“What about you?” he asked. “Were you up at the lodge tonight?”
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” Ron was clearly delighted to frustrate Xavier.
“We’ve been here all night,” Dave started waving his arm back and forth between himself and Ron. “Had a little party with some friends.”
Xavier and Lawson shared a glance then Lawson stepped to the side to look through the open door. Sure enough, there were beer cans scattered around and what looked like a poker table set up inside. Lawson caught Xavier’s eye and shook his head. It looked like they’d been set up here for a while playing cards. Plus, they looked too wasted to be behind a wheel. They could barely stand up without help.
“Any of your friends been there, that you know of? Or have you heard of anyone wanting to mess with us?” Xavier asked, watching them both for signs of nervousness or deceit.
Ron shook his head then walked toward the door, gesturing inside. “Look, man. Like my brother said, we’ve been here. We don’t know anything about trouble. See for yourself.” He motioned for the two men to step inside.
Xavier stepped forward and peeked inside, confirming what Lawson had seen. Poker table, chairs, snacks, and empty beer cans littered the area.
Lawson gestured to Xavier and turned toward the vehicle. Xavier followed his retreat, stopping at the bottom of the steps to leave the brothers with a warning.
“You guys stay away from the sanctuary property,” Xavier told them both.
Ron rolled his eyes in exasperation. “Sure thing, captain!” He gave Xavier a mock salute. Dave snickered at his brother’s antics.
Xavier shook his head in frustration as he settled behind the wheel.
“Make sure we don’t see you there,” Lawson warned them one more time, before climbing in the passenger seat.
Xavier felt the anger buzzing through his system, but now, it had nowhere to go. He doubted the brothers had anything to do with what had happened over at the lodge that night, given the state they were in. But even though they most likely didn’t personally mess with the generators earlier didn’t mean they were completely innocent.
They were known for causing all sorts of mischief, but it really didn’t seem logical that they’d cause that kind of disruption in the middle of winter when they knew that the power was more important than ever at the lodge with guests inside.
“What do you think?” Lawson asked.
“I don’t know,” Xavier replied tersely.
It seemed unlikely the brothers would have managed to pull off something that focused and specific, even at the best of times.They weren’t known for having a brain cell between them. Doing something like that would take actual coordination, and they didn’t seem to have the capability to do that. They were more likely to use intimidation or petty destruction than they were to come to the sanctuary in freezing weather to cut the power. It seemed too specific, too direct.
Which meant someone else must have done it. But who? And did they have anything to do with the way Xavier’s room had been rummaged through the other night? He doubted that had been the Haynes brothers. They would have been out of place and someone would have noticed. Whoever had done it clearly knew how to pull it off without leaving a trace of their identity. He was sure the clumsiness of the Haynes brothers would have left some sign of them behind.
“Me, neither,” Lawson admitted with a sigh. “But we can keep an eye on them these next few days. They might not have done it themselves, but it seems like the kind of thing they might have paid or blackmailed someone to do.”
“Could be,” Xavier replied. He didn’t bring up his room again—he was sure he didn’t need to. Lawson would already have that on his mind right now, and Xavier didn’t need to push it to the front of the conversation again.
“Anyway, we should get back to the lodge,” Lawson added. “We’re going to need the whole night to get the generators working again. And I don’t want anyone to wake up tomorrow with no heat and nothing to eat.”
Xavier could already feel his heart sinking at the prospect, but Lawson was right. As the guys who ran the place, they had a duty of care to everyone who stayed there, everyone who relied on them.
His mind drifted to Hannah before he could stop it. How quickly he reacted when he saw her hit the ground. It hadn’t been intentional, but he knew Lawson would have noticed.
He had done everything he could to try to keep the truth of his feelings for her under wraps, but at times like this, they came out before he could stop them from showing. He just wanted her to be okay. The same thing had happened on the night of the fire. As soon as he had seen the flames licking the horizon, the first thing on his mind was what he could do to keep her safe.
He started the drive back to the sanctuary, lost in his thoughts, trying to nod in the right places as Lawson talked to him, discussing what they were going to do when they got back to the lodge.
Lawson frowned at him as Xavier pulled the SUV to a halt outside the lodge, looking over at him with an inquisitive expression again. “What’s on your mind?” he asked.
Xavier tried to keep his face neutral. “Nothing. Just trying to figure out how we’re going to fix the generators.”
That was only half of the truth—and far removed from anything Lawson wouldn’t have been able to take, especially with everything else they had to deal with right then. If Lawson had any idea Xavier was stuck thinking about his little sister, he would have freaked out.
It was safer for everyone if Xavier kept his mouth shut and focused on the task at hand. Even if the only thing on his mind right now was Hannah.
Chapter Six
