Under The Southern Sky (ON HOLD)

Chapter 27

Laughter filled the kitchen as everyone had several glasses of lemonade and Bo couldn't help but stare at Mercy Rae with love; complete and utter love. He knew her birthday was coming up soon and he knew the perfect gift.

The good mood that filled the tiny house was shattered as something heavy flew through the living room window making Mercy Rae scream, Bo covered her with his body and Hank and Tuck ran into the other room to see what happened.

Bo and Mercy Rae came from the kitchen in time to see Tuck run outside and Hank bend over and pick up what looked like a rock. There was writing on it; bold, black writing. It said you've been warned.

Mercy looked at Bo and for the first time since he'd known her she had fear written all over her face and the thought of someone threatening her made his blood boil.

Before he could say anything Tuck had come back in. He was out of breath and apparently he'd seen a pickup truck and tried chasing it down but the driver was too fast in his getaway.

"The damned asshole was too quick and there were no plates on the truck and I figured by the time law enforcement got here it'd be long gone anyhow." He was pissed as was Hank. Someone had threatened their family and that didn't set well with the Watkins'.

"Mercy Rae, you can't stay here. You're comin home with me" Bo said tightly. The young woman turned around, staring at him.

Placing her hands on her hips, she sized up all three men before letting Bo have it. "I can't just turn tail and run, Brody!" She was pissed and he understood that but her safety was more important than the ranch or anything on it.

"I can handle myself just fine. I have daddy's twelve gauge and I've got Lacey and Laila. I'll be fine. I'm not giving that asshole what he wants and he wants my land. Well he can't have it! It's mine!" She was so pissed off now she was crying.

They knew she was referring to Mathis Gillis and he'd already made an open threat against her the night she held the BBQ. He would stop at nothing before he got what he lusted after and that was her land.

"Damn it Merc!" Bo yelled making her jump. He instantly felt like an ass but he couldn't have her staying where danger was imminent and a real issue.

"It's not open for discussion. We'll bring the girls and have someone look in on the farm but you can't stay here until we can bring Mathis to heel."

The look she gave him broke his heart because he knew that he'd broken her or came pretty close to it with his domineering edge.

"I think I would like for everyone to leave now. I'm tired and I have chores to tend to" she said, her voice quiet and sad.

"Merc, I..." Bo started. She shook her head and pointed to the door. "Please just go. I can't do this" she said turning towards the kitchen.

Hank grabbed Bo's arm gently. "Come on son. Give her some space and time. She'll come around. She's just as headstrong and stubborn as her old man. Come on boys" Hank opened the front door as Bo took one more look in the direction of the kitchen.

Huffing he slapped his hat against his thigh and slammed out of the house and into Hank's truck and sat there brooding.

The cab of the truck was filled with an uncomfortable silence; a silence where there was plenty to say but no one wanted to take that first step, until Hank did.

"Son, you've got to let this go. Our girl's got somethin to prove and she won't stop until she proves every man in this town wrong. I know it's not what you want to hear Bo, but there it is and as your friend and Mercy Rae's father, I'm askin you to give her space."

"She's gonna get hurt" Bo said softly as he watched Tuck glance over at his daddy.

"Mmm, yeah maybe but you just need to make sure you're there to help her up when she falls. That little filly's got a lot of proud runnin through her veins and I'm not sayin its good, it ain't but if we try and strap her down, she'll get pushed further away from us and none of us wants that." Hank's words were spoken in wisdom but still of little comfort to Bo.

And speaking of comfort, Bo would find little in the next coming days because that would be the measure of time that Mercy Rae had put between them and it was killing him slowly.

He'd had enough and he'd given her four days of complete silence; he hadn't called her, texted her or tried to see her. He just threw himself into his chores on the ranch; working from sun up to sun down and then every evening, he went to bed with a heavy heart. No more; he was putting a stop to it tonight.

His heart dropped as his truck came to a screeching stop outside of his girlfriend's home. There was another pickup parked outside and Bo didn't recognize it. In fact, he'd never seen it around town before.

The curtains to her bedroom were wide open and what he saw made his heart stop. There was a man, on top of her, in her bed, and she looked like she was trying to struggle but something was stopping her; maybe she'd been given something.

Somehow she managed to turn her head and when their eyes connected, he knew she was in trouble and put his finger to his lips, motioning her to keep quiet. Her eyes closed, in what looked like relief as Bo picked up a solid piece of firewood and stepped carefully onto the front porch.

Slipping off his boots, Bo moved quietly in his sock feet, making it inside the house without a sound and as he got closer to Mercy's room, he heard the man and it sickened him.

"Girly you was warned and you didn't listen, so now I'm gonna have to make you learn a lesson. You won't like it too much but it's gonna be fun for me" the evil man laughed as he started to unbuckle his belt.

He never got the chance to lay a finger on Mercy Rae because about that time Bo hit him upside the head with the wood and the man rolled off the bed and onto the floor.

Frantically Bo managed to get his phone from his back jeans pocket while sitting on the bed next to his girlfriend trying to comfort her as her body began to lose consciousness.

He called 911, gave them all of the details and then he called Hank and Tuck. He continued shouting at her to try and stay awake but whatever the man gave her, rendered her incapacitated.

Bo could hear the sirens as they got closer and he prayed "Please God! Don't take her from me!" And then he spoke to Mercy Rae. "Come on baby! Hang in there, help is on the way!"

'