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moment before he took off, bounding down the trail and disappearing into the trees. Bill followed as quickly as he dared, keeping to the shadows as much as possible.
    His pulse pounded in his neck. Was it Oscar?
    He stopped behind a fallen trunk and watched.
    Tank was not visible but he heard a quick bark, just one, and then the property fell into silence again. Bill had seen Tank in attack mode before only a few times, one of which involved a massive, drunk dirt biker who’d caught Bill unawares and knocked him to the ground. The dog had leaped immediately into the fray and caught the biker’s biceps between his jaws, which clamped viselike until Bill scrambled to his feet and called off the animal in stern Lakota, the language in which he’d trained the dog. It had taken all of Bill’s powers of persuasion to convince Tank to let go of the whimpering bad guy.
    Unfortunately, Tank’s impulsivity often got the better ofhis training. Had he gone after an animal? Or encountered a creature with much more deadly potential? Bill took a few deep breaths to relax his muscles before he slid the Glock from its holster and ran to the next tree.
    Tank let out a whine. Bill couldn’t see the dog through the thick screen of towering pine. Inching closer, he took each footstep gently, easing his boots into the soft cover of pine needles.
    Closer now. There was a small movement ahead. He took a breath and prepared to step around the wide trunk. Forcing himself to keep breathing, he did a slow count to three and charged.

FOUR
    H eather screamed as Bill Cloudman suddenly leaped from behind a tree, gun in hand. Tina looked up from her kneeling position scratching Tank’s belly.
    “Hiya, Uncle Bill.”
    Bill’s face blanched slightly under the dark skin and he immediately pulled the gun behind his back. “Tina. What are you doing here?” He gave Heather an incredulous look. “Did you bring her?”
    Heather swallowed hard and tried to find her voice, heart still hammering against her ribs. “No, I didn’t. I was on my way to talk to you and I found her walking a couple miles outside town. It didn’t seem safe to let her walk on the road alone, so I gave her a ride.”
    She caught the question on his face. “I rode my dad’s old motorcycle. It’s parked over there in the shade.”
    Bill looked from Heather to Tina. He got down on one knee and gently caught her chin on his finger until her gaze met his. “Did your uncle give you permission to come?”
    Tina shrugged.
    He raised an eyebrow, his face stern. “Tina?”
    Tina shook her head. “Uncle Charlie doesn’t want me to talk to you anymore now that Johnny’s dead, but I wanted to come and see you and Tank. I liked it when we played fetch.I thought he could help me hunt for fossils. Look at this one.” She held up a curved bit of white that she fished from her pocket.
    Heather saw a stain of emotion wash over Bill’s face before it was hidden behind his stoic mask. “Never mind that now. You should not have left without telling your uncle. He’s probably worried about you. Come back to the house and I’ll call him.”
    Tina rose and Tank trotted at her heels as they returned to the cabin. Heather was unsure if she should tag along or not until Bill called over his shoulder, “Thanks for taking care of her.”
    Heather took it as an invitation and scurried to catch up with him. “No problem. We need to talk, Bill.”
    “No, we don’t.”
    She bit back an impatient retort. Their past aside, she needed to confirm her terrible suspicion. “Yes, we do. I know what’s going on.”
    He ignored her and quickened his pace. Heather was practically running by the time they reached his cabin. Tina scrambled inside after Tank, and Bill stopped abruptly on the porch. “Appreciate your help. I’ll handle things from here.”
    She reached ahead of him and pulled the door closed. He turned on her, the muscles of his jaw twitching. She’d seen that intensity in him before and