Page 32 of Silos and Sabotage

Her mother stood, facing her bleakly. “Someday, it’ll all make sense. I just don’t know when, considering your condition.” She gestured helplessly at her daughter.

I’m not as broken as you think I am.Ella was tired of all the double-talk and secrecy. “You still haven’t told me who you’ve been protecting me from.”

“I don’t have time to go into that right now.” Avery Radcliffe shook her head, looking genuinely distressed. “How about we continue this conversation during our next visit?”

“Sure.” Ella’s heart sank, knowing she couldn’t force her to keep talking. Something was holding her back, possibly the fear that Ella wouldn’t remember any of their conversation, anyway.

“While you’re in town, it would also be best if you stay away from the Bolanders.” Her mother’s voice was flat. “Trust me. You donotwant to kick that cobra.”

Too late for that.Ella’s encounter with Billy Bob was all the convincing she needed that her mother was telling the truth about the Bolanders.

Ella moved toward the conference room door. “I’ll do my best, Dr. Radcliffe.” Yeah, she was being sarcastic, but her mother sort of deserved it. She twisted the handle and pulled the door open.

“I’ll see you next Monday, Miss Lawton,” her mother called after her. Like the mask she’d worn to the hospital the night she’d donated her kidney, Dr. Radcliffe’s professional voice and demeanor were very much back in place.

Gage was standing just inside the waiting room, so close to the door that Ella nearly plowed into him. He took one look at her expression and held his arms out to her.

She walked right into them, too overwhelmed to do anything other than breathe him in.

He cuddled her closer, tucking her head beneath his chin. His profound silence told her he understood she didn’t need a bunch of words right now. “Let’s get you out of here,” he finally rasped against her temple.

She nodded instead of answering.

On their drive back to the animal sanctuary, it was deathly quiet inside the vehicle. She was riding shotgun beside Gage, who was driving.

Johnny popped his head over the console between them to give her a worried look. “You okay up there, cupcake?”

“Cupcake?” Ella sputtered, trying to swallow a laugh as she darted a glance at Gage.

The way his fists tightened on the steering wheel made it look like he was struggling not to slug Johnny.

“Whoa! You two are intense!” Johnny sat back in his seat, out of swinging range. “I was just trying to lighten the mood in here.”

Ella pressed two fingers to her lips in an effort to hide a smile. The guy clearly had a death wish.

“There.” He pointed at her. “I saw it.”

“Saw what?” She refused to look at him, knowing she would laugh if she did.

“You smiled.”

“Did not.”

Gage pulled into the drive-through lane at The Hitching Post. “I promised Jillian I’d feed you. What sounds good?” He spoke to Ella as if Johnny was no longer in the vehicle.

Which didn’t discourage Johnny from rattling off a long list of menu items.

“Wasn’t talking to you,” Gage growled.

“It’s all for Ella,” Johnny promised in an innocent voice. “I hereby volunteer to finish off whatever she doesn’t want.”

“How magnanimous of you.” Despite his grumpiness, Gage ordered lunch for the three of them, including most of the items on Johnny’s ridiculously long list. Then he turned back onto the highway.

When they were bumping their way up the gravel lane leading to the animal rescue sanctuary, Ella finally worked up the courage to share some of what had happened during her appointment. “According to the therapist I met with today, I have a rare form of amnesia.” She gave them the skinny of what that meant.

“So if I kissed you right now,” Johnny drawled, “you might not remember it?”

“Neither would you.” Gage glared a hole in him through his rearview mirror. “Because you’d be dead.” He parked in front of the trio of interconnected silos. “Get out,” he ordered flatly. “You,” he clarified, giving Johnny a hard look in his rearview mirror. “Not Ella. She and I have something we need to discuss real quick.”

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