“There’s more than your pride at stake here.”
The quiet words cut through her sharper than a surgeon’s blade. “You think I don’t know that? Even if I only cared about the animals, their lives are at risk here, too. What do you think will happen to them if they escape or hurt somebody? The news covered a story last year when some privately owned, large predators were released from their enclosure. There wasn’t enough time to get tranquilizers and wait for them to work. They were all killed. I know the stakes here, for people and the animals.”
“Then why is there another hole in your fence? Why doesn’t your director acknowledge there’s a problem? Is he even aware of what’s happening? And who is Hannah? What happened to her?”
Seyla’s eyebrows shot upward at the barrage of questions.
What if the rumors had reached Jax about how she got this job? Did he consider her unqualified, too?
Seyla pushed past the humiliating thoughts and focused on the last two questions. “Hannah Ponz. She was the last Operations Manager. She only worked here for five months before she died.”
Jax gaped at her. “Died?! How?”
Seyla rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t anything suspicious. She had a heart condition. She died of a heart attack.” At his skeptical grimace, she added, “She was at home by herself at the time. Her apartment had been burglarized earlier in the day. The coroner thought the stress must have brought on the heart attack. She’d had that condition for years. See? No foul play.”
“Did they ever find the person who burglarized the place?”
“No, but the police thought neighborhood kids did it searching for cash to buy drugs. The paper had recently run an article concerning several similar thefts in the area.”
“Who wrote the article?”
“Not sure. I’ll find out if Victor wrote it.”
Jax’s eyes narrowed, his gaze on something in the distance over her shoulder. “Did she have any enemies who could have broken into her place to scare her? I bet you have plenty now that you’re in the same position. Travis Yoder, for instance?”
Seyla thought for a second. “Hmm. It’s possible. She could have discovered something illegal regarding the canned hunts in the area. A lot of it’s under the table; we can’t prove anything. Honestly, I didn’t know for sure Travis was involved until Eth—until somebody told me.”
No way was she telling him about Ethan. Jax dated sophisticated, smart women. It embarrassed her to admit that the one guy she’d dated in the town turned out to be such a cruel person, with an uncle who behaved worse. It had certainly reinforced her family’s belief that she needed sheltered. Why would he react any differently?
Why had she gone on those few dates with Ethan, anyway?
Loneliness. Loneliness brought on by long hours at a new job and no social life. An easy target for someone like him, just like her family thought. The realization hurt. Was she that naïve? That weak?
Before Seyla knew it, she’d begun rubbing her fingers across the opal necklace at her neck. Until she glanced up. Jax pinned his gaze on her, frowning. She dropped the hand to her side as if she’d been caught shoplifting.
Did he know its significance? She hoped not.
He stepped back. “For the time being, I think you better focus on getting your employees to regularly check the fencing. Because if I feel my uncle is in danger ever again”—his eyesbored straight into hers—“I won’t hesitate to do whatever is necessary to eliminate that danger.”
Seyla gulped. “I’ll arrange for people to check the perimeter throughout the day. I don’t know what’s going on with Allen, but I’ll make sure he understands that’s part of his job.” She pointed at the picture. “Can you send me a copy of that? I’ll talk to the director. We can’t take any chances it could happen again. The fence will be fixed within the next hour. I promise you that. Even if I have to fix it myself.”
The fact that his uncle, Sam Harrison, had suffered as a result of her inability to control her employees left a bitter pill on her tongue. It wouldn’t happen again. Hannah’s death served as a horrible reminder of what could have happened to Jax’s uncle. Could she fault him for being upset? No. And he was right. She’d have to make arrangements for staff or volunteers to double or triple the fence checks on a daily basis. People wouldn’t like it. What choice did she have, though? First she’d find Allen, wherever he disappeared to, and learn what was so important on that phone that he’d abandoned her to such a macabre fate as easy prey for an apex predator. A shiver prickled her skin at the prospect.
“What’s your phone number? I’ll send it now.”
Seyla watched Jax press some buttons on his phone, after which he eyed her, an expectant expression on his face. His chiseled, handsome face. The gold in his hazel eyes gleamed in the sunlight as he stared at her. Stared at her. He was staring at her. Why did she feel nervous? It wasn’t like he wanted her number to call and ask for a date. After what had happened, past and present, the idea was laughable.
Wait. What did he ask her? Oh, right. She rattled off the digits for him. More than ever, she thanked God for her tanned complexion, compliments of her Filipino mother’s side of the family. It hid the blood rushing to her cheeks somewhat. Howlong had she made him stand there, waiting for the number? So embarrassing.
Seyla stepped back and tripped over…what? She scanned the ground. No cracks, rocks, sticks, potholes, not even a pebble.Did I seriously trip over nothing?
Jax grasped her shoulders to steady her. “Are you okay?”
She straightened her already straight shirt, and he dropped his arms. “Yeah. No problem. I trip all the time.”
Way to go. Tell him you’re clumsy.
She pointed at the door behind her, strangely breathless. “I’m…uh…I better get in there and get this over with. I’ll let you know what’s happening.”