The Tourist Attraction (Moose Springs, Alaska #1)(78)
The ring of his cell phone interrupted whatever Lana was about to say. Graham glanced at it, then frowned deeper, holding up a finger. “Sorry, ladies, I need to take this. What’s up, Jonah?”
Standing at his side, Zoey could hear the officer’s voice on the other end. “I’ve got some bad news, Graham. I’m real sorry to be the one making this call.”
Zoey watched the blood drain from Graham’s face, his fist balling at his side.
“Who is it?” he asked quietly.
“That moose that’s always hanging around your place charged some tourists tonight. Someone got hurt.”
The tension in him didn’t ease, but he did inhale a tight breath. “Start with that next time, man. I thought it was Mom or Dad. Did he kill anyone?”
“No, but they’re airlifting the husband to Anchorage. He hurt the guy pretty bad. Easton’s tracking the moose, and you know that only takes so long. We need to relocate him, but we thought…well…you might want to say goodbye.”
Graham hung up, turning to them, clearly shaken. “Zoey, I’m sorry. I need to go. L, can you catch me up on your big news later?”
“Of course, Graham.” Lana dipped her head in understanding. “It can wait.”
Halfway to the door, Graham stopped. Turning, he gazed down at Zoey then reached for her hand, wrapping his fingers tightly around hers. “I’m sorry this is how our night is ending.”
“Me too.” Zoey said quietly, “Do you want me to come with you?”
Exhaling a hard breath, he nodded.
“Yeah. That would be nice.”
*
The Tourist Trap still had people gathered in the parking lot—a fire engine and various trucks from volunteer emergency responders and Jonah’s police cruiser. Another squad car with two state troopers was parked near the building, and their flashing lights reflected off the diner’s windows.
Graham pulled up as close as he could get, setting the truck in park.
“You might want to stay here,” he said in a tight voice. “Sometimes the aftermath of these kinds of things are rough to see.”
Jumping out of the truck, Graham strode right into the middle of the fray as if unfazed. But since his hands had clenched the steering wheel white-knuckled the entire drive down from the resort, Zoey didn’t heed his warning, following at a distance. Jonah met him, a hard look on the trooper’s face. Glancing at Zoey, Jonah turned back to Graham.
“There wasn’t any damage to your place, but we’re going to be here awhile. Easton called, and he’s tracked the bull just north of Rick’s home. We’ve got a transport ready, but they need to tranq him before he gets somewhere more heavily wooded.”
Graham nodded tightly. “Thanks for the heads-up.”
Disappearing for a moment into his diner, Graham came back out with a paper take-out bag in his hand. When they got back in the vehicle, Graham was furious.
“This shit right here is why I’m so over this place,” he snarled. Nearly crushing the paper bag in his hand, he thrust it her way to hold. “There was no need for any of this.”
As the scent of freshly baked bread wafted from the bag, Zoey’s heart hurt for everyone. The poor people who’d been hurt, the poor animal who had just wanted to be left alone. And for Graham, who was driving twice the speed limit up narrow mountain roads, just for the chance to say goodbye.
A text came through, and Graham tilted his phone to Zoey, unable to take his eyes from the road.
“It’s Easton,” she read for him. “He says they darted Ulysses in the clearing behind Rick’s back pasture.”
Without warning, he pulled off on the side of the road and got out. “We’re almost there. It’s faster to cut through here.”
Trusting Graham knew where he was going, she followed him through the trees on a lightly worn footpath, struggling to keep up in her heels. Even with Graham’s hand on her arm, Zoey kept tripping in the underbrush until she finally took them off. Sore feet would be better than a broken ankle.
Lights in the distance told her they were close, and Graham broke into a jog, leaving Zoey to follow at his heels.
Easton stood over a massive, furry brown body, his tranquilizer rifle in hand. At his side, a grim-faced Rick and a second man in a Fish and Game uniform were spreading something out on the ground.
“What is that?” Zoey asked quietly.
“A sling to transport him. You can’t just stick a wild bull moose in a trailer. Especially not in a place as heavily wooded as this. You have to airlift them somewhere else.”
The second man stood, then walked over to Graham. “Sorry to see you under these circumstances, Graham.”
They shook hands, Graham’s voice quiet. “Yeah, me too.”
“Too bad it had to end up this way. Shame someone got hurt.”
Graham nodded tightly. “Zoey, this is Officer Marcus Garcia. He’s the one who gets called when stuff like this happens.”
“Too many calls from Moose Springs.” Officer Garcia shook his head. “I might as well get a satellite station put in there.”
Shaking hands with the young Fish and Game warden, Zoey murmured a greeting and stepped back, trying to stay out of everyone’s way. Between them, Graham, Rick, and Officer Garcia finished rigging the sling that would take Ulysses away. Easton remained where he was next to Ulysses, tranquilizer rifle at the ready.