Chapter 880 Chapter 880
“Do you see that?” Cy spoke quietly and glanced over the seat at Deacon.
Ena leaned close so she could see the screen that Cy had balanced on the dash.
“Must be something really important to Kamble if he has a man with a gun standing outside it,” Deacon said quietly.
“My other cameras wouldn’t have caught this guy.”
“Do you think it’s normal for him to be there, or they’re spooked?” Gia was in the seat behind her and wasn’t even looking at the screen.
“We don’t know how often they all communicated.” Cy reached out and adjusted the lens of the camera he had propped between the mirror and the door.
Ena had never seen a camera like that before.
Foster stood outside the van, having given Cy his seat when they got there. He came over to the window. “Jesse is at the clan lands now.”
Everyone except Cy turned and looked at her.
“I’d like to stay here for now. Maybe later, I’ll have something to tell them.”
Gia smiled. “That works.”
“Lights just came on in the other smaller building.” Cy enlarged the image on the screen.
“Did you see someone go in?”
“No. I just moved the direction of the lens.”
“Does that mean someone has been in there all along?” Gia looked at the tape over the light on the ceiling of the van and then opened the door. “I just need some air.”
Ena inhaled deeply. “Is it all right if I get out for a few moments? I’m not used to being so idle.”
Deacon snorted. “Go for it.”
“There’s movement at the side of the house and the little outbuilding.”
“Any vehicles in sight?” Deacon leaned over the seat.
Ena got out and left all of that to the two men. They would know better what was happening than she would. She took a deep breath.
Foster was now leaning in the other window. “Do you think they’re moving them?”
“I haven’t seen anyone near any of the vehicles.”
Ena went around and stood at the back of the van. She turned and looked toward Waylon’s house. They were parked so far down the road that it was hard to see anything unless Cy pointed the camera that way.
“Hold on. The guy with the gun has moved out of his little hiding spot, and the door to the other building just opened.”
Ena stared at the smaller building.
“Waylon is standing on his porch, watching.”
“Hand me—yeah, that one.”
Ena looked to see Cy leaning out the open window with another camera. She could hear him snapping pictures. “They’re bringing someone out.”
She held her breath and watched the house.
“Older man.”
She stepped closer to the ditch and tried to see in the low light what he was seeing.
“They’re afraid of him,” Cy whispered. “They have him collared with a long bar attached, so they don’t have to get close to him.”
“I’m thinking he’s the reason Waylon is limping.”
Ena didn’t know how she knew, but she did. In her gut, she was sure that the older man who had injured Waylon was Orson.
Stepping back from the edge of the ditch, she took off her jacket and dropped it. She had to know. Her boots and shirt followed. Before she changed her mind, she took off her jeans and dropped them.
She wasn’t about to get down on all fours in the muck on the road, so she squatted down and let her coyote take over and shift.
“Ena. Wait.” Gia hopped out of the van.
Ena’s animal shook, as she always did when she hadn’t been out for a while. Turning, she bound down into the ditch.
“Shit.”
She didn’t slow down. She needed to see with her own eyes that Orson was there and alive.
She kept to the ditch and leaped across the one on the other side of the laneway. Once she ran out of the ditch, she was going to have to run faster than she ever had before to get close enough to see. Hopefully, they would be so busy with moving that man they wouldn’t see her in the fading light.
She’d be in the open for a minute and knew that was a stupid thing to do, but she had no choice. She had promised her aunt that Orson was coming home. Her animal was all in, she liked Orson and his animal. It had been him that had helped her through her first few shifts and taught her the array of things she had to know to work with her animal. It was very important to both of them that he be there and alive.
If she could make it to the other side of the barn, she might be able to hide somewhere and get a good look around. Ten more feet, and she’d be out of the ditch. The second she came out of the ditch a light came on and almost blinded her. They had motion sensors.
She darted along the fence, still hoping to move fast enough to reach that barn.
A shot rang out and her animal instinctually knew to change direction so they weren’t heading where someone was aiming.
As she reached the fence, she warned her animal that it might be electrified. Before she could turn and duck under it, something plowed into her side and set her flying across the slick ground. She got to her feet and turned to take on her attacker. It was a coyote, and he didn’t give her a chance to do anything, before he pounced on her and sent them rolling into the muddy field.
When they stopped, he had her pinned on her stomach and was growling next to her ear. It was a warning. She understood that.
“Hold up. It’s just a couple of randy coyotes. Let’s get this done.”
She recognized Waylon’s voice and turned to look in his direction. Her animal bared her teeth. She wanted a bite of his flesh.
The male coyote pinning her down whined.
Ena had to override her coyote’s curiosity from reacting to him. She lifted her head to look at the yard between the two buildings.
A soft cry escaped her mouth when she saw the man that was on the end of the pole. He was covered in blood and wearing clothes that were much bigger than his body, but it was Orson.
When the animal eased the pressure off her back, she knew she should be running fast in the other direction, but right at that moment, Orson lifted his head and looked at her. She could see the resolve in his expression. Getting her belly off the ground, she tried to decide which way she was going. The other coyote was right there in her face.
Her animal yipped, and Ena was confused. This wasn’t the time for friendly greetings. She sucked in a breath and then wished she hadn’t. The scent she’d taken in was like nothing she’d ever smelled before, yet it was the most familiar smell she’d ever encountered.
She stood slowly and looked into the male’s eyes. It was Foster. Even in this form, she knew that.
He bared his teeth at her, and that brought her out of it. She needed to move. They may have stopped shooting, but if they were still within range once they moved Orson, that man with the gun could try again, just for sport.
Giving her animal the signal, she turned and took off toward the small area of trees where they’d parked behind. She could hear Foster right behind her. He was quite a bit bigger than her, so she knew he could have passed her, but he didn’t. Was he doing it so they couldn’t get a clear shot at her?
As she went into the bush, she glanced back at the farm. It didn’t matter that Foster was her mate. It didn’t change the fact that she had to get Orson out of there.