But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t rid himself of these thoughts. Shepherd’s face swam at the forefront of his mind, smiling gently at him. These feelings had nested in his brain like some sort of disease, filling him with agonizing loneliness.
Gibson continued up the street until he reached the new FBI field office, now set in another building. There was no one in sight except for the clerk behind the front desk. As he walked down the empty hall towards his office, fluorescent lights made him squint as he passed Asa Clark’s office on the way. Thinking better of it, he turned and went back.
“Rough night?” he asked her as he scanned the office and noticed the shadows under her eyes.
“Yeah, you could say that,” Asa said, emotionlessly, taking the file the man handed to her.
“Take care of yourself, Asa.” Gibson sat down on the chair that she’d pointed to, feeling exhausted. “I wanted to congratulate you on a job well done.”
Asa smiled sadly at the praise. “Thank you, we really did an excellent job, but it’s hard to feel good about it when we lost so many. I am so disappointed that we lost Josie Shepherd and all the other agents. All I want is for them to be alive and back here with us.”
“I know, I feel the same way,” the man agreed with her. “But, there’s nothing we can do for them now, except do our jobs well in their memory.”
It was only a week ago that they had attended the funerals of the FBI officers who perished in the bombing at the Kalispell field office. During the ceremony, Agent Clark had spoken about the dedication of the people who had met their death in the horrible flames of that fire.
“What are your plans for the future, Todd?” Asa asked, as she offered him a glass of scotch. “I’m thinking I’ll stay here in Kalispell a little longer.”
“Really? I wasn’t expecting you to want to stay here…” Gibson wondered.
“Me neither, but you know how it is. I want to reconnect with my Salish roots and, well… I want to see if my relationship with Gabriel has any future,” Asa confessed, feeling the color rise on her face.
“Gabriel Kimble” the man repeated. “I’d like to be here to see how you’ll go about making an honest man out of him, but unfortunately, I’ve been asked to move to Salt Lake City.”
“Oh, Salt Lake, huh. Does that fit in with your plans for the future?” Asa asked, feeling a bit sorry that Todd would no longer be working with her. Their relationship had changed completely during the last few weeks and they had reached a point where they could genuinely call each other friends.
“Yes, I am relocating to the FBI office in Salt Lake City for a promotion,” Gibson explained proudly. “I didn’t ask for it, but since they’re offering, I’m not going to say no. I can’t say that I’m against the idea of a change just now. You know, new scenery, new cases, and plenty to keep me busy. Did I tell you about the time I was sent here? They told me it will be just a temporary assignment, and that I’d be transferred in no time. Go figure, after God knows how many years, I’m still here, waiting for that transfer.”
Asa laughed at the way he looked at his life and thought that only a few weeks ago it would have been impossible. Agent Todd Gibson had finally accepted her as a friend. A few days ago, he had suggested that Gabriel Kimble might be the right man for her, if she could manage to keep him in line. He had even expressed his concern about how she was going to manage a rancher like him and her FBI job.
Asa still didn’t know all the answers, but one thing was sure, she had all the time in the world to figure it out. Gabriel had forgiven her, and was going to work at trying to keep the ranch in the family. Gibson had accepted her… as a fellow agent worthy of the title, and now… it was her turn to decide what she wanted.
“A toast.” Agent Gibson raised his glass. “Let’s drink for those who lost their lives in this horrible affair. Let’s drink for Deputy Director Shepherd and for Ann, and for all the others. Let’s drink for our future and for what life is going to throw our way. We could easily have lost our lives that day, but since we didn’t… we need to live well in honor of those who did.”
“Well said,” Asa said, as she joined him.
Gibson stayed to chat for few minutes more, and then went to his office to put things in order. He was given another week to help the new Agent in charge of the office settle in, and then was he supposed to take two months’ vacation. He really didn’t know what to do with it, but his superiors had insisted and now he was even looking forward to it in a way.
He entered the office, but it didn’t feel like home. It was too new, too impersonal for his taste. The old office had been filled with memories, photos, mementoes and small pieces of history, something that Gibson really missed.
Chapter 35
Gibson had left Kalispell two weeks earlier and agent Asa Clark was slowly adjusting to her new way of life. Gabriel had asked her to move in with him at the ranch and eventually Asa had agreed, although it felt strange.
“Look, it doesn’t seem right for me to live here,” she had tried to tell him. “This is David and Jane’s home, and I’m the one responsible for putting them in prison.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll redecorate and make some changes so it will be ours. I may end up losing it anyway, but either way, it will never be theirs again, no matter what you or I do, so it isn’t like we’re taking their home. I love my brother… and Jane,” he had added quickly. “But, I love them as they were before all of this money drug business took over their lives. Their minds are twisted with greed and hatred. I want nothing to do with the people they have become. They made their own choices… terrible choices.”
“You can’t just cancel them from your life though,” Asa had protested. “They are still your family.”
“I’m not going to do that, don’t worry. I intend to visit them in prison, but only when they come to understand just what they’ve done, and begin to show some remorse.” Gabriel had smiled sadly then.
“What about Grandpa Joe? He won’t be happy to see me at the ranch.” Asa had found another reason to decline his offer.
“I’ve spoken to his doctor.” Gabriel looked sad again. “My grandfather is suffering from Alzheimer’s, and apparently a form where the dementia progresses very quickly. They can’t predict these things for sure, of course, but according to this doctor him, in less than a year, it is likely that he won’t recognize me anymore, and will ultimately lose all of his memory.”
“This is rather sudden, isn’t it?”
“Yes, the stress of the past months, coupled with the trauma of the murders he witnessed, and the horror of the bombing. Then Ezekiel killed, David and Jane destined for prison, it’s all been too much for his brain which was already battling the disease.
“I am so sorry. He seems to be such a sweet character underneath all the bluster.” Asa had given him a hug. “What are you going to do now?”
“There is a farm, just outside Kalispell, which someone converted into a retirement home for people just like Grandpa Joe. I think that he’ll be happy there, especially since there are a few of his old friends there. His older memories are intact for now so he’ll be able to swap stories with them and such. These facilities are used to their patients having some radical tendencies, so it should work out.”
“And what else?” Asa couldn’t help asking.
“Someday, after things settle down a bit, I’d like to take a trip, and see some of the world beyond Montana. I was thinking we would find someone to take care of the ranch, assuming I still have it, and we will go away for a few months,” Gabriel offered. “Would you come with me?”
“Hell yes.” Asa jumped at his offer and threw herself at him.
Just now, they were attending the celebration of life at the nearby Flathead Indian Reservation. Every year, the American Indians of the area held a beautiful ceremony near Flathead Lake, where they thanked nature for everything provided to them throughout the year.
Asa had
been invited and she extended the invitation to Gabriel, wanting to share this beautiful moment of gratitude with him. They both had a lot to be thankful for and Gabriel had happily attended.
They had officially resumed their relationship and now had the ranch to look after together. Asa had taken a permanent position at the Kalispell office, all the while thinking that the late Deputy Director Shepherd would not be happy with that. But Asa had other priorities and Gabriel was now the most important thing in her life.
It was fitting that the nature they celebrated was beautiful that day.
Asa and Gabriel were completely and utterly in love, although the words had never passed their lips. Asa was afraid to open herself completely to him, and Gabriel wasn’t sure if she was on the same page. Asa wondered if he would ever love her and Gabriel was afraid to admit that he did.
An old Indian woman approached them. “You look happy together,” she said, her heavily lined face a thing of beauty when she smiled. “Just don’t forget that such happiness is founded on mutual respect and honesty.”
Chapter 36
Two months later…
Asa walked up the stairs, leaving Gabriel to finish his work in the barn. The young woman found her way to the second floor and looked out the windows for a while, admiring the beautiful garden and the starry sky. Her new home was everything she could hope for and Asa was happy to live in it, and yet…
She was still feeling as if Gabriel was holding something back, and even after those weeks they spent together, he still wasn’t able to forgive her.
Suddenly two hands held her against the window’s edge, basically trapping her, while leaning forward to speak in her ear.
“Is it already midnight?” Asa recognized Gabriel’s voice, before she had the chance to turn around and protest. “I thought only Cinderella had to leave the ball so early?”
“My place may not be here, Cinderella or no Cinderella,” Asa said sadly, refusing to take the bait.
“I couldn’t take my eyes off of you all day,” he whispered, dipping his tongue into her ear. “You must know we are meant for each other.”
“I thought you couldn’t stand me?” Asa answered, for a brief moment wondering if she was imagining his words.
Gabriel didn’t answer her, but raised his hand to absently rub her belly, as it tingled under his hand.
“You think you can fool me, don’t you?” he whispered, his lips touching her neck. “If you really want to know what I think, I will tell you. You managed to entangle me and now I am unable to keep my hands off you.”
Asa pulled back jokingly, “I think I want to go now.” Gabriel nodded and let her head towards the stairs, following her silently.
“We need to talk, Asa.”
“Right now?” She turned around to look at him.
“Yes, right now,” the man repeated and, without further discussion, tugged her towards the nearest room, which turned out to be a small parlor, rarely used. Asa froze, when she realized that Gabriel was very serious. Maybe there was something bad that he hadn’t confessed.
The outside world was a dull white, and with both the hunger to touch and be united, as well as the desire to kill each other, Asa and Gabriel didn’t care for anything else. Asa shook her head slightly and turned to look at him.
“I don’t even know what we are doing here,” she said seriously.
Gabriel’s eyes were focused on her lips and Asa saw them grow hungrier. Asa’s own eyes widened as she watched him get closer. It was happening again. She was once more going to fall victim to his charm and let him take whatever he wanted. He knew it and she knew it too. It was like a bad movie, one she didn’t like, but couldn’t stop watching, nevertheless. Was sex the only thing that kept them together?
It was Gabriel who closed the small distance between them and pressed his lips against hers, his mouth hot and insistent. Asa made a noise of surprise, which was quickly muffled as his tongue pressed into her mouth. She tried to pull away, panting.
Right there, just like that, that was what she wanted…
“What are you doing?” She sputtered, though her voice wasn’t angry or indignant. Instead, it was full of the old wonder. She touched her lips, feeling the wetness left from Gabriel’s kiss.
“Sit down,” Gabriel gasped. “I’m sorry for acting like an asshole.”
Asa sat on the only sofa in the room, while Gabriel started pacing silently.
“What is it, now?” Asa couldn’t wait any longer. She waited for him to look at her and made a move to get up. She was finding it hard to think when he was so close, so she needed to put some distance between the two of them.
Gabriel frowned. “Stay,” he said urgently. Asa sighed and the man licked his lips as he watched her carefully. “I wanted to say that your appearance in my life surprised me and I acted... I acted… You know how I acted…”
Asa gave him a hard look. “You accused me of going after you, and then you treated me like trash…”
“Yes.” The man shook his head and walked over to her. He stood there, just looking down at her, his eyes meeting hers. “I know I was wrong.”
“Really?” the woman asked sarcastically. “And what made you change your mind?”
Gabriel licked his lips, the tip of his tongue resting for a moment on his lower lip. “I think I always knew it, but it was easier to accuse you than to admit that fate was playing with us.”
“Fate?”
“What do you call it, if not fate? We met without knowing who we were…”
“Okay, okay,” Asa interrupted him. “What now?” She didn’t particularly like the idea of him thinking that it was fate that put them together. She preferred to see it all as a good experience that grew out of a bad one.
“Is something wrong?” Asa asked again.
“Everything is wrong,” Gabriel said sadly.
“The ranch...” he started.
“I like your ranch…”
“And I love you…” Gabriel said, matching her tone of voice, “but we have lost the ranch.”
Finally hearing what she had been longing for, Asa looked him in the eye.
“I love you too, with or without a ranch, Gabriel.”
The smile that illuminated his face was the only answer she needed. Finally, what she had been missing was found, and without reservation, she ran into his arms.
The End
Book 2: A Cold Trail
CHAPTER ONE
As David Orlando looked out on the deep blue Atlantic Ocean, from his third-floor office at Winchester Beach, the gray clouds turned blacker and, like battalions of infantry, marched toward one another so they could join and attack the land. The sunny day had turned ashen, and the smell of rain was in the air. Orlando thought the dark day matched his mood. A certain grimness was in the air. The black clouds roiled and now took up most of the sky. A brilliant silver bolt of lighting split the darkness, as if giving the signal to attack. In a minute or so, cumulus soldiers would launch their attack on the beach and buildings, sending watery bullets against the land.
He hoped the storm wasn’t a harbinger of future events. As a private detective, he found some cases distasteful, but at least those cases involved strangers. Sasha Link-Hawkins was a friend. So was her husband Martin. He had already agreed to see her, on a professional basis, but now, as the rain pelted the window, Orlando wondered if he should have declined. Perhaps he should be like a doctor who doesn’t operate on friends or relatives. He’s too close to them, emotionally. Those emotions can make the knife slip or the laser waver, when it should be stable. He sighed. Perhaps it was too late now. He looked toward the ocean again. The rain was like a machine gun. Thousands of drops ripped into the ocean, sounding like cannons blasting a stronghold.
He did not feel strong enough to face the assault. He liked and respected Sasha and Martin. They had been friends since college. He always considered Martin to be the salt of the earth. High-gra
de, iodine-packed salt of the earth. But apparently there was now trouble in the marriage.
He wasn’t a religious man, but a line from the Scriptures sprang to mind. “Ye are the salt of the earth,” Jesus once said, “but what if the salt has lost its flavor. It is henceforth good for nothing, but to be cast down and trodden under foot.”
He shook his head. Maybe the day was just getting to him. The weather can change quickly in Florida. When he’d climbed into his car earlier that morning and headed for his office, it was sunny. The day was a bright chamber-of-commerce postcard, the type of day state officials point to when telling those in the north to ‘Come on down!’ Although, with the growth in Florida during the past few decades, more and more Floridians were telling possible tourists to ‘Stay right where you are! The state has enough people!’
Perhaps the ashen day was beginning to affect his mood. He walked toward his office door, opened it and strained to smile at his secretary, Emily.
“What time did Sasha say she would be in?” he asked.
Emily was one of the few people who still wore a watch. She checked.
“In about ten minutes,” she said.
He nodded. Closing his door behind him, he walked over to the shelf where there was a picture of him and his friends from t years ago. David was on the far left; next to him was Rodney; beside Rodney was his sister, Sasha, and she was on Martin’s arm. He remembered that Sasha and Martin had been together since their junior year of high school, and the Martin he knew was not a cheater. But Sasha had hinted that one of the problems in the marriage might be another woman. That was the type of problem that might not be able to be solved.
When Sasha came in, her strawberry blonde hair was braided back neatly and she was dressed conservatively, as always. He had not seen her in several years, and she looked different. She was much thinner, an almost sickly thin. That was a shock, because vitality had always flowed from her, rippling out like a Florida stream. Now, her brown eyes were sad, and as she walked toward him, he could see a slight swelling on her right eye. There was no amount of make-up that could hide what was there. Anger rose in him. Could Martin actually have hit his wife? Orlando couldn’t imagine that. But if so, it was unforgivable.
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