Page 77 of Meant for Them

A minute was all they would give him. They said he had to learn to draw on his inner strength. There were times when both of the men thought they couldn’t lift a paw, but they did. So far, they’d been able to live and tell about it.

Just as Benson stood, his cell rang. “I need to get this. It could be Preston or Ariel.” He picked up his cell. “It’s my uncle.” He answered it and then put it on speaker. “Did you find Anna?”

CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE

“We did find Anna!”

From the cheer in his uncle’s voice, things went well. “That’s fantastic. I’m with Liam and Alex, and I have you on speaker.”

“Good. I hope you are training hard with them?”

Benson wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that. “I’m trying. Tell us what happened.”

“Mason located Hammer and followed him. If Hammer went anywhere near his house, Mason would have let us know. We took that opportunity to fly the drone over the house as well as over the barn. That’s when he saw her.”

“Was anyone watching her?” Benson asked.

“Just one guy, but the appearance of all of us convinced him that he’d lose in a heartbeat if he put up a fight.”

“How is Anna doing?”

“She’s cold, dehydrated, and weak, but she’ll recover. Jude and Tucker took her to the hospital to be checked out.”

“Good. Did you tell Sheriff Hanson?”

“I gave him a call. I told him I was given a tip that she might be at Hanson’s house. I didn’t want to disturb him or his staff until I found out that my secret source was correct. The sheriff came out and took away the person who’d been watching Anna. Thankfully, the sheriff didn’t deliver a lecture about us trespassing or me being out of my jurisdiction.”

“I’m happy to hear that. I’m guessing this watchdog was a werewolf?”

“Yes, but like I said, he wasn’t about to shift in front of the sheriff or in front of me and Noah.”

“I trust Hammer is unaware of what happened?”

His uncle blew out a breath. “It’s kind of why I’m calling. I don’t know if Hammer knows yet, but when he does, I’m sure he’ll want some revenge.”

That was what he was worried about. “Have you called Anna’s uncle?”

“I just did. I suggested that once Anna is released from the hospital, the two of them leave town for a while.”

That was smart. “What can I do to help?”

“Nothing at the moment. Sheriff Hanson wants to question Hammer—assuming he can find him. I’m hoping it doesn’t turn violent if he does talk to him. If Paul Franklin is behind this, he’ll come up with a plan to make sure Hammer isn’t arrested or found. We need to be ready.”

That meant more training. No telling when Hammer would try something else. “Do you have eyes on Camille Hartwick? If we can find her, we’ll probably find Hammer.”

“I plan to look for her.”

“Does Mason know where Hammer is?” Benson asked. He should if he was following the man.

“I haven’t been in contact with him yet. I wanted to call you first. You and Preston should watch over Ariel.”

“We will do that. And thanks.”

“Thank you. I think your theories about what went down might be right. Finding Anna was our first goal. Next, we’ll try to learn who really killed Samantha. I’m sure Ariel, as well as Trent, would appreciate knowing the truth.”

“You have that right.”

Benson disconnected.

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