Page 146 of Three Reckless Words

How they avoided getting stung unconscious, that’s another mystery, but I have an idea when I see the door to the shed hanging open.

The lock’s been broken.

They took the goddamned beekeeping equipment.

They used a bee suit to destroy the bees.

The nasty discovery kicks hot rage through my gut. I grit my teeth to keep it from my voice.

What kind of fucking animal does this?

“They… they werejustbees. Oh my God!” Winnie bawls into my shirt.

I can’t find the right words to soothe her. Not when I’m bristling with murder like this.

Sighing, I stroke her hair, hold her closer, squeeze her so hard her chest strains to breathe. But she just clings to me more, fisting her hands in my shirt.

How did we get here from mind-blowing sex in the blink of an eye? In the space of an hour, life just unraveled, and I don’t have a clue how to fix it.

“We’ll find who did it,” I promise, resting my chin on the top of her head, staring at the carnage.

The mess, the financial damage, that’s not what I give a fuck about.

No, the way this feels like a pointed attack on Winnie personally, that’s what makes me see blood.

Who else cares enough about her fix on bees to invade my property and smash them this violently?

I have one very good guess.

And I already regret not punching his ass out cold when I had the chance, consequences be damned.

I hear rustling and turn to see the lead officer picking his way through the debris field to us. His name is Paul Higgins, but he told us to call him Paul when he arrived. His deputy heads back to the car, a bulky tablet tucked under his arm.

Sniffing, Winnie pulls away, trying to pull herself together for the cop.

“I’m awful sorry about this, Mr. Rory,” Paul says, addressing me after an uncomfortable glance at Winnie. “Did y’all say you had cameras up?”

“Over the entrance, yes, but not facing the back gardens where we installed the boxes.” A huge annoying oversight.

“Well, any footage should be useful. There’s only one way in if our suspect came by car. If you can pull the video and send that over, I’d be glad to have a look.”

“Of course, Officer. I’ll have my assistant at the office pull it from the cloud as soon as she can.” I give him her details and fire off a quick message to let her know Paul is waiting, and it’s urgent.

Then it’s just us, alone with the catastrophe.

Simon Chance, the maintenance manager, follows the cops back to the station, presumably to give the statement he volunteered and do all the official shit. We’re the ones left cleaning up this mess.

I swipe a thumb gently over Winnie’s tear-streaked face.

Seeing her in ruins makes me want to punch something, but a caveman eruption won’t help anything right now.

“Hey,” I whisper. “It’s going to be okay. Leave the cleanup to me if it’s too much.”

“Archer, no. How can you even say that after they didthis?” She stares blindly across the smashed boxes.

Not many bees are around now. I guess they dissipated in a hurry after their homes were obliterated.

How many of them died in the attack?

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