Page 30 of A Groom for Heather
“Heather ---”
Heather suddenly put a finger to his lips and tilted her head. “Shhhh.”
“What?” he said. He didn’t hear anything but the chirping of birds.
Birds.
There wouldn’t be any birds chattering this late at night. They would be in their nests, with their heads tucked under their wings.
“Shhh,” she said again, stepping further in the darkness.
The chirping sounded louder. A chill went up Dalton’s spine. Someone or something was out in the darkness.
“Heather, come back inside.” He could see her hand in the light reflecting from the house. The rest of her was hidden in the night.
Suddenly a scream pierced the air.
“Heather!” Dalton yelled.
She reappeared in the light and Dalton breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s her.”
“The mountain lion?”
“Yes. She’s in heat.”
“How can you tell that?”
“By the way she’s calling. Listen.”
Dalton strained his ears to hear the roar in the distance. He put his hands over his ears to silence the sound. “It sounds like a woman.”
“Or a child.”
The calls sounded closer. Heather turned to him. “I think it’s close to Millie’s.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“You should probably head over there and see if you can find it.”
Dalton swallowed. “In the dark? I don’t know, Heather.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t think I can shoot it. Track it yes. Shoot it no.”
“Why ever not?”
Dalton took a deep breath.
“I’ve never fired a gun before.”
Chapter Nine
Heather shook her head in disbelief.
“You’ve never fired a gun?”
