Hayes
My mom drummed her fingers on the counter as she glanced at the clock for the dozenth time in the past twenty minutes. “Maybe you should call your Search and Rescue team leader.”
I laid a hand over hers. “She’s fifteen minutes late. That’s not a call for S&R.”
“She isn’t answering her phone.”
Dad wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “You know how Hadley is when she’s hiking. She’s on her own schedule.”
Mom’s mouth thinned. “She should have the courtesy to let us know she’s okay, if that’s the case. Calder told us he couldn’t make it, so we’re not worrying about him and the girls.”
I winced and stole a glance at Shiloh, who was on the floor with Koda. Shy didn’t look the least bit concerned. But then she knew her sister, and this was one area where they were incredibly similar—their need to break free and be out in nature alone. It drove my mom nuts. I’d done everything I could to alleviate her worry and make sure my sisters were safe. Given them emergency kits, even satellite phones. But it still put Mom on edge.
Tires on gravel sounded, and Mom hurried to the front window. I could just make out Hadley’s SUV. As soon as my mom caught sight of her youngest daughter, she turned and retreated to the kitchen, busying herself with dinner prep. The slightly frenetic energy told me that we were in for it.
I sighed and squeezed the bridge of my nose where a headache was forming. The front door slammed, and Hadley called out. “Sorry I’m late. I went longer than I’d planned.”
Mom chopped a carrot with a bit more force than necessary. “Would a phone call be too much to ask when your family’s expecting you?”
Hadley’s steps faltered. “I didn’t know that I still had to report my movements now that I’m an adult.”
“Okay, ladies, I think that’s enough,” my dad began. “Hadley, your mom was worried. I think you know why. Julia, let’s give the girl some freedom. She’s grown.”
Mom huffed and turned back to the salad. “The lasagna’s done so everyone can sit.”
Hadley went to the sink to wash her hands, and I came up alongside her, bumping my shoulder into hers. “Your phone was off.”
“The battery died, and I didn’t have my car charger.”
“Hads, that’s not safe.”
“Quit it. I don’t need you on my case, too. You’re my brother, not my keeper. You know, people lived their lives before cell phones.”
I bit back every retort that wanted to fly from my mouth, every statistic about what could happen to a woman alone. “I’ll get you another charger and an external battery for your pack.”
Hadley simply rolled her eyes and crossed to the table, sitting as far away from Mom’s chair as she could. Shiloh gave Koda one last rub and then followed suit. I turned to Mom. “Want me to carry the lasagna?”
“That would be good. Thank you.”
I squeezed her shoulder and then grabbed hotpot holders and the casserole dish. I set it carefully on the risers on the table’s surface just as Hadley muttered, “Kiss-ass” under her breath. The tension between my eyes throbbed.
Mom set a salad and the garlic bread down and then slipped into her seat. “So, how was everyone’s day?”
Silence met her query. I hurried to fill it. “Three calls from Ms. Pat about her missing cat.”
Dad chuckled. “It might be worth some taxpayer money to get that cat a tracker.”
“It always comes back,” Hadley muttered. “She should just leave it be.”
Mom’s hand tightened on her water glass. “She’s worried about her.”
“I bought a new horse,” Dad interjected, steering the conversation in a different direction.
For the first time in the evening, Shiloh’s gaze sharpened, focusing in on Dad. “Where?”
“Ramsey Bishop.”
I set down my beer. “He let you come out to his place?” Ramsey brought the term loner to a whole new level.
“No, he brought the gelding here.”
“There aren’t any new horses in the barn,” Shiloh argued.
Dad smiled. “I’m not hiding him from you. Ramsey wants a few more weeks to finish the training.”
“No one has a way with horses like he does. Especially the wounded ones,” Mom said. “I might want to connect him with Everly.”
My spine stiffened. “Why?”
“Because Everly’s going to turn that property into an animal sanctuary.”
“How do you know that?” It prickled something in me that my mother had more information than I did about the woman I’d somehow become fascinated with.
“I went out to see her today.” She shot a pointed look in my direction. “Someone had to make up for how rudely my son treated her.”
Hadley choked on her water as she laughed. “I think Everly can handle herself. She was ripping Hayes a new one the last time I saw her.”
Mom’s eyes hardened on me. “Really, Hayes? That girl has been through enough. I expect you to get a new attitude, young man.”
Hadley snickered. “Uh-oh, she brought out the young man. You’re in trouble now.”
Before my mom could turn her ire on Hads, I cut in. “I know I messed up.” Both women turned their gazes on me. “I know it’s bound to bring up some tough stuff.” I looked at Shiloh, whose eyes narrowed. “I didn’t want anyone getting hurt. Especially you.”
Shy shoved back from the table, taking her plate and not saying a word. Koda trailed after her.
“Shit,” I mumbled.
“Let her go,” Mom said, patting my arm.
Hadley’s mouth pressed into a hard line, but she didn’t say a word.
“So, she’s making a sanctuary.” I couldn’t quite wrap my head around that. It was certainly needed. The sheriff’s department got called out on all sorts of animal abuse and neglect cases, and there weren’t a lot of options for where those animals could go afterwards.
“Makes sense,” Dad said. “I heard she got a job with Miles, working as a vet tech.”
Mom assembled the perfect bite of salad on her fork. “From what I can tell, he’ll be lucky to have her.”
A vet tech. It made perfect sense, yet it was still a surprise. From the few interactions I’d had with Everly, I knew she was tough as nails. But I’d seen a glimpse of her softer side with Koda. Dr. Taylor would be more than lucky to have her.
“Maybe I should get a dog,” Hadley mused.
Mom set down her fork. “That means you’d have to be home on a regular basis. No taking off whenever the mood strikes.”
I sent an urgent look at Dad, but before he could come up with a way to divert the conversation, Hadley cut in. “And the problem with that is?”
“Nothing, but it’s not exactly responsible or safe, either. You know that.”
“Yet you have no problem with Shy taking off into the woods for days at a time, no one knowing where she is. You just tell us to let her go.”
Mom’s jaw worked back and forth. “It’s different, and you know that.”