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Sam took her by the hand and moved forward to investigate. But his radio crackled and then he heard Al Wilbury, one of the security guards, say, “Sam, come in.”
He jerked the radio from his jeans and hit the comm button. “Yeah. What have you got?”
“I need you at the stable ASAP.” The tension in his tone kicked Sam into high alert.
“Be there shortly.” To Sky, he said, “Come on.” They walked briskly toward the boat, Sam shining the light on it and confirming it was empty—and not one that belonged to the inn.
Then they raced over to the cottage and hopped onto the ATV Sam used to get around the property. On the ride up to the stable, he had Caleb on the radio and told him to meet him there, and to phone the sheriff to get him out to the ranch.
Sky practically squeezed the air out of Sam with her arms wrapped so tightly around him. His gut twisted and adrenaline pumped through his veins.
That son of a bitch Willet had gotten onto the property by boat. But there were surveillance cameras everywhere around the ranch that were monitored by a guard onsite, at the front gate.
As soon as they reached the stable, Sam got back on the radio and contacted John Conrad, the guard currently on duty at the entrance to the ranch.
“Keep an eye on the monitors. We’re looking for a male on the property.” Sam relayed Willet’s description as a refresher, since he and Caleb had already explained the situation to the staff. “Expect the sheriff,” he added.
Then his fingers twined with Sky’s and they stalked into the stable.
The dire look on Al’s face brought Sam to an abrupt halt. “What?” he demanded.
“It’s Midnight.”
Sky ripped her hand from his and ran to the back stall, flinging the door open. Sam’s heart constricted.
“Goddammit,” he muttered under his breath.
“He’s gone,” Sky said as she stepped back into the aisle.
Al told them, “The latch on his gate isn’t broken. No forced entry—or exit. It’s like someone just slid the lock open and let him waltz out.”
Sam’s gaze slid to Sky, who was clearly distraught, her face a disturbing alabaster color.
“Darlin’,” he said, feeling her terror to the depths of his soul. “The property is fenced. He’s not going anywhere.”
A breath later, he was back on the radio to John and warned him to be on the lookout for Midnight.
Caleb and Reese arrived while Sky paced nervously.
Sam explained the situation.
Caleb scrubbed a hand down his face. “Fuck,” he said.
“I am so sorry for all this trouble,” Sky said in a panicked and remorseful voice.
“Now, sugar,” Reese said as she gripped her friend by the shoulders. “Don’t you dare blame yourself for this.”
“Reese,” she said, “Mac got on the property by boat. You can bet he let Midnight out of the stable because…because…” Her brow furrowed as she seemed to search for a plausible reason. Unfortunately, one hit her hard, if the shock and dismay that crossed her face were any indication. “Oh shit. He saw me with the horse.”
Sam’s eyes narrowed on her. “How do you know that?”
“Makes perfect sense,” she said, her tone suddenly raspy with emotion. “We walked him yesterday, you and me. Down to the lake, by your cottage. There were boaters in the area. Any one of them could have been Mac, scoping this place out. If he saw me with Midnight, he’d know that horse meant something to me. He knows how I feel about those animals.”
“You don’t think he’s going to hold Midnight ransom for sixty grand, do you?” Caleb ventured in a gruff voice. “He’s not that desperate, is he?”
Sam didn’t think it was possible, but Sky turned even whiter.
“He is that desperate,” she whispered. Reese slipped an arm around her shoulders. “Which means he might find a way to get Midnight off the property. We have to do something. We have to find that horse.”
