Never Let Go

by Elizabeth Goddard

  Here we go again. Of course Heath would have to jab at him about taking so long. Laying into him like he was a child. The black sheep of the family. He cringed inside, sagging against the vehicle. Heath sounded so much like Dad. It took Austin back to a place he didn’t want to go. He almost wished he hadn’t called. “Sorry. There’s been a lot that’s happened.”

  “Listen.” Heath blew out a breath. Austin could picture him pinching his nose. Reconsidering his words. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to jump down your throat. I know I sounded just like him, didn’t I?” Heath released an incredulous laugh.

  Austin didn’t know what to say. He paced the cracked parking lot long in need of repair. Kicked around a few pebbles.

  “I swore I’d never be like him,” Heath finally said. “But all that aside, how are you, little brother?”

  Now there was the Heath that Austin remembered. And loved. Relief swelled inside.

  “I’m here in Wyoming. Stopped at the Elkhorn store.”

  Now it was Heath’s turn to be speechless.

  Austin offered a chuckle to dispel the awkward moment. “Surprise, surprise.”

  Heath sputtered a laugh. “Surprise indeed. So what’s keeping you away? Come on home.”

  Home? Austin didn’t want to think of it as home. The house and ranch belonged to Heath. Dad had left his oldest son everything, as if he’d lived in the Dark Ages.

  “I have a matter to take care of first, then I’ll stop by. I’m not keeping you from anything, am I?”

  “Nothing that can’t wait until later. Are you in Wyoming on business?”

  Austin squinted up at the sky, then glanced once again at the store. “You could say that.”

  He walked to the end of the vehicle. On the other side of the Elkhorn sat that same SUV he’d seen at the park and twice before.

  Chapter twenty-three

  Willow leaned against the side of the old log cabin convenience store and spoke to Dana. “How’s the age progression going?”

  “We should see something in a day or two. The age progression photographs that were created early on and put on milk cartons depict her favoring her mother, though you can still see her resemblance to her father, Cliff.”

  “Can you send me a picture of both Cliff and Katelyn in their twenties?”

  “Sure. I’ll text it to you. Do you want me to call her and ask about any relatives in Wyoming?”

  “Might as well. I’m going with Austin to meet his brother. Why don’t you try to see if you can get ahold of her now?”

  “Meet his brother? What on earth for?”

  “Austin grew up here and, since he’s this close, he wants to see his brother. I’m tagging along.” Is that okay with you? She didn’t want to get into it with Dana. As much as she adored the woman, Willow wished she would let her animosity go.

  “I was going to add that you’re there on business. He can see his family while you work, but my words will fall on deaf ears, won’t they?”

  Though Dana’s words were true, they grated. Still, she forced a chuckle. “I didn’t hear anything you said.” From here, she could still see the top portion of Grand Teton. How could anyone not be inspired? Willow took a calming breath. “At least we’re here, following this thread that JT would have followed had he lived. I have to believe I’ll find what he would have found.” Willow had no doubt JT would have found something. The question remained—would she, even with Austin’s help?

  She ended the call just as Austin appeared around the corner of the building, his demeanor burdened with what could only be described as fury. He strode toward her.

  “Willow. Where have you been?”

  “Right here.”

  His shoulders slumped. “When you didn’t come out of the store, I got worried. Why didn’t you come back to the Jeep?”

  “I wanted to give you some privacy while you were talking to your brother. Besides”—she averted her eyes—“I couldn’t focus on my conversation with Dana if I was close enough to hear yours. I would have been listening to you instead of Dana. I can’t help myself. Sorry.”

  An SUV pulled out of the parking lot from the other side of the store and headed down the road. Austin watched it with great interest.

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  “I think that SUV’s been following us. I’ve seen it too many times and now here it is again. I memorized the license plate. I’ll call Emma to run it for me. But this time it had to have been parked in the back before we arrived, unless I missed it pulling in, which I doubt.” His frown deepened. “I should have been more cautious.”

  Willow had started to relax, if only a little, believing she was safe in Wyoming—far from the happenings in Seattle.

  “I’m thirsty. I meant to get us drinks. Can we get something before we head to your brother’s ranch? We are going, aren’t we?” She waited for his reaction.

  Brows furrowed, he nodded. “Sure. Let’s get a soda. It’s still a few miles to the ranch.”

  Inside the Elkhorn, Willow got a bottled water instead of soda. Austin paid for his soda and her water. A tall, lanky man well over seventy took his money with a shaky hand. “We got the best well water in the state right here in these parts.”

  Willow nodded. “That’s good.” She wasn’t sure what he wanted her to do with the information. “I need my water to go though.”

  He narrowed his eyes, angled his head to study Austin. “You wouldn’t happen to be the youngest McKade brother, would you?”

  Austin grinned. “That would be me. How’re you doin’, Jax?”

  “Well, I’ll be. I thought that was you. It’s good to see you back . . .” Jax scratched his head.

  “It’s Austin. My brother Heath runs the ranch.”

  “Austin.” He snapped his fingers. “My memory ain’t so good. And who’s this pretty young miss? Your wife?”

  Heat suffused her cheeks. Of course the guy would think that. “Oh, no, nothing like that. We’re here on business together.” She reached over the counter and shook his hand. “I’m Willow Anderson.”

  The man grinned, revealing crooked and stained teeth, which told his age and of a life well-lived. “Well, you could’ve fooled me, but I suppose I’ve said enough and had better keep my mouth shut. Tell that brother of yours I said hello. The other one too.”

  “Liam.”

  “Yeah, that’s the one. Haven’t seen him in years.”

  “Neither have I.” Austin took a swig of his soda. “That guy who drives that black SUV that just pulled out of here. Who is he?”

  The man rubbed a hand over his balding head, pressing the few silver wisps of hair flat again. “That’d be Silas Everett. He’s the Hoback County sheriff, next county over. This state has too many sheriffs and their deputies, if you ask me. We don’t have that much crime to begin with, and they never seem to be around when you need them anyway.”

  “Oh? What’s he doing here in Bridger County?”

  “He comes here. Sits back there in his SUV behind the store to drink a beer after seeing his wife, Ellie. He divorced her years ago. I hear tell the daughter got involved with drugs. Ellie’s raising the grandkids now.” He shook his head. “He comes to see them every so often. Then stops here, like I said, to catch his breath, then heads back. Sad situation all around.”

  This guy was a wealth of information, albeit some of it gossip. Maybe Willow could get him talking and she’d learn something useful. He’d certainly lived here long enough and was willing to come forth with secrets—at least other people’s secrets.

  “Thanks, Jax. We’re headed out to see Heath now, so I’ll be sure to tell him you said hello.”

  Willow started to object. She wanted to stay and talk to the man, but Austin gently took her arm and ushered her from the store.

  “I don’t think he’s going to believe we’re here on business the way you felt comfortable enough to haul me out of there.” She tossed him a grin, hoping he’d know she was only teasing, but there was t
ruth in the jest.

  He grunted in response as he made his way around the Jeep.

  They got in and buckled again. “See, you worry for nothing. The man you thought had followed us was only a sheriff, and that’s his pattern. We just happened to cross his path several times today. It’s a small region in a sparsely populated state.”

  “I’ll still keep an eye out for his vehicle just the same.” Austin drove down the road, heading away from the Teton Range.

  “You never said how your call with Heath went.”

  “No, I didn’t.” He watched an approaching fork in the road as if he was unsure about where to turn, then hesitantly took the right fork.

  Evergreens grew thick among the hills, and last year’s snow—glaciers probably—remained on the mountains over the rise. A pristine lake on the left reflected the crystal sky. A sign announced their entrance into the Gros Ventre Wilderness. Another sign, this one a yellow diamond, depicted six different kinds of animals. They passed the sign too fast, so she only had time to recognize half of them. “Did that sign have a bear on it? And moose and elk? What else?”

  “Probably antelope. I wasn’t paying attention.”

  “Bears cross the road?”

  “Not just any bears. Grizzlies. Watch out the window. You might get lucky and see one through the trees, rooting for berries. You don’t want to see one up close and personal though. That could be deadly. As for moose and elk crossing the roads, my brother hit a moose once. He was only sixteen. Had just gotten his license.”

  “And the moose? Did it survive?”

  “No idea. It disappeared into the woods. They’re huge, you know. But Heath totaled his truck.”

  “Are you going to tell me how the call went or not?”

  “Better than expected. But grizzly bears, they’re dangerous. Keep your distance. Understood?”

  “Understood.” She understood him all right. He was redirecting the conversation. Didn’t want to talk more about Heath.

  She definitely should have kept her distance.

  If only she didn’t need Austin in this with her. There was risk in spending too much time with him—her heart could fall under his spell only to be broken. Again. She should be smart enough, after having her heart broken once, not to go right back to the same man.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to push you about the phone call to Heath.”

  “No need to apologize. I’m the one who should be sorry. I’m anxious, that’s all. The call with Heath went fine. He’s looking forward to seeing me. And no, I didn’t tell him you’re coming.”

  “I assume he doesn’t even know who I am or that you dated me.”

  “I try to keep pleasure and family separate. So that kind of makes this all the more awkward.”

  How she understood. She’d wanted to unload her secret, the burden she’d carried for much too long. Maybe she could get things out in the open before they got to the ranch. Seeing Heath again would be like a new start for Austin, she hoped. She wanted to have a fresh start too, in a manner of speaking.

  Austin jerked the Jeep to the left.

  Into the trees. Willow let a yelp escape, then she realized he’d turned onto a forest service road hidden by thick pines, invisible from the paved road.

  As the road grew rougher, the Jeep bounced, climbing over rocks and boulders. No wonder he’d insisted on a four-wheel-drive vehicle. She should have expected this. She equated it to the worst turbulence she’d experienced while flying. “You do remember how to get there, don’t you?”

  Great. Had she really said that out loud?

  When he said nothing in response, she softened her tone. “Is this the driveway?”

  “Not yet.”

  She couldn’t tell if the tension rolling off him was because of what she’d said or if he was nervous about seeing his brother. A deep ravine came into view to her left and her heart stuttered. She had to look away.

  “Is this even a road anymore?”

  “The ranch is out of the way. Makes it hard for fire trucks to get here when something burns.”

  He spoke of his mother. And hard for someone to come to your aid when you have an abusive father. She kept those words to herself. She’d already said too much.

  “Hold on. It gets bumpier.”

  “What?”

  “Or we could hike in the rest of the way. But that could take us two hours.”

  “I didn’t dress for a two-hour hike, sorry.” Willow held on to the grips with both hands, squeezing them tight. She almost wished she had asked him to drop her off at the courthouse so she could search records. See if she could find a connection between Katelyn Mason and Wyoming from archives that couldn’t be found online.

  “The views are stunning once you get to the ranch. It’ll be worth it.”

  He turned the Jeep off the road and drove under a large pine arch with the words Emerald M Ranch burned into it.

  She was running out of time if she wanted to tell him before they got there. “I need to tell you something. I don’t know how to say it now without making this more awkward, but I want to move forward. Please forgive me—”

  “Just say it, Willow. We’re almost there. I promise I won’t be mad.”

  “Okay, here goes. When we dated before, you didn’t want to talk about your family, or where you grew up. Your home. Everything that’s important to me and why people often hired my grandfather—to find out where they came from, their inheritance.”

  “Willow, please.” Austin yanked the steering wheel left.

  Right, she was procrastinating. “I know it was wrong to do this, and again, I’m sorry. I looked into your past myself. I knew you were from Grayback and grew up on this ranch.” Waiting for his reaction, she held her breath.

  His jaw worked. “I figured as much.”

  “But in my own defense, people hire private investigators these days before they go too far, you know? I didn’t hire anyone. I’m not saying that.”

  “No need to beat yourself up. What was between us is long over. You’re forgiven and it’s forgotten. I couldn’t give you what you needed, and you didn’t trust me.”

  Willow’s throat grew tight. The controlled hostility edging his tone seemed to say that nothing was forgiven or forgotten. And that he still cared for her.

  The Jeep leveled out some as he turned onto an actual driveway. The tires crunched over the gravel and a larger-than-life two-story rustic log cabin with a wraparound porch came into view. On the other side of the cabin, a peaceful lake. Austin’s knuckles tightened on the steering wheel. She shouldn’t have brought up any of that now. Why did she stink at timing?

  He parked the Jeep, then shifted to look at her. “At least I still have a few secrets from you.”

  Chapter twenty-four

  THURSDAY, 4:05 P.M.

  EMERALD M RANCH

  Could he have been more of a jerk?

  Austin wished he’d included some warmth with his cold statement to soften the blow, but he hadn’t been able to muster that even for Willow. To her credit, she was the one to offer a smile, and she seemed to understand that being this close to his family and his past made him all kinds of crazy.

  “Should we get out? I assume that’s your brother standing on the porch waiting.”

  “Uh, yeah, we should.” He sent her an apologetic look. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that about my secrets.”

  “So you still have secrets from me, huh?” Willow’s teasing tone couldn’t hide her curiosity as she opened the door and got out.

  He did the same. Breathed in the fresh mountain air, the feral beauty of this remote ranch so near the wilderness area. The memories sucked him right back, but he didn’t want to go there. He wanted to make new ones. Apparently Heath was trying to do the same. Everything looked different now.

  As he hiked toward his brother, he worked to calm his nerves. Admired the old cabin, which had been transformed with a bigger porch and new logs. Had Heath also renovated the inside?

>   Much too soon he clomped up the wraparound porch steps and faced his brother. Willow crept up behind him. An old tan-colored cur dog thrust his head under Austin’s hand. “Hey there, Timber.”

  His smile as big as the sky, Heath immediately thrust out his hand. “It’s good to see you.”

  Austin took it, and Heath yanked him into a brotherly hug. His brother held him so hard, he could swear a bear had gotten hold of him. Why had he stayed away so long? When Heath released him, he studied Austin long and hard, his blue eyes wells of emotions like their mother’s.

  Then his attention slid to Willow.

  “And this would be?” He stepped forward and gently took the hand Willow offered, cupping it in his much larger ones.

  “Willow Anderson,” she said. “I hired Austin to help me on a case.”

  “Oh?” Heath’s eyes snapped to Austin, then back to her. “Case?”

  A small laugh escaped. “I’m a forensic genealogist.”

  “A what?” Heath’s grin was infectious.

  “It might take a while to explain.”

  “Well, come on inside and you can tell me all about it.” To Austin, he said, “This was and is your home too. You’re free to come and go as you please. How long are you staying?”

  Heath led them through the door into the house as he talked. When Austin stepped inside, he hardly recognized the place. “Initially we were only going to be here for a night, but we might need to stay longer.” Another day or two might be necessary. “We have rooms booked in Jackson.”

  “Rooms in Jackson? You could have stayed here. Can’t say I’m not hurt you didn’t think of that first, but I’ll get over it.” Heath grinned. “If you’re here on business, then I understand why you didn’t. Getting to the ranch isn’t an easy haul.”

  “And we are here on business.” Austin wanted to make that clear—for his sake, if not for Willow’s.

  The aroma of pot roast hung in the air. His stomach rumbled. “Everything looks different. And you’ve turned it into a guest ranch.”

  Heath chuckled. “Yep. We get families and groups for retreats. Lots of photographers because there’s easy access to the wilderness. Business is good. I added cabins and just recently built two more. I want to keep it small, though, so people can feel like they have their own private wilderness retreat.”