by Sharon Dunn
The residents of Lodgepole were not used to strangers and had a suspicion of them.
If she included the people who lived in remote cabins outside of Lodgepole, the population count might tick up by fifty. She’d been here for only a few days.
She pointed at the café. “We can find out about road conditions by going in there. The locals will give a better report than any weather channel or app on your phone. Are you hungry?”
“I really need to track that man down. I’ll need to get another car. And I need you to describe him for me.” A sense of urgency entered his voice. “I can’t wait around here in this town.”
“Sure, I can describe him. But honestly I don’t think anybody is going anywhere.” He seemed almost nervous now. Lunch might give him an opportunity for him to explain himself.
She headed toward the café which was also a sort of community center and place to get gossip and news. In addition to the cars parked on the street, there was probably an equal number of snowmobiles. Because the snow stayed almost year-round at this elevation and roads sometimes didn’t get plowed quickly, snowmobiles were the preferred mode of transportation for most of the residents.
The second they pushed open the door and the tiny bell above it rang, the place fell silent. All eyes were on Jude and her. The chatter resumed almost immediately, but she felt the shift when she stepped into the café.
They weren’t used to outsiders. She was still an outsider, and Jude wasn’t from here either. Her research would keep her here for at least a month. People might warm up to her a little.
She searched the room for an empty table but didn’t see one. All the seats at the counter were taken, as well. As she passed by the table, the talk was about the storm. She heard enough of the conversation to know the roads were already impassable.
She patted Jude’s shoulder. “Looks like you’re stuck here for a while.”
The news didn’t seem to sit well with Jude. His expression hardened.
A table opened up at the back of the café.
The teenage waitress came over and plopped down two menus. “We’re out of the patty melt, but the tomato soup isn’t too bad.” The girl whirled away.
“Boy, she really sells that soup.” Jude seemed to be mildy amused by the waitresses’s casual behavior.
Lacey laughed and leaned forward, glad that he seemed to relax a little. “They probably just open up a can. It’s not like the fresh produce truck makes its way up here.” She liked the warmth she saw in his eyes and appreciated his effort at lightening his mood. “Maybe I could help you if you could tell me why that guy was after you.”
Jude’s forehead creased. He looked slightly off to the left. Then he leaned closer to her and spoke in a low voice. “A girl has been kidnapped. Part of the initial communication from the kidnapper was that the FBI not be contacted. But her father couldn’t do nothing, so he hired me. Her father is a fairly well-known millionaire real estate developer in North Dakota. It’s all got to be under the radar, or something bad might happen to the kid.”
Lacey’s breath caught in her throat as she absorbed the gravity of what he had just told her. Now she understood why he wasn’t crazy about contacting the sheriff or being trapped in Lodgepole.
“It helps my case, but I’m concerned about you being able to identify him.” He twirled the pepper shaker.
She spoke slowly. “You think he might follow us into town and try to hurt me?” Her old truck was distinct enough and Lodgepole was the only town for miles. It wouldn’t be hard to figure out where they’d gone. Her heart squeezed tight.
“I don’t know.” Jude shook his head. “I just wish I wasn’t stuck here. I was so close to catching him.”
Lacey stared at the jelly packets and tried to process what Jude was implying. The man, who was probably a kidnapper, might come after her. “One good thing. If the roads are impassable for us, then he’s stuck too. Either on that mountain or in town. Anyway, there are people around. I’m sure he wouldn’t try anything.” Her voice sounded weak, like she was trying to convince herself that she was safe.
* * *
Jude was grateful when the waitress walked back over to them before Lacey could ask him more questions. He’d already told her too much. He would be forever grateful to her for saving his life. She had been an answer to a very frantic prayer.
The waitress twirled a strand of her hair. “So, what will you two have?”
He hadn’t had much time to study the menu. “A burger sounds great.”
“I’ll have the club sandwich.” Lacey closed the menu and handed it over to the waitress.
He noticed the ketchup stain on his menu as he lifted it so the teenager could take it. This place had a certain uniqueness to it.
He turned his attention to Lacey. She kept her auburn hair tied up in a braid. Soft wisps of red hair framed her face. She offered him a brief smile when she caught him staring.
“You’re not from around here?” he asked.
“I move around a lot for my research work.” She rearranged the jam packets that were in the metal container.
“How about you tell me about your research.”
Her eyes lit up and her whole face seemed to brighten. “I’m tracking the migrations and feeding patterns of an elk herd that mostly hang out on Shadow Ridge. I’m looking at how human activity might affect that.” She continued to share details about her job. He liked the way she became so animated when she talked.
They continued to visit until most of the patrons had left the café. A silence fell between them.
Jude cleared his throat. “Are you okay with telling me what the man who shot at me looked like?” Though he didn’t like making her revisit the attack, he needed to know if he was to find him.
Lacey stared at the table. “Yes, I can do that. Broad shoulders, built like a wrestler but older, gray-and-white hair, a beard. The expression on his face was...such rage.” She shuddered.
He leaned toward her and patted her shoulder. “I still can’t thank you enough for getting me out of there.”
She nodded before glancing around the nearly empty café. “Looks like we closed the place down. I suppose we should get going. There is only one hotel in town.”
When they stepped outside, it was pitch-dark. The wind had picked up, creating little tornadoes of snow swirling down the street. Jude buttoned his coat up against the cold. “I really want to have a look around this town. If that guy did follow us down the mountain, he probably hid his car, but I could knock on a few doors with some kind of story. Maybe check some backyards. If there is only one hotel, I doubt he’d stay there.”
“I don’t think you would get very far in the dark and cold.”
A gust of wind hit him. His eyes stung from the intensity of the cold. He could only see a few feet in front of him. His jaw clenched in frustration. “Okay maybe you’re right. So, what is this hotel?”
“It’s called the Davenport Hotel,” she said.
“Guess I should stay there too.” More than anything, he wanted to get back to tracking his suspect. Things were more complicated now that the suspect knew he’d been made and could be identified. He feared for the little girl’s safety. If she was being held in one of the houses on that mountain road, would the man just leave her there to come into town after him and probably Lacey?
Several snowmobiles putted by, their headlights cutting through the blackness. Leaning into the wind, Lacey and Jude crossed the street and entered the hotel.
An old man slept in an overstuffed chair in the lobby. “That’s Ray. He’s the manager. Rather than wake him, I think we can just grab a key and leave him a note that you’ve got a room,” she said. “You can pay him later or just leave the money in an envelope by the note. It’s fifty dollars a night.”
“Okay, if that is how it’s done.” The informality of the place
only added to its charm. Jude pulled some money out of his wallet while Lacey found an envelope and paper to write on.
A wide sweeping staircase with an ornately carved bannister filled up most of the lobby. Though everything looked dusty, there was still a yesteryear elegance to the place. A huge mural of forest and wildlife, with a train puffing through it, took up one wall. Faded by time, it was nevertheless impressive. The trim on the ceiling looked like it had been carved by hand. The red carpet and matching velvet curtains indicated this had been quite the classy joint at one time.
Lacey walked behind the counter and grabbed a key. “You can have room ten right next to me. I’m in twelve. Some of the rooms aren’t used anymore, but I know that one is.”
They walked up the stairs together. Though frustration over being stranded made his jaw ache, meeting Lacey had been a nice reprieve. Lacey went back and forth between warmth and seeming guarded. Still, having dinner with her had been fun. Fun was not a word that was in his vocabulary much anymore...not for ten years.
She turned to face him. “Ray told me earlier today that two hunters checked in to the hotel this morning. Other than that, it’s just us.”
He touched a bannister, which was dusty. The whole place was probably not up to code. “They’re probably glad to have your business.”
“They gave me a deal since I’m going to be here a while doing research.” She turned her key in the door. “Well, good night.” She entered her room and closed the door behind her.
Jude sat down in his room. Though everything looked dated, it was very clean. He opened the bedside drawer and pulled his handgun out of the shoulder holster. He stared out the window as the snow fell with increasing volume and velocity. He didn’t need to form any attachment to Lacey however temporary. He was here to find a kidnapped eight-year-old girl who was the daughter to millionaire George Ignatius.
Before becoming a private eye, Jude had been a police officer. He’d used his contacts in the department to get a trace of the vehicle that had abducted eight-year-old Maria. The home across the street from where she’d been kidnapped had a camera to record who came to the front door. Jude had isolated the time of the abduction on the recordings. The vehicle that took the little girl appeared in the background.
That trace on the vehicle had led him here. And now he couldn’t do anything. From where he sat on the bed, he rested his elbows on his knees and his hands on the sides of his head. The rising frustration tied his stomach in knots.
This whole investigation might have gone sideways. His phone still wasn’t getting a signal. If there was a landline, it probably wasn’t working either. He couldn’t call George. He’d never forgive himself if something happened to that little girl.
Again, he opened the drawer where he’d put his handgun. He hadn’t noticed the Bible there before. Standard-issue even for this hotel. Not that he would ever open that book again. Not only did not being able to prevent the murder-suicide sideline his career, it stole his faith. He didn’t know what he believed in anymore. That frantic prayer on the mountain when Lacey had shown up was the first time he’d prayed in ten years. And God had answered.
Jude lay down on top of the covers, staring at the copper ceiling, waiting for sleep to come.
He rubbed his chest where it felt tight. Though the kidnapper had not yet made a ransom demand, the clock was ticking for little Maria. A day ago the kidnapper had contacted George to let him know Maria was alive.
This storm moving in would delay his chance to search the residences that were on that mountain road. Even as the wind rattled the window, he could feel his chest tighten. He had to bring the girl home safe. In a way, he felt like his own life depended on that.
With the storm picking up intensity outside, Jude closed his eyes and willed himself to go to sleep. His last thought was of the auburn-haired Lacey. She was a hard woman to read, but she intrigued him. What was her story?
The heaviness of sleep invaded his muscles and he felt himself drifting off. He awoke to the sound of a woman screaming. Lacey was in trouble!
THREE
Lacey screamed when she awoke in total darkness, sensing that someone else was in her room. A footstep thudded in the darkness moving toward her.
Heart pounding, she fumbled for the bedside light. It didn’t click on. The storm must have taken out the electricity. Her flashlight was in her backpack across the room. The curtains were pulled tight. She couldn’t see anything. The darkness and being awakened from a deep sleep left her disoriented.
She could hear someone moving around the room.
“Who’s there?” She cleared her throat, trying not to give away her fear in her voice. “What are you doing in my room?”
She swung around and let her feet fall on the carpet. What obstacles lay between her and that flashlight? She couldn’t remember. She took two steps before she hit a piece of furniture.
A body brushed up against her. Terror paralyzed her in her tracks. She could sense someone moving very close to her. Her heartbeat drummed in her ears.
Hands wrapped around her neck.
She twisted to one side before the attacker could grab hold of her.
Her heart beat so wildly, it felt like it would jump out of her chest. The man or woman reached out and tugged at her shirt, probably trying to grab her again or feel their way in the darkness. She whirled away, crashing into more furniture.
Someone pounded on the door. “Lacey, is everything okay in there?”
It was Jude.
She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. Terror had stolen her voice.
She could hear the intruder fumbling around. Jude was shaking the doorknob.
“Lacey, come on, open up.”
She stumbled across the dark room, feeling along the wall until she found the doorknob. She unfastened the dead bolt and swung open the door.
Jude shone a flashlight into the room. “What’s going on?”
The light bounced around the room. Lacey got only a glimpse of her intruder before he exited out of the other door on the other side of the room. All she could say for sure was that he was a tall thin man. Not the broad-shouldered man she’d seen on the mountain.
Lacey grabbed Jude’s flashlight and ran in the direction the man had gone. The door where the intruder had escaped was ajar. The place was so low security it had been unlocked. She entered an adjoining room that was not occupied but must have been part of a suite that connected to her room at one time. She shone the flashlight all around. The man was gone.
Jude came up behind her. “What’s going on and can I have my flashlight back?”
“Sorry.” She handed it back to him. “There was somebody in my room.”
“I’ll see if I can catch him.” Jude’s footsteps pounded up the hallway and then faded.
She was left in the dark. A rush of terror over the assault, which may have been an attempt on her life, caused her knees to turn to mush.
Jude returned. “I couldn’t see anyone. I don’t know the layout of this place. There are a bunch of boarded up areas. I searched as best I could. I think he must have escaped.”
“I’m sure there is more than one door he could have slipped out of.” Her voice still vibrated with fear.
Jude’s words filled with compassion. “I would have gotten to you faster from my room. It took a minute to find my flashlight in the dark. Why don’t you come back and sit down?” He led her gently back into the room and pointed her toward a chair. He stood at the window and pulled back the curtain. “Looks like the power is out all over town.”
She stared out the window. Her room faced the back of the hotel, so they were looking at residences. All the windows in the houses were dark. She saw only the occasional tiny glow of light coming from a flashlight or a lantern or maybe even a candle.
She wrapped her arms around herself, still tryi
ng to process what had just happened.
Jude patted her hand before sitting in the chair opposite her. “Did you get a look at him? Was it the man who came after me?”
She shook her head. “I didn’t see his face. But he was the wrong build for the man we saw on the mountain.”
“Hate to say it, but sometimes people take advantage of blackouts and decide to rob people,” Jude said.
“I suppose I would be a prime target since I’m not from around here.” She touched her neck, remembering that the man had tried to grab her or maybe he’d just been fumbling in the dark. But she was not able to shake off the fear that had sunk into her bones that the attack was connected to what had happened on that mountain road. “Or the man who came after you has an accomplice.” She couldn’t stop shaking.
Jude touched her shoulder. “Hey, it’s all right now. You’re safe.”
She appreciated his kindness, but her heart was still racing.
Footsteps pounded on the stairs and Ray, the old man from the lobby, appeared in their open doorway holding a camping lantern. He held it close to his cheek, so half his face was in shadow and the other half was lit up. “You two are awake. Heard a ruckus up here.” He looked at Jude. “You the fella that left a note?”
Jude nodded. “Yes.”
“What’s all the noise about?” Ray leaned forward to peer in the room.
“Someone was in Lacey’s room,” said Jude. “Did you see anyone?”
“No,” said Ray. “Only two other people are staying at the hotel.”
Ray stood still, holding the lantern, studying both their faces while his was still half-covered in shadow. Did he think they were making this up?
“All I know is someone attacked Lacey,” said Jude.
Ray took a step back. “Electricity is out all over town. Got a fire started in the ballroom and some snacks,” said Ray. Without waiting for their response, he disappeared down the hallway. The old man either didn’t believe him or didn’t want to deal with another problem right now.
The wind rattled the windows. Lacey got to her feet. “We might as well go downstairs. I’m not going to fall back asleep.”