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But would they make it in time?
CHAPTER FOUR
Chafing at the lackadaisical response of the police moments earlier to his complaint pertaining to Travis, Jax strode the length of a long hallway toward the far end of the sanctuary’s main office building with Jessa. For the tenth time, he wondered why he’d chosen to come here at all this morning. His business partner had touched base with him again last night to see if the founders accepted their offer. An offer he hadn’t yet made.
But Jax was drawing closer to making it, especially after finding more evidence of foul play. Yet here he was, wandering around in this place in order to show Seyla what he’d come across and have it fixed for Uncle Sam’s sake.
Jax hesitated when he spotted a picture on the hallway wall of three couples set against the backdrop of the sanctuary. He’d seen the same one in the lobby.
The original founders?
The photo suggested the late eighties based on their clothing. All of them wore varying degrees of smiles on their faces except for one woman. She had an ethereal beauty, but the corners of her mouth were drawn down, her expression troubled. She was a stark contrast to the smiling man leaning into her from the left, hands on his lap, and the happy couple leaning into her on the right. The man Jax assumed wasn’t her husband had one of his long arms wrapped around the back of the lady next to the sullen woman. Must be his wife.
Could the troubled woman beside them have anything to do with the current situation at the sanctuary? Doubtful, given theamount of time that had passed compared to how recently the trouble began. But to be thorough, he’d check into it.
“Those are the original founder couples,” Jessa confirmed from somewhere over his shoulder. “The Pattersons, the Andersons, and the Emmerlins.”
He studied the picture a moment longer. Pointing a finger at the sullen woman, he asked, “Who is that?”
“Laurel Anderson. She and her husband actually established the sanctuary. Later, they convinced the others to get involved.” Jessa padded over to stand next to him and cocked her head sideways. “I never met her, but I heard she was sweet and kind. Doesn’t come across that way in the picture, though, does it?”
“No, it doesn’t.” It gave him the impression she had an unpleasant secret to hide. “Wait. Was?”
“Yeah. She died years ago. Hiking accident. She loved the outdoors.”
“And that was her husband?” Jax pointed at the man to her left. His research revealed a much younger Ryan Anderson and his wife as one of the current founders.
“Yeah. Scott Anderson passed away right after that photo shoot. Once he obtained his pilot’s license, he bought a small plane and transported animals rescued from mistreatment with it. The plane malfunctioned and crashed on his way to one of the locations, killing him. Their attorney took over the position after Laurel died until their son was old enough.”
A kennel worker hurried past Jax, sloshing dirty water on him. Revolted, Jax jumped back.
“Sorry,” Jessa said. But her eyebrows lifted in surprise at his reaction.
“It’s fine,” Jax replied. His pursed mouth twitched in an awkward effort to reach the level of a smile.
“This isn’t your thing, is it?” Jessa asked.
Apparently, his attempt at politeness had failed. He felt the muscles of his face abandon the fake smile altogether. “No.”
Her steps faltered.
Jax increased his stride, desperate to get to the fresh air outside. At least, he hoped fresh air awaited him out there. He burst through the exit door.
A scream split the air. Whipping toward the sound, Jax froze.
Seyla crouched low, about fifteen feet in the air, in a long, elevated tunnel system made of fencing and wood. Her actions were jerky, her expression panicked. Why? The door at the other end of the tunnel hung open. Why wouldn’t she go to that end to get out?
He fished out his cell phone, dialing the sanctuary number while moving around to get a better view.
“No.”
Jessa’s whispered word whipped through him. Was there an animal in there?
She disappeared into the building at lightning speed.
Dread wicking through him, Jax returned his attention to the animal enclosure. A dark shadow passed behind a series of raised platforms. Icy tentacles of terror slipped around him, trapping him in their grip.
Inch by inch, a massive cat emerged from behind the last platform, heading in the direction of the other end of the tunnel. The open end.
