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Prologue

Tobias

Stepping throughwith one problelass of iced tea and a hothay and wrangling a dozen little lambs that broke free They “baa’ed” their happy little hearts out as they played in the fields

I take off hmy head, I crack my neck and then stretchme it’s well past dinnertime Irritation hitstoain I already warned the woman that I worked too damn hard to eat a salad for dinner

I fucking hate salads I’reat physical condition, and I need real damn calories to keep my body fueled As a former athlete, I’d max six thousand calories just to keep muscle Now retired, I still need four thousand because I stay busy on my family ranch

I push open the swinging kitchen door and stare “Son of a bitch” There’s not a da or dishes on the counter

Nothing

Where the hell is that wo a feeeks back after my last cook, Thelma, retired Well, she quit, but I like to say retired It makes me look less like an ass that way Not that I care what people think, but no one wants to work for a bossy bastard

I have gone through more cooks since my mother passed than in my entire life I don’t know if it’s my surly attitude or , but they’ve always gone This one has to beat it as well I’ve had enough of her flighty behavior I reach into the fridge to pourpitcher of iced tea is empty

What sick, twisted soul puts it back in the fridge ass-empty?

I snatch up a bottle of water to quench my thirst It’s the end of the summer, so the heat and hard work make me endlessly thirsty I take out the pointlessly chilled pitcher and set it on the counter I’ll deal with that problem later

Did she take a nap or so? She’s a few years older than me, but she doesn’t have a work ethic at all If I kne to cook, I’d have no use for her, but I burn everything but coffee, and even that’s total shit

I don’t know this woency that specializes in that kind of thing She’s not a great cook and her cleaning has gone froood to nonexistent I’m too damn tired most days to care, but she finally pushedto need to find another job right away

Dang, I don’t hear any noise I walk through the entire first floor, and she’s nowhere to be found Her bedroom on the first floor is empty and a mess Screw it I need a damn shower anyway I stomp up the stairs toward my bedroom and hear the first sounds of movement—the telltale sound of the floorboard in my bedroom that I need to fix creaks “What the hell?” I whisper to un on me Is someone in the faine so in there There’s another in my office, but it’s a hidden one

“He’s co Shit Hide,” I hear in a hushed tone Hurriedtellto do hat’s going on in there Rage boils in, I sla his pants while Nina’s covering herself with my favorite blanket