Free The Pineview Incident by Kayla Griffith

love thing is hard to ignore.”
    “But what did we see, really? Was it enough to get the town up in arms?”
    “We saw Pa Gilbertson resembling a suspicious clown and children carrying sheep to go have sheep love with,” Donna said. “There were three possibly kidnapped teenagers, strange metal poles, odd men, and way too many bad scenarios for my peace of mind. Right now, a mother ship full of lethal barnyard animals led by supremacist ewes all preparing for an invasion of Earth is just about as good an answer as any.”
    Mark took a long drink from his cup. “I’m not sure. Lots of farmers hire teens to work on the farm, and if I’m not mistaken, two of those teens graduated. Being a sheep farmer in Idaho isn’t unusual. Metal poles could be used for any number of reasons.”
    “Name one.”
    “Maybe they’re making a high tech sheep pen.”
    “So, we need to convince the town the Gilbertsons have gone high tech? Do you really expect that story to fly?”
    Mark fell silent and rubbed his jaw. At that moment, his cell phone began to vibrate, and Mark picked it up. “It’s Rob Michaels.” He looked at Donna expectantly.
    “Tell him the truth, that we don’t know exactly what’s up there and we plan to go back to the farm to figure it out. Not only will it hold off the town, but we can spend time together while we’re supposed to be spying.”
    Mike gave her a quick peck on the lips. “I knew there was a reason I fell for you.” He pushed the speak button on the phone. “Hey, Rob. No, we’re fine. Nope, no burn marks or anything.” He paused for a moment, and Donna leaned in. Rob was saying something about mortal enemies.
    “No, no serious injuries. Hard to work with that cantankerous woman, though. She’s demanding.”
    Donna stuck her tongue out at him.
    “Preacher’s wives are a strange breed,” said Chief Michaels in agreement. “Did you guys have a knock-down, drag-out fight?”
    “You wouldn’t believe how bad it got. The woman virtually attacked me. Once she got her mouth going, there was no stopping her. It got pretty physical there for a bit.”
    Donna kicked Mark under the table and covered her laugh with her hands.
    “Thanks for taking one for the team, Mark. Now, did you two learn anything about the suspicious events at the Gilbertsons’ place?”
    Donna bit her lip.
    “It was hard to make out,” Mark began. He cleared his throat. “It looks from the outside like they’ve got some kind of high tech sheep operation going on. Something with invisible fences and such. I saw the workmen, and they seemed human enough.”
    “ Sheep ?” Rob Michaels’s voice sounded incredulous. “Are you trying to convince me this is about high tech sheep ?” His voice rose with every word.
    “No, of course not,” Marks said quickly. “I’m saying we couldn’t make out anything other than the outside activities. I want to go back over the next week or two to try and catch them at whatever it is they’re doing. We need solid evidence, not hearsay.”
    “True enough,” Rob agreed. “Are you sure you didn’t see any ray guns or anything?”
    “Well, there were these shiny poles…”
    “I knew it!” Rob whooped in victory. “Told you. Decorating show, my fat ass.”
    “Hold off there, Chief. I said shiny poles, not ray guns. I need to head back up that mountain to really get a fix on things.”
    Rob grunted. “Take Donna with you. I trust her more than you. She’s a preacher’s wife and all.”
    “Ha! You couldn’t care less about her religion. You trust her because she’s not in on the bet,” Mark said.
    “You can take her or me, Lewis. It’s your choice.”
    Donna beamed at Mark. Their relationship was practically police sanctioned.
    “You have no idea what you’re asking me, but I’ll do it,” Mark said with a heavy sigh. He hung up the phone and began chuckling.
    Donna leaned over and stopped his laughter with a kiss. It took a while to pull back. “That was