Joshua_The Whitfield Rancher_Erotic Tiger Shapeshifter Romance Page 9

  Dylan laughed before speaking. “All right, you handle them. But know this—if it gets out of hand, I go in with guns blazing. Just like a rabid dog, they need to be put down and out of their—or in this case, our—misery.” Josh held onto Carter when Dylan spoke. “You will be careful, won’t you?”

  “Yes. I won’t let them take Rachel either. If they do, they’ll die. That’s why I want to do it when they arrive.” Carter frowned. “How do they know where we are, anyway?”

  “That would be me. And you two will need to get married today too. If not today then very soon. It’s all arranged. The announcement is in the paper as of today, and it says in the article that the two of you will be residing in this town. After that, it’s a piece of cake to find out where you’ll be living. You don’t get to live in a small town like this and be able to keep a secret like this.” Josh asked her who was going to talk about it. “Why, your grandda, of course. He’s all up for having a little fun with this, so long as he stays safe. I told him if he gets hurt even a little, I was going to beat his ass until he said uncle. I love that old man, and he’s the best there is.”

  Josh had to agree. Grandda was a good man, and he’d do this up right too. Mom and Dad, they’d be helping too, he’d bet, and as soon as the Comptons arrived in town, things would start to go a little easier for them all. This wouldn’t be hanging over their head all the time.

  Chapter 7

  Waldo bought the land that was next to the property that he really wanted. Everybody was paid up but one, and he wasn’t going to come on the hunt. Something about nightmares that he was dealing with. Whatever—he didn’t get his deposit back, and that was final. He looked over the spread-out map as he tried to think what he had to do next. He had to get himself a couple of people that they could chase and kill, first of all.

  That was proving harder than he’d thought it should be. There were, when he’d first arrived here, several people that looked to be homeless and hanging out at the shelter. Waldo had paid a guy twenty bucks for him to give Waldo a good counting of how many people stayed at the shelter any given night. As well as finding out if there were any that didn’t go inside and use it, opting to hang out outside.

  There were currently twenty that stayed at the shelter for the most part. Some nights one or two of them wouldn’t show up before the doors were locked, and they’d have to find a place to stay elsewhere. And the man had told him that those were the only ones that didn’t stay there. If you were locked out for some reason, then that was the only others he knew about. As for names, Waldo couldn’t give him enough money, he’d said, to get those.

  “They like their privacy just like everybody else.” Waldo thought that was the funniest thing he’d heard in a while. Homeless people who wanted their privacy. But he wasn’t worried; he’d find one or two of them while they were out during the day, and take them to the barn that was on his newly purchased land.

  He had four men that were going to go on the first hunt during the daylight hours, and three for the night one. They had paid more for the privilege of hunting at night. Some people were just too easy to please. Except for Joshua Whitfield.

  The kid would not sell him the land. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t have his pick of his daddy’s property. The family owned nearly ten thousand acres that spread out over three states. The house would have been something that he would have lived in between hunting trips too. Now they were all cozied up in it, and burrowed in like a tick on a dog.

  The only thing that he could think to do was to burn them out. And that posed more problems than he wanted to deal with right now. If he wasn’t so pressed for time, he’d have done it, but he had a hunting trip scheduled for two weeks and still not enough land to have fun on.

  Waldo was thinking about just using the Whitfield land; it wasn’t as if he couldn’t monitor the entire area, especially from his place of business in town. But that would embarrass him should he get caught, and he didn’t want to look the fool in front of his clients.

  Waldo looked over at the urn that held his good buddy, Tommy. The police had found no reason to believe that he’d been murdered. It took him the better part of a day to figure out that someone had messed with their minds. All they saw was a drunk young man had fallen coming up the steps to his house and had busted his head open, thus killing him. None of them had seen the bones at the back of his neck. Not seen the amount of blood that had stained his front stoop. Nor did any of them say anything about the fact that his belly had been sliced open and his guts had fallen out. He’d only seen that when they’d picked him up to put him in the ambulance. Whoever this vampire was, he had really done a number on everyone to keep his handiwork quiet.

  He missed Tommy. Daily he would think of something and want to run it past him. But some asshole had killed him, and he still didn’t have any idea why. Oh sure, he’d been warned by him to stop with all his plans, but what was he supposed to do now? He had things all lined up, and if he was honest with himself, he didn’t want to quit. This was going to make him a great deal of money. Money that he’d already spent.

  It had been stupid, now that he thought about it, to use some of his money to put a deposit down on an island. But it had been going too cheap for him to not take the deal. The couple that sold it to him said that it wasn’t the same anymore. Not with the ships going by it all the time. And the helicopter that they had, the one to get back and forth to the island, wasn’t up to par. That was something that they said to him several times—he’d need to purchase a new chopper to get back and forth.

  Tommy had been shocked by his plan when he’d heard about it. “You’ve never seen the island, yet you plopped down a million and a half dollars? For all you know it could be covered in some man-eating plants that will likely kill you the first time that you go there.” He told him he’d seen the pictures of it. “Well, then that makes it all right, doesn’t it? You’ve seen pictures. I have pictures of people in my wallet that I don’t have a clue who they are, so that people will think I have family. But they’re not real. This is a scam, I know it.”

  So, he had rented a helicopter and had the couple take him to it. They couldn’t land, he forgot the reason why, but he was excited to see no man-eating plants and a beautiful home that looked like it had several hundred bedrooms—not really, but it was huge. So, he’d been happy, but Tommy had still been skeptical.

  Today he was going to pay off the island and the couple would give him the keys and the deed. He was so fucking excited about that, he nearly forgot that he had other work to do today as well. The land was going to mess him up.

  The kid, Whitfield, had been so unfriendly when he’d gone by to see him that first day. And since then as well. Three times Waldo had sent him a registered letter, and all three times it had come back to him, refused. He’d have to go talk to him. Or better yet, he’d have his attorney go and talk to him. That would probably scare the shit out of the kid, that an attorney was coming to see him, and he’d give in. That’s what he was hoping for anyway.

  At noon, he made his way into town. He needed to go by the bank to meet the couple. He wished now that he’d written down their names. It was as if he had a mental block about it. But as soon as he walked into the big imposing building, he could see them right where they said they’d be. And within an hour, he not only had the keys—a massive amount of them, he thought—but the deed as well.

  Waldo loved the fact that there wasn’t an address on the paperwork. A longitude and latitude was all he had in order to get to his place. Opening a post office box had been the next thing on his list of things that he had to do. Waldo thanked the couple for reminding him to do so.

  And he now knew their names. Kent and Sara Shaft. He had no idea why that sort of name would have eluded him, but now he had it on his paperwork and he was set to go. Tommy would have no doubt thought that it was an omen to have names like that. Waldo got a chuckle out of it as he finished up at the post office. He was an official homeowner.r />
  His next stop was his attorney. They were meeting for lunch at the bistro on Tenth. He so loved their thick sandwiches that they made there. And his favorite was a roast beef on rye with all the trimmings. As he waited for his food, he told Reeve Winters what he wanted done.

  “You do know that this family could easily buy and sell you several times over, don’t you? They’ve been rich since I think money was invented. And they have no problem sharing it, either. They’ve done a lot for that little town.” He said that he only wanted to buy the land, not get into bed with them. “All right, I’ll do this, but I’d not expect too much to come from it. These people get what they want and do what they want, but nobody gets hurt with it. What do you want it so bad for, anyway?”

  “I have some people coming into town that want to do a bit of hunting. When I was out walking about, I accidently got onto his property and saw the amount of deer and other animals there that we could make a meal of.” Sure, he thought to himself. But no humans, which was what he really wanted. “It’s a nice piece of land out there. You should see it.”

  “I’ve been to the Whitfield ranch a few times. They have the best Fourth of July picnic you’ve ever been too. I’m telling you, Waldo, getting in bad with these people will have consequences. And none of them good.” He repeated that it was just land he wanted to buy. “I’ll go and talk to Josh today. I heard he’s just about to tie the knot with a nice young woman. Nice to see them boys getting married. They’re a good group.”

  He’d heard it all before from the townspeople. The Whitfields were like gods to them. And none of them were mean or nasty about helping a fellow out either. Waldo had even heard that they made loans to people that needed them and didn’t hound them when they were a little late. All he could think about with them was that they were saps, every one of them.

  After his lunch he headed towards his next destination. His list was being ticked off much faster than he could have hoped for. Waldo only had one more stop to make, and he didn’t anticipate any issues there either. He had to secure places for the men to stay, and the little town actually had three bed and breakfasts that were right in town.

  “I’m sorry, sir, but we’re booked up for those dates. Most of the town is.” He asked her what was going on. “Well, we have this convention that comes in once a year. It’s a big deal around here. I’m surprised that you’ve not heard all the talk about it. Why, most of these shops are in the red deeply before that week, then all of a sudden, they’re riding down the lane of profit making.”

  “So, there is nothing, anywhere? How do you accommodate people that just come in to town for the afternoon and decide to stay?” She said that she’d tell them the same as she had him, they were booked up. “This is just ridiculous. I’ve had this planned for months now, and you’re telling me that you can’t accommodate a few people coming in? I suppose I should have called you up right when I had it all arranged that they were coming, two months ago.”

  “Wouldn’t have done you any good. I’ve had these reservations since last year. You see, I’m right here on the main drag of the town, and they can just pop on by here and drop off whatever they buy. I’m convenient, you might say.” He wanted to punch her in her convenient mouth, is what he wanted to do. “And you can go to the other places in town, but it won’t do you much good. Just like me, they’ll be all booked up as well. It’s a big deal to this town.”

  So were his plans to him, but he didn’t tell her that. She’d just go on again how this was a money maker for her and shit on him. He would have to call the other hotels that were in the next town over and put them up there. Then he’d have to rent a car or two for them to get back and forth. Not that he wasn’t making a profit from this already, but shit like this was eating into his money. And he didn’t care for it.

  Waldo had no more luck with the hotels than he had the B&Bs. They too were booked up, and he thought if one more person told him how this was benefiting them, he might take a gun out and shoot them all. As it stood right now, he had nowhere for the men that were coming to stay. And so far, there were no restaurants that weren’t booked up solid for reservations.

  What the hell was this thing that booked so many people to come to a one stop light area and had the entire town at their beck and call? He started to ask the woman that he was talking to, but she hung up on him. He wanted to tell himself that they’d lost the connection, his cell service was shit out here, but he was in a pissy mood and that’s what he was going with.

  Waldo wasn’t sure what he could do now. Other than to shove them into his rental, he didn’t have any idea where he was supposed to put all the people that he had coming. And then figure out how to feed them as well.

  ~~~

  Josh asked Reeve why the man was wanting his land. “I mean, it’s not like he has anything around here that would hold him to this area. Why my land?”

  “I believe that he just purchased the land to the east of yours. I think it only comes to about nine acres. Maybe a little less. But he claims that he just wants to hunt, and there is prime area around where you have your home.” Josh knew just what he was looking to do, and didn’t care for him bringing this man in on it. “He told me to tell you that he’s willing to pay just about any price that you wish, and buy the house from you as well.”

  “Mr. Winters, you’re a nice man, but I don’t think you have all the facts with this deal he’s got you chasing. You know my sister-in-law, Dylan. She’s coming by here to tell you what she’s found out.” He asked if it was about the land. “Yes, my land, as well as some of the things that she’s been able to dig up on this man. Most of it isn’t showing him in a good light.”

  Dylan showed up with Evan and they all sat in his office, talking. Carter joined them a few minutes later and had some tea and coffee brought in. He was trying to convert her over to tea, but she wasn’t having it.

  “Eight years ago, there was a big to do over hunting on a large piece of land that didn’t belong to the man who had set it up. Back then, Waldo Moody was going by the name of Chester Wine. He’s had a couple of other names that he’s gone by, but his real name is Waldo Chester. Anyway, the land in question didn’t belong to him, but he’d had wild animals brought in that were going to be used for a hunt. Men and women paid several thousand dollars to hunt what turned out to be endangered species.” She handed him photographs of Waldo, then and now. “As you can see there, it’s the same man.”

  “Yes, but he never said anything about bringing in animals. What he told me was that there were deer and other animals on the property that he wanted to hunt.” Josh asked him if he knew that they let other shifters on the land. “No. Well, now that you mention it, I should have known. But no, I didn’t think about that. You think that he’s seen them there and that’s what he’s going after?”

  “No, he’s got bigger game in mind.” Reeve looked at Carter when she spoke. “He has it in his head to hunt humans. He’s already made inquiries at the local shelter to pick off a few of the people there to use for his hunting buddies.”

  “You mean he’s actually going to be hunting some of the people from the shelter?” Reeve was so shocked his voice had gone up a couple of notches. “You must have it wrong, young lady. There is..... Why, that’s terrible. I mean, I thought it was horrible of him to want to hunt the shifters on the land, but this...this makes it so much worse. Has he done this before?”

  Dylan handed him the picture that she’d shown Josh last night. They were planning to go to the police about this today, but when Waldo had sent his attorney over, Dylan thought it a good idea to get it going this way as well. The picture was of three men, one of them Waldo, standing next to a dead body. The man that they all assumed had killed the younger man held his head up like he was so proud of the bullet hole in his forehead.

  “Where did you get this?” Dylan told him that she was able to find it on the dark web. “Yes, well, I would imagine that you’d not want this out where just anyone could f
ind it. And you’re sure that this man was killed like this? Not that I doubt you, Mrs. Whitfield, but this is just too horrific for words for me.”

  “Yes, it’s on his web page that talks about big hunts and unusual game. We’re thinking that he means humans again. That man there paid over five thousand dollars to go on this hunt with Waldo. And when it was done, he took one of the fingers of that man home with him.” Reeve looked slightly ill. “Two months ago, he had a flurry of activity at his bank where deposits were coming in to go on the expedition of a lifetime. He wants Josh’s land because it’s far enough off the beaten path that no one would suspect what’s going on there, and the house gives it the appearance of being just that, a homestead. The fucker is going to run his home like a bed and breakfast, we think, and keep it more quiet than before.”

  “I just don’t know what to say. I’ve only been his attorney for the last year or so. I knew that he was into some strange things, but never anything like this.” He looked at all of them, then at Josh. “Josh, you have no idea how sorry I am that I’m a part of this. I didn’t know what he was up to. I swear to you on my children’s hearts I didn’t.”

  “I didn’t think you did. But something must be done about him, and soon. If what he’s said in town about having guests coming in is true, this thing is set to happen in about two weeks. I haven’t any idea what he hopes to accomplish with this other than a shit load of money. How did he not think that someone would have known what he was doing?” Josh looked at Carter when she suddenly stiffened. “Are you all right?”

  Nodding, she told him that she’d tell him later. He had a feeling that her parents were closer than she’d thought. Great, first Waldo and now her parents. Josh wanted to put them all in jail and be done with them, but he also knew that things had to work out the way they were in order to catch all parties that were involved. In the case of her parents, there was another buyer out there that they didn’t know.