Page 151 of Captivated

On several murder charges.

What shocked him was he had no qualms about that.

“The police are at the front desk.” Teague pointed to the door. “You staying here or coming with us?”

“I’ll come with you two. I need to pour some coffee into Nate. He must be exhausted, after driving all the way from Boise. Thiswill wipe him out.” Sol scowled. “Not exactly a great way to start a new life.”

They headed for the elevator, and Robert did his best to suppress the tremors ricocheting through him.

Hang in there. Toby needs you.

Teague’s hand was at his back once more, and Robert was grateful for the connection. The doors slid open, and he spotted the uniforms instantly. He strode over to join the two officers.

“I’m Robert Thorston, from the Salvation ranch.”

One of the officers nodded. “Officer Hank Brenner. This is Officer Lia Dunn. Can I see some ID?”

Robert handed it over, then indicated Teague and Sol. “This is Teague McKay, my ranch foreman. And this is Sol Davenport. He also works at the ranch.”

Officer Brenner gestured to an area with two couches. “Let’s go over there.”

As soon as Robert’s ass connected with the couch, he launched, his voice tight.

“You got something to tell me, or are we still playing wait-and-see?”

“We’ve just come from the post office.” Officer Dunn’s voice was low and calm. “We spoke to Donna Walters. She was behind the counter when it happened.”

“We’ve identified all seven of the men who attacked Mr. Merrow and Mr. Nolan. One of them works there.” Officer Brenner consulted his notes. “Clancy Yarwood. He’s the one who disabled the post office security cameras before it started.”

Sol gaped at them. “He shut ’em offbefore?”

Officer Dunn nodded. “Yeah. It looks premeditated.”

Teague shivered. “Jesus.”

Robert was on autopilot. It was the only way he could function right then.

“You bringing them in?”

Officer Brenner nodded. “They’re being picked up now. We’re questioning each man separately. We expect to make arrests by morning.”

“Is this being treated as a hate crime?”

Sol’s words hung in the air.

Officer Dunn cleared her throat.

“We’re looking at that, based on what Donna told us. Montana doesn’t have a state-level hate crime law the way some other places do, but federal statutes still apply. If this was motivated by who Toby and Zeeb are, we’ll push it up the chain.”

Sol scowled. “They weren’t just beaten up. That was a damn message. Toby could’vediedfor Christ’s sake, and they just left him. Except that’s not true. Technically they didn’t leave him—they ran like the fucking cowards they are. He isn’t out of the woods yet.”

“We know.” Officer Brenner’s expression was grave. “We’re taking it seriously.”

Robert clenched his fists. “Toby needs surgery. He can’t breathe. He’s sustained what could be a fatal injury. They don’t know yet if Zeeb’s brain is swelling.” He gritted out the words. “You don’t go after folks like that unless you’re trying to make an example.”

“Or send a warning,” Teague blurted.

Officer Dunn replaced her notebook in her pocket.

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