Page 102 of Thaw My Heart

“What?” Fear shines in her puffy brown eyes.

“I’m kidding,” I smile, earning me a smile back, and it’s everything. The most beautiful sight.

“You should go, Kit. I’m—I’m fine now. I should probably get moving too.” She rises from the bed, throwing on jeans and a hoodie. Tossing her hair into a ponytail.

After buttoning my flannel, I glance over at her. “Why don’t you come with me today?” I’m desperate to keep her in my line of sight. Who knows what’s waiting for me on the ranch, and I don’t want to spend the next eight hours or longer away from her.

“Come with you?”

I grab the ballcap she gave me, pulling it on my head. “Come with me, and I’ll wear this.”

She pauses, thinking for a moment, and then smiles.

Heavy snow falls from the grey sky as we ride side by side towards the main barn. Hollers and whistles fill the air when we approach, signaling our arrival. Lone Pine is on high alert, with guns slung around the shoulders of three men keeping their eyes on the horizon. Two are taking up positions on the roof. Something terrible must’ve happened.

“Where the hell have you—oh,” Blake approaches me as my feet hit the ground, stopping his words when he notices Sadie. “Good morning, Sadie.”

“Good morning, B,” she murmurs back, giving him a small smile. As much as she can manage.

Blake nods to me, sighing deeply. “Around 300 head are missing.”

What? “How do 300 cows just go missing?”

Blake shrugs. “Must’ve happened late last night. When I got here this morning, the men were going off about it. I’ve sent teams out into the fields, searching for them.”

“Security picked up nothing?”

Blake solemnly shakes his head. “Nothing.”

There are hundreds of security cameras set up around Lone Pine. It’s hard to believe there’s no evidence of such a large number of cattle going missing… Who could’ve done this?

“Let’s do a perimeter check,” I say.

A horse galloping at speed towards us snaps my attention. “I’ll join,” Cole tips his hat. “We ride south.” He spares me a glance before he gallops away, taking the lead.

He really shouldn’t be out today, considering how cold it is, but he’s gone before I can question him.

“Nice hat,” Blake smiles, flicking it as he walks by.

“Thanks,” I smile back.

We ride out, galloping the fence line, looking for clues. Leaving fresh powder in our wake. Thick snow continues to fall, hiding any tracks that might’ve been left behind, because of course, the weather isn’t on our side. The storm overhead is low, covering the mountains in the distance.

Sadie stays close to my side. Caramel hair covered in snow­flakes as she keeps an eye on the horizon. “We’ll find them,” she assures me.

But four hours later, we’re no closer to finding them or anything that might lead to what happened. It’s like they’ve just disappeared.

We stop to gather our bearings when we run into Ryker and Hudson, galloping in from the West.

“Any luck?” I ask them.

“This snowstorm is making it ridiculous to see,” Ryker complains. “I can’t see shit.”

It’s the middle of the afternoon, but with the big winter storm rolling in, it’s getting darker and darker, looking more hopeless as time rolls on. Soon, this will be unsafe for everyone involved. “You two head back, have the security team set up a perimeter. We’ll keep looking.”

Ryker and Hudson tip their hats, taking off towards the ranch.

“Why don’t you and Blake head back, too?” I say to Cole.