Page 13 of His Witness To Love

“Pete! Pete, she’s not here! Pete! Get the boys ready!”

Team Six immediately exited the truck and mobilized,preparing to spread out when Mack thought to check the outhouse behind the main building.

He ran around the manor to get there fast to not waste anybody’s time.

The door was opened, which was a good sign, but Mack tookno chances. A stick held firmly in his free hand, and he shouldered his way into the outhouse. The dark blinded him for a bit, but he soon grew used to it until he found her.

He sighed as he watched her breathe in and out, fast asleep with a stray rabbit in her arms.

Well, she was in charge of an animal shelter.

Mack set the team at ease, and they left just as Brie woke up, making her way back to the manor in time to see the group move.

They walked toward one another, meeting somewhere in the middle.

“I missed you.” There was a catch in his voice as his hand came up to touch her face. She couldn’t help but notice the grimace on his face when he moved his shoulder.

“And I have missed you,” she said before hugging him. “Let’s never have you do something like that again.”

“I can't make that promise, Brie."

“But…”

“I will do anything necessary to keep you safe anytime it is demanded of me. That’s the plain truth, and I’d rather not lie to you.” He pulled her face closer to his. “Do you not understand what you’ve come to mean to me?”

“Tell me,” she whispered.

“Everything, you’re everything to me.”

The kiss was long overdue, and she was pretty sure he thought so, too.

***

Rachel found her way home by evening and joined them for dinner. It was a time of peace for the three of them. Mack had his arm cleaned and dressed by the ladies after dinner. The ache was slowly fading, and he almost had his full range of motion.

With that done, Rachel went to her room.The story was she had convinced her grandparents to take a vacation for the time being to give her new housemates a bit of freedom around the house. Mack appreciated her thoughtfulness and let her know.

With Rachel in bed, Mack decided it was time to have the conversation he needed to with Brie. There were things he needed to know to understand the situation better.

He found Brie sitting at the table with a book in hand; she looked lost. No, taken. She had completely immersed herself in whatever story she was inhaling, her eyes dancing with immense speed across the pages.

“Hello, love, could we talk?”

Brie peeked up from her book; she could tell it was about to be something serious; he looked like he was holding back a grimace

“It's about the piece of evidence they found at the spot I was found.”

Brie dropped the book.

“Yeah, that.”

“So, talk to me, Brie.”

She dropped the book completely and sighed, “I don’t know, Mack. I just saw it, and I knew that wasn’t the first time I had seen it. I knit. It was a thing a few years back; I was crazy about it back then.”

She twisted at her hair. “I know that guard; I’m almost completely sure I made it.”

“Well… Who was it for?”

---