Chapter 10

Carrie clutched her throat. "It's the same brand of tracking device I found in the driveway."

"Meaning, whoever it was installed two of them," Jo said. "Or it could be the first one fell off. They realized it was no longer working, swung back by and installed a second one. What about the serial number, Raylene? You mentioned before you could trace it using the serial number."

Raylene flipped it over. "Once again, part of the number is scratched off."

"Intentionally, I'm sure," Jo said.

"Having the serial numbers of both tracking devices scratched off is too coincidental. I know we already asked this question, but is there anyone you can think of you may have ticked off, angered or maybe didn't create the perfect forever pet for?" Raylene asked.

"Obviously, some of my customers are distraught when they come in, but I offer 100% satisfaction guaranteed."

Jo's eyes were drawn to the construction workers near what would be the main facility, where Carrie would care for and help rehabilitate animals. "I still think there might be something to the fact none of this started happening until you bought this place and began renovating it…and you and Charlie broke up."

"The workers seem happy." Carrie tapped her lip thoughtfully. "There is one who tore out of here yesterday. Looking back, there may have been some sort of issue."

"Who was it?" Jo asked.

"I don't have his name, but would recognize him. See the shiny black jacked-up truck? It's his."

"Let's check it out." Raylene motioned for the others to follow her across the driveway. As they drew closer, it grew loud with the sounds of hammers, cutting tools, and drilling equipment.

The women circled the perimeter and entered through a side door, what would be the office / main reception area.

"Where's Barney?" Jo asked.

"He had an appointment first thing this morning. It seems like there have been a lot more breaks and standing around when he's not here. The guy who's in charge when Barney's gone spends a lot of time talking on his cell phone," Carrie said. "I see him now."

Jo watched as a tall man paced in front of the building, a serious expression on his face.

"Hopefully, they aren't having issues again today."

Passing through the office, the women walked down a center corridor. To the right and left were what would be the examination rooms, the animal rehabilitation areas, and even a small surgical center for the veterinarian they planned to hire.

They caught more than a few looks from the workers, several of whom greeted Carrie by name.

Exiting out the back, Jo waited until they were a safe distance away. "Which one was the worker who had a problem?"

"The guy with the dark t-shirt and blue jeans," Carrie said.

Crack. A thunderous crack echoed from the area they had just left. Loud voices ensued.

Jo crept closer and took a tentative look inside. The man in question and another man, a good six inches taller, stood facing each other with fists clenched.

The shorter man shoved the taller man. The guy shoved back. For a second, Jo thought they were going to pummel each other. The taller man, the one Carrie had mentioned was in charge, ran inside and stepped between them.

"That's enough!" he shouted.

"He started it."

"Liar. You dropped the window on purpose," the taller guy said.

"Where's the window?" the man in charge asked.

"Over there."

He lifted the window, still inside the boxed frame. A large crack ran down the center. "Another window? This is the second one in two days. Barney is going to be ticked."

"It was an accident."

The supervisor scowled. He stepped away and made a phone call, returning moments later. "Barney said to pack up and leave."

"You're firing me?" The muscles in the man's neck bulged. "Who cares? This is a crappy company. The pay sucks. The hours are long and it's not worth it. To top it all off, you got cops sniffing around here." He threw his hat on the ground and stomped off.

Jo ran to the corner of the building, watching Mr. Hothead storm out to his jacked-up black truck. He hopped inside and tore down the driveway, leaving a cloud of dust behind.

She ran back inside and found Carrie and Raylene talking to the man in charge.

"…seems to have an anger issue," Carrie said.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Ford," he apologized. "Jake's got some issues. He won't be back."

"I see." Carrie thanked him and she and the other women stepped back outside. "It sounds like he was a real hothead."

"Clearly. Not to mention he didn't like Deputy Franklin asking questions," Jo said. "Still, it doesn't mean he's vandalizing your property or tracking you. I wish we knew his last name."

"Barney keeps a clipboard with a list of workers hanging on the office door. It's his paper version of them clocking in." Carrie told them to stay there. She circled around to the front, entered the office and returned moments later, a triumphant expression on her face. "I have the names of every worker here."

"Good job." Jo lifted her hand and gave her a high five. "We'll do a little digging around later to see if any of the workers hit our radar. Even if this guy is the one behind some of the incidents, it's probably best to avoid staying here until the authorities investigate."

"I agree." Carrie thanked Jo for the offer, promising to text her when she was on her way. "I want to talk to Barney when he gets back and let him know about my vandalized trailer."

"If Franklin hasn't already tracked him down," Raylene said.

Jo cast a wary glance toward the building. "At least one troublemaker is out of here."

"While I wait, I'll take a picture of the second tracking device and send it to Deputy Franklin so he can try to trace it."

"He might have a better way to access the records, even if some of the numbers are missing," Jo said.

Back on the road for the trip home, Jo and Raylene discussed the list of people who might be behind the tracking devices and vandalism.

"They wrote the word ‘die,'" Raylene said. "How ironic a vandal would write ‘die' inside a taxidermy trailer."

"I agree. Hopefully, Franklin will figure out who is targeting Carrie."

Reaching the farm, Raylene headed to work and Jo meandered out to the shop, where she found Nash inside working.

"I thought you were helping Dave Kilwin today."

"We're already done," Nash said. "How did it go over at Carrie's?"

Jo filled him in on what they'd found. "The bottom line is someone is stalking Carrie, making a point of tracking her and destroying her property."

"She has no idea who it is?" Nash asked.

"Not a clue." Jo shoved her hands in her back pockets. "Why does the shop look different?"

"Because of this." He led her to a square metal box sitting on top of his workbench. "It's the laser cutter I ordered last month."

"Fancy. How does it work?"

"I'm glad you asked." Nash went into a detailed explanation about how the machine operated, most of which went right over Jo's head. What she could glean was that he loved the new gadget. "Can you show me a sample?"

"Absolutely." Nash tapped the keyboard sitting next to the cutter. He turned the cutter on, placed a square piece of wood inside, and pressed the start button.

The laser zigged and zagged over the top of the wood, creating a replica of Jo's barn. After it finished, Nash removed the piece of art. "Cool, huh?"

"Amazing."

"We'll be able to use it for anything, to make signs, to create crafts for the store. Kelli can come by to design new art for her shop." Nash set it on the workbench and glanced at his watch. "It's almost lunchtime."

"I'm not hungry," Jo said. "Delta's big breakfast filled me up."

"Same here. I ate leftovers when I got back from Dave's." Nash flipped the lights off. "It's a beautiful day. How about you and I take a walk? I want to get your thoughts on something."

Jo perked up. "Thoughts on what?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

Jo ran inside. She dropped her keys off and told Delta she and Nash were going for a walk instead of eating lunch.

"A romantic walk in the woods." Delta gave her googly eyes. "Enjoy your leisurely stroll."

"Good grief." Jo chuckled. "I'm sure we will."

Nash stood waiting on the front steps. He grasped Jo's hand and held it tight. "Did you let Delta know we were skipping lunch?"

"Yeah." Jo imitated her googly eyes. "She told us to have fun."

While they walked, the couple chatted about the wedding and their honeymoon—a trip to the mountains for a week of rest and relaxation.

"I'm sure Delta and Gary won't have any trouble holding down the fort."

"As soon as we get back, I'll start looking for two new residents to fill Kelli's and Raylene's spots. At least the state's given me a little leeway and bending their requirements. It will give me time to fill the vacancies."

"The last thing you want to do is make a hasty decision," he said.

"And make the wrong decision," Jo added.

"It's always bittersweet."

"Always. At least Raylene plans to stay in Divine."

Nash slowed. "I thought she was moving back to Florida."

"Florida was her original plan. She changed her mind."

"Can't say that I blame her. There's no place like Divine."

The couple inspected the beehives before meandering along the fence line, separating their property from Dave Kilwin's property.

"Thanks for filling in the well Laverne was trapped in," Jo said.

"Filled it, sealed it, made sure it won't happen again," Nash said. "Dave mentioned noticing some bright lights out here last night."

"Bright lights," Jo repeated. "Like a meteor shower?"

"More like glowing."

"Perhaps it was our angelic residents." Jo stopped near the corner of the property, gazing out over the vast open fields. "We haven't seen them in a while."

"No. After he mentioned it, I came out here to check it out, to see if I could see anything," Nash said.

"Did you?"

"No. But I felt it."

Jo started to ask what he'd felt when a gentle breeze flipped the tips of her bangs. Cool at first and then warm, almost hot. She got the sensation she'd had before when the angels were nearby.

Nash carefully studied her face. "You feel it too, don't you?"

"Yes. It's warm, yet cold. They're close."

"Which could be a good sign or a bad."

"An omen that something is about to happen." Jo shivered involuntarily. "If it hasn't already."