by Barb Han
She nodded as she took the knife.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He filed her reaction away as another interesting thought. If she’d come out alone, what was she really afraid of? Him? Animals? She’d come out by herself without identification or a way to defend herself. This patch of land wasn’t anywhere near a road. Clearly, he’d never met the woman before but he didn’t have to know her to realize that she didn’t look the type to wander off on her own on a four-wheeler. Not that she looked weak or like she couldn’t handle herself in most situations. But the type of clothes and shoes she wore didn’t fit with the activity and those expensive running shoes belonged out here about as much as a woman wearing a light jacket in the cold.
She didn’t give the impression that she was a bandana-wearing thrill seeker. Nor did she particularly strike him as a granola-eating nature girl. Especially since the latter wouldn’t be in the driver’s seat of a four-wheeler.
There was another thing that bugged him as he walked away from the accident. He’d noticed another set of tire tracks when he scanned the ground for her personal belongings, which meant there could have been another person involved.
If she and a friend had ventured onto his land by mistake, what kind of jerk would leave her alone in her condition?
Then again, with no cell service the other person might’ve been forced to go for help.
And it wasn’t like Red was talking. All she’d said so far was, “Help me.” Pretty much anyone in her situation would say the same thing.
Tyler quickened his pace. If there was someone on his land searching for reception, he needed to get a search team out while there was still plenty of daylight. The accident might’ve already been called in. If the person wasn’t familiar with the area he or she might not be able to lead rescuers to Red.
Even so, a person would have to be new at this to panic and leave an injured person alone with all the dangerous wildlife here on the ranch. A darker side of him also noted that this would be the perfect way to cover up an attempted murder.
Tyler wrote the sentiment off as the result of learning that his parents had been murdered. He would like nothing more than to solve the case that had been made to look like an accident. Thinking about it made him angry. Who would want to hurt his family?
He shelved those thoughts for now.
Another one struck him about the mystery woman. If the scene back there had been an attempted murder, then the murderer could still be around. With her lying there vulnerable and alone, it wouldn’t take much to finish the job.
Tyler crested Diablo’s Rock and took the back side just as fast shivering in the cold breeze. He’d tied Digby to a tree in a spot where his horse could decide if he wanted to be in the shade or not.
The gelding was standing in the sun, right where Tyler had left him. He blew out a breath as he pulled his walkie-talkie out of his saddlebag and got hold of his foreman, Russ.
“What can I do for you, boss?” Russ asked.
“There’s been a four-wheeler incident at the base of Diablo’s Rock. A woman took a pretty bad hit to her head. She’s not going anywhere without help.”
“You don’t know who she is?” Russ asked. It was more statement than question.
“Never seen her before. She doesn’t have any ID on her and I’d put money on the fact she has a concussion.”
“Sounds like a mess,” Russ agreed. “Hold on for one second, boss.”
Tyler would never get used to the title even though he owned just as much of the ranch as his brothers. Together, they had a ninety-five percent interest—or would as soon as the will was out of probate, which would take another ten months. The other five percent had been divided between Pop’s only living brother and sister a few years ago. Uncle Ezra and Aunt Bea didn’t agree on much of anything except being taken care of. The two of them were as alike as a water moccasin and a frog.
Pop had included them both in ownership of the ranch to help take care of them financially as they aged, since Bea’s daughter had left for California and Ezra’s only son had died before his tenth birthday. The family cattle ranch was the biggest in Texas, both in land and net profit. As if that wasn’t enough, the hunting club brought in more money than they could spend, much to the benefit of the many charities their mother had loved—a tradition Tyler and his brothers had every intention of continuing in her honor.
Even though the family had money and the boys had grown up knowing that they stood to inherit the highly successful family business, none had relied on that inheritance. All six O’Brien brothers had a deep-seated need to make their own way and depend on themselves. None were like their aunt or uncle, who seemed content to ride their successful brother’s coattails. Especially Uncle Ezra, who had been angling to sell his interest or be given more control over the hunting club in recent months. Tyler’s older brother Dallas figured the man was getting bored in his old age and wanted more to keep him busy.
Tyler hoped that was all there was to it, especially since it was his job to keep the peace. Of all the sons, he was the best negotiator and he’d talked Ezra down for the time being. They’d already set aside one percent of theirs for Janis, their housekeeper, who would be wealthy enough not to work for the rest of her life. Although, she’d said she was way too young to retire.
“I have emergency personnel on their way to the Rock,” Russ said, interrupting Tyler’s heavy thoughts—thoughts he’d volunteered to ride fences to try to stem in the first place.
Ranch hands called Tyler a Renaissance man for doing things the old-fashioned way, but the truth was that it was as good for Tyler’s soul as it was for Digby’s health. Being out on the land on his horse made him feel connected and whole in a way he couldn’t easily explain, nor did he care to examine.
“Let Tommy know about this, will you? Someone might be sick with worry looking for her,” he said. The sheriff had been Dallas O’Brien’s best friend and like a brother to the rest of the O’Brien boys. He’d grown up on the land. His uncle, Chill Johnson, had worked for Pop as long as Tyler could remember. Tommy had come to live with his uncle after his parents died.
“Will do, boss. I’ll see if the sheriff can meet you at the hospital to take statements. Maybe he can help figure out who she is.” Russ knew Tyler well enough to realize that he wouldn’t be able to walk away until he knew the mystery woman was all right.
Silence meant Russ was taking care of that phone call right now, which was good because if someone had already reported her missing, then Tyler might be able to bring back more than medical supplies. He might be able to give her an identity. And if that second set of tire tracks had someone frantically searching for help, Tyler could ease that burden, as well.
“Sheriff said no one called in an emergency or missing person’s report,” Russ said.
Tyler feared as much.
“Said he’ll meet her at the hospital since he’s tied up on another interview right now,” Russ continued.
If no one was looking for her, then Tyler had to consider other possibilities for those tire tracks.
“Much appreciated,” he said to Russ. “Have someone ready to take Digby from me so I can head to the hospital as soon as I get back to the barn. And send out a search team in the chopper to make sure there’s no one out here lost.”
Tyler thanked Russ before ending the transmission and starting the journey back toward the redheaded mystery. He couldn’t completely ignore the fear that he’d return to a lifeless body. She’d been upright and responsive so he’d take those as positive signs. Being away from her while she was vulnerable had his blood pressure spiking faster than a pro volleyball player. He picked up his pace, needing to see for himself that she was still okay.
At the faster speed, he crested Diablo’s Rock in half the time. Part of him wondered if she could have managed to crawl away. She’
d seemed determined and half-scared out of her wits—a combination that could be dangerous—or deadly—and left him wondering what really had her so freaked out.
He found her right where he’d left her. His pulse had slowly wound back to a decent clip when he saw that she was still conscious. And yet something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on was eating away at him. What was the creepy, fire-ants-crawling-on-his-spine feeling about anyway?
Danger, for one thing, in the form of poachers. Sure, there were poachers in South Central Texas. People looked for trophies and illegally hunted on the large ranches in the area, which created a dangerous situation for all involved.
The O’Briens worked diligently to keep the land free of people who trespassed to hunt or steal game, so that risk should be minimal. If it wasn’t poachers, then what was it? The fact that so many things didn’t add up?
A beautiful single woman alone on a four-wheeler in territory she didn’t know and wasn’t dressed for? Yep. That made about as much sense as a deer eating barbeque.
“Help is on the way,” he said, trying to give her hope to hold on to, wishing he could do more. He knelt next to her and opened his medical supply kit.
“Thank you,” she managed to get out.
“My apologies if this hurts.” It was going to hurt. That gash on her forehead was deep and had him worried. He poured clean water over it and then dabbed antibiotic ointment onto an oversize gauze bandage, pressing it to her forehead to stem the bleeding. She seemed determined not to give in to the pain. Or maybe she was just too weak.
It didn’t take long for the cavalry to arrive. Tyler heard the chopper moving toward them before he got a visual on it. A helicopter was the only logical choice for rescue workers to use in order to access this part of the land. Otherwise, they’d have to take her on one helluva bumpy ride to get her to a main road, and that could jeopardize her condition.
Tyler saw the chopper moments before the pilot landed.
From there, it was only twenty yards to reach him and Red. The land was flat enough to manage easily on foot.
As emergency personnel neared, the mystery woman squeezed Tyler’s hand.
He glanced at her and saw that same look of fear in her eyes. What was that all about? Didn’t she realize this was the help she needed?
Depending on how bad that blow to the head was, she might not recognize them as the people who would help her. That had Tyler more worried than when he’d found her. Just how badly injured was she?
The blow she’d taken to the head looked bad. He’d give anyone that. But her panic looked like she was in one of those horror flicks being chased by an ax murderer.
“It’s okay. I know these men. They’ll take care of you,” he tried to reassure her. Tyler had known the EMTs, Andy and Shanks, for years. They were good guys. Dougherty would be piloting the chopper. Tyler didn’t need to see him to know that.
So what was up with the way she kept squeezing his hand, looking like she was trying to say something?
Chapter Two
The heel of Tyler’s boots clicked against the white tile floor in the hospital hallway as he neared room 367 to check on Red.
He removed his gray Stetson before crossing the threshold, pausing long enough to finger comb his hair and chew on the facts. No one had reported the mystery redhead as missing or reported the accident. That had not been the news he was expecting and it made him worry that some other outsider was on his property, hurt, lost or just a damned fool who was hunting illegally and ditched the redhead when her ATV overturned. Something he couldn’t quite put his finger on had his radar on full alert and it was more than just finding her in the condition he had.
Tyler pushed open the door at Bluff General and walked inside Red’s room. Her eyes were closed. The bed had been raised so that she was halfway sitting and she had an IV attached to her left arm. He’d seen enough of the inside of hospital rooms to know the IV most likely contained fluids and possibly antibiotics to stem infection. All good things that her body needed to recover.
In fact, the fluids seemed to be working magic already because there was a rosy hue in the creamy complexion on her cheeks now. Her forehead had a proper bandage on it and his makeshift head wrap had been replaced with clean, white gauze.
Since she looked to be resting peacefully and he didn’t want to disturb her, he figured this would be a good time to visit with her doctor and find Tommy to see if he’d managed to get a statement or put a name to Sleeping Beauty here.
Her eyes fluttered open and he felt like a fool for staring at her.
“How are you?” he asked, for lack of anything better to say. Even through the gauze and tape she was stunning.
“Better,” she managed to squeak out. Her throat sounded scratchy. It was the dry air.
He set his cowboy hat down on the chair and moved next to her bed. Now that she seemed able to speak, maybe he could find out if there were others on his land or if he should call off the search.
“What’s your name?” he asked.
She made a move to speak but coughed instead. Her gaze locked onto a large white mug situated on the wheeled table next to her bed just out of reach.
“You thirsty?” he asked as he moved to the mug.
“Yes, please” came out on a croak.
At least she was talking and making sense. Those were good signs.
“Were you alone earlier?” he asked as he held the oversize mug filled with ice water toward her. She eagerly accepted but didn’t answer.
After a few small sips, she leaned her head against the pillow, but her eyes never left Tyler’s face. Those sea-green eyes stayed fixed on him, panic and fear still there.
“Do you know who you are?” he asked, setting the mug down on the tray and then repositioning it so that she could reach water whenever she wanted.
“Jennifer,” she said, throat still scratchy but sounding much better. Her voice had a nice pitch to it. “Who are you?”
“Tyler O’Brien. My brothers and I own the land you were on earlier.”
Her gaze darted toward the door and then her eyes widened in fear, so Tyler turned to follow her line of sight.
A decent-looking man in his early thirties walked in. His gaze ricocheted between Jennifer and Tyler. He was several inches shorter, so Tyler guessed he was around five foot eleven. He was on the thin side, built like a runner, and had sandy-blond hair. A fresh-looking pink sunburn dotted his tanned nose and cheeks.
Tyler didn’t recognize him.
“Honey,” the man said with a sigh and he seemed to pour on the drama if anyone asked Tyler. “I’ve been so worried about you.”
Tyler glanced at Jennifer in time to see a moment of sheer panic, so he stepped in between them, blocking Tan Face’s path.
“Name’s Tyler.” He stuck out his hand.
“What happened to you, honey? Are you all right?” Tan Face said, sidestepping Tyler and his hand.
“Hold on there, pal,” Tyler said, placing his hand on Tan Face’s shoulder, ensuring he couldn’t get to Jennifer’s bedside. “I didn’t catch your name.”
“James Milton,” he said, puffing out his chest like a cobra, looking none too thrilled that Tyler had put a hand on him.
“Do you mind?” he asked. “My fiancée is lying in a hospital bed and she’s none of your business.”
Fiancée? Tyler didn’t normally misjudge situations. His instincts were usually spot-on. Red seemed scared of the man. But if the two of them were engaged then he needed to take a step back. Some lines shouldn’t be crossed no matter how irritated the man’s presence made Tyler.
He let go of the man’s shoulder. It might be better to take a wait-and-see approach to this one. Tyler told himself that he’d leave as soon as he knew she was going to be fine. Besides, he needed to m
ake sure she had no intention of suing him for having an accident on his land. As crazy as that sounded, he’d heard of people doing that and more.
He ignored the little voice that said he was lying to himself about why he was sticking around and that it had to do with an attraction.
Milton made a dramatic scene of rushing to Red’s side once he was free of Tyler’s grasp. The man was fresh-from-a-shower clean and had on dress slacks and a button-down shirt. Not exactly the kind of clothes one would wear on an ATV adventure, so the logical question was why would he let Red go alone if he cared about her as much as he professed?
“I didn’t know what to think when you disappeared,” Milton said to her.
Tyler folded his arms and leaned against the wall. The panicked expression on Jennifer’s face intensified. He’d probably regret this later, but he had to ask, “About that, James. What happened exactly?”
“I’m fine,” Red interjected, her gaze darting from Tyler to Milton.
Tyler didn’t have a strong reading on the guy other than general dislike and her reaction wasn’t helping. Milton’s concern came off as insincere. Tyler had learned long ago to trust his instincts. This guy looked like he was putting on a show.
The door opened and the sheriff walked in.
Milton turned and the look on his face when he caught sight of the sheriff was priceless. Also, it strengthened Tyler’s intuition that this guy was up to no good. This was about to get interesting.
Tommy introduced himself to Jennifer and Milton, and then shook Tyler’s outstretched hand.
“I’ve been worried sick about you, darling,” Milton said, turning to Jennifer, and Tyler thought the man was overselling.
She managed a weak smile.
Tyler noticed that she stiffened when Milton took her by the hand. Not exactly a warm reception for her fiancé, and that got Tyler’s mind spinning with scenarios, none he liked.
“Do you have ID?” Tommy asked.
“Did we do something wrong, sheriff?” Milton produced two Louisiana driver’s licenses. His and Jennifer’s.