Max let out a breath beside him. “You recognize it?”
“No.”
“You said no one was supposed to be coming this morning, right?”
“That’s correct,” Caleb said. “No new boarders. No one doing a pickup. Our newest guest won’t arrive until tomorrow.”
Max’s jaw twitched. “Driver could’ve just gotten turned around.”
Caleb didn’t answer right away. “If it was someone who was lost, they wouldn’t have sped away so fast.”
“Maybe we spooked them,” Max suggested.
“Maybe. Or maybe it was someone who wanted to send a message, to let us know they were here. I’m going to call the sheriff about checking the plates, just to be on the safe side.”
“Sounds like a good idea.”
Caleb glanced at the house and saw movement at the window.
Millie, he realized. She’d been watching the exchange from the living room.
Seeing this wouldn’t put her at ease. He knew that for certain—especially after hearing her story.
The muscles between his shoulders tightened at the thought.
He needed to go inside and check on her, make sure she wasn’t panicking.
He took one last look at the empty road.
He didn’t like the bad feeling in his chest.
Most likely, it was nothing.
But he operated on worst-case scenarios. He’d learned to do so while in the military.
People’s lives had depended on his choices, so he’d learned to be calculated and thorough.
“Let’s head back.” He nodded toward the house.
He and Max turned, boots crunching over gravel and dried leaves. As he walked, Caleb’s focus shifted—not away from the threat, but toward something just as dangerous.
Millie and everything she’d shared earlier.
Anger still burned inside him—though he’d tried not to show it in front of her. Keeping his emotions in check was important. He needed the residents here to feel safe, and anger could feel threatening.
But the thought of someone laying a hand on her . . .
He fisted his hands. The mere idea of it hollowed him out.
When he’d broken up with her, he’d tried to assure himself that it was the right thing. That she’d find someone better. That breaking up would ultimately be the best thing for her. He’d feared that if Millie stayed with him, she could never have the kind of life she deserved.
Instead, she’d run into the arms of a wolf disguised as a sheep.
If he hadn’t broken up with her, there was a good chance she wouldn’t have been in that situation.
And that was something Caleb would have trouble ever forgiving himself for.
Millie turned from the window as Caleb stepped inside.
