“I don’t know. The world’s biggest bee, maybe.” Olivia was in control, but Dustin saw that she was shaken. He heard rustling. It seemed to come from behind them.
He turned Chapparal. The horse could whirl around on a dime—good thing for him at the moment. The trail was narrow here, but led back to the trees. The doe and her fawn were no longer there; they’d obviously been spooked. He kept moving, inspecting the trail on the other side. He didn’t see anything, but when he dismounted, he discovered that the ground had been disturbed and a number of low-hanging branches were broken. He continued to follow the trail, leaving Olivia and Joey behind. He heard Joey call out and paused, wanting to take his investigation all the way to the road—but afraid to leave the two of them alone in the forest where something had, apparently, flown through the air with the speed of a bullet.
Had it been a bullet?
And had Olivia been a target?
Frustrated, he rode back to where Olivia and Joey waited for him.
“Nothing,” he said with a shrug.
“Weird!” Joey said. “A small bird. That’s what it looked like from here. A dive-bombing bird.”
“You saw it?” Dustin asked.
“Well, not exactly. I just heard something.... And I thought I saw something whiz by close to Liv and Shiloh—a really fast bird, like I said—but I don’t know for sure. Maybe—”
“We’ve got to head back,” Olivia broke in. “I have another session this afternoon.”
“Not riding?” Dustin realized his tone was sharper than he’d intended.
“No, just in the pasture. A group session.”
“We get to stay until five,” Joey said. “Double with me against Sean and Matt at Ping-Pong?” he asked Dustin.
“Okay. I’ll hang around,” Dustin said, looking at Olivia. She showed no reaction, and he couldn’t decide whether he was disappointed or relieved.
As they rode back, Dustin kept watch on everything around them, still uneasy about the flying object that had whizzed by them all.
It hadn’t been the world’s biggest bee.
Or a dive-bombing bird.
But neither, he thought, had it been a bullet. So what the hell...?
True to her word, she allowed Joey and the horses their time to run. Then they returned to the stables. As good “guests,” he and Joey took care of their mounts. Joey was happy to give Trickster the promised apple. Dustin enjoyed watching him with the horse as he assured Trickster that it was much better to have an apple at the end of a ride than munch on lousy grass during it.
He was still at the stables when Olivia went out with her next group; he wanted to keep an eye on her. But since she was surrounded by several people, he determined that she was going to be all right.
If something was going to “happen” to her it wouldn’t be here—in front of others.
Joey was waiting impatiently for him to play Ping-Pong. He decided he might as well oblige now.
Matt and Sean were there, too, eager to take them on. Dustin played the game, paying heed to what was going on around him, as well. Sandra Cheever swept by, telling them all, in her usual curt tones, to play fair, and marched into Aaron’s office.
He thought he heard the two of them arguing.
When he and Joey took the game by a single point, he went to get coffee, trying to listen to what was being said in Aaron’s office.
Sandra was speaking heatedly. Aaron was arguing with her in a soft, restrained voice.
“Boy, and they’re supposed to be teaching us to get along!” Matt said sarcastically, coming up beside him.
Dustin grimaced. “Have they been at it all afternoon?”
“No.” Matt frowned. “I don’t think they were here. In fact, I know they weren’t. Aaron showed up about an hour ago and said hello to all of us. That was odd, ’cause usually there’s someone in the office all the time—when it’s open, I mean. Hey, rematch?”
“Sure, just give me a minute,” Dustin told him. “I’ll meet you in the games room.”
Matt nodded and sauntered off, and Dustin moved closer to the door. “It’s wrong. It’s just wrong!” Sandra Cheever was saying.
“Look, it is what it is,” he heard Aaron reply.
“Not necessarily,” Sandra said. “You’re going to have to take steps.”
He didn’t get a chance to hear any more. Mariah Naughton came breezing in. “Hey, there, Secret Agent Man. I’m thrilled you guys are coming on the camping trip. Liv sometimes comes along, and I love it when she does. I guarantee that you’ll have a good time.”
“I hear you tell great ghost stories.”
She waved a hand. “Oh, well, the area’s full of them. I don’t tell anything new. You know all about the general, I take it, since you’re from around here.”
“I’m certainly familiar with him.”
“Nashville has great ghost stories, too!” she said enthusiastically.
He nodded in response and she grinned. “Well, I hope we’re giving you the rest and relaxation you were looking for.”
“Definitely. I’m falling in love with horses all over again.”