Signaling Wrangler to come with her, she followed Chase, but couldn't quite work up an apology. Instead, she asked, "So when do I get my keys back? I'd like to get some sleep, if you don't mind."
"My couch isn't too lumpy. Or you could join me in bed."
His turn to mock her.
"My turn to pass."
The front door was open. Chase flipped a switch and two pottery-based table lamps lit, spreading a soft golden glow over the interior. While sparsely furnished, the large combination living area/kitchen was inviting. Pine cabinets and furniture, couch with colorful western print cushions, creatively framed photographs of mustangs on the walls. So that Chase couldn't get too disturbingly close to her, she chose the solitary leather chair.
Sinking into the seat that was nearly big enough for two of her, she asked, "Now what?" as Wrangler settled at her feet.
Chase set his rifle on his gun rack, then hung his hat and jacket on pegs next to the door. "Now suppose you do some talking. What was going on in that ravine?"
She'd figured he'd get around to interrogating her. And she wanted to talk about Doc's death. But where to start? If she told him she'd had another vision, the joke might be on her... and yet how could she keep what she'd seen to herself merely because he was a skeptic?
Kate chanced Chase's derision, saying, "The stampede that killed Doc was no accident." And eyed him carefully for his reaction.
Sitting on the couch arm, he said, "Go on." His features were void of any judgment.
"Sage and I shared a few thoughts tonight." Tension mounting, she turned inward, replayed the memory. "It started like the last time... the wild horses running scared... then I realized I wasn't part of the stampede but separate from it."
Still he sat expressionless when he asked, "How do you mean?"
"I saw as if from a distance," she explained, another image clarifying. She took a big breath. "I saw him... Doc... I-I think he was already dead." Her stomach turned as she remembered sharp hooves trampling the body, boots dancing in the air. "The thing was... Sage and her band were still in the corral. The horses I saw... their identification... the BLM freeze marks ran across their hindquarters."
"While the horses in Sage's band are all I.D.'d across their necks," Chase said slowly.
"Exactly." Heart beginning to hammer as it had earlier, she went on. "Sage was going nuts. The other mares were pushing and shoving. I flew... " She caught herself before saying something foolish. "I mean Sage flew upward and crashed her hooves into the fence boards. I guess the others did, too. Then suddenly they were free... headed away from the stampede... but not before I saw it."
"Saw what?"
Kate took a deep breath and conjured the memory that had stunned her. "A stirrup... a boot... a person's leg." She stared directly at Chase when she said, "The storm didn't spook those horses. Someone very human did."
He didn't react.
Disappointed, Kate told herself she shouldn't have bothered. Obviously, he didn't believe her. But who else could she have told? That the sheriff would buy her story was even more unlikely. Perhaps Nathan Lantero was the only one she could trust to understand.
And so Chase's unexpected "Did you see the person?" made her catch her breath.
"What?"
"Whoever started the stampede?"
"You believe me?"
"I have reason to believe Doc's death was no accident myself," he said, rising from his seat on the couch arm. "Did you see the person's face?"
Her frustration dissolving, she shook her head. "Everything was happening so fast."
"But you're certain you saw a mounted rider?"
"Positive. Chase, I don't have an overactive imagination, and I'm not crazy," Kate assured him. "I realize you have more than a few reservations, but –"
"I believe you." Chase stopped directly in front of her and stared, as if he were trying to read her mind. "At least part of me does."
"I suppose that's a start."
In truth, Kate was relieved that Chase was agreeable to being open, if nothing more. She knew he'd want to find the person responsible for starting the stampede that killed Doc as much as she did.
"Now the question is, who else believes you?" he asked, moving away.
"What do you mean?"
"Someone took more than one shot at you tonight."
"Or at the horses." Though she'd already considered the possibility that the gunman had been after her, Kate still didn't want to believe it.
"The horses make bigger targets. They're a damn sight harder to miss."
"Maybe the shooter missed on purpose, because he only meant to scare me off."
"But scare you off why?"
Chase's implication about someone else believing her clarified. If the person who had started the stampede got wind of her intentions to learn more details...
Suddenly shaky inside, Kate said, "Other than you, the only person I talked to about what I saw this afternoon was Nathan."
"Then he knew you meant to try again."
She nodded. "He warned me off."
"Warned?"
"Not like that. He thought I should let it alone... I guess he figured that I was obsessing over Doc's death. At that point, I didn't guess the stampede was anything other than a terrible freak accident. And I'm certain Nathan was just trying to be a friend."
Appearing troubled, Chase said, "And you didn't say a word to anyone else?"
"I didn't, but I suppose Nathan could have... or that volunteer who was working with him. I'm pretty sure she overheard." She remembered the young woman's avid expression. "Most folks around here wouldn't take the story seriously. They'd say I was delusional or something."
Unfortunately, she was used to a condescending attitude from the citizens of Bitter Creek. Even those who were satisfied with her veterinary services made a joke of her so-called gift, often to her face.
"But a smart miscreant wouldn't leave anything to chance," Chase insisted.
Making Kate squirm around in her seat. "And what if no one was after me specifically? The person who's been messing with the refuge could have been up to some new dirty deed and didn't expect to run into company."
"You've got a point," he conceded.
Though he didn't sound convinced. He was pacing as though the continuous movement helped him think.
"What about you?" Kate asked. "You never did say how you found me."
"I already told you I was out riding because I couldn't sleep."
Chase avoided looking at her directly, making Kate think he was telling a half-truth. Since it adjoined that part of the refuge, Lockridge Acres immediately came to mind. But if he planned to check Thea's property for himself, why didn't he just admit as much?
"I heard a shot," Chase was saying. "I was already heading in that direction to investigate when Wrangler started to bark. I found him in the bed of your pick-up. He was anxious as hell to get out of there. I didn't figure you were the one doing the shooting, so I told him to fetch you and followed."
As if he knew the humans were talking about him, Wrangler sat up and yawned. Kate scratched the dog's head, muttering, "Fetch me, huh? And you're not convinced that I can talk to animals."
"I never said animals couldn't understand certain commands. But I also never said I could see inside the mutt's head." He was towering over her, his face pulled into a scowl. "And don't try to make light of the situation, Kate. You could have gotten yourself killed."
"As if you would care."
"You really do think I'm heartless."
Even as she said, "You'd have to give me reason to think otherwise," Kate knew she was being unfair.
A man without a heart wouldn't be trying to protect a herd of mustangs that many ranchers across the western states thought of as worthless pests who ruined the range for their cattle. But she wouldn't take the words back. He had been heartless to her when he'd left town without word. And even now he didn't seem inclined to offer any explanations. Thinking about it made
her angry all over again.
And so when Chase ordered, "Don't pull another stunt like that," he raised her hackles.
"Excuse me? You're not my boss."
"This land is under my management!"
Popping out of the chair, Kate was practically nose to chin with Chase. He didn't give her breathing room, so she shoved by him, silently cursing when the brief contact made the breath catch in her throat. His following on her heels agitated her further.
But she stood her ground. "So you're going to what if I don't agree? Ban me from the refuge? Turn down vet services you'll undoubtedly need?"
His complexion ruddy, he said, "Don't make more of this than I meant."
"What did you mean?"
"To keep you from being mounted on some wall like one of Thea's trophies."
The image clear in her mind, Kate shuddered. And cooled down a bit. The reference to Thea cinched her Lockridge Acres theory. And he did seem as though he cared what happened to her. Or what would happen to the refuge if there was another tragic accident, a cynical little voice in her head countered.
Once more, his not-so-subtle insinuation struck her. "Wait a minute. You're making whoever's been messing with the refuge out to be a murderer."
"Isn't that what we've just been talking about?"
Chase had said he had reason to believe Doc's death was no accident...
"Whoa. I hadn't exactly gone there yet. I was thinking more in terms of someone running the horses off the property and Doc's being unfortunate enough to get in the way."
"He probably was in the wrong place at the wrong time," Chase agreed. "But if he recognized the rider and figured things out... "
She shook her head. "Killing a man over some rustled horses – that doesn't add up in my book."
"You're still the innocent, aren't you? You don't expect the worst of people because you don't have it in you to think that way." Chase sounded truly amazed.
Kate's mouth gaped open. Innocent? Still? If she didn't know better, she would think he was referring to her getting involved with him in the first place.
"So I don't know what to think." She took a big breath. "Murder... I guess we should alert the sheriff "
"And tell him Sage showed you Doc's death?"
She'd already assumed the sheriff wouldn't believe her. "What, then?"
"We figure out who. Find a way to prove it."
"I'm too tired to play detective right now," Kate protested, exhaustion making every bone in her body feel heavy as lead. Too much new information was assaulting her and she needed some time to assimilate it all. "I need sleep."
"Figuring things out can wait until tomorrow." He indicated a spot behind her. "My bedroom's right through that door."
Not planning to join him, she muttered, "Don't start," even as her imagination set to work.
Her in his bed... his body curled around hers... heat throbbing through every limb...
"I was planning on taking the couch," he said, dashing the fantasy before it had time to expand.
Her turn to look away from him. "Does the door have a lock?"
"You're safe from me."
Her insides fluttered. She wasn't any safer from Chase Brody than she'd been all those years ago. That was clear to her. Since he didn't give her a direct answer about the door, she checked for herself. The bolt worked fine. The only problem was, she'd be able to undo it...
Remembering the two ranches she needed to visit the next day, she got a grip on herself. "I have a long day ahead of me. Do you have a problem getting up with the sun?"
Chase checked his watch. "In an hour and a half? No, no problem. Sleep is such a luxury, anyway."
She didn't miss the irony. If he'd appeared tired to her earlier, he now looked as exhausted as she felt. Compassion for him warred with her good sense, and in the end, she said, "Make that three and a half hours," and whistled for the dog.
Wrangler trotted straight into Chase's bedroom and Kate closed the door behind him.
Running on empty wouldn't do either of them any good, especially not if they expected to identify a murderer.
CHASE WAITED UNTIL HE HEARD Kate slide the bolt in place before locking the entry door and removing the rifle from its rack. Turning off the lights, he stretched out on the couch, setting the weapon alongside him on the floor.
Not that he believed they were in for a direct attack. Sneaking around and pulling strings from behind some rock seemed more like the villain's style.
But, just in case...
Sleep called his name, but when Chase closed his eyes, Kate danced behind his lids. Not the adult Kate, but the girl he'd abandoned. She'd never stopped haunting him. Ironic. He'd always liked his employer's daughter – she'd never judged him – but when he'd begun wooing her, it hadn't been his idea.
He and the Duran brothers had all been drunk the night they'd made the wager. Someone had called him "trailer trash" to his face, and he'd been spoiling for a fight. Buck and Gil had dragged him off, told him to accept who he was. Determined to prove them wrong, all of them, including his so-called friends, he bragged on how he'd have it all someday.
A nice girl on his arm. A great place to live. Money lining his pockets.
Gil had been the one to suggest that he put his money where his mouth was. The three of them had been working on the Farrell Ranch, Gil full time and Buck and him after school and on the weekends. They all knew Kate Farrell. Gil said that if he could seduce her by the time he and Buck graduated, he'd prove them wrong and win the bet. Then he'd have both the nice girl and the money.
Knowing fifteen year old Kate was a little sweet on him anyhow, Chase hadn't thought twice before accepting the wager. Nor had he thought about Kate's feelings if she ever learned why he wanted to step out with her. He'd spent months courting her under her parents' worried eyes. He'd enjoyed her company, had watched her bloom as she'd fallen in love with him.
But even after their one night together, he hadn't consciously realized how much Kate meant to him.
That she'd been a virgin was to be expected, and yet the fact that he'd taken that from her on a bet had shamed him. The next morning, he'd been in a rotten mood as he and the Duran brothers worked, putting in fence posts. So when Gil pulled out the whiskey bottle at lunch, Chase had indulged to dull the pain.
Chase stared into the dark, remembering how he'd vowed never to tell his friends he'd succeeded in seducing Kate.
He'd decided to break it off with her, concede the bet and pay up. He hadn't cared about the money, but thinking about being without Kate in his life made him drink past his tolerance level.
What had happened after that had made him pledge never to take another drink.
On the road, he'd convinced himself he was acting in Kate's best interests by not contacting her, but underneath he'd known the truth. He was the coward she'd accused him of being. He hadn't had the guts to speak to her for fear he might spill out the truth.
He was still a coward, Chase thought, all hope of sleep gone. There was no explanation for his actions. No forgiveness. He wouldn't expect it of her, even as he hadn't expected his punishment to come so late and so sharp.
Though he'd been keeping himself from admitting as much, Chase knew he was in love with Kate Farrell, and he guessed he had been all along.
Chapter Seven
REMEMBERING SHE'D TOLD ELLEN Weber she would help sort through her father's things, Kate spent some time in Doc's study early the next evening, going through stacks of papers, throwing away travel brochures and junk mail.
So far that day, she'd ridden out to two ranches. One of the owners had some sick cows. The other was new in the area and needed to talk to her in depth before deciding whether or not he wanted a woman to vet his animals. It seemed he did. She'd returned to her office only to find a little girl waiting on the stoop, cradling a hurt cat in her arms. After which, she'd taken care of several routine visits. She'd even squeezed in a short if refreshing nap before showering and getting ready
to meet Chase.
Anxious, she checked the time. Her watch informed her she still had an hour to kill before she was to leave for Rowdy's Bar and Gruel where she'd insisted he meet her to discuss who had reason, other than Thea Lockridge, to want the refuge annihilated. Chase had balked at coming into Bitter Creek, but she'd figured it was time he got over himself. She'd been adamant and he'd reluctantly given way. Though she'd won this round, she still wondered why.
Because he wanted her cooperation in solving the identity of the villain?
Or because he wanted her?
The speculation made Kate shift uncomfortably, especially because she no longer knew what she wanted.
To distract herself from speculating, she picked up Doc's current journal. He'd always kept notes about his patients over and above the professional files in the office. He not only wrote about their medical conditions, but added his thoughts, as well. His intention, he'd told her once, was to write a book about his more interesting and humorous experiences with animals after he retired.
Another dream that had gone begging with his death.
Opening the leather-bound book to the last entry, she realized Doc had made a notation the day he'd died.
Need to check on Sage and her band. Still bamboozled about the source of the virus. With all the other things going on at the refuge, can't help but wonder if someone didn't let a sick horse loose...
So Doc had suspected. A creepy feeling stole through Kate.
All day she'd avoided thinking about the events of the night before, but with time to kill, she couldn't help it. What if Chase had been correct and the perpetrator had made sure Doc couldn't talk? What if the villain figured she knew too much? Kate took a deep breath and reminded herself that, while she'd been shot at, she hadn't been hurt. She held onto the possibility that the person's intent had been to scare her off rather than kill her.
Wondering what other notes Doc had made about the situation, she paged backward, eventually coming to an entry about one of his more unusual patients. A human being. A volunteer on the refuge had been so startled by the stallion charging him in mock challenge, that he'd fallen over backwards, managing to cut his hand on the fence.
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