Okay. So I've been doing this thing over on the MoS rewrite that I'm kind of enjoying where I'm replying to comments from each chapter at the start of the next. Since I'm SO BAD at keeping up with comments in real-time, it's been a nice way for me to sit down at one time and respond to them. So I'm gonna do it here. If you hate it, just be like "Liz, I hate it. Shut your face and go back to just writing." If you like it, don't say anything and I'll keep on it. So... 

GigiLaurent - Honestly, I find the psychology of cults and herd mentality and stuff fascinating. I had really grand aspirations with this series to dig into it and explore mindsets and all that. Like... Josh and Amelia's book was supposed to be a close up of how one person might get drawn into it (Owen) and this one was supposed to be about how a whole town could get corrupted, and Melissa's book was supposed to be showing the town recovering during the aftermath of the cult's dissolution... Anyway, it was a lofty goal and it DID NOT pan out. I wound up just writing romance cuz that's what I know. Maybe on the redraft I can actually give it some substance, lol. And I want to hear your theory!!! Maybe lowkey because I'm winging it and maybe your theory makes for better plotting than my chaotic scramble to tie everything up hahaha. 

louis_stylesthebrave - Yeup, it's definitely a cult lol. A hypocritical, cowardly little cult. 

Kinji_plays - Welllll God's not gonna stab him but he's probably not going to come out of this unscathed, for what it's worth. 

Purplishsunflower - Exactly! Were he alive today, he'd be on a nice cocktail of anti-psychotics, living a lovely normal life, and all of this could have been avoided. 

Mountain077 - I'm glad you didn't hate it! I'm always wary about posting chapters from POVs other than the MCs, so it's good to know it wasn't a complete waste of time, hahaha. 

SocialGrace - Yeah, he gross, lol. Thank you for sticking with me all this time. I hope you are doing well!! I think about you often <3 

Alright, now back to your regularly-scheduled programming 😁

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Josh

His boots sank three inches into the mud as he dismounted, sweating beneath his coat. The sun sat high in the sky, and all that remained of winter's thick blanket of snow was a smattering of muddy clumps, huddled amongst the perpetual shade of the tree roots. The air stank of mud and cow manure and something much less pleasant.

"How many?" he asked without turning to his foreman, who hovered at his elbow. Both their horses were snorting and fidgeting, unsettled by the scene before them.

"Two dozen." Paul's tone was grim.

Two dozen head of cattle. Hardly a devastating loss, considering the size of the ranch. But it wasn't the number.

Josh handed Copper's reins over to Paul and approached the nearest corpse. It was still fresh, the weather cool enough to forestall the worst of the rot, but the stench was unbearable. Every single one, slit open through the belly, viscera spilling out over torn flesh, gut stench permeating the air.

"Never seen anything like it," Paul said, as Josh used his knife to prod at the edges of the wound. Ugly as it was, with all the oozing blood and slippery guts, the slice was clean. Almost methodical.

"Me neither," he agreed, pushing to his feet. "Definitely not wolves. Or bear."

"You think..." Paul trailed off, handing the reins back as Josh returned to his side. They stood together, letting the tail end of his sentence linger in the air as they surveyed the two dozen corpses scattered across the clearing.

"I think it smells like a message," he said finally. "Who was supposed to be watching this herd?"

"Freddy," Paul sighed. "And Ben. They both swear on their mothers they didn't see a thing. Freddy says he took half the herd down to the watering hole and while he was gone Ben heard something fishy by the fence."

"Something fishy?"

"Says it sounded like someone was cutting wire. You know we've had issues out here with the rustlers and whatnot. He went to check on it, found nothing, and when he came back they were like this. I believe 'em both. Poor Freddy's beside himself. You know he's soft as hell. And Ben's a wreck. Blames himself. Says he's a damn fool for leaving the herd."

"Send Ben up to my office tonight," Josh sighed, pulling his hat off and scrubbing a hand through his hair. "I got no intent to fire him, but I need to hear this story for myself. Meantime, is any of this salvageable? Meat? Hide?"

Paul shook his head, removing his own hat and squinting against the sun. "Wouldn't risk it, boss."

"You're probably right," Josh sighed. "Put a crew together and burn the corpses, then. And pull everyone in from the back acres. I don't want a single herd within a quarter mile of the fenceline. Boost the watch, too. Three men per team, at least, and an extra four on the road in. And find out what watering hole Ben and Freddy visited with this herd. We need to test the water before we use it again."

"You got it, boss." Together, they mounted up, and Josh turned Copper's head toward home.

"And Paul?"

"Yeah, boss?"

"Be careful out here, would you? I got a feeling who's behind this and he doesn't play by normal rules."

With a tip of his hat, Paul rode off to the west to check in with the nearest herd, and Josh nudged Copper into a loping run toward the ranch.

He had known that he was taking a risk, accepting Katherine onto the ranch. That's why he'd resisted the whole endeavor, despite his friendship with her. He wanted to help her, and he wanted to help Gabe, but this ranch was home to his employees, wife, sister, father, and most importantly, his daughter. He'd finally dragged his family out from under the reverend's nose—made them too much trouble to pester. He'd felt like he was borrowing trouble, squirreling Katherine and Isobel away on his property.

Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately for his own peace of mind—Amelia had been adamant. She'd been agonizing over Katherine's situation since the day she met the poor woman, and had leaped at the chance to help.

"This is the safest place in the world for her," she had needled him. "We can't turn her away. We're the only ones who can help! Please, Josh. Think of what kind of example we're setting for Reb if we turn her away!"

So he'd acquiesced, living the last few months beneath a hovering blade. And now the sword was falling. Having killed Vivian, the reverend was setting aside his vendetta against the saloon to wage war against his ranch.

It wasn't a whole lot that got Josh angry, but two dozen slaughtered cattle and an unspoken threat against his family sure did the trick.

Copper was frothing by the time they reached the house, and Josh was breathless and heated in a very different way. His intent was to find Amelia and have her talk him off the ledge before he rode straight to the church and planted his fist in the reverend's smug face. He knew she'd be around. Late mornings she spent cajoling Reb into her lessons.

He handed Copper off to one of the ranch hands he'd assigned to watch the house and climbed the porch steps three at a time.

"Ames?" he called, hurriedly washing up in the basin outside the door and stomping the worst of the mud off his boots.

"Study!" she called back, her voice unusually reedy and high. The sound of it forestalled his motions to kick off his boots in the mudroom. Heart hammering, he tossed his coat on the bench by the door and left a trail of muddy boot prints through the entryway and the salon, down the hallway past the kitchen, and into his study.

Amelia sat at the broad oak desk, blonde hair and white blouse glowing in the sunlight, stark against the dark backdrop of leather-bound books and dark-stained paneling. His heart calmed at the sight of her unharmed, but the flush in her cheeks and her shaking hands had his gut twisting.

"Where's Reb, sweetheart?" he asked carefully, stepping into the study.

"In her room with your father," she said, and he heard the tremble in her voice as she pushed up out of his chair and came around the desk. He caught her as she walked straight into his embrace, her whole body shuddering.

"Ames," he breathed, stroking her hair and pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. "Tell me what's the matter."

Her fingers dug into his back, clenching in the fabric of his shirt as she pressed her forehead to the center of his chest and drew several long, deep breaths. He had never had a talent for words, and it was just his luck that he had stumbled into a wife who didn't need them. She spoke sweet words, and in return he was always ready with however long an embrace she required to find her feet.

"We got a package today," she said after a long moment, her voice muffled. When she lifted her face, propping her chin against his sternum, he saw the sheen of unshed tears in his eyes.

"A package?"

She nodded, her arms tightening around him, and he traced a circle between her shoulder blades with his fingers. "Who from?"

She shrugged, but he saw the answer in her eyes. "There wasn't a name."

"What was in the package, Ames?"

Her lips quivered and she lowered her gaze to press her face hard against his chest, as if drawing comfort. Then she pulled away. He followed her to the desk, where he now noticed a small plywood crate sitting by the edge.

"It's awful," she whispered, hovering at his shoulder and clasping his arm as he used a finger to flip the lid open. "I'm just glad I brought it in here to open it. Oh God, Josh, if Reb had seen..."

"Jesus," he breathed, staring down into the dark recesses of the box. He'd lived on a ranch his entire life. He'd seen birth and death, blood and viscera. He'd put his own dog down when the time came. Twice.

But this?

"What the hell is he playing at?" he growled, reaching into the box and tugging at the little red ribbon tied around the furry neck. "This one's from Cleo's last litter, right? Wests bought her?"

Amelia sniffled against his arm. "Red ribbon was for Joneses," she said quietly, her fingers digging into his wrist. "Josh, how... why..."

He sighed and slammed the lid on the gory contents of the box. "He's finally got his head out of his ass and realized we have her," he said somberly. "Who delivered this?"

"One of the men," she said. "He also brought my fabric from the dressmaker, though. And that special feed you ordered last October. He said it was waiting at the General Store with the feed. He assumed it was part of the order."

"Well, Mr. Roberts can bid farewell to our business if he decides he can't remember where it came from," Josh said, pushing the box across the surface of the desk. "I'll go see him tomorrow. And the Joneses."

Amelia's fingers dug deeper into his arm. "Josh, you can't go to town! Not right now! This is a message."

"I won't go alone," he murmured, turning her and wrapping her back up in his arms. "I'll take a whole posse with me. But we need to face this head on, or he's just going to get bolder."

"Is there anybody it could be beside the reverend?" she asked, her cheek pressed to his chest and her arms locked around his waist.

"Don't reckon so," he said, resting his own cheek on the top of her head. "Dunno if you know this, Ames, but we're mighty popular around here. I don't think we've got any other enemies."

She laughed feebly, hugging him tighter and sniffing back more tears. "I still don't want you to go. Can't you send someone else? How would you feel if I went gallivanting around the hills right now?"

A chill stole up his back at the thought. "Ames—"

"Relax," she sighed, easing her hold on him just enough to pat his back. "I'm not going anywhere. But you see what I mean, right?"

"Yeah, sweetheart. But you know I have to take care of this myself. There's no reasoning with the reverend, but maybe if some of his followers see that we aren't taking this lightly he'll lose support for whatever scheme he's working on."

"You're sure it's him?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

She shivered against him, her words uncharacteristically small and meek. "I had hoped he was done with us, Josh."

"I did, too."

"What are we going to do about Katherine?"

He'd been reluctant to take her in, but he could hardly turn her out on the streets now that they'd assumed responsibility for her safety. Surely that's not what Amelia was implying. "What do you mean?"

"What are we going to tell her?"

"Nothing!" he exclaimed, pulling back and frowning down at her upturned face. "Why the hell would we frighten her with this? She's scared enough already, Ames."

His wife scowled up at him. "She's not a child, Joshua. We can't just lie to her."

He scowled right back. "There's nothing she can do. What's the point of bothering her with it?"

Amelia stepped back and propped her hands on her hips. "There's nothing you can do when the baby makes me nauseous," she said, placing a hand on the small swell of her belly, and Josh was reminded once again how very much he had to lose. "I suppose I'll just not bother you with it, anymore."

"That's different," he said through gritted teeth.

"How?" Damn that stubborn lift to her chin. It always made him forget the line of his argument in favor of vivid thoughts of kissing her.

"I..." he struggled to remember her last point, crossing his arms over his chest to guard against the lethal beauty of her. "It's different, Ames. You're my wife. You feeling lousy is my business. And anyway, I gotta know in case it gets worse."

"Well, by that reasoning doesn't Katherine deserve to know her husband knows she's here? In case the situation gets worse? And he is her husband, so aren't all of his slimy dealings her business?"

Digging his fingers into his upper arms, Josh narrowed his eyes at his wife. His beautiful, pregnant, stubborn, brilliant wife. "If you're so damn clever, why don't you do the books this week?" he finally spat, his muscles already going loose with the realization that he'd lost the argument.

"Oh, Josh." Amelia's voice had gone from stiff to sweet. She, too, knew who had won. She stepped forward and looped her arms around his neck, rising up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "My cleverness doesn't extend to numbers, you know that."

"Yes it does."

"It does," she sighed. "But I don't enjoy the books, you know?"

"And I do?"

"Oh, heavens no. But it is your job."

"And your job is...?"

"To tend to your home and bear your children."

He snorted and combed his fingers through the loose curls of her hair. "You are such a liar. So... how are we going to do it?"

She sighed and pressed her body against his once more, her voice vibrating against his ribs. "I'll talk to Katherine. We can go this afternoon. Reb's been itching for a visit."

"I'm coming with you."

"Of course you are. But you have to let me handle the conversation."

As if he had any desire to involve himself in that ugly business. He didn't argue. "We're taking at least two of the men with us, as well. No more quiet rides until all this blows over."

"But Josh—"

"I've conceded every other point, Amelia. Please."

She sighed, her breasts shifting against his chest. "Fine." And he had to wonder if she'd ever really wanted to ride out just the three of them. Sometimes he thought she started stupid arguments just to let him win so he wouldn't realize that she never truly gave an inch. Not where it mattered to her.

Lucky for her, it didn't bother him much to let her have her way.

Lucky for him, her way was always the smartest one anyhow.

Lucky for both of them...

* * *

Well... this wasn't going well.

Josh had left his wife with Katherine and a pot of coffee in the kitchen, and gone to get Reb settled with Isobel. Melissa was in her makeshift clinic, resetting two broken fingers for one of his idiot ranch hands who had taken a tumble off a perfectly well-broke horse.

Once Isobel and Rebecca were immersed in some imaginary forest, capturing wood nymphs with lassos made of yarn, he quietly returned to the kitchen to discover just how poorly it was going.

Amelia sat at the table, the picture of composure but for her white-knuckled grip on the delicate china coffee mug. Katherine was standing, her chair shoved out behind her, eyes wide and wild. Amelia's eyes flicked to his, and she saw the command in them. Let me handle it.

As quiet and unobtrusive as possible, he sank into an empty chair beside his wife.

"Katherine, please just listen," Amelia cajoled, gesturing at Josh. "We've already discussed this. We don't think—"

"I can't," Katherine breathed, her brows drawing together, helpless tears shining in her eyes. "You said he killed... he killed a...." With a shudder, she sank back into her chair and buried her face in her hands. "I have to leave."

"We don't want you to leave," Amelia said gently. "That's what I'm trying to tell you. You're safe here. We are safe here. He's sending these ugly messages because he knows that. He's trying to frighten you. Frighten us. He wants you to leave."

Josh watched Katherine's body go still. He felt the change in her more than he saw it-- muscles tensing, lungs filling so full it slowed her heart. He'd felt the same change in himself, the day he finally grew a spine and stood up to his father. When Katherine's head lifted, he saw an eerily-familiar glint in her eye.

Defiance.

"It's not as if we're going to put a bulletin out about it," she said harshly. "We'll... we'll leave in the night. We'll sneak away. Once Isobel and I are long gone you can tell Jacob to come see for himself that we're not here."

"It's not safe," Amelia said sternly. "If he suspects you're here, he'll have people watching the roads."

"Then we won't take the roads!" Katherine's voice had the hushed, frantic quality of a woman who wanted nothing more than to scream but knew that her child was close by. Josh had fought with his wife in the same acidic whisper. Hell, he'd made love to his wife with the same stifled passion. "We can go through the woods. I've lived here my whole life. So have you, Josh." Her shining eyes turned to his, yanking him unwillingly into the conversation. "You know as well as I do there's ways to get to Ridgecreek without taking the roads."

He sighed. "It's just not necessary, Katherine, and--"

"It doesn't matter," she cut him off, shaking her head. "It's not as if we planned to stay forever, anyway. We were always going to leave. Now we're just... we're doing it a little sooner, that's all. Waiting isn't going to help anything. It'll just get worse. Tensions will get higher. Your family will suffer more. Your business will suffer more. Jacob will get angrier. He's declaring war on you, don't you see?" Her eyes now carried a willful hardness. Josh was familiar with the wild brilliance Katherine had been before her marriage had buried her in fear and doubt. Nonetheless, it was a shock to see it. He had thought that woman gone forever. Clearly he'd been mistaken.

"We can win a war against that worthless slimeball," Amelia said, reaching out to take his hand and draw them into a united front. "Can't we, Josh?"

"Of course," he agreed, turning his gaze to Katherine. "There's no reason to be afraid, Kath—"

"I'm not afraid," she snapped, glaring at him, and he physically shifted away from the strength of it. It was like seeing a rabbit open its harmless mouth and emit the snarl of a bobcat. "I'm not. Not anymore. I brought this trouble to your doorstep, and now I'm going to pack it up and put it on a train and take it so far away it never touches you again. We cannot wait. If we wait, this war will commence and we'll be trapped here forever. Not that I'm not grateful for everything you've done, but I can't hide on this hilltop while the lot of you spend years locked in battle over me. I can't raise my daughter in a prison of my own creation. If we leave now, before things escalate, we can get away. You can put this thing with Jacob to bed. Bring his whole posse out here and let them search the place. Make him look the fool for setting his men against you. His flock will resent him for turning them against the most lucrative ranch in the territory. Isobel and I will be free... it's best for everyone."

Josh glanced at Amelia, who glanced at him. She lifted one slender shoulder in a tiny shrug and he raised one eyebrow in the same silent message.

She's got a point. A damn good point.

"I'll arrange an escort for you," he said, turning back to Katherine. "I'll have one of my men ride to Ridgecreek and purchase tickets for next Saturday and—"

"We're leaving tomorrow."

"Katherine," Amelia sighed. "At least give yourself a week to--"

"A week might as well be a lifetime," the other woman said, harsh and unyielding. "Look at the trouble he's made for you in just a day. Think of what all he could do with a week. We have to leave now. We can purchase the tickets when we get there, and as soon as we're on the train you can invite him out to search the place."

Josh sighed and checked in with Amelia once again. Resignation was written in every line of her face. "Alright," he acquiesced. "If you're sure, Katherine. I'll take you mys—"

"No. You need to stay at the ranch. It's a day and a half ride to Ridgecreek by the road. Longer through the woods. You can't leave your family alone for that long. And even if you could, your absence would draw attention. The whole purpose of this effort is to show Jacob and his followers that I was never here. Give me..." she trailed off, frowning with a studious intensity into her coffee mug. "Just lend me a horse. And two men to bring the horse back from Ridgecreek. Anything more and the whole effort to move undetected will be ruined."

Irrationally annoyed, Josh glared at Katherine, and then at Amelia. "You two ought to play chess together," he grumbled. "Here I thought my wife was the only woman in this town walking around with the mind of a general hiding beneath her braids."

Amelia snorted and kicked him beneath the table. Katherine's eyes were shining, no longer with tears but with an uncharacteristic excitement. She looked... alive.

"Thank you," she said, laying a soft hand atop Josh's and another over Amelia's. "Thank you for everything you've done for me, and for Isobel. And thank you for listening to me. I know I can never repay you—"

"You don't have to," Amelia said, turning her hand over and wrapping her fingers around Katherine's. Josh couldn't help but notice the strength of his wife's hand beside the other woman's. By his measure, Amelia was delicate. Compared to Katherine, she was positively robust. And what, he was supposed to let this woman, just months after she was beaten nearly to death, steal off into the night with nothing more than a horse and a couple of his men?

As if she sensed his turmoil—which, knowing his wife, she did—Amelia turned a hard look his way. "Isn't that right, Josh?"

"Of course," he agreed, though he couldn't remember what she'd last said. Distracted, he pulled his hand from under Katherine's. "I'm going to go check on the girls."

He left Amelia and Katherine making plans in hushed tones, and rejoined the two little girls in the living room. Both spared him a squeaky hello and a wave before they went back to launching themselves from one piece of furniture to the next because of 'all the wolves and snakes on the floor. Don't you see 'em?' He sank onto the low stool beside the hearth, letting the fire heat his back and watching the rambunctious children laugh and leap from couch to chair to loveseat, rope belts around their waists and adventure in their eyes.

This time tomorrow, Isobel would be packed and preparing for a real adventure. A harrowing trek through woods populated with wolves and bears, and nevermind that the bears would be in hibernation for at least another two weeks and the wolves in these parts knew better than to come near armed, mounted humans. Nevermind that she'd have two men, trustworthy and armed to the teeth, escorting her. Nevermind that her own mother would sooner die than see her come to harm.

How would he feel, sending Amelia and Reb out on a similar journey? Even the thought had his belly twisting and his hands clenching into involuntary fists. Now, if he were with them it would be an entirely different story. Not because he was so much more capable than the men he'd be sending, but because Amelia and Rebecca were his. Not to command or own, but to protect. That drive was carved into his very bones, and what better wall to stand between them and danger than the man whose blood roared their names in his ears?

That thought brought the swirling panic in his mind to an abrupt halt.

Maybe there was a way to make this right. 

*** 

For those of you who came from Something Borrowed (which should be most/all of you?), I hope you enjoyed this little foray back into Josh/Amelia-land. And if you didn't come from Something Borrowed, you really should head over there and check it out while I'm finishing this thing up. Josh and Ames are the OG power couple, and they'll recur throughout the series, especially in Melissa's book. 

In other news-- it's been a while since I plugged my mailing list so if you're not already on it please go to my website (www.lptvorik.com), scroll halfway down the homepage, and hit subscribe. My aspiration is to start self-publishing soon, and I am trying to do it right, with all the (blech) marketing and (ugh) promotion that comes with it. 

Right now I'm sitting at sixty-nine subscribers, which is obviously HILARIOUS, but I still wouldn't mind having more!!!

Alrighty, that's all for now. As always, thank you for reading! 

Love

Liz

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