The horse’s gait broke into a smooth, rocking lope.
Regaining her balance, she squinted into the night. The corral fence streamed alongside them. Up ahead, the shadow of a mountain formed a dark outline surrounded by stars. The gelding’s hooves beat rhythmically over packed dirt. It seemed like the right way. It had to be the right way.
Another crack of a gun sounded from behind.
She stifled the gasp before it escaped her mouth and concentrated on the way ahead. Nick had to be all right. He had to catch up with them at the cabin.
The horse carried them farther and farther from the ranch, leaving Nick behind. All alone against two armed men.
NICK LET OUT A RELIEVED breath. They’d made it. They’d gotten away. For a moment there, he thought he’d lost them both, Jason and Melissa.
The crack of a gunshot wiped the jumble of thoughts from his mind. He threw himself to the ground. The assault rifle. No doubt the one with the assault rifle had heard shooting near the barn and figured out he’d left the house. Now he had two gunmen to contend with and no real cover.
His breath rasped his throat. Sagebrush surrounded him, its strong smell permeating every inhale. The sage would make it hard to spot him in the dark, but he needed to find something solid. Something that would allow him to get off a few rounds without immediately giving away his location.
The guest cabins weren’t far. If he could make it there, he could move from cabin to cabin, impossible to pin down.
Rifle out in front of him, he pulled his body forward with his elbows and pushed with his knees. His hand hit a prickly pear. He forced himself to ignore the stabs of the needle-like spines and keep moving.
His dog barked from inside the barn. A siren screamed in the distance.
Soon. One way or another, this would be over soon.
EVEN THOUGH THE TRIP had taken longer than Melissa could imagine, the cabin was right where Nick had said it would be. It was more than one cabin, actually. Three buildings clustered at the base of the mountain. The creek trickled nearby, as he’d described. And the constant roar of the nearby waterfall filled the air like the static of an untuned radio.
She was sure the setting was beautiful in the daylight. In darkness, after having just escaped armed men, not so much.
She’d slowed the horse to a jog, then to a walk. The scent of hot horse stuck to her skin. Her hands ached from the death grip she’d had on rope and saddle horn. Her seat bones were so tender from bouncing on the saddle, they felt like they’d worn right through her flesh.
She glanced over her shoulder. Dark hulks flanked each side of the trail. She knew they were only sagebrush, but in the dark even the native plant life felt malevolent.
She suppressed a shiver. Releasing the saddle horn, she brought her arm around Jason’s little body and gave him a hug. “We made it. Your daddy will be here soon.”
He twisted around and looked up at her with big blue eyes. “I don’t want to ride Bernie anymore.”
Poor guy. He was likely as sore as she was. “I’m sure Bernie could use a break, too.”
She piloted the horse up to the first cabin before bringing him to a halt. She dismounted first, swinging her right leg over and lowering herself to the ground with her left. Pain ached through her inner thighs. Her legs felt bowed like some cartoon cowboy, her knees too wobbly to hold her weight. She stood for a moment, clinging to Bernie’s saddle to keep herself upright.
“I want to get down,” Jason said, his voice holding a touch of whine.
Melissa willed her legs to function. She reached up, placing a hand on either side of the little boy’s rib cage. “Okay. Here we go.” She pulled him off the horse’s back and lowered him to the ground.
Unlike her, Jason was able to walk as soon as his feet hit the earth. He shuffled across the beaten dirt path in his footed pajamas, the blanket she’d taken from his bed wrapped around him like a cloak.
Melissa took the rope and led the horse on one side and Jason on the other. She trudged past the cabin and to what appeared to be the barn. Letting them all inside, she reversed the process of saddling, stripping Bernie of saddle and pad. His back was wet with sweat. She hoped leaving him inside the barn would prevent him from getting a chill, but what did she know about taking care of a horse?
She just hoped Nick arrived soon. She was totally out of her element here…and more than a little worried.
Pushing the image of him holding his rifle at the ready—yelling at her to go—to the back of her mind, she dug the key he had given her from her pocket and let Jason and herself into the cabin.
The place was nicer than Melissa’s apartment. Although it was much smaller than the ranch’s main lodge, the setup was similar. A common room dominated the middle of the cabin, complete with a wood-burning stove. A kitchenette lined the opposite wall. And two bedrooms flanked one wall, in addition to the bathroom. Add the hardwood floors, and the timbers in the ceiling, it had precisely the right amount of rustic touch to appeal to rich city dwellers who wanted to feel like they were roughing it without actually doing so.
She led Jason to a big leather couch with a wooden frame. “Are you hungry? I might be able to find something in here to eat.”
He shook his head. His thumb once again found his mouth.
She couldn’t blame him. Hungry was the last thing she was. She felt like she was on the edge of a cliff, waiting for a stiff wind to blow her off at any moment.
She eyed the wood stove, then looked back to Jason. A warm fire would feel nice. Safe. The problem was, she didn’t know if they actually were safe. And if they weren’t, a fire would only serve to tell whoever might be out there where they were.
She sat on the couch next to Jason and folded him in her arms, wrapping one side of the coat Nick had given her and the blanket from Jason’s bed around both of them. She rested her hand on her hip, her fingers on the grip of her gun.
The minutes slowly ticked. Jason’s eyelids drooped then closed. His warm little body rose and fell with deep, even breaths.
Outside, the wind picked up, its howl joining with the endless hiss of the falls. The air grew colder, and once again Melissa eyed the wood stove, then discarded the idea. How long would it take Nick to reach them? What if he never came? What if he was shot and dying all alone? What if she and Jason were next?
She hated not knowing. Hated this helpless, rudderless feeling. Hated waiting.
She was used to taking charge of situations, and she liked that. Not having to rely on anyone. Not being let down. This made her feel like she was as much of a child as Jason. A child with no one to care for her and nowhere to turn.
The door knob rattled.
Melissa jolted upright. Nick? Or had one of the men followed from the ranch?
She pulled her Glock from its holster. She shifted Jason to one side. Slowly, she slipped her arm free and moved off the couch. She crept to the kitchen, between the door and the boy, and took cover behind an angle of kitchen cupboard.
The weapon felt sure in her hands. She took a calm breath despite her hammering pulse.
The lock rattled once more. The knob turned. The door creaked open.
Nick stepped inside.
He wore only the shirt he’d been wearing earlier, no coat.
A cut lanced one cheek, dried blood staining his face and neck. Dust and debris clung to his hat and sparkled in his hair.
A breath shuddered from Melissa’s lungs. She slid her finger out of the trigger guard. She lowered the barrel to point at the floor.
He shut and locked the door and crossed the few feet to her side. His eyes darted to Jason and back to her. “You’re both okay?”
A sob of relief balled in her chest. A sob she couldn’t let free.
Her knees felt weak, as if they could no longer hold her. What was wrong with her? She’d been cool, even calm with the gun in her hand, but as soon as she caught a glimpse of Nick’s face the rest had caught up. The worry, the fear…she stepped toward h
im.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. “It’s okay. It’s all okay.”
She knew what he was saying must be true. He was here, wasn’t he? He obviously wasn’t shot dead outside the corral. He was fine. But her brain somehow couldn’t absorb the realization. She felt as if she was staring at a ghost, someone lost that she’d never see again.
She tilted her head back and stretched her arms around his neck. It was idiotic. Stupid to feel this way, but she didn’t care. She had to feel he was alive, that he was really there.
She had to feel she was, too.
She didn’t move to kiss him. She didn’t have to. He brought his lips down on hers, strong and warm and alive. Something opened inside her. Something strong and invincible but more vulnerable than any feeling she’d ever known.
Chapter Nine
Nick had no business kissing Melissa Anderson, but he was still disappointed when she pushed him away.
“I can’t…we can’t….” She spread her hands over her chest as if shielding her heart from him.
“I know. I know. It was stupid. I’m sorry.” He held up his hands, even though the only thing he wanted was to run them down her back, over her hips and pull her snug against him.
When the shooter had cornered her and Jason outside the barn, he’d feared he’d lost them both, never mind that she was never his to lose. And at this moment, all he wanted was to hold on to her for as long as he could.
“I was just…I don’t know…worried. I wasn’t sure you’d make it, and…”
“No need to explain. It won’t happen again.” He blew a breath through tight lips and forced himself to step away. Before the shooters had attacked, he’d told himself Melissa was just like Gayle. That alone had been more than enough reason for him to keep his attraction to her under wraps. But convenient as the lie was, he couldn’t believe it any longer.
Gayle had been ambitious, always striving for more because that was what made her feel important. Melissa might be ambitious, too. But he had a feeling that was only a tiny sliver of the force that drove her. She talked about justice, about being there for her dead mentor with bone-deep passion. The way he felt about the ranch. The way he felt about his son.
But none of that changed the facts. None of it meant she would chuck her city life, her career, her friends and move to Middle-of-Nowhere, Wyoming. None of it meant she could ever be happy with him.
He turned away from her and paced across the room, his boots sounding on the hardwood floor.
He could hear Melissa draw a shaky breath behind him. “What happened? At the ranch? How did you get away?”
He turned back to face her. He’d much rather describe what had happened than dwell on impossible scenarios, impossible feelings. “The sheriff’s department. As soon as the two heard sirens, they took off.”
“So they weren’t caught.” She pursed her lips.
He could guess her thoughts. The men who killed Detective Bernard were still out there. Justice was yet to be served. But that wasn’t what was going through his mind. Her goals hadn’t changed. His had hit a brick wall.
He could waste time telling himself nothing had changed in the past few hours, but he’d be lying. Everything had changed. As soon as those men had set foot on his land with their assault rifles and gas cans, all his illusions of security had evaporated. Nothing was the same. And as a result, he needed to change, too. “I can’t bring Jason back to the ranch. He’s not safe there, and he won’t be until these guys are stopped.”
“So what are you going to do?”
He let a grin curl one side of his mouth. “I appreciate your restraint.”
“Restraint?”
“I know you’re chomping at the bit to bring up the DA’s protective custody.”
“Well?”
“You said the shooters in the car knew where Detective Bernard would be, that they waited for him.”
She nodded.
“What’s to say they won’t know where we are? That whoever told them where to find the detective won’t tell them where to find us?”
“We can keep the information restricted. Only Seth and I need to know.”
“How about only you?”
“You have a problem with Seth?”
“No.”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Okay, I’d like to use his power tie to wipe that smug smile off his face. And the whole threatening to throw me in jail thing might have rubbed me the wrong way, but other than that…”
A chuckle sounded low in her throat. “Okay. Only me. But I have to ask. Why the change of heart?”
“I tried it my way. I guess it’s time to try yours.”
“That easy, huh?”
“Not easy. But after tonight, it’s clear. Until you catch those two and whomever else is behind this mess, we can’t have our lives back. And if I help, maybe we can solve this a little faster.”
She watched him for a long while. Finally she walked toward him.
For a long second, he thought she might let him take her back in his arms, let him claim her lips once again. And as disastrous as he knew getting involved with another woman who would never stick around would be, for that second, he let himself imagine.
She pulled up short. “We’ll ride back to the ranch tomorrow? Head out from there?”
He nodded. “I have to make arrangements. My foreman can supervise repairs to the ranch house and grounds.”
Her gaze flicked first to one bedroom door, then the other.
Silence hummed through the room. She stood only ten feet from him. One step, maybe two, and she’d be close enough to touch. “One has a king bed, the other two fulls. Your choice.”
She curled her lower lip inward and trapped it between her teeth. “I’ll take the king. That way Jason can sleep with me. I wouldn’t want him to wake up alone.”
He dropped his gaze to the floor. “Yes. Good thinking.”
DENVER HADN’T CHANGED much in the two days Melissa had been gone, but it felt different all the same. Safer. More secure. Like a favorite blanket she could wrap around her shoulders and shield herself from the unknown.
She glanced at Nick dozing in the passenger’s seat next to her, his Stetson tipped low over his eyes. In the back, Jason watched a video where animated creatures danced and sang. The catchy tunes rolled over and over. She’d found on the long drive down that if she concentrated on them hard enough, she could chase thoughts of last night’s kiss from her mind. At least for a second or two.
At the moment, she was having less luck on that front.
It would take more than ear worms to permanently wipe away the memory of Nick’s lips on hers. The way something inside her had opened up when he touched her. The weak feeling that had flooded her limbs and centered in her core.
She couldn’t let it happen again.
She’d been thrown off balance in Wyoming. The mountains, the horses, the whole cowboy fantasy. And that night, the way Nick had given Jason and her a chance to escape, the fear of being alone in the wilderness, the relief when he’d stepped through that door… all of it had sapped her will. It had reduced her to a quivering mass of need.
She focused on the concrete strength of buildings, the vibrancy of the interstate, the mountains only distant shadows. Now she was back in her world, in her city, things would be different. Here she was strong. Independent. Here she didn’t need a swaggering cowboy to teach her how to ride or rescue her from gunmen.
Here she didn’t need to rely on anyone but herself.
“So where are we headed?” Nick tilted his hat back and looked at her through one eye.
Melissa carefully focused on the interstate and the thick traffic flowing on either side of the pickup. “Seth will expect me to report first thing.”
“What are you going to tell him?”
“The truth. That you’re back. That you’re willing to help.”
“And he’s going to insist on taking us into protec
tive custody.”
“He can’t do that if he doesn’t know where you are.”
She could feel his skepticism, and she couldn’t blame him. She’d be skeptical of putting her fate in someone else’s hands, too.
“I’m not going to tell Seth. And I’ve been watching the road behind us. No one is following.”
“What if they’re waiting for us in Denver?”
“First, I don’t think they have any reason to think we’ve returned.”
One corner of his mouth quirked up in a hint of a dry smile. “I’ll have to give you that one. I’m still not sure it makes sense to me at times.”
“There you go.” She returned the half smile. “And we’ll be careful. Take precautions.”
“What’s your plan?”
“Jimmy had a cabin, a place that was just his that he didn’t let many other people know about. It’s not as fancy as yours. It’s kind of a dump, really. But it’s somewhat close to the city, yet it’s isolated, too. I thought I’d ask Tammy if we could stay there.”
“Tammy?”
“Jimmy’s wife.” The back of her throat ached at the thought of what her friend must be going through since her husband had been shot down in the street. She felt horrible that she couldn’t be there to help her deal with it all.
Of course, with all of Tammy’s friends and nearly everyone on the force paying their respects, she wouldn’t have been alone the past couple of days. But the two of them had a bond unlike anything Melissa shared with her own mother. She felt terrible that days had passed and she hadn’t been able to give Tammy so much as a phone call. “Problem is, I’m not sure what Tammy knows or doesn’t know about Cory Calhoun’s investigation of Jimmy.”
“You going to tell her? It might be better coming from someone she knows.”
She wasn’t so sure. “I’m not sure how she’ll react.”
“She’ll find out eventually.”
“I know. And she might take it better coming from me, but not until I have some facts that disprove Calhoun’s conclusions.”
A Rancher’s Brand of Justice Page 8