Chase's Promise

by Lois Faye Dyer

  “I don’t understand any of this.”

  “Me, either. But you felt something bad, cause unknown, happened to him when you touched his abandoned vehicle. Maybe he remembers enough about whatever happened to be worried his attackers will come looking for him if they know he survived.”

  “You mean someone might be trying to kill him?” The mere thought terrified Raine.

  “Hard to say. All of this is pure speculation until we have more information.”

  Raine climbed into bed to lie curled against Chase’s side, only partially listening to the suspense plot unfolding on the TV screen. She couldn’t concentrate on anything except Trey and how they could convince him they were telling him the truth. What if he wouldn’t accept her assurances as to his identity? Could she have lost him forever?

  Someone knocked on the door. Startled, Raine looked at Chase.

  “I’ll get it.” He picked up his handgun from the bedside table and stood, tucking the gun into the waistband of his jeans at the small of his back. He’d put on only jeans after their shower and the lamplight played across the sleek, honed muscles of his torso as he crossed the room.

  Raine sat upright, legs crossed, watching with apprehension as Chase peered through the peephole.

  He opened the door and Trey stepped inside quickly, glancing back over his shoulder.

  “I might have been followed,” he said. “But I don’t think so.”

  “Why would someone be following you?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Chase didn’t visibly react to the blunt answer, merely nodding at the small round table and chairs in the corner of the room. “Have a seat.” He glanced at Raine, including her.

  She uncurled from the bed and went over to the table, aware that Trey watched her, his expression unfathomable. He wore the same black T-shirt and jeans he’d had on earlier and she recognized the distinctive, custom-made boots on his feet.

  “You ordered those boots from a shop in Dallas,” she told him. “They were custom-made and the boot maker stamped your initials, TH, in the tool work just above the ankle on the inside of each boot.”

  Startled, he stared at her before thrusting his hand through his hair. “Damn. You’re right.” He pulled out a chair and straddled it, a deep frown creasing his brow. “After you left the bar, I borrowed my boss’s office computer and ran a search on your name. You’re listed as the owner of a business in Wolf Creek, together with a brother named Trey.”

  “But you still don’t remember Raine or your life in Wolf Creek,” Chase said.

  “I’ve been having flashes, bits and pieces of memories, but I don’t have a whole picture yet.”

  “Maybe it would be easier if you told us what you do remember and we can fill in the blanks,” Chase suggested, looking questioningly at Raine.

  She nodded. “That might take less time.”

  “I have no clear memory of a life prior to roughly three or four weeks ago,” Trey began, “when I woke up in a ditch along a highway about thirty miles north and east of here.”

  “We were searching south of Wolf Creek toward Billings, no wonder we couldn’t find you,” Raine said.

  “You’ve been looking for me?”

  “Yes, constantly. Every day since you disappeared.”

  “That’s good to hear, because I didn’t know a soul and felt totally alone. Except for these flashes when it felt like I was being swamped with someone else’s emotions, mostly sad.”

  He smiled and Raine’s heart twisted. She hadn’t known if she’d ever see that smile again and she wanted to throw her arms around him and hug him tight. But there was a certain distance about him that held her back.

  “It might have been me,” she said softly. “We’re twins and sometimes, we feel what the other one is thinking.”

  “Really?” He looked intrigued.

  “How did you end up here?” Chase prompted.

  “This town’s postmark was on an envelope I found. I didn’t have any ID on me, no wallet, no car keys, nothing to tell me who I was or where I lived.”

  “But you had an envelope. Didn’t it have your address?” Chase asked.

  “The address wasn’t readable,” Trey said. “I woke up facedown in a muddy ditch. When I got up, the envelope was in the water where I’d been lying. The only legible information on it was the postmark, Granger, Montana. All that was left of the address was smears of blue ink. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t even sure the letter belonged to me. For all I knew, it could have been trash thrown out of someone’s car and left in the ditch for months. But it was the only thing I had.”

  “Do you still have it?” Chase asked.

  “Yeah, back in my room.”

  “Was there a letter in the envelope?”

  “If you could call it that. It was odd. In fact—” he looked at Raine “—any chance I’m being blackmailed? Because the wording of the letter is weird.”

  “What did it say?” Raine knew because she’d read it herself, but she wanted Trey to tell Chase in his own words.

  “I can’t give you the exact wording, but it basically told me to meet someone at the Bull ’n’ Bash if I wanted to know what really happened fifteen years ago.” He shook his head in frustration. “I’ve been running computer checks but haven’t turned up any information on a place called Bull ’n’ Bash in Montana or any neighboring state.”

  “It’s a bar in Billings,” Chase said. “It’s not the kind of place to be online with a Web site. You were on your way there to meet whoever wrote the letter on the night you disappeared.”

  Trey was silent for a moment, digesting this. “So what do you think happened? Somebody didn’t want me to meet the letter writer?”

  “We don’t know,” Raine put in. “That might be true. But it also could be you were hijacked by unconnected persons who simply wanted your vehicle.”

  “My car’s that nice?” Trey grinned, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “I’ve been without wheels ever since I woke up in that ditch. Good to know I’ve got a car somewhere.”

  “You drive a very nice silver SUV,” Raine told him. “It was recovered quite a ways south of here just a few days ago. In fact, that’s what led us here.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “The wheel wells and tires had red clay soil on them,” Chase responded. “That kind of soil isn’t common so we changed our search to include the area where it’s found.”

  “Damn.” Trey looked impressed. “Good sleuthing, Sherlock.”

  Chase laughed.

  “So, what do we do now? Are you ready to go home?” Raine asked hopefully.

  “I have to talk to someone tonight and explain what’s going on but, yeah, I’ll go back. When are you two leaving?”

  “Tomorrow morning, but if you need longer,” Chase met Raine’s gaze, “we’ll wait.”

  “Tomorrow’s good for me.” He rose. “Does it work for you to pick me up at the bar around ten tomorrow morning?”

  “Absolutely.” Chase and Raine stood, too.

  Trey shook Chase’s hand, pausing to look at Raine.

  “Be careful,” she murmured and hugged him. He hesitated before hugging her back, patting her shoulder awkwardly.

  Then he was gone.

  Chase pulled her into his arms, tilting his head to search her face. “Mission accomplished. How do you feel?”

  “Relieved. Delighted. So very, very glad to see him, hold him, and know he’s alive and well,” she said, smiling through tears. “But I’m a little worried about the situation. Why does he seem to feel he’s being watched or followed? I meant to ask him and forgot in the excitement. Did you get the feeling there’s something else he’s not telling us?”

  “I think there’s more here than meets the eye. But I’m not sure whether it’s good to press him too hard for details until he sees a doctor. I don’t know a lot about amnesia or what the treatment is to correct it, nor what we should or shouldn’t be asking or telling him about the parts of his li
fe he doesn’t remember.”

  “Me, either,” Raine confessed. “I can’t wait to get him home and have him see our regular doctor. I’ll feel much better once we have an expert examine him and find out if there was any other damage that needs treating besides the scar—like concussion, or a possible fracture.”

  “You’ll have him home by tomorrow afternoon, honey.” Chase kissed the end of her nose. “You’re such a mother hen.”

  He waited until she fell asleep before he eased his arm from beneath her head and slipped out of bed. Carrying his cell phone into the bathroom so Raine wouldn’t hear him, he eased the door shut and dialed using the phone’s slight screen light.

  “Yeah?” Ren’s voice was raspy with sleep.

  “It’s Chase.”

  “What’s up?” The words were clearer, more aware. “Do you know what time it is?”

  “Late.”

  “Hell, yes, it’s late. This better be important, McCloud.”

  “It is. I need Andy in Wolf Creek to guard Raine Harper for a week or two, maybe longer.”

  “You got it. Anything else?”

  “I want you to run a background check on Harlan Kerrigan’s activities in Helena, including his personal life.”

  Ren was silent for a long moment. Chase could hear the faint scratch of pen on paper.

  “I’m guessing you’re not looking for evidence he’s a nice guy, right?”

  “I know he’s not a nice guy. I want proof he’s stepped over the line. I don’t care if he’s bribed a politician, skimmed profits from his company, had an illegitimate kid or slept with a married woman.” Chase gave Ren a quick rundown on Trey’s car-jacking and assault. “It’s bad enough if Harlan targeted Trey but Raine was supposed to be with him that night. She only stayed home because she was ill. I’m going after the Rimes brothers tomorrow but in case I don’t get them, I need a back-up plan. Harlan had political ambitions. If we can dig up evidence that implicates him in any scandal, I can use it to threaten him and force him to stay away from the Harpers.”

  “Until you find real evidence to put him away?” Ren asked.

  “That would be the best of all worlds,” Chase said grimly.

  “I’ll call Andy and start researching Kerrigan as soon as I hang up.”

  “You’ll need someone on the ground in Helena. I’ve kept a file on Harlan for years and never found anything but small-time stuff.”

  “I’ll go myself.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Anytime. And Chase…”

  “Yeah?”

  “I expect an invitation to the wedding.”

  “You’re on the list,” Chase said dryly.

  Chase rang off with Ren’s laughter still echoing over the line.

  Trey was waiting for them on the sidewalk outside the bar the following morning, a small duffel bag at his feet.

  He didn’t appear inclined to talk. Given Chase’s concerns about the appropriate treatment of an amnesiac, Raine wasn’t inclined to question him although there was so much she wanted to know. As a result, the drive home was spent listening to Chase’s collection of CDs.

  “Do you want me to drop you at the Saloon and Trey’s apartment, or at your house?” Chase asked as they drove through the outskirts of Wolf Creek.

  “My house, I think,” Raine answered. “I can drop my bag and pick up my car, then drive Trey downtown to the apartment.”

  “Do whatever’s most convenient.” Trey spoke from the backseat where Killer kept him company. “And don’t worry about me, Raine. I’m not ill, I just can’t remember some things.”

  Raine wanted to argue with him but she knew he was right. “Sorry, Trey. Now that you’re back, I don’t want to let you out of my sight. I know I’m being irrational—I’m sure the feeling will go away after you’ve been home for a while.”

  “Makes sense,” he responded.

  “I promise I’ll try very hard not to hover,” she assured him.

  Both Chase and Raine accompanied Trey up the back stairs to his apartment above the Saloon. Trey dropped his duffel on the sofa and turned in a slow circle.

  “Does it seem familiar?” Raine asked, hoping he’d sensed a connection to the rooms.

  “You know,” he said slowly, studying the kitchen with its gleaming copper pans. “It does.”

  She felt a surge of relief. “Maybe your memory will return faster now that you’re home, among friends and your own things.”

  “It can’t be too soon for me. I’m damned tired of surprises,” Trey said with feeling.

  “Maybe we should let you settle in on your own,” Chase said.

  “Yes,” Raine agreed. “That’s probably a good idea. I’ll see you later this afternoon, Trey?”

  “Sure.” He returned her hug with more ease than the day before.

  “I need a few minutes to talk to Trey, Raine.” Chase walked her out of the apartment and handed her his car keys. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”

  “Is something wrong?”

  “No.” He bent his head and pressed a brief, warm kiss against her mouth. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

  She nodded and left him.

  Chase waited until she reached the bottom of the stairs before he re-entered the apartment. Arms crossed over his chest, Trey leaned against the countertop dividing the kitchen from the living room, his expression guarded.

  “The sheriff’s office ID’ed Carl and Bobby Rimes from the fingerprints in your vehicle,” Chase said without preamble. “They’ve both disappeared and the sheriff believes they know they’re wanted for questioning. I need your help to keep Raine safe while I track them down and bring them in.”

  Trey’s face hardened. “You’ve got it. I don’t remember the two—who are they?”

  “Carl and Bobby are local brothers in their mid-thirties. They’ve been in and out of jail on minor crime convictions since they were teenagers. They’ve been working as hired hands at Harlan Kerrigan’s ranch for the last ten months.”

  “Kerrigan?” Trey said slowly, frowning. “The name’s familiar.”

  “It should be.” Chase gave Trey a brief picture of the Kerrigan-McCloud-Harper connection. “I can’t tell Raine about the Rimes brothers. If I do, she’ll insist on going with me and when I refuse, she’ll go looking on her own. This isn’t like searching for you; this is dangerous. I don’t want her hurt.”

  “Neither do I.”

  “Then I need your help. An agent with my company is on his way to guard Raine; he’ll be here tonight. It should be easy enough for you to convince Raine you need her close to help you adjust to being back at the Saloon.”

  “I can do that,” Trey agreed. “But how are you going to convince her not to go looking for the Rimes brothers? And won’t she wonder where you are?”

  “I’m going to lie to her,” Chase said grimly.

  “You mean about the Rimes brothers being involved?”

  “Yeah. And about ending what’s between us. I figure she’ll be so mad at me, she won’t want to see me for a while. She’s too smart not to figure out something’s going on if I just leave town and I can’t guarantee I can always check in by phone. Plus I’d have to lie to her every time I was able to call her and increase the likelihood of her knowing something was wrong.”

  “You sure you want to do this?” Trey said dubiously. “Not that you don’t need to tell her something to keep her from following you. I don’t remember everything about my sister, but what I do know is that she’s a smart, stubborn woman and she hates being lied to.”

  “I can’t think of a better solution,” Chase said, knowing Trey was right about Raine. If she didn’t forgive him, he would lose her. “I won’t risk her life. Will you help me?”

  “Absolutely. But I’m not the one she’s going to be mad at when she learns the truth. Not that she won’t yell at me, but you’re the one who’s going to catch the most heat.”

  “I know.” He took a slip of paper from his shirt pocket. “This is the cell pho
ne number for Andy Jones, the Agency bodyguard. If you don’t hear from him by five o’clock, call him. He’ll watch her house but if you need him elsewhere, just tell him where and when.”

  “Chase.”

  He halted with his hand on the doorknob to look back at Trey.

  “Just so we’re clear—what exactly are your intentions toward my sister?”

  “I plan to ask her to marry me just as soon as this is finished.”

  Trey grinned. “That’s what I thought. Good luck.”

  Raine was quiet on the drive across town and so was Chase. Neither spoke as he followed her inside.

  “Are you going to work today?” he asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers gentle.

  She nodded. “I told Trey I’d meet him in an hour to walk him through the Saloon and restaurant. We’ll both explain to the staff what happened. It seems hard to believe, but I can get back to my normal routine now. Thanks to you.” She stepped nearer, slid her arms around his neck and kissed him.

  When he lifted his head, both were breathing faster. Raine reveled in the simmering sexual intensity that always flared when they touched.

  “I’d better get going.” He brushed the corners of her mouth with kisses and stepped back.

  “Will I see you tonight?” she asked.

  “No.”

  Raine stared at him, the stark word and grim set of his mouth were a sharp contrast to the heated kiss they’d just shared.

  “Tomorrow night?”

  “No.”

  “Why am I getting the feeling you’re trying to tell me something?” she asked, cold premonition skittering up her spine.

  “The case is finished,” he said, voice flat. “Trey’s home. You’re happy. End of story.”

  “End of story,” she repeated slowly, trying to read his expression and failing. “And what about us?”

  “There is no us. Your life is filled with running your businesses and your customers in Wolf Creek—you couldn’t have one without the other. I wouldn’t ask you to give that up and I’ll never live in Wolf Creek, nor associate with the people here. We’re as far apart as two people can get. I don’t see that changing.” His voice lowered, turning raspy with emotion.