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report and I’ll get that to him later. I doubt we’ll find anything concrete as far as evidence since nothing seemed to jump out at me. I don’t think they were looking for drugs. Your supplies seem to be intact, far as I can tell. The volunteers who worked in here yesterday indicated everything was fine when they left. I talked to them by phone a few minutes ago. Might want to go over what I inventoried, though.”
    Jennifer couldn’t help the shiver moving up and down her spine. “I can’t believe they’d be so bold as to come in here and try to destroy my tack room—the only room I lock. I’ve never considered locking things up at night—other than the cages so the animals can’t get out, and the office and living quarters. We have a main gate and we shut this place up tight after hours, so I never worried about keeping humans out.”
    â€œThese people aren’t just bold. They’re evil, Jennifer. They don’t care about humanity except in regards to how much money they can make running drugs. And for you, that means they’ll do whatever it takes to scare you—or worse. So you’re gonna need to take some extra security measures for your own safety.”
    She put the rake back on its hook and rubbed the calluses on her hands. “I worry about my animals, Anderson. And I don’t have enough funds to put in an elaborate security system.”
    â€œWorry about yourself first,” he retorted, irritation lining his expression. “And let me worry about securityfor now. This is just the beginning. We need to get out to that site and look around. But first, I want to talk to your neighbor, Ralph Chason.”
    â€œYou don’t think he’s behind this, do you?”
    â€œI can’t say for sure. But questioning him is the first priority since you mentioned he’d complained to you about the new pen. I can do that now and we’ll take a ride out later, if that’s okay with you.”
    She checked her watch. “Jacob should be here in a few minutes. Let’s take a break and go up to the house and clean up. Then, after you get back from seeing Mr. Chason, we can head out. I’d feel better if Jacob is here with my volunteers.”
    â€œOkay.” He helped her finish putting away cleaning supplies, then checked the stables once again. “I’ll be more aware tonight since I didn’t hear or see anything last night. Probably because they decided to target your barn, just as a scare tactic.”
    â€œThat’s dangerous—you sleeping out there.”
    Anderson’s chuckle surprised her. “You know, you don’t have to worry about me. This ain’t my first rodeo.”
    She looked down at her dirty work boots. “I get that, Ranger-man. But like I told you earlier, I’m not used to this kind of thing. I won’t have something happening to you while you’re trying to help me.”
    â€œComes with the job, I’m afraid. And it doesn’t allow for much of a social life, either.”
    Taking that as a warning, she asked, “How long have you been a Ranger, anyway?”
    He squinted toward the afternoon sun. “Three years. Got a degree in criminal justice from Sam HoustonUniversity, started out in the local sheriff’s department, then signed on as a state trooper. Worked there almost nine years before joining Company D.”
    She did the math on that. He was probably a few years older than her twenty-eight years. And obviously not married and settled. “Did you always want to work in law enforcement?”
    â€œPretty much. I watched a lot of westerns growing up and I wanted to be one of the good guys. Being a Ranger seemed to fit the criteria.”
    Jennifer could see that clearly enough. He wasn’t exactly Dudley Do-Right, but he wasn’t Judge Roy Bean, either. She could tell Anderson’s sense of justice ran deep and probably settled