Page 22 of Coral Rustling

Chapter Ten

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“Well, it’s no longerjust a guess,” Ryan commented dryly, his voice coming out so soft Trey barely heard him, even with his shifter hearing.

“Nope,” Ulkna muttered from next to him.

Crouched behind a number of boulders, Trey watched with the group as silhouettes moved beyond the thick fabric tent siding.They appeared to be putting items into storage crates or bags.It was tough to tell.

What was obvious, however, were the three trail mounts tied to a make-shift high-line someone had strung between that tent and another.They each were kitted out with packhorse rigging, clearly waiting for whatever crates or bags the pair in the tent were filling.

“Hurry up, Mark,” one of the men urged.“I wanna be out of here within the hour.”

“Keep your voice down, Perry,” the second man ordered, his voice quite a bit softer.“Don’t want the guard to hear you.”

The first man, Perry, scoffed.“Don’t worry about Barny.Guy’s half deaf.”His tone turned amused as he continued, “When one of the other grad students asked him about it, Barny laughed it off, saying he’d gone to too many rock concerts in his twenties.”

The men’s conversation turned to the artifacts they were packing up, and Trey turned to stare at Reagan in shock.“Tell me that’s not Mark’s voice.”

Reagan appeared just as shell-shocked.“I-I just don’t believe it.”

Whether or not his nephew believed it became a moot point when Mark strode out of the tent, followed by another man.They each held the end of a crate, holding the pair between them.Mark led the way to the horses, approaching Shirley first—the calmest of the trio.

They placed the first crate on the left side of the rig, where Mark strapped it into place.Then, with each man holding onto the rig’s X-bar to keep the uneven load from sliding, they lifted the second crate.After strapping that one down on the second side, Mark adjusted the straps.

Trey imagined he was checking for tightness and balance.Once Mark seemed satisfied, they headed back into the tent.

“Time to call the police,” Reagan insisted.He pulled out his cell phone, turned it on, and cussed under his breath.“No service.”

“They may be using a signal jammer, just in case the guard does catch onto their activities.”Ryan scowled as he muttered, “I noticed ski masks hanging out of their back pockets, so they’re prepared to cover their faces.”

“I’ll take it up,” Payson offered, tugging off the jeans he’d donned—as had all the shifters.“I’m fastest.”

“Yeah, but they’reourmissing horses.Our responsibility,” Reagan declared, indicating between him and Trey.“The cops are going to want to talk to me.”He must have noticed Payson’s dubious expression, for his tone turned mutinous.“I can call the guys and find out if the cop that was supposed to arrive is still there.”

Before Payson could counter, Sam stated, “Okay.I’ll carry you up.Payson, you can accompany us.”He lowered his voice to a whisper as he focused on Ryan and ordered, “Stall them if they look like they’re getting ready to make their getaway.”

Ryan nodded.“Will do.”Leaning over, he pecked a kiss on the big beta’s lips.“Be careful.”

Sam scoffed.“I have the easy job.”As he shoved off his jeans, he looked around at everyone.“Youallbe careful.”

Then Sam and Payson disappeared up the trail, Reagan following.As soon as they were out of sight, Trey heard the faint sounds of bones snapping and muscles popping, telling him they’d shifted.Once the noises faded, Trey heard Reagan mutter, “Shit, you’re a big bull.”

Trey wasn’t the only one who chuckled softly.

Rueben grinned broadly as he shoved their clothes into his backpack.“Heisa damn big bull.”

They grew silent again as they watched the would-be robbers exit the tent, carrying another pair of crates.

“Using your horses was a great idea,” Perry praised, grinning.“With everyone off today and tomorrow, we can be in and out without even having to pass Barny.”A chuckle escaped him as he continued, “No one will be the wiser for two days.”

“Yup.”Mark smirked, his expression smug.“I’ll tuck the crates in the back of the hay loft until things die down.Then we’ll fence them and make a fortune.”With a sneer curling his lips, Mark grumbled, “No more dealing with shitty tourists and their inane chatter and stupidity.”

Trey gaped, shocked to hear Mark’s words.The wrangler had always seemed so happy and friendly.With a ready smile and calm manner, he’d helped many a customer.

“Uh, so how are you going to cover up the fact that we used the trail business’s horses?”Perry asked curiously as he helped them strap the crates to Pixie, the second mare.“I mean, surely they’ve noticed them gone by now.”

Mark laughed derisively.“Those guys are such gullible fools.”

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