Rancher Rescue by Barb Han

while Katherine had been away on a school trip. Leann had sneaked him to the park off-leash to catch a Frisbee after Katherine had said no. He’d followed the round disc far into the brush and never come back out. The whole time Katherine had been gone, she’d had no idea her dog was missing.
    He’d been gone for three days by the time Katherine returned home. She hadn’t cared. She’d looked for him anyway. She’d searched the park, the area surrounding the open field, and the woods, but he was nowhere to be found.
    Losing Hero had delivered a crushing blow to Katherine.
    It was the last time she’d allowed her sister around anything she cared about.
    She sighed. When it came to Leann, just about anything was possible.
    “We don’t have any other leads. It’s a good place to start.”
    She wanted—no, needed—to believe her sister wasn’t capable of spite. Leann had always been a free thinker. She was Bohemian, a little eccentric, not a calculated criminal. Especially not the type to hold on to hate or to try to hurt someone else.
    Desperation nearly caved Katherine.
    “We’ll find the connection and put this behind you.” Caleb’s words were meant to comfort her. They didn’t.
    They would be at Leann’s place soon and there had to be something there to help them. Get to the apartment. Find whatever it is the men want. Exchange the file for Noah. Mourn her sister. Try to forget this whole ordeal happened. If only life were so easy.
    The hum of the tires on the highway coupled with the safety of being with someone who had her back for once allowed her to relax a little. Maybe she could lay her head back and drift off. Adrenaline had faded, draining her reserves.
    She closed her eyes for at least an hour before the GPS told them to turn left. “Destination is on the right.”
    Katherine’s heart skipped. In two hundred feet, a murderer might be waiting. Or the ticket to saving her nephew. Oh, God, it had to be there. Otherwise, she had nothing.
    Caleb pulled his gun from the floorboard as he drove past the white two-story apartment building.
    The GPS recalculated. “Make the next legal U-turn.”
    He pressed Stop. “We better not risk walking in the front door. We don’t know who might be waiting on the other side.”
    Good point. “There’s a back stairwell. We can go through the kitchen entrance.”
    Even long past midnight on a weekday, the streets and sidewalks teamed with college students milling around. Activity buzzed as groups of twos and threes crisscrossed the road into the night. Music thumped from backyards. Lights were strung outside. It would be easy to blend into this environment.
    He put the car in Park a few buildings down from Leann’s place. “We can walk from here. But first, I want to check in with Matt.”
    Katherine agreed. She had no idea what waited for her at her sister’s. Her stomach was tied in knots.
    “Matt’s voice mail picked up.” Caleb closed the phone. “I’m setting my phone to vibrate. You might want to do the same.”
    “Great idea.” Katherine numbly palmed her phone. She stared at the metal rectangle for a long moment, half afraid, half daring it to ring. In one second, it had the power to change her life forever and she knew it. Think of something else. Anything.
    Caleb took her hand. She followed him through the dark shadows, fighting against the pain shooting through her leg.
    He stopped at the bottom of the stairwell and mouthed, “Stay here.”
    “No.” Katherine shook her head for emphasis.
    “Let me check it out first. I’ll signal when it’s okay.”
    “What if someone’s out here watching?” Katherine didn’t want to let her cowboy out of her sight. She’d never been this scared, and if he broke the link between them, she was certain all her confidence would dissipate. “I want to go with you. Besides, you don’t know what you’re looking for.”
    His eyes were intense. Dark. Pleading. “I don’t like taking risks with