Colorado Abduction by Cassie Miles Read Free Book Online Page B

“What’s your opinion, Lucas? Who do you think is behind it?”
    “Don’t know who,” he said, “and I don’t know why. But it all started when we moved a couple hundred head onto the south grazing pasture, near the Widow Grant’s property.”
    Dylan grumbled, “Don’t start.”
    “Carolyn asked a legitimate question,” Lucas said. “And she deserves an answer.”
    Apparently, there had been a dispute between these two. “Please, Lucas, continue.”
    “The first time I found a fence post torn down, I told Dylan that we should herd them cattle to a different area. He wouldn’t hear a word of it. Then we had another incident. And another. Dylan still wouldn’t change his mind. He sure can be pigheaded. Not meaning any disrespect.”
    “I didn’t move the cattle,” Dylan explained, “because I’m trying a new system of rotating the herd.”
    On the sofa, Burke leaned forward. His heels hit the floor with a loud thump—a subtle but effective way to get their attention. “Lucas, can you tell me why having cattle in that pasture might provoke vandalism?”
    “Don’t know why. I just wanted to keep the herd safe.”
    “They weren’t in danger,” Dylan said.
    “We were damn lucky we didn’t lose any cattle when they broke through the fence.”
    “Stop bickering.” Carolyn felt her temperature rising. “I don’t give a damn about what happened yesterday or last week. We need to concentrate on now. Right now. This very minute.”
    Lucas took a backward step, hoping to escape. She caught him with a glare. “How do you explain this, Lucas? When you put those cattle in a pasture that’s usually empty, our men would be paying more attention to that area. Right?”
    He thought for a moment. “Yep.”
    “So, these vandals would be more likely to get caught when the cattle were there.”
    “Guess so,” Lucas said.
    She spread her hands, palms up, presenting them with her conclusion. “It’s counterintuitive to attack there. Why would they take the extra risk?”
    “Because they’re not very smart,” Dylan said.
    Clever enough to burn down the stable without being caught . She turned away from her brother before she snapped his head off. “Lucas, tell me about the fire.”
    “It was late.” He shifted the tobacco wad to his other cheek. “And damned cold. Everybody was in bed, but I couldn’t sleep and I remembered Polly had left some peach pies. So I came back here to the house for a midnight snack. That’s when I saw the flames.”
    “You raised the alarm?”
    “Yep.”
    “I’m sure the sheriff investigated. Did he say how the fire was started?”
    “Nothing fancy. That stable was dried-out wood. All it took was gasoline and a match.”
    Burke unfolded himself from the sofa and stood. His height made him an impressive presence. “I have a plan.”
    Her automatic reaction was to object, but Carolyn was desperate to make some kind of forward progress, even if it meant stepping back and letting Burke take charge. “I’m listening.”
    “If we were in the city right now, I’d call in every free cop and state patrolman to provide surveillance and protection on the ranch.”
    “We ain’t in the city,” Lucas pointed out.
    “But we have resources. A lot of men and a lot of guns.”
    She watched as her brother turned his attention toward Burke. Their gazes locked. They seemed to be communicating at a level she couldn’t comprehend. Man to man.
    Dylan gave a slow nod. “I think I know what you’re planning.”
    “We need to set up a perimeter around the ranch,” Burke said. “Deploy men at every place the security could be breached.”
    “All around the ranch?” She hated this idea.
    “The house, the barn, the bunkhouse, all the nearby structures. The center of activity.”
    “You make it sound like we’re under siege.”
    “Maybe we are.”
    “I like it,” Dylan said. He set down his coffee, pushed away from the desk and took a step toward Burke. For the first time since