream of having her own little boy or girl, but this little boy made the idea more appealing than she’d imagined.

She drifted in a state between sleep and waking with the thought of a little boy with Blake’s blue eyes and intelligence. A sound roused her and she opened her eyes again to find Levi had his foot in her face. She touched it tenderly and flipped him around before thinking about the dream of children. It was onlyin that kind of twilight wakefulness she let those kinds of longings seep through. In the daylight she didn’t think a family would be in her future. It was too hard for anyone to get through and see the real her under the prickly surface she projected.

She touched her lips. Kissing Blake had felt like coming home. Even after all these years, he’d vaulted over the walls she’d erected like they didn’t exist. And maybe they didn’t where he was concerned. They never had.

She sat up at the distant sound of a door closing. Had something else happened? She slid her legs over the side of the bed and checked to make sure Levi stayed put before tiptoeing out of the room. She found Blake, his forehead creased with worry, in the kitchen pouring a glass of orange juice. Did the man ever sleep or relax? It was after one.

He turned toward her and stilled. “You should be sleeping.”

“So should you. You’re just now getting in?”

“I think I found out how the intruder got into my apartment. We have cameras at the entrance, and I think he wanted to avoid being seen. Someone distracted the hyenas with a rabbit and walked right through.”

He offered her his glass of juice, but she shook her head. “Any idea who it was?”

“No.”

His penetrating gaze unnerved her, and she crossed her arms over her chest. “That was who was in my apartment.”

“I think so. It disturbs me that someone seems to be targeting you.”

“Or maybe he was targeting you. He might not know you gave up your place for me. There’s no way to know for sure.”

He absorbed her statement before nodding. “Okay, true.” His frown deepened. “I don’t think you should stay there alone.We’re better to stay in a group. If you’re okay with a little boy or two invading your space on occasion.”

“The boys are fine, but I don’t want to displace you a second night.”

“I’ll rest better if I know you’re not up there alone.”

“Why do you care?” The question erupted before she could stop it. “I feel like I’ve been nothing but trouble. You probably wish your mom had never emailed me.”

“I don’t wish that at all.” His gaze dropped to her mouth, and he took a step toward her.

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