Free Alaskan Sanctuary by Teri Wilson

this. His column that had now gone viral. The so-called feud had gotten out of hand, and now some idiot thought it was okay to come here and terrorize Piper.
    Maybe wolves weren’t the only dangers lurking in the shadows of her forest.
    Ethan’s gaze darted to the cluster of hemlock trees to his right and then scanned the horizon. There was no sign of anything else amiss. Nothing. No one. Just the papery bark of the aspen trees, snow soft as feathers and the graceful lope of the watchful wolves.
    Fingers numb from the cold, he pulled his cell phone out of the pocket of his parka and dialed Tate Hudson.
    He answered on the first ring. “Hudson here.”
    “Tate, it’s Ethan. I’m out at the wolf sanctuary, and we’ve got a problem.” He turned his back on the cabin, but somehow still saw red. He’d probably be seeing red for a long time, at least as long as it took to find whoever had done this.
    “A problem?” Tate let out a laugh. “Does the audacious Ms. Quinn have you doing more dirty work today?”
    Of course he’d read the article. Everyone from Alaska to the South Pole had read it, apparently. “This is serious. How fast can you get out here?”
    Very fast, as it turned out.
    Less than twenty minutes later, Tate’s police cruiser pulled to a stop alongside Ethan’s SUV. By then Ethan had walked the perimeter of Piper’s property, searching for signs of more vandalism. He’d come up empty. No more painted messages. And no Piper, either. Which would have given him an immediate ulcer if not for the fact that her car was also absent. She’d probably gone to run an errand or something. Still, he’d feel better when she returned, and he knew she was safely out of harm’s way.
    Since when is this place safe?
    “Any idea when this happened?” Tate snapped a few photos of the graffiti with his cell phone, which Ethan had already done.
    “No idea. I got here less than half an hour ago, and I haven’t seen Piper. I’m guessing she went into town.”
    “She couldn’t have come outside without noticing this, and we haven’t had any calls at the station this morning. Not a one.” Tate shook his head and pocketed his phone. “Do you think Piper would have contacted the police if the paint had been here first thing this morning?”
    “I’d hope so.” But Ethan couldn’t say for certain. Piper gave him the impression that she believed she could singlehandedly take on the world, which he found equal parts maddening and captivating.
    But she would have been upset if she’d seen this. Extremely upset. Devastated.
    Ethan didn’t like the thought of a devastated Piper Quinn. Not one bit.
    “Maybe she drove into town to report it in person,” Tate suggested.
    “No.” Ethan shook his head. “She wouldn’t have left the wolves. Not after something like this.”
    She would have stayed right here alongside them, all alone, in the middle of nowhere. Unarmed and unprotected. He knew enough about Piper to be certain of that.
    “I can dust for prints and take a look around, but I doubt we’ll find anything. We usually don’t in these circumstances,” Tate said. “Unfortunately.”
    “Should we be worried about this?” We. As if he and Piper were a team. A couple. “I mean, do you think she’s in danger up here?” Other than the obvious. The wolves.
    Tate shook his head. “I doubt it. Aurora’s a safe place. You know that, Ethan. Chances are far more likely that this is the work of kids rather than a dangerous criminal. I’d place my bets on someone who’s just getting a little too stirred up by what’s being printed in the paper these days.” He raised his brows at Ethan.
    Ethan’s jaw clenched. Why did he feel as if he had red on his hands? “All the same, do you think you could keep an eye on her out here? Just in case.”
    “Sure. I’ll make certain we get a patrol car out here regularly, at least until things settle down.”
    Until you stop attacking one another in the