All she was, "That doesn't mean I know where he is now."
Annie's blue eyes were frosty. "He and Merle are checking over the perimeter fences."
"More trouble?"
"That's what they're looking for."
Kate took an easier breath. "Let's hope to God they don't find it."
Annie appeared to be working herself up for something Kate knew she wasn't going to like, when a shout from some distance claimed her attention.
"Hey, Missy! Kate Farrell!"
Turning, she discovered Whit Spivey at the top of the incline, waving her over toward the trail ride center. Her return signal was meant to assure him she'd heard and would be there directly.
"I wonder what he wants."
"Money," Annie said flatly. "His only motivation."
"Money from me?"
"From anyone who'll give it to him... or whoever he can take it from." Seeming about to say more, Annie shook her head. "Never mind. You'd better get over there. If you ignore him, he'll pitch a fit."
Though she would have liked further explanation of the vague accusation, Kate sensed any questions would be met with more hostility.
"If Chase gets back while I'm talking to Spivey, let him know I'm here."
"I'll be sure to do that."
Kate didn't miss her bitter tone.
Annie's eyes bored into her back all the way to the pick-up. Glad to have something to distract her from worrying about the other woman, she sped uphill to where the trail boss waited for her, hands balled into fists on his hips.
"Took you long enough," Spivey groused as she alighted. "I got a horse needs vetting."
Though Kate was hardly acquainted with the man -- Spivey had only settled in Bitter Creek a few years ago, and well before she'd moved back to town -- she instinctively disliked him. Not that she would use that as an excuse to turn her back on an animal who needed her.
"What happened?"
"I hired an irresponsible kid to help me take good care of my animals is what."
Spivey stalked toward a big bay tied up away from the rest of the string. While the others were saddled, the bay was not. Kate immediately identified the problem. A gash across the gelding's barrel was oozing infected material.
"Oh, sweetheart," she murmured, moving toward the horse's head so he could see her and therefore be less apprehensive. "How did you hurt yourself?"
"He musta rolled on something sharp."
Frowning, Kate considered the possibility, but the wound seemed awfully large to have been inflicted that way. The metal tag on his halter identified the young gelding as Hercules. Suddenly, the horse jerked away and she realized Spivey had stepped into his line of sight. Eyes rolling, he pulled at his tether.
"Sh-h," Kate murmured, touching his velvet nose. Hercules didn't like Spivey, either. And she couldn't miss the sudden restlessness of the other horses in the string. "Settle down, Hercules, that-a-boy."
She ran a gentle hand across his cheek and along his neck. While his flesh quivered, the gelding stood quiet for her. And kept an eye on the man.
Spivey spat out a wad of chewing tobacco. "Damn that Teddy for going off and not saying a thing!"
"Teddy Wyatt?"
"That's the one."
Kate frowned. Teddy was both horse crazy and one of the most responsible kids she knew. She was certain he wouldn't go off and leave a hurt animal of any sort. But saying so would only get Spivey more riled.
"I'll clean this up and start Hercules on antibiotics."
"How soon will he be able to work? I can't afford horses who don't earn their keep."
In a manner of speaking, Kate thought, Annie had been correct about what the man wanted from her. The trail boss was more worried about his making money on the gelding than about her seeing to his welfare.
Though she bit her tongue to keep her opinion to herself, Kate knew her voice held an edge. "You won't be able to saddle him for a few days, certainly. The leather rubbing against the wound would make things worse."
"He'd better be ready for the weekend," Spivey muttered, gray eyes cold, "or else!"
Or else what?
The trail boss stalked off toward his lean-to, narrow shoulders set like steel.
"Don't you worry, sweetheart," Kate soothed, moving closer to comfort the horse and check over the wound more thoroughly. "I'll tell Chase and he won't let Spivey work you until you're ready."
The flesh near the wound flinched under her fingertips and a fuzzy image formed in her mind.
A foul-tempered Whit Spivey swinging out a hand holding a thick leather strap...
The image distorted as a squeal of pain echoed through Kate's head.
Realizing Spivey had been the one to inflict the wound, she swore under her breath and whipped around to confront him. The moron had already disappeared into his tack room. How could a man with so much meanness in him toward horses be working with them? And in a sanctuary where they were supposed to be protected, for heaven's sake!
"I'll be right back with my bag, Hercules." Giving the gelding a piece of carrot to munch on, she assured him, "I'll make it better, I promise."
And she wasn't only talking about healing the wound itself.
"ALL I CAN DO IS TALK to him," Chase said, after Kate had explained the situation concerning Hercules. The thought of Spivey mistreating one of his horses made him gut-sick, but other than using violence on the bastard to teach him a lesson, he didn't know what he could do. "I'll strongly suggest he treat the horses with respect or I'll --"
"What do you mean suggest? He works for you!"
"Actually, he doesn't. He's an independent contractor and owns the trail horses."
Chase could tell Kate was frustrated enough to scream. His mouth drew into a thin line. He wasn't any happier.
She paced the small office, the sheen of collecting tears lending a luminous quality to her green eyes. "Someone should take those animals away from Spivey!"
Chase knew Kate would never let her tears fall, at least not in front of him. He wanted to take her in his arms, to comfort her, tell her it was all right to cry if she wanted, but he was certain she would balk at his touching her. Besides, Annie could be back any moment, and he had a feeling showing affection to another woman in front of her would not be a good idea.
Opening his fists, he shoved his hands into his pockets and propped a hip against the edge of the desk. "You know damn well that taking legal action against him wouldn't be that easy, Kate."
As difficult as it was for the law to stop men from abusing their wives and kids, he thought, remembering his own situation, it was nearly impossible to stop the abuse of animals, especially if the owner's actions weren't openly flagrant. Unfortunately, Spivey was clever. He'd stick to his story about Hercules hurting himself in the pasture. And considering how Kate had gleaned her knowledge of the truth, who would believe her over the owner?
"We have to do something!"
"Like I said, I'll talk to him. That'll have to do for now. We have too much to deal with as it is. We can't fix everything wrong with the world at the same time."
"I suppose you're right."
"And if I learn Spivey mistreats one of those horses again, I'll take care of him myself," he promised.
"Then you would be the one in trouble with the law." Kate shook her head. "Why would a man who so obviously disrespects horses choose to work with them -- and at a refuge meant to protect those very creatures?"
"Why do batterers marry and have children? To keep control over their victims."
Kate's mouth gaped. Then she blinked and took a big breath, her expression subtly changing. "Chase, what about Spivey? What if he's the one who's --"
Noting a movement on the porch from the corner of his eye, he stopped her cold. "We can finish this up later." Since he didn't know who he could trust, Chase wasn't taking any chances. Casually, he glanced over Kate's shoulder. "Annie, there you are."
"Were you looking for me?" she asked, entering the offi
ce and ignoring Kate.
He didn't miss the hopeful note in her voice. "Actually, I was wondering how long ago Nathan left to get those supplies he wanted."
The corners of her mouth turning down, she said, "One, one-thirty. Something like that. He was planning on having lunch first."
Chase checked the wall clock. "I guess he'll be a while, then. And I'd better get on that grant application that I've been avoiding."
"If Nathan calls in, should I give him a message?" Annie asked.
"No, it can wait. But thanks." To Kate he said, "I'm on my way, then. Want to walk me out?"
"Sure."
Aware of Annie's sullen gaze following them, Chase crossed the porch and left the building. The volunteer had been moody lately, and he was beginning to suspect she was taking his bond with Kate as a personal affront, though he'd never indicated anything but friendly interest toward her. The notion worried him.
"So what's this about Nathan?" Kate asked. "You're keeping tabs on him?"
"I wanted to make sure he was busy elsewhere so I could check out the renovation site. Nathan set up temporary living quarters in one of the log cabins, supposedly because he didn't want to commute to the rez."
"I didn't realize he was staying on the property. That would be convenient... "
"And that's why I figured on seeing if I could find anything that links him to the havoc around here."
"What do you expect to find?"
"I'll know when I see it. If I see it." Nathan had the benefit of his doubt.
"I've been thinking there might be something I didn't see," Kate mused as they arrived at his truck. She clarified, "About the stampede. They say the third time's the charm. I should locate Sage and find out if that's true in this case."
"Not without me, you don't." A surge of protective emotion coursed through Chase. Her hard-headedness had gotten her into trouble once. Next time, the villain might shoot to kill. "No more solo middle-of-the-night adventures."
Her innocuous expression made him nervous. He'd expect her to react to his order with her usual affront. Even a little frown of irritation would make him feel better.
"Tonight I have a family obligation," she informed him. "One of my McKenna cousins from Ireland is visiting. Actually, Keelin met a man in Chicago whom she married this weekend. Mom has been working on a celebratory dinner all day."
Though somewhat reassured, Chase realized he was also disappointed. "Then I won't be seeing you."
"I guess not."
Try as he might, he couldn't tell if the fact mattered to her or not. Though he'd meant to keep his distance, he'd failed. Even now he was hard-pressed not to reach out and touch the strand of bright red hair that had escaped her ponytail. He had the urge to touch her in any way he could. Kate wasn't the kind of woman a man could be neutral about.
"We have to talk," he said. And not only about the refuge. Certain she was at least softening toward him, he repressed the whisper of guilt reminding him that she might not be so amenable if she knew everything. "I'll call."
"I don't know what time I'll be home."
"Then I'll keep calling until I get you."
Not waiting for another objection, Chase jumped into the truck and sped off. If only he could get her.
Not to mention the person responsible for Doc's death before someone else got hurt.
FEELING DUSTY AND DRY-MOUTHED, Kate washed face and hands, shoved her wild hair under her hat and fetched herself a can of soda that she could drink while on her way to the back reaches of the refuge. She figured everyone was occupied, so no one would pay her any mind.
Besides, even the most suspicious wouldn't expect her to go looking for Sage's band in broad daylight.
When Chase had demanded that she not seek out the wild horses without him, she hadn't actually lied. Rather, she'd avoided the truth of her intentions by telling him she couldn't go that night anyway because of her family. She'd been thinking of telling him exactly what she meant to do when he'd sprung the Nathan thing on her. With Nathan around most of the time, this might be Chase's only chance to check things out to his satisfaction.
About to climb behind the wheel, Kate noticed the dust cloud rapidly approaching and recognized the low-riding vehicle wreathed in fine red particles. Great! Nathan Lantero had arrived earlier than anticipated. Chase hadn't even been gone ten minutes.
The can of soda clutched in one hand, she used the other to flag down Nathan before he could whiz by. To help Chase finish what he started, she would delay Nathan from returning to the renovation site for as long as possible. But how? Her mind humming as the pick-up screeched to a stop, the material in the bed shifting wildly, she thought to kill two birds with one stone.
"Kate," he called through the open window. "How's it going?"
She pulled a face. "Not so good."
When he quickly alighted, she noticed that while his long hair hung loose as usual, a thin braid woven with blue and white tile beads and decorated with a hawk's feather brushed his right cheek. And he was wearing a white raw cotton pull-over shirt with billowy sleeves and a quill and bead necklace.
She'd never seen Nathan look quite so... purposefully Indian.
"Something happen I should know about?" he asked. "You have another vision?"
His asking didn't sit any more comfortably with her than did his unexpected physical appearance.
"This isn't about the refuge," Kate hedged. "I'm concerned about one of Whit Spivey's horses. All of them actually," she amended truthfully.
"Spivey!" Nathan spit out the name as if trying to rid himself of a foul taste. "What's he done now?"
"He asked me to tend to a hurt trail horse. He tried telling me the wound was accidental -- his rolling on something that cut him."
"But you don't believe it."
She shook her head. "Spivey used a leather strap on the poor animal."
"How do you... ?" Nathan's question faded off as he apparently realized that she'd gotten the visual impression from Hercules. His expression narrowed in disgust. "Doesn't surprise me none."
"I was wondering... have you noticed anything else wrong with the other trail horses?"
"One came up lame a few weeks ago. Bruised bone, he said. And before that, another had a problem with an eye."
More information than she'd actually expected to get from him. "What kind of problem?"
"The eye was swollen and half-closed... like someone had punched it good."
Visualizing the possibility of the mean-spirited man punching out one of his horses, Kate's stomach roiled. "Something needs to be done to put Whit Spivey out of the trail ride business for good, but that would be impossible without proof. Do you think anyone might have seen him mistreat any of his animals?"
"Never heard. Teddy's the one to talk to, though if he saw something out of line, I'd bet the kid would've told Chase right away."
Her heart sank to her toes. "That's what I was thinking."
"You can't fix everything's that broke, Kate."
An echo of Chase's words. "No kidding."
Just as she was wondering how to stall him a while longer, the solution came from Nathan himself.
"So you saw Spivey hitting his horse."
Instinctively she knew he really was interested in what she might have seen through Sage. He'd warned her against seeking out the mare again. And now he wanted confirmation one way or another.
What if he did know?
With temporary quarters on the refuge, Nathan could have spotted and followed her. He could have fired off those warning shots.
What he couldn't know was whether or not she'd picked up on anything incriminating.
And she wasn't about to satisfy his curiosity.
"I had a quick flash of Spivey wielding the strap," Kate said, and rather than lie outright, she circumvented the certainty of a more direct question. "I don't go around having visions on a daily basis, you realize."
Though Nathan didn't challenge the statement, he looked down h
is straight blade of a nose at her. Kate grew uncomfortable under his stare... fearing he was trying to connect with her so he could read her mind for himself. Determined to keep him off a subject that she didn't intend to discuss, she figured a way to turn the tables on him.
"Say... Annie told me something that surprised me."
"What's that?"
"She said the Lakota had been trying to make a deal with the governor to buy this land when Chase came up with his proposal for the refuge."
"True enough. And we should have gotten it."
Kate didn't miss the we. Glancing at the decorated braid, she asked, "When did you develop such a commitment to the same people you once fled from?"
Again, Nathan stared, and she had to stop herself from flinching under his black gaze. Though he'd threatened her many times as a kid, she'd never feared him.
Now she was afraid.
"When I learned what was important in the world," he finally said. He turned his back on her and climbed into his vehicle. "I gotta get to work."
"Sorry. I guess I've been holding you up."
Kate only hoped long enough for Chase to complete his search.
NOT HAVING BEEN TO THE RENOVATION SITE for weeks since all his spare time had been consumed in fixing engines, repairing fence and hunting down missing horses -- not to mention pursuing the elusive villain -- Chase took a few minutes to inspect Nathan's work before commencing with his search.
At first glance, the outside of the old log buildings looked to be originals. The pine logs themselves were authentic if refinished, but modern mortar blocked the chinks, cedar shingles replaced sod roofs and the windows were of glass rather than mica or waxed paper.
But the small details Nathan had added on his own, particularly those on the main house, made the place come alive -- hand-carved porch posts; hand-crafted micah and metal lamps hanging above front doors; original design worked into the stone chimneys.
Hard to believe that a man doing such exceptional and creative work could also have a bent for destruction.
Knowing he had no alternative but to break some personal rules to get to the truth -- a man's right to his privacy being at the top of his list -- Chase headed for Nathan's private quarters.
The McKenna Legacy Trilogy Page 53