“Well, son,” Wyatt said slowly. “I’m sure Jenette Johnson didn’t wake up this morning wanting to be beaten and raped, either. And even if you didn’t lay a hand on her, you did allow it to happen. A good man doesn’t do that. He defends a woman with every ounce of his strength.”

“I’m not a m-man yet.”

“No, but you soon will be, and if you don’t start choosing your friends more wisely, you’ll be a poor excuse for one.”

Wyatt made sure the other two youths still had Sorensen pinned to the ground and then turned to deal with his brother. He expected Kennedy to be fuming with anger, but instead the younger man’s blue eyes were bright with unshed tears. “Thanks, Wyatt. I would have killed him.”

Wyatt nodded. “I know, and I couldn’t have blamed you. But a judge might not have seen it that way.”

“You all right?” Kennedy asked.

“My arms will be sore for a few days. The jock throws one hell of a punch.”

Just then Kennedy whirled at some sound Wyatt couldn’t hear. “Sirens,” Kennedy said, looking over his shoulder so Wyatt could see his face. “The cavalry is almost here.”

Lights flashing, three county vehicles finally pulled into the clearing. Wyatt curled an arm around his brother’s shoulders. “Our business here is finished, Kennedy,” he said. “We’ll only distract the deputies by hanging around. Now that the sun is about to dip behind the mountains, it’ll be dark soon. If possible, we need to get your truck home. Are you okay to drive?”

Kennedy nodded. Then he met Wyatt’s gaze. “What he did to her. I’ll never get it out of my head. What if she dies?”

Wyatt’s throat went tight. “Let’s pray that doesn’t happen. It’s all we can do, Kennedy, just pray. She’s in God’s hands now.”

“Just so you know, when I get back to the bunkhouse, I’m stealing one of your jugs of whiskey from under your bed.”

Wyatt tightened his grip on Kennedy’s shoulder. “Promise not to drive after you’ve had a drink?”

“You know I won’t.”

“Then you’re welcome to my whiskey. Just buy me another jug if you drain it.”

Kennedy started to walk away and then stopped to face Wyatt again. “What’re you going to do?”

Wyatt shrugged. “First I’m going to collect my hat and try to clean it up. That little shit knocked it off my head, and it rolled in the dirt. Then I’ve got a couple of errands to run in town. When I’m finished, I’ll head home.”

Kennedy nodded. “Thanks again, Wyatt. I wouldn’t have just blocked his blows.”

“I know.”

As Kennedy walked toward his truck, Wyatt searched the clearing for Erin and saw her over by the tricked-out Chevy, interviewing the three boys who had witnessed the attack on Jenette. He wanted to thank her for the text she had sent to warn him that Kennedy might be hunting down Sorensen. By contacting him, she had been instrumental in protecting Kennedy’s future. If it hadn’t been for her quick thinking, Wyatt wouldn’t have found his brother in time to stop him from doing something stupid. He also hoped to get more information on Jenette’s condition, mostly because he knew Kennedy would want to know how the girl was doing before the evening was over, and with all the patient privacy laws, Wyatt feared they would get no information through normal channels.