She nodded. “Yeah, why?”
“Maybe we should sleep here tonight.” He smiled. “You, know, stack a few more good memories together for you.”
Sadie stepped over to him and set a hand on his chest. “I like the way you think.”
“That’s not all you like,” he said, a smug grin spreading across his face.
His mouth was a mere inch from hers when the sound of footsteps running up the stairs met their ears. Dale immediately pushed her behind his back a second before someone pounded on the door. The force matched that of her thudding heart.
“Dale? Sadie? Open up.” Cooper’s voice rang out, sending a rush of relief through her body, followed by alarm at his concerned tone.
“Coming,” Dale called, striding to the door.
Sadie followed close behind.
When Dale opened the door, her chest squeezed tight at the somber expression on the guy’s face.
“What’s going on?” Dale asked.
“You two need to come to the house. Now,” Copper replied. “Hunter found another machete.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Dale’s mind raced as he and Sadie entered her house before Cooper, the tension they’d just spent a blissful hour eliminating now back with renewed force. Mac, RJ, and Dean were already inside, their faces set with the same grim determination that had been on Cooper’s when he informed them about Hunter discovering the second machete—this time at the beginning of the driveway at the ranch.
What the hell was going on?
First, the machete at Sadie’s, and now this. If it hadn’t been clear before, it was now. Whoever was behind these threats was sending a message. But what that message was, they still didn’t understand.
“Sheriff’s got the machete,” Mac said as soon as Dale and Sadie stepped into the living room. His tone was all business, the kind that signaled this was serious—more than they had even imagined. “He and two deputies are scouring the area at the ranch for more evidence, and Sinjin and Hunter are still there, helping out.”
Dale nodded, unease tightening in his chest. He glanced at Sadie, noting worry etched in her pretty face. He set a hand on the small of her back and guided her to the couch, his stomach knotting along the way. He wanted to comfort her, to tell her everything would be fine, but even he didn’t believe that right now. Not until they knew what they were dealing with.
The air in the living room was thick with unspoken concerns. Even Tesla must’ve felt it, since he’d bypassed his word mat to jump on Sadie’s lap.
Mac leaned forward, elbows on his knees as he began to speak. “We need to figure out what these machetes mean. Weknow through the photos Hunter sent us that the one at the ranch is exactly the same as the one in Sadie’s garage. But we don’t yet know if there are any prints or identifying marks on this new one.”
“My guess is no,” RJ stated with a shake of his head.
The group nodded in agreement, even Sadie. She sat between him and Cooper, petting Tesla with one hand while setting her other on Dale’s leg, as if the contact kept her calm. He automatically covered her hand with his and entwined their fingers. She squeezed his hand in response, and he felt her relax into him a little.
“Well, we’ll still have to wait for official confirmation,” Mac stated. “It’s as if someone’s going out of their way to make sure we know they’re around without leaving any clues behind.”
RJ crossed his arms, his expression grim. “They’re being brazen, leaving it out in the open like that. They definitely wanted this one noticed.”
“That worries me,” Dean said, joining the conversation. “Whoever this is, they’re not trying to stay hidden. They’re making a statement. A bolder one.”
Dale ran his free hand through his hair, trying to piece together what little they knew. “But what’s the connection? Why the ranch? Why Sadie’s garage? What are they trying to tell us?”
He blew out a breath and shook his head. What was he missing? He knew there was an obvious explanation, and the fact he hadn’t figured it out yet frustrated the hell out of him. His father had been seriously injured, Sadie had been threatened more than once, and the poor woman needed her life back.
He was failing them. For the first time in his life, he was facing a problem he didn’t know how to solve.
If he only had one more clue.
As if on cue, Dale’s phone buzzed in his pocket. Maybe it was Gabe, about to provide that clue. Releasing Sadie’s hand,he dug out his phone, expecting to see the sheriff’s name on the screen but when he saw his brother’s instead, his heart rocked—he hadn’t been updating him. Cas still had a few weeks left of missions, and a few weeks left to make up his mind about his Navy future. After their last phone call, Dale had decided not to contact his brother until whatever was going on here was over. The guy had enough on his plate.
He answered on the second ring. “Cas, what’s up? You okay?”
