She frowned slightly. “Caleb … I can’t afford those.”
“You can’t afford not to get them,” he replied gently. “Let me worry about that. OK?”
She nodded.
“Where?”
“Both barn perimeters. Farmhouse. Drive. We’ll cover it all. No blind spots. It’ll be discreet.”
She took a deep breath, exhaled. “Okay.”
“The guys will be here later,” he said.
She nodded. “Thank you.”
Caleb slid his phone back into his pocket and looked around the barn one last time. Cameras were coming. Daylight exposed the truth. Still, the tight feeling in his chest didn’t ease. Whoever had done this hadn’t panicked. They’d planned it.
And people who planned didn’t stop just because they’d been noticed.
CHAPTER 40
Roy didn’t leave right away.
He walked around the perimeter of the barn. The place still smelled of smoke and wet ash.
Damn it.
Brand-new barn. Weeks of work. Gone.
Burned.
He raked a hand through his hair and swore under his breath.
Whoever did this was an idiot.
This wasn’t how you made a point or scared someone into backing off. Fire crossed the line. It brought cops. Inspectors. Insurance. Questions asked.
And Mia …
Hell.
He could still see her standing there earlier, arms wrapped tight around herself, eyes fixed on the damage. She hadn’t cried. That almost bothered him more. Like she was bracing for whatever came next.
Roy kicked a stone hard enough that it skittered across the gravel.
What they were trying to do was slow her down. Make her doubt herself.
Not to burn the place down.
His stomach tightened.
Because if he was right about who’d done it … No.
He cut the thought off before it could settle. She was reckless but not like this. Fire was escalation. Fire was insanity.
Still, the damage gnawed at him. It felt sloppy and emotional.
“This wasn’t thought through,” he muttered and hated himself for thinking it.
