Chapter 14 - Secrets in the Dark
The tension in the valley grew thick enough to cut with a knife. David found himself sleeping poorly, waking up at the slightest sound outside his window. His sons, Toby and Leo, sensed the danger. They no longer played as far into the tall grass, staying close to the house under the watchful eye of Frank.
It was a Tuesday night when the drama escalated from legal harassment to physical danger.
Around 2:00 AM, the dogs began barking frantically in the barn. David bolted out of bed, grabbing his flashlight and his old hunting rifle—not intending to use it, but knowing he needed protection. He threw on a jacket and ran out into the chilly night air.
The barn doors were swinging open in the wind. Inside, the cattle were panicked, pacing wildly in their stalls. David rushed inside, shouting for Frank, who lived in the small cottage adjacent to the barn.
"Frank! Are you there?" David called out.
He heard a low groan from the back of the barn. David rushed over and found Frank sitting on the straw, holding his head, which was bleeding from a nasty cut. The cottage door had been kicked in, and Frank’s desk had been completely ransacked.
"They... they took it, David," Frank rasped, wincing as David helped him up. "Two men. Wore ski masks. They came for the hydrologist’s data files. Dr. Vance left her backup hard drive in my desk."
David’s blood boiled. "Don't worry about the drive, Frank. Are you alright?"
"I’m fine, just a bit dizzy. Caught me off guard," Frank muttered, leaning on David. "But that drive contained the final chemical analysis. If they destroy it, we don't have our evidence for the hearing next week."
David called 911 and then called Dr. Vance. Luckily, Dr. Vance was a meticulous scientist. "They stole a dummy drive," she revealed over the phone, her voice shaking but relieved. "I always keep the primary data encrypted on a secure cloud server. They have nothing, David. But this proves how desperate they are."
Sheriff Miller arrived within fifteen minutes, forensic kit in hand. He examined the broken lock and the muddy footprints left behind by the intruders.
"These aren't amateur thieves," Tom said, looking at a specific tread pattern in the mud. "These are professional tactical boots. The kind used by private security firms. Meredith Sterling has brought in outside muscle."
"This is an act of war, Tom," David said, his eyes dark with determination. "They assaulted Frank. They broke into my property. If the law can't stop them, I will protect my own."
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"We do this by the book, David," Tom warned, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "If you take the bait and attack them, Meredith wins. She’ll have you arrested, and the land will be hers without a fight. Let me do my job. We are going to find out who ordered this."
The next morning, David refused to let his sons go to school without an escort. The sanctuary of the field now felt like a fortress under siege.
