Her husband moved slowly. “I just woke up, Trav. I hope whatever it is we need to talk about is important.”
“It is.”
Cody turned to Ella. “Is this what you said we’d talk about when I first got bit?”
She nibbled the inside of her cheek. “Yes. Though I don’t know everything. Just that those snakes weren’t in our yard by accident.”
“The attack was purposeful.” It wasn’t a question.
“Looks that way.” Travis nodded toward the kitchen. “Cassie took the kids to visit with Miss Hattie, but she put coffee on before leaving.”
Once situated at the table with mugs, Travis wasted no time. “As Ella said, the snakes were planted. They were apparently transported here in a basket, the one Isaiah knocked over when he saw them in it.”
Ella shuddered, remembering how close her son had come to being bitten. Would one so young have been able to survive such an attack?
Travis fished a piece of paper from his pocket. “This was in the basket.”
Ella frowned. “A note?”
Travis slid the paper their way.
Cody took it, scanning the words. His body jerked. “Who left this?”
“I don’t know. But I aim to find out.”
The hardness in Travis’s voice sent shivers down Ella’s spine. She reached for the note.
Cody slid it from her grasp. “No, darlin’.”
She blinked. “Why?”
Something flickered in his eyes. He shook his head.
Travis speared him with a look. “She needs to know, Cody. Maybe she can help us identify who’s doing this.”
Another shiver went through her, this one leaving dread in its wake. Cody’s struggle was evident in his eyes. He closed them, breathed out long and slow, then placed the paper in her hand. His arm looped around her shoulders. Ella smoothed the paper out and read the single sentence.
SEND ARIELLA MOUNTBATTEN BACK TO BOSTON, OR WORSE WILL HAPPEN
The paper fell from her hands. She lurched back. Cody’s strong grip was the only thing that kept her upright. She stared at Travis. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“You had enough going on. I wanted some time to look into who might have done this.”
“Did you find anything?” Cody asked.
“Not yet. There’s no out-of-towners staying at the hotel. A friend on the Boston force confirmed both Mr. Mountbatten and Mr. Blackwell are at their homes.”
Another possibility whispered through Ella’s mind. “And…Howard?”
“He’s accounted for too. All three are in Boston.”
Stormy emotion flashed over Cody’s face. “That doesn’t mean someone isn’t here on their orders. Why else would this person demand Ella go back to Boston?”
She felt weak. “Worse will happen?”
Cody’s hand closed around hers. Travis exhaled. “Ella, I will do everything I can to find who did this. Strangers stand out here. If someone is here for your father, they shouldn’t be hard to find. I’ll go to the shops today and ask around, see if anyone can tell us something.”
Ella leaned into her husband but spoke to Travis. “Do you think this is connected to whoever broke our fence?”
