Page 37 of Ambush

She whipped around and knocked one leg out from under him. He let go of her arm on his way down, and she took the opportunity to rush into the sunshine.

She slammed the door behind her to slow him down and ran for the safari bus in the distance. As she reached it, the first bit of sanity returned to her head. She couldn’t let Blake intervene in this—Greene would increase his attacks. And if the two men gotinto a fight, Blake could be arrested for attacking an officer. The felony accusation would be difficult to overcome.

She stopped and controlled the panic raging in her chest. As long as she was away from Greene, things would be okay. He’d never try anything with people around.

Blake slowed the safari vehicle and leaned out the window. “Need something?”

“A ride back to my facilities.”

“Hop aboard.”

She went up the steps to the seats. As she settled at the bench seat in the center, she spotted Greene running toward them. She bit down on her lip hard enough to taste blood, but she couldn’t tell Blake to accelerate away. He’d know something was wrong.

Greene reached the bus. “There you are, Lawson. I wanted to pick up the evidence you found.”

“I took it to the substation first thing this morning before I started work. McShea has it.”

Greene’s angry gaze wandered to Paradise, and his promise of retribution pierced her. She’d have to do everything in her power not to be alone with him.

***

Blake dropped Paradise and the other riders off, then put away his vehicle before he went to make cleaning rounds. His first stop was the hyena enclosure.

The cackle of hyenas was three hundred yards out from the fence in their enclosure, and their pungent scent carried to Blake on the wind. A secondary fence and gate stood between them and the area he needed to access. He pulled out his black key andinserted it into the outer lock. A quickclickand he was inside the perimeter space where he could toss food to the animals.

Cleaning up after the animals was a task he routinely performed, and he set to work with a pitchfork and wheelbarrow. Once the work was done and he’d given the animals their nutritional supplements, he intended to check out the area now that it was daylight. Someone had gained access through here, and he had to shut down that possibility.

The leader moseyed to the fence and watched him work. Clara hated his red hat, so he had left it in the shed when he grabbed the shovel and wheelbarrow. Hyenas were the one predator none of the keepers liked interacting with. It wasn’t their scrappy fur and hunched backs that put most of them off. A keeper might think he had a bond with one of them only to find the animal stalking him as food. While he gave them scratches and rubs through the fence, he never went inside the enclosure with them. And anytime his fingers were through the holes in the fence, he watched their faces and snatched his hand back when their eyes indicated their disposition might change.

He ignored Clara and the rest of the cackle. They were probably ready for their supplements since it meant more meat, but that detail would come once Blake cleaned the enclosure and let them back in.

His thoughts lingered on Paradise and the spectacular way she’d kissed him back last night. Did she regret it now? He hoped not, because her response had stirred to life deeper feelings he thought had died long ago. The morning’s sunrise brought the hope he’d see the expression in her eyes he used to watch for when they were dating. Her tender and loving gaze used to make him feel like he was Superman. Would he ever see that again?

He flipped the last of the excrement into the wheelbarrow before turning and facing three hyenas lined up in single file.

In stalking mode.

On his side of the fence.

He froze, and his pulse accelerated so quickly he felt dizzy. How did they get past the lock on the fence?

He kept his gaze on Clara’s laughing, drooling grin as he expelled the air from his lungs. She edged closer, and he straightened into a commanding stance. “Clara, are you ready for your supplements?”

The alpha female’s eyes flickered with interest. Hyenas were crazy smart, like monkeys. They appeared doglike but were a member of the mongoose family, which meant they were more closely related to a cat. If he could reach the cooler with the meat and supplements, he might make it out of here alive. Hyenas could completely consume a zebra in thirty minutes.

Keeping his posture rigid and in charge, he backed toward the wagon where he’d left the rest of his equipment. Clara matched him step-by-step. As long as she didn’t decide he would make the better snack, this might work. Another three feet and he’d have his hands on that cooler.

A noise caught Clara’s attention, and she turned her nose to Blake’s right. He spotted Lacey in the Gator. She was making a big racket as though she wanted to attract them. The Gator made an abrupt stop near the perimeter fence, and she got out with a bucket of meat.

“Hey there, cutie.” Lacey’s manner was easy and confident as she stepped to the fence and began to toss pieces of meat over the barrier.

Clara grabbed the first piece of meat while her pack waited their turn. None of them would eat until Clara was satiated, andthat could take a while since this wasn’t a regularly scheduled feeding.

Blake moved noiselessly to the gate, unlocked it, and began to slide through. In the same moment he felt the brush of teeth along the back of his slacks. He leaped the final few inches and slammed the gate shut behind him. The lock clicked into place, and he sagged with relief.

The hyena on the other side of the fence, Clara’s sister Maisie, turned laughing jowls his way as if to say,I almost had you.

And it wasn’t a lie. A few seconds and he would have had a nasty bite. Shaken, he exhaled and walked to join Lacey, who stepped away from the fence. “You got here at the right time.”

---