Love Inspired Suspense June 2021--Box Set 1 of 2, page 17
She glanced at Lex, and as her eyes met his, she knew it wasn’t even a question.
“We’ve got to stop that monster from taking Ripley,” he said.
“Where’s your truck?” she asked.
“This way!”
She followed him and they ran for a nearby shed, yanked the door open and sprinted inside. Stormy woofed in greeting from the front seat of Lex’s truck, her voice filling the small space.
“I’ll drive,” Lex said.
“And I’ll shoot,” Poppy added. She yanked the passenger side door open and slid in beside her dog. “Stormy, get in the back.”
The K-9 barked in agreement and complied. Lex gunned the engine and his truck shot out of the building and onto the runway. She glanced in the rearview mirror. The private plane was almost at the end of the runway. Then all it had to do was turn around and come back at speed for takeoff. She watched Lex’s eyes follow the same path hers had taken.
Then he gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands and fixed his gaze on Nolan’s truck, with Kevin and Ripley inside.
“Hold on,” he said. “I’m going to speed.”
He gunned the engine and chased after the stolen truck, with Ripley still screaming for help inside. Poppy opened her window and braced her weapon to fire as Lex edged the truck closer and closer. Then he swerved sharply to the right, cutting as close to the truck as he dared. She leaned out the window, aimed for the back tire and fired. The rubber exploded with a bang and the truck spun, flying out of control so quickly that Lex had to mash the brakes to keep from driving into it.
Then, with the jarring sound of metal hitting wood, the truck slammed into a towering fir tree almost half its length. Kevin tumbled out and ran.
“I’ll get Ripley,” she shouted to Lex as he yanked the door open. “Go take Kevin down!”
She allowed herself to watch for one fleeting moment as he sprinted after Kevin, launched at him in a football tackle and brought him to the ground. Poppy told Stormy to stay and ran for the wreck. She crouched down and looked inside. Ripley sat blindfolded and trembling. Her hands were still bound and her body was scratched from the crash.
“Ripley,” she said gently. “It’s me, Poppy. You’re safe. Now let me take your blindfold off and help you out.”
She helped ease the blindfold off, thankful to see her eyes were open and showed no sign of head trauma. Poppy then cut her bonds and cautiously helped her climb from the car, thankful there were no major signs of injury. Ripley stepped out of the car and stood on shaky legs.
Poppy glanced back at where Lex had Kevin down on the ground. Kevin was swearing, thrashing and trying in vain to strike out against Lex. But in an instant, he had him pinned. Then Lex flipped the perp over onto his stomach and tied his hands behind his back with a zip tie.
No sooner had Ripley stepped free from the wreckage than her eyes rose toward the air hangar. “Nolan!”
“Ripley!” Nolan called. Her brother stumbled toward her with what looked like the bandanna Poppy had been blindfolded with tied over the bullet wound. “I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry!”
She stood back and let the siblings run across the tarmac to each other. Lex marched Kevin over to her. He’d muffled the man’s swear words with a gag. Poppy opened the back door of Lex’s truck, called Stormy to get out and watched as Lex pushed Kevin inside and locked the door.
Then she turned toward the private plane with the captured bear cubs inside with Lex on her one side and Stormy at the other.
“We need to stop the plane,” she said, even as she felt the futility of their situation wash over her. “We can’t let them take the bear cubs.”
But it was too late. Already they could see the small jet had turned around. Its propellers whirled and flaps rose. She watched as it taxied down the runway ready to lift off.
Her heart sank and her footsteps stopped. She felt Lex grab her hand and squeeze it tightly. She squeezed it back as tears filled her eyes. The plane was leaving. They’d lost. The bears were being flown off by an unscrupulous criminal and there was nothing they could do about it.
Then a loud crash and terrifying growl filled the air, as the brown bear broke through its cage.
FOURTEEN
Poppy watched as the expensive jet swerved suddenly, trying to avoid the brown bear as it charged. The plane spun wildly, spinning off the runway like a toy top out of control. It smashed into a tree with a deafening crunch, snapping off a wing.
She gasped a breath. The bear turned and lumbered back into the woods. Then she felt Lex tug her fingers, and they ran together across the tarmac to the wrecked aircraft, with Stormy by their side.
The cockpit door flew open.
“Freeze!” Poppy shouted to the two men inside. She raised her badge and weapon. “I’m Trooper Poppy Walsh and you’re under arrest.”
Beside her Lex was yanking open the back of the plane. Two small bear cubs looked up at him from inside dog crates.
“It’s okay, guys,” Lex told the frightened cubs softly. “We’ve got you. You’re safe now.”
The client, pilot and Kevin were all sitting handcuffed in one end of the airplane hangar, while Nolan and Ripley sat huddled in the other end what felt like moments later, when she saw three rescue helicopters hovering above them. Will leaped out of the first one as it landed, followed by troopers from the Juneau unit. And suddenly, activity was everywhere as she briefed the team, oversaw the arrests and made sure Nolan and Ripley got medical attention before they were placed into custody. The siblings were already pledging to tell law enforcement everything as their statements were being taken. In the midst of all this, Poppy saw Lex signal her to join him away from the crowd.
She walked over.
“I’ve got to go coordinate with the animal rescue wildlife center about taking the bear cubs,” Lex said. “I’m very hopeful they’ll be able to be rehabilitated and released back into the wild. But I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye and telling you that everyone’s invited back to our place for food later tonight when this wraps up.”
She looked around at the crew of law enforcement and medical professionals expertly wrapping up the scene. “I’m sure everyone will appreciate that.”
“You okay?” Lex asked. “You seem a bit down when I’d have thought you should be celebrating.”
Was she that transparent around him?
“Do you think the brown bear that charged the plane will be okay?” she asked.
“I hope so,” Lex said. “But I’ll make sure the park rangers try to locate it.” Then he frowned. “I just wish we’d been able to save the mama blue bear. It honestly hurts my heart to know that although we saved those little cubs, they’re orphans now.”
Unexpected tears brushed her eyelids.
“Me, too,” she said.
“I think I’m learning that just because an ending doesn’t look the way I hoped it would doesn’t mean it’s not a happy one.” His arm slipped around her shoulders and he pulled her closer to his side in a half hug. “Will I see you back at the house later?”
“I’ll be there,” she whispered.
He walked away.
But will my own story have a happy ending?
* * *
Night had just begun to fall by the time she finally made it back to the bed-and-breakfast. The cozy living space seemed filled to the brim with happy people, including troopers, rescue workers, park rangers and what seemed like the entire town’s worth of friends and neighbors. Potluck dishes spilled over every surface. Will had set up a laptop on the mantel and opened a video chat link for the K-9 team so any of them who wanted to pop into the celebration could. Poppy had made small talk, double-checked that Stormy was happily curled up on the floor with Danny and Mushroom, under Gillian’s watchful eye, and somehow managed to avoid ever being completely alone with Lex before she flew out with Will later tonight.
She slipped out the sliding glass door and into the backyard, craving a moment alone with her thoughts before she had to pack up and say goodbye. Poppy watched as the sun dipped slowly behind the distant mountains, casting the glaciers in dusty rose and purple hues.
Help my heart, Lord. It feels like You just brought Lex back into my life and now we’re going our separate ways again.
She heard the sliding door open behind her and the gentle babble of voices inside the house grew louder for a moment, before it closed again. Then she heard the footsteps of someone walking across the porch, coming down the steps and crossing the grass toward her. Somehow she knew it was Lex, even before she heard him say her name.
“Poppy?” His voice was soft and husky.
She turned around and there he was standing behind her. The dying light cast long shadows down his handsome face. But it was the depth of emotion pooling in his dark brown eyes that made her heartbeat catch in her chest and everything inside her long to throw her arms around his neck and pull him close.
Help me, Lord. How do I say goodbye?
“How’s it going?” she asked.
“Pretty good,” Lex said. “I have been wondering something, though, and I didn’t know how to ask it.” He ran his hand over the back of his neck. “At the airfield, when Kevin crashed the truck, you ran for Ripley and I took him down. Was that for operational reasons or because you knew, on some level, I wanted to be the one who took down the guy who killed my friend?”
“Probably a bit of both,” Poppy admitted. “As a trooper my top responsibility in that moment was making sure Ripley was okay. But I’m glad you were there to take Kevin down. Two things can be true at once. I’ve gotten a lot better at thinking I have to do everything by myself. And I think we make a good team.”
“So do I,” Lex admitted gruffly.
Poppy felt a tired smile cross her face She glanced at Lex and saw a nervous grin brush his lips, too. Then he took a deep breath.
“Which is why I’d like to fly back to Anchorage with you tonight,” he said. “Partly because I want to visit Johnny’s family to pay my respects and ask if there’s anything I can do to help them with the funeral. Also, I’ve been talking to people I know at the animal rescue sanctuary where the baby blue bear cubs are headed and wanted to see what I could do to help the little guys heal from their adventure and start a new life in the wild. Turns out, they’re hiring and want to talk to me about a potential job. As much as I’ve enjoyed living here, I think it’s time for a new adventure.” He took her hands and linked his fingers through hers. “And I want you to be a big part of it. If you want to be.”
She felt her breath catch. He brought her hands to his lips and brushed a kiss over her knuckles.
“What are you saying, Lex?” she asked.
“That I’m a better man with you than I am alone,” Lex said. “You strengthen me and push me, Poppy. You’re strong in areas I’m weak and bring out the best in who I want to be. Moving with my mom and Danny back to Anchorage and starting a new life will be challenging. And I don’t want to do it without you. In fact, I don’t ever want to do anything big without you ever again.”
“I don’t want to do anything big without you ever again, either,” she confessed.
He pulled his hands from hers and wrapped them around her waist as her fingers slid up and linked behind his neck.
“I’m in love with you, Poppy,” Lex said. “Head over heels. I always have been. My mother thinks you’re amazing and Danny adores having you and Stormy around. You complete my family in a way nobody could.”
She felt happy tears shine in her eyes. “I love you, too. I never stopped.”
“I’m so glad to hear that,” Lex said, and his grin grew wider than she’d ever seen before. “Because I want to marry you. I want to be your husband and I want you to be my wife and Danny’s mom. But more than that, I want to help you plan our new life together. The boring bank meetings, the budgets, the chores—I’m here for all of it.”
“I want to marry you, too.”
Then his lips met hers for a long moment and he kissed her, lifting her feet up off the ground as he swept her into his embrace. And as the sunset swept the Alaskan sky, Poppy wrapped her arms tightly around the man she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was going to love forever.
* * * * *
Dear Reader,
I ended up moving unexpectedly while finishing this book and, because I was rushing, accidentally hurt myself and ended up going to the hospital.
“Don’t use your hand for at least a week,” the doctor told me kindly and firmly. “We don’t want you needing to come back because you busted your stitches.”
“Absolutely,” I said. “Got it!”
Then I promptly tried to unpack and move furniture one-handed.
“You haven’t washed your hair in a while,” a friend pointed out after a few days. Despite the fact I’d turned down their offer to pick up groceries for me they’d still baked me a chocolate loaf. “Do you need help? I could wash and brush your hair for you.”
“Oh, no, I’m fine!” I said, telling them I’d just wrap some plastic bags around my hand.
It wasn’t until my lovely agent, Melissa, finally called and told me, “You know, we still love you even when you’re hurt!” that I realized just how hard I’d been trying to do it all on my own.
So, I’m dedicating this book to all of you who, like me, find it hard to ask for help and to all of you who’ve been reaching out to those in need. I hope this Alaskan K-9 series helps you find a bit of joy, fun and an escape from the stresses of everyday life. I’m looking forward to reading them all!
Thank you as always for sharing this journey with me,
Maggie
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ISBN-13: 9781488072338
Wilderness Defender
Copyright © 2021 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Maggie K. Black for her contribution to the Alaska K-9 Unit miniseries.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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“What if I’m putting your children in danger?” Liddie asked.
“You told me yourself that someone had to have shut Daisy into the horse stall. There’s no way she could have gotten in there on her own. And that note.” Liddie shook her head, then pushed away from the table. “It’s not safe for me to stay here.”
“I’ll make sure you’re safe,” Jonah said quietly.
Liddie looked up and they locked gazes. Standing, she tucked in the kitchen chair and braced her hands on the back of it. “It’s not fair for your children. For Ellen.” Liddie kept her voice low in the quiet house. “Their poor grandmother has already been through enough.”
“Where would you go?” Jonah stared up at her, studying her features.
“Maybe I could call my sister.”
An icy dread gathered in the pit of his stomach. “You’re willing to leave the Amish? Break the rules of the Ordnung?”
“There’s no other way.”
Jonah rose, not taking his eyes off her.
“There is. You can stay here.”
Alison Stone lives with her husband of more than twenty years and their four children in Western New York. Besides writing, Alison keeps busy volunteering at her children’s schools, driving her girls to dance and watching her boys race motocross. Alison loves to hear from her readers at Alison@AlisonStone.com. For more information, please visit her website, alisonstone.com. She’s also chatty on Twitter, @alison_stone. Find her on Facebook at Facebook.com/alisonstoneauthor.
Books by Alison Stone
Love Inspired Suspense
Plain Pursuit
Critical Diagnosis
Silver Lake Secrets
Plain Peril
High-Risk Homecoming
Plain Threats
Plain Protector
Plain Cover-Up
Plain Sanctuary
Plain Jeopardy
Plain Outsider
Seeking Amish Shelter
Amish Country Cover-Up
