Page 43 of Ranger Devotion

His steps were quick, his expression concerned. “What happened? I heard a crash and a bunch of screaming.”

“A tree broke a window in the dining room.”

“Oh wow. Need help?”

“We will once Dwayne gets here.”

Two hours later, Annie’s outerwear was soaking wet, but the limb had been removed and the windows boarded. Dwayne tossed his chainsaw in the back of his UTV. Bud already sat in the passenger seat. The rain had let up to a sprinkle, but the reprieve was brief. Another band of clouds was moving in.

Tate, his poncho covering his head, hauled the last of the branches away from the building, ensuring they wouldn’t get kicked up by the wind and thrown against any more windows.

“The generators should hold for the rest of the night.” Dwayne’s gaze traveled across the darkness to Cabin 1. The lights in the windows glowed. Since the tree only took out the fuse box on the main lodge, Preston and the others never lost power. “I’ll check on those yahoos before heading back to staff quarters.”

“Thank you.” Annie rubbed Bud’s soft fur, and the dog gave her a lick on the hand. “Try to be nice while you do it. Please.”

Dwayne grunted. “No promises.” Then he fixed her with a stare. “First sign of trouble, you radio, you hear?”

“Will do. Sorry to have scared you.”

He grunted again. “We’ve got a killer running around on the property. These ain’t normal times.”

“About that, did you question the staff about raiding the pantry in the mess hall? Tate said someone was in there.” Annie had thought about it, and the more she did, the more she didn’t like it.

“No one is owning up to it.”

“We could have someone squatting in one of our buildings.” Tate had suggested as much, and Annie had dismissed it, but she wondered now if that’d been a mistake. She wouldn’t recognize Marcus, but both Caleb and Evan had met him. If he wasn’t masquerading as a member of her staff, then he had to be hiding somewhere on the property.

Dwayne shook his head, swinging into the driver’s seat of the UTV. “I checked everything yesterday. No sign of anyone hanging about.”

“Even the old barn?”

“Yep.” He started the engine, and Annie stepped back. “Sure you don’t want me to stay at the main lodge with y’all?”

“No. I need someone I trust keeping watch on the staff.” She paused. “Be careful, Dwayne. One of them may not be who we think he is.”

“Understood.”

He pressed on the gas, the UTV bumping over the frozen yard. Tate joined her under the shelter of the awning. He peeled back the hood of his poncho. “You look troubled.”

“Dwayne says he checked all the buildings on the property, including the barn, and there’s no sign of anyone squatting. If Marcus is here, then where is he hiding?” She couldn’t make sense of it. “He’s not a member of staff. Caleb or Evan would’ve recognized him. Do you think we’re too focused on one theory, and we’re missing something critical?”

Tate didn’t answer right away. She sensed he was wrestling with the words.

“Spit it out.” Annie waved a hand to encourage him.

“Are you sure we can trust Dwayne?”

His question stopped her cold. “You think he’s involved?”

He shrugged. “You said it yourself, if Marcus is here, he’s hiding on the property somewhere. We’re relying on Dwayne’s word that the cabins and the barn are clear. That might not be true.”

The impulse to defend Dwayne rose, but Annie swallowed it down. Tate was doing as she’d asked: being honest. And while there wasn’t any proof of Tate’s theory, it had logic. Still, she couldn’t let the comment pass without sharing her own thoughts. “He could be lying, but Dwayne’s never been dishonest with me before. Not once.”

Tate took that in. “Noted.” He reached out, his fingers catching hers. “And it matters.”

Gratitude moved through her, underneath the worry. She enjoyed working as a team with Tate. It made everything more…manageable.

Annie interlaced their fingers and stared at the cabin in the distance. Nighttime had fallen, and tension built in every cell of her body. The killer had to act tonight. Once the storm let up, and Tate’s fellow rangers, along with the local police, arrived, his murderous game would come to an end. This latest incident had been caused by the storm, but next time…they wouldn’t be so lucky.