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later. “Lights…moving.” After putting the strap around his neck, he let the binoculars fall against his chest.
    â€œWhat could it be?”
    â€œPeople on my grandfather’s land.” His voice intensified. “It’s hard to tell exactly where they are at this distance. Gramps and I used to ride all over the place on dirt bikes, but it’s been a while since then. I don’t know the trails as well as I used to.”
    â€œI’ve gotten pretty good at reading the landscape from having to rescue birds in the weirdest places.”
    â€œThat would involve you having to stand up,” he teased.
    She took in a breath. “I can do it.”
    â€œThat’s my brave girl.”
    Her heart lurched. That was what he used to say to her when she made the decision to do something, even if it scared her.
    He extended a hand to her and she rose to her feet. She leaned against him to steady herself. She could see the front edge of the roof from here. Even before she straightened her legs, the night sky was spinning around her. She dug her fingers into his arm. He braced her by placing his arm around her waist.
    â€œSteady,” he whispered in her ear.
    His hair brushed against her cheek. “Ready now?” She nodded, and he brought the binoculars up to her eyes. The view through the lens was not spinning. Pulsating circles of light floated phantomlike across the landscape. She could discern another larger stationary glow. “Somebody is definitely out there.”
    â€œBut where are they exactly? Gramps’s place is thousands of acres.”
    She moved the binoculars across the view in front of her. The outline of the mountains revealed the shape of a wizard’s hat and a formation that everyone called the Angel’s Wings. “They have got to be close to Leveridge Canyon.”
    â€œI remember that area. Should we call the sheriff, tell him where to go?”
    Jenna shook her head. “The sheriff’s still looking for fingerprints at my place. It would take him a while to get over here. We should go out there now before they leave. What if what is going on out there now is connected to the shooting and the note?”
    He rubbed his hands on his jeans, angling his head away from her.
    â€œSomeone is trespassing on your grandfather’s land. We can find out who is doing this and turn them in,” she persisted. If they caught whoever was doing this, they wouldn’t be able to harm the birds at the center.
    The thought of any kind of confrontation terrified her, though. She needed Keith’s help. Why was he hesitating? The events of the afternoon showed that he could handle himself just fine, better than she could. “Please Keith, I can’t do this alone.”
    He crossed his arms and stared out at some unknown object as though he were mulling over options. He turned toward her. “I don’t want you going out there by yourself. It could be dangerous.”
    â€œThank you.”
    He shook his head and let his arms fall to his side. “I’ll see if I can find a map that might help us pinpoint where they are. The dirt bikes are fueled and ready to go in the garage.”
    In less than fifteen minutes, they had climbed down from the roof and run to the garage. Jenna placed the bike helmet on her head. She watched him buckle a gun belt around his waist. Considering what had happened this afternoon, the gun was a reasonable precaution. Still, her heartbeat quickened as she slipped on her bike gloves. What were they riding out to?
    Jenna turned the petcock on the fuel tank, choked the engine, flipped out the kickstart.
    Without a word, Keith sauntered over to her bike while she stepped aside. He jumped down on the kick start. The engine revved to life. She had never been able to get a bike started on the first try.
    While Keith started his own bike, Jenna swung a leg over the worn seat. She twisted the throttle to a high