Page 37 of Captured by the Billionaire Cowboy (The Secret Billionaires #7)

His wife returned in his absence, a beaming smile on her face.

Mrs. Owens still thought she was Jane, but Ciara didn’t mind.

She learned Jane was the couple’s daughter, and that she was sweet, kind and all things wonderful.

She played along, and the woman basked in her company.

Mrs. Owens shared how much she loved horses, and seemed to have no idea of the state they were in.

She did realize that Ciara was taking them, however, and made her promise to take good care of them.

She knew she would, because Jane had always been the most responsible of daughters.

Finally, Mr. Owens returned with the documents.

They discussed the information for each horse, and it was almost noon by the time she called Frank and asked him to send the men with the trailers.

They wouldn’t arrive for an hour, but that was fine.

She needed time to prepare the animals for the trip.

Mr. Owens walked her to the door, his demeanor changed drastically from her arrival only hours ago. “Thank you again. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this.”

“I appreciate you changing your plans at the last minute,” she said honestly. “I know this was an inconvenience.”

“It was worth it. Those kill buyers are bad news. One even sent a nasty message when I told him the auction was cancelled.”

A sliver of apprehension traced its way up her spine as Rowan’s warning echoed in her mind. If only she’d gotten out quicker. Now she would be directly in the path of disappointed would-be competitors. “I’m sure they’ll get over it.”

His frown wasn’t so certain. “I also want to thank you for being so kind to Sue.”

“It wasn’t hard.” Ciara smiled. “She’s a lovely lady. And she really loves your Jane.” It was good the older couple had someone in their lives. “I hope she can help you through all this.”

A peculiar expression crossed the man’s face. He breathed deeply, gave a tenuous smile. “She was everything I could ever want in a daughter,” he said softly. “Kind, considerate, giving. Always had a smile on her face. She inherited a love of horses from her mama.”

Ciara frowned. If Jane loved horses as much as her mother, why hadn’t she seen what was happening?

The older man looked up at the sky, as if searching for something. “She passed away thirty years ago, on the eve of her eighteenth birthday. Drunk driver.”

Ciara gasped.

His eyes shining with unshed tears, he gazed back to her. “You don’t realize what you gave Sue today, if just for a little while.”

Ciara blinked back tears, her breath shuddering and raw. She looked down, so he wouldn’t see.

“For just a little while, she got to be a mother again.”

“You need to hurry.”

Alarm sliced through Rowan, sharp, piercing and raw.

Every minute on the highway seemed an eternity, every mile a journey, as angry kill buyers confronted Ciara in his mind’s eye, furious and violent and looking for someone to blame.

These monsters had no qualms about sending horses to painful and premature deaths, and Ciara was damaging their reputation.

They may not have any difficulty harming a woman in their way.

“What happened?” he clipped out.

“Spencer received a message a few minutes ago,” Frank growled. “Apparently kill buyers were heading towards an auction when it got cancelled.”

He cursed. “Please tell me it wasn’t the auction Ciara preempted.”

“The same,” Frank spat. “Apparently, the buyers already promised the meat to a company across the border, and they’re furious, especially after the negative attention from the contest.”

Rowan switched lanes to avoid a slow-moving car. He pressed the pedal lower. “What did they say in the message?”

“They said she’d better watch out.” He hesitated. “They also said they’d be seeing her soon.”

Rowan gripped the steering will tighter, as icy dread pierced his stomach. This was very, very bad. “Have you heard from her? Is she all right?”

“She called a few minutes ago to say she’d purchased the horses and was ready for the men to head out with the trailers.” Fear edged the usually unflappable man. “They left a few minutes ago. Should we call the police?”

Rowan let out a breath. She wouldn’t be alone for much longer.

“Contact the police to inform them of the situation, but without a specific threat, there’s not much they can do.

The men should get there soon, and I’m already on my way.

I would have been there hours ago, but I hit traffic.

Tell them not to leave until I arrive. I don’t want her alone. ”

“Got it,” Frank said. “Call me when you’re with her.”

“Will do.”

Rowan fought for calmness, yet as he passed another slow-moving car, fear splintered his resolve, sparking raw emotion. He couldn’t wait to hold her.

And when he did, he was never letting go.

At first, she thought the men were from the ranch.

They came in a blue pick-up, pulling a silver horse trailer with plain black lettering. Yet the make of the truck was wrong, the trailer too big and the license plate from out of town. Her heart sped a little. Someone must not have gotten the message the auction was canceled.

She forced herself to relax, to not think about Rowan’s warnings, as she continued rubbing down a bay mare, whispering sweet words of comfort.

Mr. Owens had written “Auction Cancelled” on a large piece of cardboard and tied it to the entrance, but the pick-up rumbled right past it.

It stopped in the dirt close to her, and three large men disembarked. She assumed they’d head to the house.

Instead, they strode straight towards her .

The men stopped, with glares so venomous, she had to stop herself from backing up. She stood tall, notched up her chin. “If you’re here for the auction, it’s cancelled,” she said in a clear, strong voice. “The horses are no longer for sale.”

“We’re not here for the auction.” A large bald man with a torn shirt moved closer.

“Not anymore,” a scraggly man with a long white beard added.

“No,” the third one said, this one taller and even rougher looking. “We’re here for you.”