by Connie Mann
“Thought you had better taste than that, Sutton,” he said, “hanging out with her kind. Didn’t she cause you enough trouble in high school?”
Cole was on his feet so fast, the other man backed up a step. “Keep walking, Bo. I don’t want any trouble.”
“Still backing down from doing the right thing, ain’t you? You always were a coward.”
Cole’s fist lashed out so quickly, Bo didn’t have a chance to respond. One second he was in Cole’s face, and the next he was lying on the floor by their table. A woman nearby yelped, and the restaurant went deathly quiet. Cole eyed Bo’s two friends as they started toward him. “You don’t want to do that. Take your friend and go.”
He didn’t wait for them to respond, just turned to Eve and dropped some cash on the table. “You ready?”
Eve nodded and slid out of the bench, and they walked out to the truck in silence. Eve moved fast, hoping to get far away from there before Bo and his friends came out, but Cole put a hand on her arm. “Slow down, Eve. It’s fine. They won’t come after us.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I know Bo. He likes the attention. His buddies generally don’t want any trouble.” He helped her into the truck, then came around and slid in. He looked her way as he started the truck. “Sorry about all that.”
“It certainly was unexpected. Thanks for defending me.” She wasn’t an advocate of violence, of course, but she couldn’t deny the warm fuzzies his quick defense sent to the region of her heart.
He grinned and tipped his hat. “My pleasure, ma’am.”
Eve sent him a quick grin, then rubbed her neck. It hadn’t hurt before, but now it was starting to ache.
“You OK?” Cole asked.
She debated whether to tell him. “Someone tried to run me off the road. My neck is a little stiff.”
Cole swerved, then pulled back into his lane as he shouted, “Why am I just hearing about this now?”
She should never have said anything. “I was unaware I had to check in with you.”
He muttered under his breath as he stared her down. “Don’t make this something it’s not, Eve. Tell me what happened.”
She sighed and gave him the rundown, including the chief’s official shrug and warning to stop causing trouble.
Cole scowled the rest of the way to the ranch. But when he helped her out of the truck, he met her eyes, pulled her to him, and whispered, “Don’t keep things from me, Eve. It makes me crazy.”
Eve stepped back, completely thrown by the caring in his eyes. She looked away, then nodded once as he walked her to her car.
The look in his eyes haunted her for the rest of the day and through another sleepless night.
Nick Stanton arrived just after Blaze had left for school and Eve had finished the breakfast dishes. He knocked on the front door, and Eve hurried to open it. Only folks who knew them well ventured onto the screen porch before knocking.
“Morning, Nick.” She motioned him into the kitchen. “Coffee?”
He removed his hat, stood there twirling it in his hands. “Sure. Thanks.”
His anxiety created some in Eve, as well. “What’s wrong? Mama is OK, right?”
“She is. That’s not why I’m here.” He sat, and when she placed the mug in front of him, he just turned it round and round by the handle.
Finally he looked up. “It’s about Captain Demetri. They found his body in the jail this morning.”
Eve plopped down in a chair, stunned. “What happened? Did he commit suicide?”
Everyone knew he’d been awaiting trial at the county jail, but Eve had heard he was handling it OK.
“Somebody shanked him.”
Eve gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. She knew such things happened in prisons, of course, but here? To Captain Demetri?
“Do they know what happened?”
“Not yet. And they might not ever figure it out.” Nick took a sip of his coffee, then met her gaze. “He was scheduled to give a deposition this morning in the case. I find that a little too coincidental.”
The implications had Eve’s eyes widening. “Oh my. What does the chief say?”
Nick scowled. “The usual: How sad. We’ll look into it.”
Eve studied his expression. “You think he’s involved somehow?” It seemed impossible. But then again, knowing two of the local captains had been involved in drug smuggling for years and years blew her mind, too.
“I’m not sure what to think. But he seems a little too quick to shove things under the rug to let me sleep nights.”
“If what you’re saying is even a little bit true, or that he knows the people involved, you need to be really careful, Nick. He could come after you.”
Nick flashed her a quick grin. “He’s already told me if I wanted to keep my position, I needed to do my job and not question things.”
“He really said that? Told a cop not to question things?” Eve shook her head. Unbelievable.
“I just thought your family would want to know. Will you let Mr. Martinelli know? I know they were friends a long time.”
“I will. Of course.”
“By the way, I haven’t had any luck figuring out who left you that stuffed cat or the Barbie. They sell them at the local discount store, so there’s no telling who bought it. I know Jesse was threatened when he first got here, too. I’m trying to see if there’s a connection.”
“A connection? But all that was solved when they arrested Captain Demetri, wasn’t it?”
Nick looked as though he was debating how much to say. “I don’t think those two captains were the masterminds behind the smuggling. I think they were the delivery guys, the ones who took all the risks while someone higher up the low-life food chain actually called the shots.”
Eve’s mind spun as she tried to process what he was saying. “You think whoever that is will try to get the network going again, somehow.”
“They might have moved it elsewhere. But if whoever is behind this is local, they’d bide their time and start again.”
“You know this all sounds crazy and far fetched, right?”
Nick sighed, rubbed the back of his neck before he glanced back at her. “I know. And I’m asking you not to mention it to anyone outside the, uh, family.”
Eve shivered as she remembered the Tropicana race, when Sasha had almost been killed. She would have died if not for Jesse’s quick thinking. The ramifications of all that, coupled with what Nick was saying now, made goose bumps pop up on her arms. “Be careful, Nick,” she repeated. “We just found you. We don’t want to lose you.”
He responded with an awkward smile. “Thanks. Just be careful, OK? Maybe I’m way off base here, but I don’t think so.”
Eve walked him out to his SUV and sighed as she watched him go. She wondered if he’d ever get to the point where he could call the Martinellis Pop and Mama. But knowing the people who’d raised you had actually kidnapped you from your birth parents? That wasn’t something you got over. And since the people he’d thought were his parents were dead, he couldn’t ever get their side of the story, either.
Eve went back inside, her mind spinning. She hadn’t even considered what would happen to the drug network after Captain Roy’s death and Captain Demetri’s imprisonment. Would whoever was in charge of the operation try to recruit other smugglers?
She’d have to start paying attention, certainly warn Sasha and Jesse and put them on alert, too.
But the bigger question in her mind was whether or not any of that was in any way connected to what was happening at Cole’s farm. Because something dangerous was simmering just below the surface. She could feel it.
She just didn’t know what to do about it.
Chapter 19
Eve drove out to Sutton Ranch and parked in front of the ranch house, but no one answered her knock. A quick peek around back showed that Alice’s car was missing, as well as Cole’s truck. Of course, he could be anywhere on the ranch.
She
walked over to the barn with the office at one end, but it, too, was empty. She heard voices and a tractor starting and walked over to where Hector and Buzz were talking to Leon, who had his head in the bowels of the tractor’s engine.
“Good morning, gentlemen.”
All three men turned to look at her, and their expressions varied greatly. Buzz looked like he’d eaten something rotten; Leon merely looked annoyed at the interruption and went back to work. Hector’s face split into a wide grin.
“Good morning, senorita,” he said, bowing slightly and making Eve laugh, which earned her another scowl from Buzz. “What brings you here this morning?”
“She’s dogging Cole’s heels, that’s what,” Buzz muttered, then looked her square in the eye. “The boy has enough to worry about without you following him around.”
Surprised at his seeming defense of Cole, Eve asked, “I’m wondering why my being here bothers you, sir. You don’t know me at all.”
“I know plenty, mostly that you stir up trouble wherever you go. We have enough of that here without you causing Cole any more.”
Eve decided to sidestep the accusation. “Is he here?” she asked Hector.
“No, ma’am. He went to town, said he had a meeting with the bank.” Hector shook his head, obviously worried. “I’m not sure when he’ll be back.” He muttered something in Spanish before he turned and headed for the barn.
“So what do you think, Leon, can this old thing be saved?” Buzz stepped over next to the tractor, effectively dismissing her.
Part of her wanted to stay and keep asking questions, just to annoy the man, but she decided against it. The fact that he’d defended Cole surprised her, but made her glad, too, for Cole’s sake. He needed all the help he could get if things were as bleak as she’d heard.
As she turned to go back to her car, she hesitated. Why not have a quick look around while she was here? She was convinced that Cole had nothing to do with what was going on at the ranch, but she was equally convinced that someone was behind it. She looked over toward the tractor again, deep in thought.
“Help you, ma’am?” a voice asked. Eve spun around, startled, before the man continued, “Sorry about that, Eve.”
She recognized Duane, dressed in the typical Florida cowboy uniform of jeans, Stetson, and T-shirt, but he also came with the smell of liquor, the kind that seems to seep out of the skin of a heavy drinker. “Hi, Duane. I came by to see Cole, but I heard he isn’t here right now.”
At the mention of Cole’s name, the man’s demeanor changed; his expression hardened. “That one is as stubborn as his daddy, God rest his soul.”
“Were you and Cole’s father close?”
The man chuckled, but there was more bitterness than humor in his words. “We were, before he married my sister and stole my land.”
“Stole your land?” The words popped out before she could think of a better way to ask the question.
“This ranch has been in my family for a good long while. My daddy had no business selling it to Hank.”
Before Eve could ask any one of the dozens of questions crowding her tongue, Duane spun on his heel and stalked off. Alrighty, then.
Eve looked around some more and decided to check out several of the outbuildings near the fields. It was a long shot, but she figured, since the problem with the fertigation system had happened in the fields, maybe there were some answers in the nearby sheds.
She wandered over to one building and found an assortment of both well-used and long-neglected equipment, piled on the floor and hanging from hooks along three walls of the shed. She didn’t see anything there that helped in any way, so she walked over to the next building. This one had a padlock on the outside, but it hung open, so she undid the hasp and pulled the door open.
This place looked far more promising. For one thing, it was larger than the other shed, and instead of tools, it held shelves and shelves of fertilizers, as well as pesticides. A tingle of excitement ran over her skin. Could one of these products be the cause of the contamination at Celia’s cottage? She ran a finger over the labels, possibilities growing with every can, sprayer, and bag. Any number of these things could have caused the problem. She pulled out her cell phone and started snapping pictures. Depending on what the water testing of Celia’s house showed, it would be easy enough to identify if any of these chemical compounds matched it.
This could be the clue she’d been looking for.
Hands trembling in her haste to get the evidence and get out before someone caught her snooping, she snapped picture after picture, getting more excited by the second.
Slam!
The door banged shut and Eve spun around in the sudden darkness, her phone flying from her grip. What was going on? She didn’t remember any wind this morning. She dropped to the floor and felt around for her phone, but couldn’t find it. Frustrated, she stumbled over to the door in the pitch blackness, hands stretched out in front of her.
When she reached the door, she pushed, trying to open it back up. It wouldn’t budge. Had it swelled from the heat? She snorted at her own wishful thinking. More likely someone had locked her in. She leaned her shoulder against it and pushed with all her might, but nothing happened.
She pushed, again and again, trying to ignore the suffocating heat and the trapped feeling of being all alone in the dark.
Defeated, she leaned against the wall, panting, trying to hold the fear at bay. She had to think. Phone. If she found her phone, she could call for help.
Bzzz.
Eve froze, every nerve on high alert. It was a bee. Was he inside or outside?
She listened, and heard a second bee. Then a third.
Her heart pounded like a freight train, and sweat broke out on her skin as she heard more bees start to buzz.
They were in the shed. With her.
Her EpiPen was in her purse. In her car.
Dear Jesus, no. Please, please make them go away. Make them stop.
There was no sudden silence, no quick rescue. Instead, she felt something crawl on the skin of her arm, and she held perfectly still, even though every single protective instinct she possessed urged her to swat it away.
But she knew what would happen if she did. She couldn’t risk it.
She also couldn’t move, or call for help, or do anything that might make it sting her.
Because if she did, and the bee got agitated and stung her, she could be dead before help arrived.
Sweat dripped down her forehead as she felt more bees walking along her exposed skin. She could feel at least three on one arm, five on the other.
Her heart thumped so hard it hurt, so she practiced the relaxation exercises she’d learned while taking photography classes, of all things. If you controlled your breathing while holding the camera, you could hold it much steadier. And right now she couldn’t shake, couldn’t wipe away the sweat, and most of all, couldn’t hide from her fear.
One of the bees starting buzzing around her face, and Eve knew she was near her breaking point. She couldn’t hold still much longer.
Now that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, the dark shape dancing so close to her face made staying motionless even harder.
She had to distract herself. Think of something else—anything else—but that bee. She swallowed and tried not to think about the sweat slowly rolling down the side of her face and how badly she wanted to wipe it away. She thought her jaw would crack from the pressure she put on it. Her muscles quivered with the effort and she closed her eyes, but no. That made her sway, and she couldn’t risk losing her balance. Her eyes popped open, and she came face-to-face with that bee again.
Oh, God. Please help me. Please don’t let me move.
How had the bees gotten in? Dumb question. It was a shed. People came in and out all the time, opening and closing the door. The how was easy.
The hard part was thinking about who had closed the door. Had it simply swung shut by itself? She wanted to believe that, but the suspicious i
nvestigator in her wasn’t buying it. She’d been threatened, so someone clearly wasn’t happy with her.
But if someone had done this on purpose, it had to be someone right here on the ranch.
She thought about that as she felt more bees walking along her arms. She swallowed hard. Maybe the person knew about her allergy. Or maybe the culprit just wanted to scare her. But in either case, someone knew she was in here.
Whatever the reason, Eve knew with sickening clarity that she would die if she got stung and didn’t get her EpiPen.
Spots started dancing before her eyes, and Eve knew she was hyperventilating despite her best effort to stay calm. She focused on her breathing. In. Hold for five seconds. Out. In for five seconds. Out.
Just when she thought she had this under control, she suddenly lost her balance. She stepped back to catch herself, but she tripped over something and crashed against the wall of the shed.
The bees let out an angry buzz, and without thinking, Eve batted a hand in front of her face.
Instantly she felt three stings. Two on her face and one on her arm.
Her knees gave out, and she slid to the floor with her back against the wall. She covered her face with her arms and felt another sting. The tears started then, pouring down her cheeks as she battled back panic like she’d never felt before.
Oh, God. Please don’t let me die like this. Please. Send Cole. Send someone to help me.
She felt the swelling start on her face, the heat and tightness. It would be only a matter of minutes before her throat closed up.
Her heart galloped in her chest, and she tried to stay calm, to somehow slow her heart rate, even though she knew it wouldn’t do any good.
Her throat began to close, and she started gasping for air.
Help me. Please.
Her world went dark.
Chapter 20
Cole drove down the gravel road to the ranch, hands tight on the wheel, frustration gripping him like a coiled snake. He’d tried to get an extension on one of the loans his father had taken out and gotten nothing but a bored “I’ll see what I can do” from the bank president. The indifference on the man’s face had not boded well, and Cole had been tempted to grab the man by his collar and tell him that people’s livelihoods were at stake while he was busy in his pristine environment gazing at neat and tidy spreadsheets.