by CP Smith
“You want to loan me the full amount?”
She flipped her wrist at me like it was no big deal, averting her eyes, but I could see a blush running up her neck. She was embarrassed for some reason.
“Kenzie, I . . . Why?”
She looked back at me and it was then I saw tears glittering in her eyes. “Because I lived in that house for five years. I knew what Chance was capable of, and I didn’t warn you when I could have. I should have thought of it yesterday when we talked, but after last night, I knew I had to act. This way you don’t have to rush around to find a loan in thirty days, and the carnival will help pay the rest once you’ve secured the loan.”
“Kenzie, this is a lot of money. If the carnival doesn’t produce the amount we need, it will be years before I can pay you back. You can’t put yourself at risk like that. I won’t let you.”
She waved me off again. “I got millions in the divorce, so it won’t even register. Besides, if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my twenty-nine years, it’s the James family always does what’s right. I know you’re good for it, Skylar, so I’m not worried. You’ll pay me when you can. If the carnival is a bust, we can work out a payment plan that fits with your budget, or we can become partners in Big Sky Saloon and split the profits. I’ve got a million ideas for this place I think would bring in even more money.”
Could it be this easy?
“Are you . . . are you sure?” I could barely get the words out, almost choking on the hope that this nightmare might finally come to an end.
“Am I sure helping you out is the right thing to do?”
I nodded, holding my breath for her answer. For all I knew she was lying about the millions and was offering out of some misguided idea she was to blame somehow, so I wanted her to think long and hard about what she was offering. “I appreciate the offer more than you know, but I won’t put you in a bind just to save my own hide. You aren’t to blame for any of this.”
Her eyes softened, making her look even younger. “Not a doubt in my mind, Skye. Sign the paperwork and put it behind you. I won’t let Chance take your home.”
My eyes dropped to the pen she was holding out, then back to her to make sure, but she only smiled bigger and shook the pen at me. With trembling hands, I took the pen and signed my name on both copies, then watched her sign her own. I stood when she took a copy for herself and handed me the file back, relief masking her expression, mirroring my own.
How do you say thank you to someone who just rescued you from a sinking ship in the middle of the ocean?
“Kenzie—”
“I’ll get a cashier’s check a few days before the loan is due so the old coots at the bar pitch in with the carnival,” she rushed out. “This will also have the added benefit of keeping Chance off-balance. He won’t know until he gets the money you’ve succeeded in time, which will be its own sort of fun watching him sweat.”
Just like that, the knot in my chest finally burst free. All of the worry, the anxiety about our future disappeared in the blink of an eye, and the relief was immense. So much I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her and cried for a very different reason than I had the past two days, whispering, “You saved us. I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”
Kenzie returned my hug with interest and began to shake with her own tears. I had no idea what she’d endured living in that house with Justice and Chance, but it clearly affected her if she felt drawn to help us the way she just had.
“We’ve been family for years, you know. I think it’s about time we acted like it, don’t you?”
I pulled back at her question and smiled. “We are family, aren’t we?”
She nodded and wiped her eyes dry. “I should have stepped in sooner, but I was afraid of Justice. Now that he’s gone, I don’t have to be afraid anymore.”
“What about Chance? Will he cause you trouble when he finds out?”
She bit her lip and looked around the bar. “I was hoping we could keep this to ourselves. If he doesn’t know where the money came from, then he can’t take it out on me more than he already has.”
A tingle of unease crept up my spine. “What’s he done?”
She shrugged. “Nothing that matters.”
I grabbed her wrist when she tried to turn away. “Kenzie, what did he do?”
She rolled her lips between her teeth for a moment then sighed heavily. “He showed up at my house last night with war paint on his face.”
I blinked, shocked. “War paint? As in Native American war paint?”
She nodded. “He thought it would unnerve me, but he was wrong. It pissed me off and gave me the idea to loan you the money.”
I wasn’t convinced she was telling the truth. “Did he say or do anything?”
She shook her head. “Nope. Just stood in my front yard with his arms crossed. Chace went out and spoke with him, and he left shortly after. He’s just trying to intimidate us both.”
Asshole.
Trying to scare a woman, who was alone in her own home with her thirteen-year-old son, didn’t strike me as playing games. He’d used their heritage, one that should have been sacred and revered, against her. Someone needed to teach my big brother some manners.
“I don’t think you should ignore this, Kenzie. You should tell Duke when he gets back. He could have a talk with Chance, tell him to cool it.”
“Chance wouldn’t hurt me.”
“Are you positive? Positive enough to put Chace at risk?”
She considered it for a moment then nodded. “Okay, just to be smart I’ll talk to Duke.” She looked toward the bar where he usually sat. “Do you know when he’s supposed to be back?”
I looked over my shoulder at the clock. Logan said Duke hadn’t returned from fishing and they were heading out to find him. Most believed his truck had broken down, and being out of cell range he was probably still fishing until someone showed up to rescue him. That seemed reasonable to me. It would have sounded more likely if I hadn’t known his truck was only a year old, but there were lots of ways to get stuck out on the river or the lake, especially after a good rain or snow. New truck or not, tires still sank in mud, and it had rained two days ago along with the snow.
“Could be anytime,” I answered, praying I was right.
_______________
Pine scented the air mixed with the aromatic smell of rich dirt, dead fish, and snow. The sound of rushing water drowned out the call of an eagle soaring overhead, while Logan searched for Duke on the banks of the Madison River. The vastness of Montana never ceased to amaze him. You could see for miles in valleys—untouched by man—except for the few towns scattered around the state. There wasn’t a Walmart on every corner, just peacefulness where time had stood still. And enough space where a man could breathe. Could forget.
Scanning the river once again for any sign of Duke, Logan waited while Max did his business before loading him up and heading downstream. He’d been searching for hours, and as far as he knew there was still no sign of the police chief. Pulling his cell from his hip pocket, he checked for cell service again. Ty said it was spotty at best on certain parts of the river. The closer to town you were, the better the reception. Logan had lost cell service about an hour before, when he’d left Highway 287 to check a popular fishing spot Ty had circled on a map.
It didn’t make sense to Logan that Duke would travel this far out when he had to be at work by eight, so he put his tongue to his teeth and whistled for Max.
His gut told him he was wasting time searching this far out. It was time to head back and see if they’d found Duke on Ennis Lake. That made the most sense. Traveling more than an hour from work was for the weekends when you had the time. Ennis Lake was a fifteen-minute drive from Duke’s house, Ty had said, so he’d head there and join the search.
It took twenty minutes before cell service was reestablished. Logan wanted to check in with Skylar first, but knew she’d want information about Duke, so he called the number Ty had given
him instead, hoping for good news.
“You find him?” Ty asked when he answered.
“Nope. I’m heading back your way before the snow hits. I take it there’s been no sign on your end?”
“We’ve checked all the usual spots where he would have launched his boat. We’re knocking on doors now. He’s got a few friends who live right on the water.”
“Could he have headed past Ennis Lake?”
“Ed Burk’s headed that way. We checked his favorite fishing holes and there’s no sign of him. If he got a wild hair to go somewhere new, we won’t know until . . .”
“He’s found one way or another,” Logan finished.
Silence drew out between them, then Ty clipped, “Fuck, I hope that isn’t the case. With Frank last night and Miss Ellie the day before, the town’s had enough death.”
“Will you have trouble in town without a law enforcement presence or has the sheriff provided you with a deputy?”
“… Hell, I don’t know. Ennis doesn’t have much trouble except on weekends when the ranch hands blow off steam.”
“It’s Friday, Ty, the weekend’s begun. Have the mayor call the sheriff and request a deputy until you find Duke. I’ve seen firsthand what happens when there isn’t law and order controlling a town.”
Silence.
“Ty?”
His phone rang in his hand. Logan cursed and swiped to answer. They needed more cell towers in this neck of the woods. “When you find Duke, you need to encourage him to pick up a couple of satellite phones for his office. Being out of cell range in this day and age should be against the law.”
“Rog…I’ll…”
Silence.
“Ty?”
The call had dropped again, so Logan tossed the phone on his seat and tried to think like Duke. Where would he have gone? To Logan’s way of thinking, considering everything happening with Chance Bear, why leave at all? Duke’s warning about Chance the night before hadn’t stopped rattling around in his brain. And with Duke missing, it thundered harder as he puzzled over his disappearance.
What were the chances a man with Duke’s experience would disappear without a trace?
The soldier in him never stopped calculating. He was hardwired to look for the enemy. Duke set out to fish like he always did, but no one could find him. Not even his truck. If he’d drowned, they’d have found his truck. If he’d run out of gas, the same. His truck was the key. It should be somewhere, but it wasn’t. Either he drove to a new fishing hole and they couldn’t find it or foul play was involved. In his opinion, those were the only two explanations that fit. But who would have it out for the man?
“Chance shouldn’t be taken lightly.”
“Kenzie is trying to defy him, which means she’s defying his father, but he’ll recover once the grief wears off. And when he does, this will get uglier.”
Duke’s warning boomed in his head. He glanced at his cell phone and cursed, then punched the accelerator. He couldn’t protect Skylar from her half brother if he was an hour away and out of cell range. They’d have to finish searching for the police chief without him. He wasn’t a soldier anymore. Wasn’t the one standing between innocence and terror. His priorities had changed. They lay in Ennis with a green-eyed bar owner who filled him with peace. Duke would understand that better than anyone.
“Keep your gun close.”
Logan reached over and opened his glove box, then pulled out his 9mm and stuffed it in the back of his jeans.
“I’ll keep her safe, Duke.”
Twelve
First And Ten
JOSH HIT THE bar at five like we’d planned before school. Jake’s game started at seven, but the bleachers filled to capacity by six after the middle school game, so we had to leave soon if we wanted seats. I glanced at the clock then pulled out my cell phone. I hadn’t heard from Logan since he left, nor had anyone else heard if Duke had been found. The longer the day burned away without a word, the tighter my stomach grew with fear something bad had happened to Duke.
I swiped the number Logan gave me before he left. As it rang, I noted a flutter in my stomach at the thought of speaking with him. My life had been spiraling for close to twenty-four hours, but now it was out of control for the best reasons, thanks to Logan and Kenzie.
“Storm here.” I couldn’t help a smile pulling against my mouth when Logan’s deep voice vibrated in my ear.
“James here,” I responded in kind, using my last name like he had.
He didn’t reply immediately, so I looked at my phone. The call had dropped, which meant he was at least an hour outside of town where the cell towers were limited. That meant he wouldn’t be here in time to ride to the game with Josh and me. I swiped his number again, hoping he would answer, but it went to voice mail, so I left instructions where to find Josh and me and headed to my office to grab my purse and coat. When I entered, I found Josh staring at the small bed Logan and I had made love on. A blush rushed up my cheeks in response. There was no way Josh could know what had happened in this room, but the memories assaulted me anyway, causing my heart to race.
“You ready?” I asked, while I pulled on my coat. Snow had been threatening all day and was now falling steadily. In Montana we didn’t call off football games for a mild snowfall. It took a blizzard to interrupt sports in Ennis.
Josh didn’t look up from the bed as I headed to the door. He leaned down and tugged at something in the bedsheets, then lifted his hand my direction with a funny look on his face. “I hope these are yours.”
My eyes dropped to his hand and I froze. Red silk panties hung from one of his fingers. And they weren’t mine. I blinked to make sure I was seeing correctly, then looked back at the bed. The sheets were tangled together, but I was positive I would have noticed another woman’s undergarments in bed with Logan and me.
I raised a shaking hand toward the red silk but dropped it when Rachel passed the door on her way to the stockroom and gasped, “Oh, my God. I thought . . . I thought I grabbed everything. I, um, changed in your, uh, office. I must have left them.”
Her eyes darted around the room but never met mine, giving the appearance she was lying, making up her story on the fly like a teen who’d been caught red-handed. But I knew better. If it had been anyone but Rachel who’d claimed the silk panties, I might have reacted differently, would have been crushed, but Jamie had mentioned Rachel used my office to change right before the doors opened. And the outfit she was wearing wasn’t the same as the one she’d arrived in. She’d just told the truth about changing but lied about grabbing everything, hoping I’d react to the lie and break things off with Logan. If I had, she could have sighed dramatically to Logan about my reaction and not lie when she admitted that she had, in fact, told me the truth. I’d have looked like a shrew if I accused him of sleeping with her and she would have been happy to comfort Logan when I walked out of his life. I may not have vast experience with men, but I’d watched Rachel for two years and knew how she operated. Her motto had always been ‘all’s fair in love and war.’
“No biggie. I knew you changed in here.”
Rachel blinked then looked at Josh, surprised I’d let it go. “Well, that’s good. I wouldn’t want you to think anything happened between Logan and me while you were gone last night.”
I smiled slowly because she was still trying to imply there’d been an opportunity the night before. “It would be hard for you to have slept with Logan last night when he was out until almost seven this morning helping with Frank’s death and then he was with me, in that bed, until an hour before opening.”
Josh choked on a cough at my reply then mumbled, “Christ, Skylar, fifteen-year-old in the room,” before leaving Rachel and me alone, chuckling as he went.
One brother down, one to go. Jake would be the hardest to accept my relationship with Logan. He was overprotective and still didn’t trust Logan fully.
Rachel raised an eyebrow and then scanned me from head to toe. “I misjudged you. I was certai
n Pollyanna would take the bait.”
“Pollyanna?”
“Yep. I thought for sure you would hold out for a wedding ring before you rode the sausage express, but I clearly misjudged you. Good for you.” She grinned, then raised her hand in a fist and waited for me to bump mine with hers.
I puzzled over her reaction then raised my fist and bumped hers. “Does this mean you’ll stop flirting with Logan?”
Rachel snorted. “I flirt in my sleep, so probably not. My rule is this, until there’s a wedding ring on a finger, anything can happen. I draw the line at going after a married man. However, making sure a hot specimen like Logan is aware of his options, is more of a public service. If he takes me up on my advances, I’m doing you a favor, right?”
It was my turn to blink. With friends like Rachel, who needed enemies?
“Then I’ll point out that firing any woman going after my man, or anyone else’s man, ring or not, is also a public service.”
She grinned slowly then inclined her head in defeat. “Man, I really had you pegged wrong. You’ve got teeth, Pollyanna. I like it.”
“Then get back to work before I bite.”
Her lips twitched and she saluted me, then picked up her red panties where Josh had dropped them and walked out the door.
I blew air out of my lungs to calm my nerves then looked out the window to check the weather again. Larger flakes of snow were now pelting the glass. The temperature would be dropping lower soon. If Duke was still out there waiting to be found, I hoped he had his emergency gear in the back of his truck.
_______________
Crime scene tape roped off the mortuary as Logan made his way back into town. He stopped and stared at the blacked out building, wondering if they’d determined what caused the explosion. During his search for Duke, his mind had drifted back to that morning and Frank Wells many times. Something about Frank’s injuries had bothered Logan. The way his body had been lying face up, but the blow that killed him was to the back of his head. He’d intended to speak to Duke about it, but now . . . Logan scanned the street looking for a deputy’s vehicle. The snow was falling harder, making visibility difficult, so he eased off his brake and headed into town. When he rounded the corner, bright lights from the football field peeked through the trees. He’d called Skylar once he had decent cell reception, and she’d told him where to find her. She’d asked about Duke, but he’d hedged and said they’d talk when he got back to town.