Page 111 of Beneath the Mountain Sky

Even more so this morning.

What more can we do?

What more can I do?

I scan the horizon, the towering mountains that climb well above our property into the bright-blue sky. Such stunning natural beauty. But it hides a secret—one that has destroyed Willow’s life and taken a year of it from her, along with her memories.

“We get way more people and put together a much larger search party. Someone dangerous is on the mountain.”

Tony doesn’t appear fully convinced of my plan. “How do you know where we should look?”

I turn and scan the vast expanse of wilderness around us again. “We start at the river. We head down the game trail we know she used to the clearing. From there, we follow the scent trail the dogs got to where they lost it. Then we’ll send out parties of five in every direction. We cover every fucking inch of the mountain, and we keep going west until we find something since we know she was on that side of the river.”

He exchanges a look with Connor and Liam. “Killian, that’s thousands of man-hours and dollars you’re talking. Even if we recruited every able-bodied person in town to agree to assist us, this could take weeks. Out there, you know there are places that aren’t even passable?—”

“I don’t give a fuck how long it takes or how much it costs. You know I have the money.”

More than I could ever spend in my lifetime.

“It isn’t about the money, it’s about—” I struggle to figure out how to express the distress she’s been in and how useless it’s made me feel. But I’ve always been awful at opening up, discussing my feelings about anything, especially what I care about. That’s why I lost her in the first place. “What if it were Tonya?”

Tony freezes at the mention of his wife, his eyes hardening.

“What would you do if any of this had happened to her?

That seems to do the trick.

I may not be able to explain how I feel about the situation, but putting him into it allows Tony to at least consider what he would do if our roles were reversed.

He shifts uneasily, but I don’t miss the way his hand drifts to his holster at his side, like subconsciously he needs to hold that weapon. “I’d like to believe I could stay rational about it.”

“Bullshit. This isn’t about rational.” I take a step closer, pointing toward the cabin where my entire life waits. “If anyone laid a hand on her, I need my hands around their fucking throat. Do you understand me?”

He nods slowly, examining me like he’s seeing a complete stranger instead of one of his closest friends since childhood.

And maybe I am a stranger to him now.

Losing Willow turned me into someone else, something else.

A monster that has only grown more restless and volatile the longer this mystery continues.

People should be wary of me right now.

Tony continues to stare me down like there’s something he wants to say but is mustering up the courage to do it, but the sound of the cabin door swinging open draws him a step back from me, whatever he would have said in response to my very clear threat to commit murder lost.

Willow and Raven come out and stop at the porch railing, examining our standoff, with Connor and Liam looking on.

Raven raises a blond brow, crossing her arms over her chest. “What are you boys talking about?”

Connor mimics her stance, tipping up his head defiantly. “Why are you asking? So you can print another article about it?”

She stares him down in challenge, not budging a fucking inch. “The people have a right to know what’s going on, to be prepared.”

Liam glances between the two of them. “She isn’t wrong, Connor.”

His gaze cuts to our youngest brother. “Who the fuck’s side are you on?”

“The one that keeps everyone safe.”