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At seven o’clock the next morning, Paradise had her hand on the lock to open the gate into the medical compound when a big

cat screamed. Her heart pounded, and she wiped sweaty palms on her jeans as she forced her fingers to insert the key. The

black leopard was in the other field, and she was safe.

She’d read the history of the rescued cats, and some of the stories of the living conditions were heart-wrenching. Still,

when she was faced with the sight and smell of the big cats, her mouth went dry and she felt faint. This fear had to be eradicated

if she held out any hope of living her normal life.

“Paradise.”

She turned at the sound of Blake’s voice and saw him striding across the grass toward her. He wore a safari shirt and camp

shorts with boots, and she glanced at her watch. His first expedition wasn’t due to start until nine, so she might have to

put up with him awhile. She pinned a neutral expression in place and waited.

His gaze flickered over her and settled for a long moment on the scars on her left arm. “Doing okay?”

His fake concern didn’t faze her. “Fine. The cottage is darling, and the bed was very comfy.” She knew that wasn’t his real question, but she wouldn’t discuss her fear or her injuries with him. He’d lost all rights to any confidences long ago.

His jaw tightened. “That’s good to hear.” He paused and stared at the ground. “You’re going to hear some stuff about the woman

who was killed, Danielle Mason. She has been organizing protests against the refuge with some crazy claims we’re mistreating

the animals.”

Paradise knew enough about him and his mother to know they’d take their care of the animals very seriously. “I’m sure that’s

been difficult.”

“Very.” He hesitated. “I think McShea suspects I might have had something to do with the murder. Danielle and I had two very

public altercations. The going is likely to get very rough here, and if you want to bail rather than be involved, we would

understand.”

“You trying to get rid of me already?”

Amusement lit his face. “You know me better than that. If I didn’t want you here, I’d tell you outright.”

True enough. Maybe she should be open with him too, but the truth didn’t come easily. Not yet. She wanted time to assess if

she was here on a crazy idea that wouldn’t pan out.

When she didn’t answer right away, he pocketed his hands. “Well, I’d better get going. I have a large group in two hours,

and I have paperwork to do first.”

When he turned to go, she collected her thoughts and put her hand on his arm. “I never thought for a second that you would

hurt anyone, Blake. Things have been a little—difficult.”

He stared at the scars on her shoulder and down her upper arm. He reached out as if he wanted to touch them, then dropped his hand back to his side. “I can only imagine how bad it’s been. It took a lot of courage to accept this job. I never thought you’d come back.”

She released his arm. “I’ll try to stay out of your way. This refuge felt like the right place to heal.”

There was so much she wanted to say, but the words stayed locked behind her teeth. He had no idea how much courage it had

taken for her to come here and face him again. But her only answers were here in this place, where shadows from the past still

reached out to shape her life.

He smiled down at her, and this time she stepped back from the full strength of that warmth. She’d nearly forgotten how easily

he related to people. Her guard had to stay up around him, and she was only here for the truth. Once she got her courage back,

she could move on with her life. Getting involved with Blake—or anyone else for that matter—wasn’t on her radar.

“I’ll let you get back to work.” She gestured to the enclosure. “I’m about to examine a fennec fox. Your mom thought she’d

sprained one of her legs.”

He nodded and walked away in long strides toward a safari truck parked at the equipment building. Paradise stepped into the

medical building on leaden feet. She’d been off work for the past four months, and she was relieved not to have to take care

of a big cat. Not yet anyway. A fennec fox should be easy enough.

The clinic was housed in a metal building with painted concrete floors. It held the smell of various animals being treated

here, and she caught a whiff of big cat. Her throat tightened and she hurried past the room where the animal had been.

A perky brunette in her early twenties turned to greet her with a bright smile. “Hi, I’m Lacey Armstrong, your vet tech. I’m so glad you’re here.” She gestured at the cage. “This is Rosy. She’s favoring her right paw, and I think it’s sprained. She’s very domesticated and friendly. I don’t think you’ll have any trouble with her.”

“Fennec foxes have fragile bones and are prone to sprains. Hopefully, that’s all it is.” Paradise glanced around the space.

“Do we have an X-ray machine?”

Lacey nodded. “And an ultrasound machine. A vet’s office in Mobile donated an old CT machine as well. We’re pretty well set

up even though we operate on a very tight budget.”

Paradise opened the cage. “Hello there, Rosy. How are you doing?” The tiny fox stared at her with a mournful expression. “Not

so well?” She reached slowly into the cage and the little creature let her gently touch her head. Rosy let out a protesting

squeak when Paradise touched the injured paw. “Let’s get this x-rayed.”

“I’ll do that for you.” Lacey scooped Rosy out of the cage with gentle care and whisked her away to another room.

While she was gone, Paradise peeked in all the drawers and cabinets and found the exam room well equipped. Working here would

be a pleasure as long as she didn’t have to treat a big cat. At least not until she was ready to face that task.

Lacey returned and settled Rosy back in the cage. “All done. You can see the X-rays on the computer.”

Fennec foxes preferred not to be touched, though they tolerated being handled, so Paradise let the little fox lay quietly

until she saw the X-rays. “It’s not broken, so that’s good. I’ll wrap it.”

“We have a hospital area where injured animals are kept overnight, but there’s no one to man it right now,” Lacey said. “I

live in town. Would you be able to check on her after hours? No other animals are in the hospital.”

“Not a problem.” In fact, she just might take Rosy home to keep her company.

***

Blake was never one to bury his head in the sand, and the current circumstances were severe enough that he had to act. After

the first expedition, he sat on the fence by the wolf enclosure and pulled out his phone to call his cousin Hezekiah Webster.

Hez was an attorney in the area and gave The Sanctuary ten free hours of legal advice a month. They hadn’t had to use him

that often, but the past few weeks had been challenging, and Blake might already be pushing that limit.

Hez answered on the first ring. “Hey, Blake, how’s it going?” His cousin’s deep voice held the calm strength of a man used

to commanding center stage in a courtroom.

“Not so great, Hez.” Blake launched into the discovery of the body. “I think I’m going to be their top suspect. And with good

reason. She and I had a couple of altercations.” He reminded Hez what had happened even though he’d consulted with his cousin

when it all went down. “On the surface it would appear I had motive.”

“This doesn’t sound good. Let me see what I can find out about the case,” Hez said. “For now, I’d suggest detailing your whereabouts

the day before and the morning of the murder. Do they have a time of death?”

“The autopsy isn’t back yet.” Blake thought back to his schedule so far this week. “I think I’ve got a solid alibi. I’ve been

staying at Mom’s to help with the boys, and she and I watched a movie until late the night before. Isaac slept with me in

my apartment that night too. Security cameras scattered around Mom’s cottage should show I never left the upstairs apartment.”

“That will help. Don’t answer any questions without me present, and don’t offer any information on your own. If you’ve got

a detective gunning for you, things can get twisted.”

“Will do. Thanks for the hand-holding. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they’ll figure out who really did this.”

“Once they find the scene of the crime, they should uncover more information. Do you know if they’ve searched the ranch where

the meat originated?”

“They aren’t telling me much.”

“No, I suppose they aren’t. How’s Aunt Jenna holding up?”

“She’s worried. We were already trying to make it on a shoestring, and now we have this to worry about.” Blake slid off the

fence and kicked at a weed with his boot. The action didn’t do anything for his frustration level. “And if this isn’t bad

enough, Mom hired a new vet.”

“That should be helpful.”

“It’s who she hired. Paradise Alden.” A long pause followed, and Blake knew his cousin was trying to place the name. “My first girlfriend.”

“The girl next door who was in foster care? The one you...?”

“Exactly,” Blake said grimly. “And Mom didn’t even warn me. When Paradise walked through the door, I thought maybe I was hallucinating.

I haven’t seen her in fifteen years.”

“And how’d she seem?”

“As beautiful as ever. And as prickly. She’ll be as easy to work with as a porcupine. She assumed Mom had told me about hiring

her and was none too pleased to be dumped into a surprise situation. The funny thing is—I’m not sure why she’s here. She’s

got horrific scars on her arm and seems jittery around the animals. She was mauled by a black panther—a jaguar.”

“That would make anyone skittish. Hmm, strange she’d come back after all this time.”

Blake was done talking about Paradise. The bigger problem still loomed. “Let me know what you find out from the sheriff’s

office.”

“I’ll be in touch. Try not to worry.”

“Easier said than done, but I’ll give it a shot.” Blake signed off and put his phone away.

His favorite red wolf, a female named Daisy, pressed against the fence and yipped a greeting. The preserve had acquired her

after hearing of her need for a home. She’d lived most of her life in a crate, and when they’d brought her to the park, she’d

run around the acres allotted to the wolves for hours as if she had to stretch her legs and never stop. Red wolves were critically

endangered. Daisy had given birth to four pups, bringing the pack of red wolves to a total of twenty-one.

Daisy wagged her entire rear end and yipped at him. Her pups rolled and tumbled together, and their fat bellies made Blake

chuckle. He rubbed their warm bellies, then loved on Daisy a few minutes.

He left the wolf enclosure and walked to where the black bears slept in the shade, then moved on to the big cats and on through

the African bush area, where zebras roamed with antelope and wildebeest. He was especially fond of the capybaras and river

otters. The aviary exploded with sound when he paused and spoke to the parrots. They all tried to talk to him at once.

By the time he’d made the rounds to the easily seen enclosures, it was nearly time for the next safari. He’d been here with

his mom and the boys for six months, and he couldn’t imagine living any other place now. Or doing anything else—not even paramedic

work. These animals had helped him as much as he’d helped them. Mom thought he’d given up his career, when the reality was

he’d been relieved for an excuse to try to forget that final week when he’d been responsible for the death of his best friend.

If only forgetting was possible.

The current situations developing threatened this place he loved so much. And it wasn’t just for himself that he wanted it to succeed—it was for his mom and little brothers. And it was for these animals he cared about so deeply. If The Sanctuary failed, where would they go? He had to do everything he could to save this special place.