Rafe nodded, his thumb absently stroking circles on the back of her hand. “He was already dead when John arrived on the scene. John didn’t see anyone when he got there except….the guy who started shooting at him.”
“Is he going to be alright?” Rance asked.
“Yes.” Rafe answered. “He took a bullet in his leg, but he’s goin’ to be fine.” Rafe cast his eyes around the room and then looked at Jory. “Where’s Raale?”
Jory grinned. “Your grandmother and Mrs. Barnett stopped by and took her to church with them this morning. They wanted to take her to the Senior’s Breakfast. Your grandmother said that bunch of old people needed Raale to keep them from boring themselves to sleep, and I knew Mesa would be sleeping in late.”
“I just didn’t want her to walk in on this conversation we’re havin’.” Rafe explained, noting that Jory knew why Mesa would be sleeping late. It rankled him that the man probably knew when she left and when she returned.
“Who hired Cartwright?” He asked the group.
“I did,” Rance answered. “Bob was getting too damned old to put in a full day in the hay field and when I tacked up a notice at the feed store that I needed a hand, Hal called me. He’s been a good worker.”
“Who’s his next of kin?”
Rance scratched his chin, rolling the question around in his mind. “I think he had a brother over in Liberty. He filled out some paperwork that’s filed in the office.”
Mesa stood up and the action pulled her hand from Rafe’s. “I’ll look.”
Rafe pushed away from the table and followed her. “I’ll need to get a copy of that paper.”
She nodded. “I’ll make you one.”
He enjoyed following her down the hall into Rance’s small office and once they stepped inside, he quietly closed the door behind them and stopped, his eyes following her movements as she thumbed through the files and pulled out the needed file.
She turned and looked at him. “Do you want copies of the whole thing?”
He nodded and walked across the room to stop in front of her. “I’m sorry about all this, Mesa.”
She shrugged. “You have to do your job. I know it’s not easy.” She turned to the printer and began copying the papers for him.
“I waited as long as I could. I know you didn’t get much sleep last night.” His voice dropped a couple of octaves as he remembered why.
“You didn’t get any at all, did you?” She asked turning again so she was looking up at him.
“Sugar,” his voice had become a whisper. “What I got last night was so much better than sleep.” He crooked one finger beneath her chin and held her head steady when he dropped his lips to cover hers.
The kiss started out light and gentle, but quickly grew in intensity. Rafe pulled her into his arms and was gratified to feel her lean easily against him. His hands wandered over her back and shoulders and as always, down across her buttocks, drawing her closer against his rising need.
His lips thinned into a smile against hers.
He lifted his head and grinned down at her. “You wouldn’t believe how much I want you again. Right now.”
“Yeah…um, I can feel.” She pressed her hips gently against his.
Reluctantly, Rafe released her and stepped back. “Unfortunately, this is neither the time nor the place.”
She nodded in assent. “Our timing seems to be off most of the time.” She turned and began shuffling the papers coming out of the printer.
“I think our timin’ last night was damned near perfect.” He corrected her as he struggled with his determination to keep from pulling her back into his arms. “And I know I have a job to do, but right now, all I can think about is when we can get together again.”
When Mesa turned to hand him the papers, her face was pink.
He took the papers but his eyes didn’t leave her face. “About lunch at The Tepee, I don’t want you to come alone.”
“I’ll be fine, but you don’t have to take time out of your schedule for me today. I know you’re going to be very busy.” She said.
He grinned. “A man’s gotta eat.”
“I’ll pick Raale up from Uci after church and meet you there.” She couldn’t resist lifting one hand to drag her fingers across the dark stubble that was beginning to show on his bronze cheek.
He caught her hand and kissed her fingers. “I probably gave you whisker burn when I kissed you. Sorry.”
She shrugged, watching his lips form the words. She didn’t know what it was about this man that drew her like a magnet, but she wouldn’t deny the pull she experienced anytime he was close. Close was never enough. She smiled up at him. “Do you think they’ll come looking for us?”
As if in answer to her question, a light tap sounded on the door, bringing a smile to Rafe’s lips. He nodded, thankful that the holster of the gun he wore could be shifted easily to help conceal what remained of his earlier arousal. “I guess that’s a yes.” Looking at the door, he spoke slightly louder. “Come on in.”
The door opened and Rance wheeled his chair into the room. “Did you find the file?”
Rafe held the copies that Mesa had made up. “Yeah. Not a problem. I’ve got what I need.” He turned and winked at the woman standing in front of him. “See you later?”
She nodded.
“Can you keep us informed on what you find out about Hal’s death?” Rance asked. “He was a good hand.”
Rafe shrugged. “Maybe up to a point, but I can’t make any promises. I just don’t know what all is involved in this, Rance.” He looked at the older man and shook his head. “I don’t like what I feel about any of it.”
Pushing the wheelchair closer to the lawman, Rance frowned. “What the hell does that mean, any of it?”
“Are you sure you can’t remember anything about your accident?” Rafe probed.
The older man’s frown deepened. “I’ve tried. What has that got to do with Hal?”
Again Rafe shrugged. “I don’t know that it has, but, between the three of us,” he looked from Rance to Mesa and back again. “Your accident was no accident. I dug a 308 slug outta your colt’s rear femur. That’s what caused the horse to go ballistic on you. The femur was totally shattered.”
Rance’s aged grey eyes searched Rafe’s face. “Somebody shot my colt?”
Rafe nodded. “It just didn’t feel right for it to be an accident. You’re a better horseman than that, Rance. I got Bob to show me where it happened before the Jackpot and used a metal detector to find the slug.”
Rance swore angrily.
“It’s just too much coincidence when it’s added to somebody running Shirley off the road, and now this boy’s death.” Rafe’s facial expression matched the older man’s. “I don’t know what’s going on yet, but I don’t like where it looks like it’s headed.”
Rance’s eyes shifted to Mesa and back again to the sheriff. “What about Mesa and Raale and the rest of the hands? Are they in danger?”
“I wish I could say no, but I can’t. I just don’t know. Keep everybody as close to the house as you can and when you can’t, make sure there are several people together. Do you have any idea why anyone would want to hurt the Rockin’ H?”
Rance shook his head negatively. “Maybe somebody has a grudge against me.”
“And Shirley? And Cartwright? Doesn’t make any sense to me.” Shaking his head negatively, Rafe turned and looked at Mesa. “Y’all need to make sure you aren’t here alone and don’t leave this place alone either.”
“What about lunch?” she asked quizzically.
Rafe frowned. “Don’t come alone. Bring Rance, Jory and Shirley. I don’t want any of you on the road alone.”
She smiled. “That’ll be cozy.”
He shrugged. “Better to be safe than sorry.” He lifted one hand and stroked her cheek gently before he turned and looked at Rance. “I’m headed back to the station to question a man that was out there where Cartwright was killed. I’ll see y’all at
The Tepee around noonish?”
Rance nodded. “We’ll be there. I’ll call Hal’s brother later today, but I want to give you a chance to talk to him first. We carry a small life insurance policy on all our boys and I imagine that’ll come in handy for his family.”
^^^
Back at the station, Rafe had Daryl Tall Tree in one interview room and his wife Willow in another. He and Levi had made sure the two hadn’t exchanged a word since they’d been located sleeping in a shed out behind Daryl’s grandfather’s house in the early morning hours.
Rafe opened the door to the interview room. “Daryl, how do you take your coffee?”
The older man looked at him, his dark eyes bloodshot and swollen. “Black and sweet.”
When Rafe returned a few minutes later, followed by his faithful dog, he placed a cup of the steaming brew on the table in front of the man. “It’s from the coffee maker in my office. The coffee in the break room tastes like crap.”
Daryl nodded. “Thanks, Rafe.”
The big lawman watched his suspect blow on the steaming liquid only once before taking a cautious sip.
Daryl nodded. “Good coffee.”
Rafe pulled out a chair and sat down across the table from the older man. Spur sat quietly beside Rafe’s chair, his liquid brown eyes focused on the man across the table. “Daryl, what the hell happened last night?” Rafe asked the first of many questions, his voice soft and nonthreatening.
Tall Tree shrugged. “I’m not sure. I was drunk. Shouldn’t’a been driving.”
“You shot John Montgomery in the leg. His wife is really pissed at you right now.” Rafe said.
Tall Tree dropped his head. “That was John? Willow’s gonna kill me. John’s one of her favorite dancin’ partners.” He lifted his head and looked at Rafe. “I didn’t know it was John, Rafe! Damn, I like him, too. How bad is he hurt?”
Rafe shrugged. “He’s still in the hospital. You need to tell me what the hell happened out there on that road.”
Tall Tree shook his head. “I was drunk. I might have been driving a little too fast, but that motorcycle shouldn’t’a been left that close to the road. I hit it and stopped. Willow called it in and I was gonna wait there, but when I got out to see how bad the driver was hurt, I found him with a hole between his eyes. Scared the hell outta me! He had a gun in his hand and I picked it up. Somebody took a shot at me. Next thang I know, there’s blue lights flashin’ and somebody yellin’ at me to drop the gun and raise my hands. I just freaked out and fired off a couple of rounds before I got the hell outta there. I didn’t know I even hit anybody.” He slowly shook his head from side to side. “Man, I can’t believe it was John.”
“Somebody shot at you?” Rafe was surprised by that turn in the story.
Tall Tree nodded, but then seemed to give it closer consideration. “Well, I thought it was at me. I heard a gun fire. I don’t know where it was, but that guy is dead and I’m holding his gun. I panicked. All I knew was that I needed to get the hell away from there.”
Rafe asked dozens of questions and then rephrased them and asked them again. Tall Tree was firm in his story. He thought he’d hit someone riding a motorcycle and stopped to offer assistance even as drunk as he was. Finding the corpse scared him so badly he didn’t even recognize the man, then he thought someone was shooting at him, and panic had taken over after that.
After two hours of questioning, Rafe left the small room convinced that his suspect was telling the truth. Even though he’d been drunk, the events were firmly etched in Daryl Tall Tree’s mind and as much as he regretted having done it, he never denied shooting John Montgomery. But he only knew Hal Cartwright casually, from frequenting the same local bars, and had no reason to kill him.
Rafe met Levi in the hallway and compared notes. Levi had been questioning Willow Tall Tree while Rafe had questioned Daryl. He figured she’d be more comfortable and open with a member of her family, even if it was a distant relationship. Levi assured him she had been, but there was very little difference in their stories. It looked like they were both telling the truth.
“Which puts me right back where I was, except now it’s not just suspicious accidents, it’s a cold blooded murder and I don’t have any idea who did it or why.” Rafe’s level of frustration rose by several notches. He didn’t like violence and mayhem. He wanted a nice quiet county.
On his way to The Tepee a little later, he swung by the hospital and wasn’t the least bit surprised to find Krystal sitting next to her husband’s bed. John appeared to be asleep, and when she saw Rafe push the door open, she rose from the chair and indicated they should retreat into the hallway before they started a conversation.
“How’s he doing,” Rafe asked as they stood outside the door.
“Dr. Alford said I could take him home tomorrow. They want to make sure he gets plenty of antibiotics in his system so he doesn’t develop an infection,” she replied. “He didn’t get much sleep last night and you look like hell, so I’m assumin’ you didn’t either.”
He shrugged. “I questioned the Tall Trees and their stories make sense. Daryl wants me to assure you that if he’d had any idea it was John, he’d never have shot at him. He said he’d just found Cartwright with a bullet between the eyes, when he heard what he thinks was somebody shootin’ at him, and it scared the hell out of him so when John arrived and ordered him to drop the weapon, he panicked and started shootin’.”
“What? He didn’t see the lights flashin’ on the top of John’s car? He had to know it was somebody he knew. He knows us all.” Krystal wasn’t in a forgiving mood.
Rafe dropped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a brief, comforting hug. “He was so drunk he hit Cartwright’s motorcycle where it was parked beside the road. Those flashin’ lights probably never registered in his mind. He thought somebody was shootin’ at him. I don’t think anything else got through his drunken haze until later.”
His only female deputy looked up at him. “Don’t you try to sugar coat what happened,” she railed at him. “He could have just as easily hit John in the head and killed him. The man needs a good ass kickin’ and I just might give it to him the next time I see him.”
“By then, you might be too old for kickin’ ass,” Rafe said solemnly. “He’s gonna spend some time in prison for last night and for a man who loves the outdoors as much as Daryl does, there won’t be anything worse. He’d probably welcome you kickin’ his ass if it’d help him avoid time in the pen.”
She swept one hand through the air between them. “I’m not feelin’ sorry for him.” She looked up at him again. “You really look bad, Rafe. Go home and get some sleep.”
His head shook negatively. “Don’t have time right now. I’ve got a date for lunch that I can’t miss. Maybe I’ll get home to take a nap later.”
Her eyes sparkled mischievously. “A lunch date that you can’t miss? Just who might that be with?”
He chuckled. “Raale, Mesa, Jory Madison, Mesa’s mother, and her Uncle Rance.”
Krystal’s hopeful look died. “That sounds like a lot of fun.” Her voice expressed heavy sarcasm.
He shrugged his broad shoulders and grinned. “It was supposed to be just Raale, Mesa and me, but with things happenin’ like they are, I think they all need to avoid bein’ alone. There are some weird things goin’ on around here, girl.” Rafe patted Krystal’s shoulder. “Tell John I stopped by and I’ll talk to you both later.”
She nodded. “We’ll be fine. Make sure you get a nap sometime today. When you get too tired, you can’t think straight,” she warned as he turned and started down the corridor. She watched until he turned a corner and disappeared from her sight before she returned to John’s bedside. Just like everyone else that knew him, she and John wanted nothing but happiness for Rafe. And just like everyone else that knew him, it was easy enough to see that he had been trying desperately to avoid spending time with Mesa Howell. A grin split her lips, revealing her straight, white teeth when she found
John awake.
“Guess who the boss is havin’ lunch with,” she couldn’t wait to share the news.
John shrugged. “Not me. If he ate here, the food would probably kill him.”
Krystal laughed at her husband’s comment, knowing he was just being sarcastic. “Well, there’s goin’ to be a crowd there, but he’s havin’ lunch with Mesa and her family at The Tepee.”
John failed to see the significance of that so she changed the subject. “He told me he and Levi brought in the Tall Trees and questioned them. Daryl wants you to know he’s sorry he shot you and Rafe doesn’t think he knows anything about Cartwright’s murder. He said Daryl hit the motorcycle while it was parked and found Cartwright already dead. He said Daryl told him someone took a shot at him and he panicked and that’s why he started shootin’ when he heard you tell him to drop the weapon. Rafe believes him.”
Mulling it over for a couple of minutes, John nodded. “That makes sense to me, as well. Daryl’s never been violent before, but finding a man with a bullet between the eyes would be enough to scare anyone especially if you think someone is making you the next target.”
She filled him in on the rest of the information Rafe had given her and when she finished talking, she shook her head and smiled. John had drifted off to sleep again.
Chapter 13
Rafe was seated at a large table at the back of the dining room of The Tepee when Mesa and her family arrived. He waved them back to join him and scooped Raale up into his arms as she ran ahead of everyone else.
“I wents to church with Uci this morning for breakfast. There wasn’t no kids there, dust old people.” She kissed his cheek. “We ate pancakes and bacon and Uci gived me seconds on the bacon. I dust love bacon.” She spotted Spur lying underneath the table. “I din’t think dogs could be in restaurants.”
While she talked, Rafe made eye contact with Mesa and he tilted his head toward a chair the other side of Raale.
Rafe chuckled. “You get that from me. Bacon’s my favorite at breakfast and Spur only gets to come in because he’s my police dog, sorta.” He stood her back on her feet next to his legs.
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