Page 37 of Distress Signal

I think he’s here.

Irritation, anger, and a sense of dismay rose within me, overwhelming and choking. I slammed the laptop shut and buried my face in my hands.

It should have beenme.

Had it been me, we wouldn’t be in this mess.

We’d both be home in Tennessee, safe and sound and far away from this creep.

Even when we found her—yes,when; I refused to accept anything less—I didn’t think I’d ever be able to forgive myself.

“Goddesses, Lainey,” I whispered to the universe. “Where are you?”

Only silence answered.

eleven

. . .

FINN

Over the next few days,I threw myself into work, doing everything I could to move past recent events.

To forget Reagan’s reappearance in my life.

Even if she came back to Dusk Valley, it wouldn’t be for me. It would be to find out what happened to her sister, and I wouldn’t stand in her way. I wouldn’t be a distraction she didn’t need.

Instead, I’d do everything in my power to ensure we found her sister alive—and brought the fucker who had taken her to justice.

Trying, of course, was different than doing, and no amount of working with the horses currently boarded in the barn or feeding the various ranch animals managed to turn my mind away from the Lindsey sisters.

West and I joined the Army because while neither of us had any desire to go to college, we both had delusions of grandeur where our places in the world were concerned. We’d been reckless—and nearly broke Mama’s heart the day we signed our contracts.

Those first four years passed in a blink, and somehow,inexplicably, welikedit. Liked the structure, the training, the men and women we served with. The service had shaved off the edges of our recklessness, uncovering our natural protective instincts and honing us into weapons instead of agents of chaos.

So we extended another two years.

At the tail end of that extension, we were approached to consider joining the Rangers.

Twenty-four years old and they wantedusto join one of the most elite military forces in the world?

The choice had been easy.

Maintaining physical fitness for the normal Army branch had been difficult but nothing compared to the shit we’d faced for the Rangers. We’d pushed our bodies to the brink, endured sleep deprivation, and were subjected to the advanced interrogation techniques we’d later use on enemy prisoners. Ranger training had been grueling mentally as well.

All that to say, there was some deep-seated part of me that, as a Lawless, had alwaysdemandedI protect those around me. Those weaker, less fortunate, anyone who found themselves down on their luck and in need of saving.

Being a soldier only rooted that desire deeper.

And Reagan was a textbook damsel in distress, signaling for my help. The beast in my chest perked up like she’d given off a distress signal I couldn’t ignore.

The following Tuesday, four days after I’d last seen Reagan and a week after the last time anyone had seen or heard from Lainey, I was damn near coming out of my skin from feeling so fuckinguseless.

I took off my hat and wiped a sweaty and dirt-streaked forearm across my equally sweaty and dirty face, doing nothing but spreading both further around. It had been a long ass day in the fields, making sure crops had been planted properly and were surviving. All hands had been on deck, pulling any that hadn’t survived. As we sold quite a bit of the corn, wheat, and soybeans,both to other outfits and in other products such as Mama’s line of homemade soaps, lotions, and candles, West, our foreman Abel, and I were unyielding in the quality of what we grew.

I clicked my tongue, and Raider trotted over, abandoning the patch of grass he’d been munching on. He was wholly in his element out here, content to roam around, though never too far from me. He was my soul horse, a bond we’d developed over the years that was the strongest connection I’d ever had with a living thing besides my twin.

As usual, I was the last one in the field, the rest of the workers having disappeared back to their homes and families hours ago. But the sun was going down, and a quick check of my watch told me it was nearly eight p.m.