Rancher's High-Stakes Rescue Page 8

  Dave cleared his throat. “Well, good night, folks. Helen’s waiting for me, and I’m already running late.”

  One by one, the men dispersed, leaving Zane alone again with the moon and his quiet turmoil.

  * * *

  “How did it get worse?” Josh asked.

  Kate bit her bottom lip, her gut swirling at the memories of her fall into the silo and the aftermath. “I wasn’t found for two days.”

  He cocked his head slightly, his expression incredulous. “Excuse me? Wha—Where were your parents? Why—”

  “My parents were in Kansas City with my brother on a 4-H trip.” She shivered, whether from the chilled air or the memory she couldn’t say, and she rubbed her arms.

  Josh turned, stretched toward his tent and plucked a blanket out. He scooted close enough to drape the cover around her shoulders.

  Smiling her thanks, she pinched the blanket closed at her throat with one hand and continued her story. “My grandmother was babysitting for me, and it turns out she was more senile at the time than my parents knew. She didn’t realize I was missing until the next morning. At that point, she went out and looked for me,” she drew air quotes for him, “which involved calling for me and walking around the yard before going back in the house to wait for me. Around lunchtime that day, she called a few of my friends asking for me, and my friends’ parents were the ones who finally became concerned enough to mount a more extensive search of our property.”

  “Did she call your parents to let them know what was happening? Why didn’t they come home when—”

  “She didn’t call them. My neighbors did. More evidence of how screwed up her judgment and reasoning had become. She knew telling them I was missing would be an admission of her failing memory and incompetence. She was terrified they’d want to put her in a nursing home and had gotten good at covering her memory lapses and faking her ability to care for herself.”

  He scoffed and, shaking his head, made a sound of disgust. “You’re her granddaughter. Wasn’t she worried about you? How could she—”

  “She didn’t have a good grip on reality. She’d convinced herself I was just hiding somewhere and would be back soon. Eventually our neighbors forced her hand when it was obvious the police needed to be involved to find me.”

  Josh waved his hands, stopping her. “Back up. You said your friends’ parents came over and helped search. Why didn’t they find you then?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t hear them calling. Thanks to my concussion and the pain I was in, I was in and out of consciousness. They claim they looked at the silo, called for me and got no reply, but obviously they didn’t climb up the ladder to look inside.”

  He leaned toward her, his expression saying her story had him flabbergasted. “So when were your parents finally called? When were the cops brought in?”

  “My neighbors called the cops and my parents when they couldn’t find me. The police took a statement from my grandmother, and eventually brought dogs out to search for me, but my scent was all over the farm and the dogs didn’t know which trail to search.”

  “So you were in there for two days?”

  She nodded. “Two days. I was in that silo with a broken leg, no food or bathroom, and mice for company for two days.” Her voice cracked. “The nights were the worst. It was so dark in there. And smelly. All that rotten corn. It was horrible. I thought I was going to die.”

  “I bet you did. Damn, Kate! That’s awful.”

  “I had nightmares about it for six years, despite seeing a counselor. And the memories still get to me when...” She closed her eyes, and her voice faded.

  “Yeah. I can see why.” He was quiet for a moment, the popping and crackling of the campfire filling the silence between them. Then he cleared his throat and scooted closer to her.

  She glanced up at him as he settled next to her and took her hands in his.

  “But you conquered those fears today when you got on the zip line. You didn’t let the fears win.”

  She scoffed. “Really? That’s the case you want to make? You do remember how that particular episode ended? I’m not sure that’s the best argument to convince me of anything but a full retreat.”

  Josh screwed up his face and shook his head. “I know it seems that way but...you’re here now. You’re safe. You did it! You even went first!”

  “Which proved bad luck. And I didn’t so much go first as I was shanghaied. I blame Dawn for that. And I will get her back for it.” She gave a snort of dry humor.

  “The point is, you overcame your fear long enough to do something daring. That’s a win!”

  She forcibly plucked her hands free of Josh’s grip, and vigorously shook her head. “Look, I appreciate the pep talk, and the spirit in which it’s given, but nothing has changed. If anything, today has proven that I have a reason to be afraid of things like...” She waved a hand in the general direction of the zip line and landing platform.

  “No!” The severity of his tone surprised her. “I don’t accept that. I can’t let you think that fear is okay. Fear only holds you back. It cripples you. It keeps you from experiencing life fully. I can’t let you give up because of fear. You have to get rid of that monkey on your back!”

  Kate frowned and drew back from him. “Excuse me? Since when is that for you to decide? I choose how I will live my life and what is worth the risk. Only me!”

  “As long as it is you choosing and not your fear. You said you used to be adventurous. That is the true you. What you were born with. It’s your soul. But your fear has squashed that spirit in you.”

  “Maybe it’s for the best.”

  He huffed a sigh. “Let me ask you this... Are you happy?”

  She grunted her affront and immediately answered, “Yes.”

  “Are you? Really?”

  “I—” She was prepared to repeat her assertion, when a tiny voice in her head whispered, Don’t kid yourself.

  Maybe she was content, safe, but was she happy? She didn’t yet have everything she’d hoped for in life. She still daydreamed about hiking the Grand Canyon or even Machu Picchu. Of hot air balloon rides over the Rhine. Of marriage, children, true love. Was her fear holding her back from pursuing the things she longed for? The tickle at the back of her neck was unsettling.

  Josh took her silence as her answer. “That’s what I thought. But you have a chance now, on this trip, to start facing down the demons of the past and living the kind of life that will make you happy.” His pleading look speared through her. “Finish this trip with me. Say yes, and I promise not to let you get hurt.”

  There was that unpromiseable promise again. Yet he was so earnest when he made the pledge that she almost believed him.

  Kate rubbed her temple. The stresses and abuse of the day had her muscles aching and her head throbbing. Her answer should be a clear and decisive no. So why was she wavering?

  “Josh,” she started and exhaled slowly. “I’m tired. And sore. And...confused.”

  A muscle in his square jaw flexed as discouragement crossed his face.

  “Before I agree to anything...”

  His face brightened with hope.

  “Tell me about the sabotage. I confided in you. Now do the same for me. What’s going on behind the scenes that I should know about?”

  He sighed, removed his hat long enough to rake his shaggy hair behind his ears, then shoved the wide-brimmed Tony Lama on his head. He sat back, his expression dark as he said, “Our ranch is in trouble.”

  “Trouble?”

  He nodded, his mouth pressed in a taut line. “We struggle every month to pay the loans and keep the stock fed and healthy. We’ve had a tough couple of years due to herd loss, unexpected expenses, and...” He puffed out a breath. “Well, someone has been making life even harder by vandalizing the ranch. The sabotage has been directed at the crop
s, the herd, the equipment. Things to damage our bottom line. Someone clearly wants us to go under. Out of pettiness or competition or sheer meanness, we don’t know. We still have no idea who is behind it. They’ve been slick about not getting caught.”

  “Geez, that’s low. What about your adventures business? How does it figure in the big picture?”

  “Zane, Piper, Brady and I started McCall Adventures as a way to earn some extra cash for the ranch, trying to save our dad from bankruptcy.” He dug the heel of his boot into the dirt and frowned. “Zane and I developed the idea based on our love of high-adrenaline sports and the notion that we could share the ranch and our extracurricular love with other people.”

  “It’s a good idea,” she conceded. “I’ve always thought so.”

  He raised his head only enough to give her a hooded glance. “Even after what happened to the zip line?”

  “You said it was sabotage.”

  Josh nodded morosely. “Pretty obviously so. Someone cut the tree around the plate where the cable had been bolted. With the added stress of our weight when we came across, what wood fibers were left weren’t strong enough to hold the line. They splintered and—”

  “So you think that whoever has been trying to make your family’s ranch go under is now attacking your new business, too?”

  “Seems that way. I have no proof, but it doesn’t take a genius to add two and two.” He snorted derisively. “And come up with foreclosure.”

  “Is that what you and Zane were talking about outside the stable yesterday morning?”

  He jerked his chin up. “You heard us?”

  She flashed a chagrined smile. “Yeah. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but you all sounded so upset, and, well, you weren’t exactly quiet.”

  He dropped his chin again and scratched his cheek. “Yeah. A former employee has gone into business, competing against us, with our high school rival funding him. And I damn sure know they stole the idea from us.”

  Kate thought on that for a moment. “Did this former employee leave under bad circumstances?”

  “Sorta, yeah.” He slanted a look at her. “And yes, we’ve considered that he could be behind the vandalism. But the attacks on the business started before he was fired. So...”

  “Does he know about this property? That you were planning to make your base camp here? Otherwise, the finger points to someone on the inside of your business. Someone who had access here in the twenty-four hours between your last check and today.”

  Josh snapped his head up again and glared at her with a furrowed brow. “No way this was an inside job. Everyone involved with the ranch and this new business is family...or as good as.”

  “Brady?”

  “Has a financial stake in the McCall Adventures and is engaged to my sister.”

  “What about your foreman?”

  Josh shook his head. “Roy is Brady’s father and has been with my family longer than I’ve been alive.”

  “What about the other hand I met? Dave something?”

  “Dave has no reason to sabotage our company or the ranch. We are his livelihood. And he’s a good guy. I can’t believe he’d do anything to hurt us.” He flexed one wrist by pushing back his hand, then traded to stretch the other. “It’s possible someone followed us up here. And it’s no secret around town that we own this property. We brought our friends up here all through high school for weekend outings.”

  Kate’s stomach clenched at the notion that Josh’s family had a mysterious enemy lurking around town, escalating his attacks.

  “So you can’t think of anyone who might want to hurt your family? Someone who wouldn’t care if innocent bystanders were hurt in the process?” She meant no recriminations by that statement, but she saw a fresh look of guilt cloud his face.

  “We’ve been asking that for months. But the sheriff can’t tie anyone on our potential suspect list to the incidents.”

  “Including the high school rival you mentioned?”

  “Considered and dismissed. No evidence he was involved, and he’s had solid alibis for the timing of the incidents. And since being an ass isn’t in and of itself a crime...” He snorted a wry laugh and shrugged. “The authorities have come up with bupkis. The best information we have came from a guy who was stalking Piper earlier this year. And seeing as how he’s nutso, I don’t know how much stock we can put in his testimony.”

  “What about a vandal for hire? Maybe your former employee or old rival didn’t do the deed himself, but he could have paid someone.”

  Josh pinched the bridge of his nose. “Anything is possible, I guess.” He twisted his mouth and regarded her with a moue of regret. “I hate that you got caught up in this, that you were put at risk. I’m so sorry, Kate.”

  She held his gaze for a moment, then nodded her acceptance of his apology. She drew the edges of the blanket closer around her. Despite the fire, the evening air had grown chilly. Her mind skipped back to his earlier question—his plea, really, for her to continue on the trip.

  She watched him stoke the fire, adding another log and stirring up the coals. He’d said quitting would be letting the vandal win. She understood why he believed that.

  “It’s clear how much the vandalism, the harm to your home and livelihood bothers you. Understandably so.”

  He nodded.

  “But...” she continued, and his hand stilled, his gaze lifting to hers. “Do your concerns warp your perception of reality? Can you promise it hasn’t clouded your ability to make the right call about continuing the trip?”

  He seemed startled by her frankness and didn’t say anything for a moment as he “um”-ed and “er”-ed.

  “I mean, we want to make the right call—to go on or not. And just like you don’t want me to base my decision on my past and my fears, I don’t want you pushing ahead out of anger or frustration or a way to somehow spite the vandal...who may never know what choice you make anyway.”

  He stared at her, silent and unmoving for a few seconds, before he answered softly, “Honestly?”

  “Complete honesty. We are sharing confidences tonight. Right? True confessions by firelight?”

  He chuckled. “Are we going to exchange stories of losing our virginity next?”

  She barked a laugh. “Let’s save that one for another night.”

  He gave her one of his charming grins. “Deal.” Then, sobering, he added, “The truth is, I’m not sure what the strongest thing motivating me is. It’s all kinda muddled up in me. I really want this adventure business to succeed. For a lot of reasons.”

  She pinned a hard look on him. “Enough to take unnecessary risks?”

  His brow dipped in offense. “No. I promised you I wouldn’t let you get hurt. I meant it. Kate, I’ve been doing this—” he waved a hand around the campsite “—all the sports on this property for years. I know what I’m doing and how to manage the risks.”

  She drew a slow, measured breath. “All I will agree to tonight is that I’ll go as far as the end of the rafting. After we get off the river, I’ll decide if I go any farther.”

  The corner of his mouth lifted, dimpling his cheek, and her heart flipped. She knew his devastating good looks had factored into her choice, her attraction to him. But she could kick herself over her shallowness and bad judgment later.

  “Good enough?”

  He reached for her hand and kissed the back of it. “Good enough.”

  * * *

  He spotted his target within seconds of stepping into the hole-in-the-wall bar several miles outside the town limits of Boyd Valley. Setting his shoulders, he strode over to the empty stool next to his target and settled in. He glanced up at the TV mounted on the wall, feigning interest in the baseball game on the flat screen. “Well? What happened?”

  “Too much.” Grim expression. Guilt?

  A chill slithered through him.
“Explain.”

  “The damn zip line fell.”

  He sent the patron at his elbow a bored look. “And?”

  A pause. Jaw tightening. “What do you mean, and? Someone could have been killed! The damage was just supposed to frighten them, force them to suspend the tours awhile longer.”

  “Nothing like the loss of a beloved McCall to make them reconsider the venture,” he said, his tone dripping sarcasm. He wouldn’t lose sleep over any harm that came to the McCalls. After all, they never blinked when they profited from his failure.

  A glare. “I didn’t sign on for murder!”

  He raised a hand. “Calm down. No one died, did they?”

  A swig of liquor. “No. The woman on the line at the time survived, but...”

  He narrowed his gaze. “But?”

  A muttered curse. “I ain’t doing this anymore. Not if people get hurt.”

  “The line falling is your own fault. You did the damage. If it fell, you’re—”

  “I know!” A frustrated huff. “Damn it, don’t you think I know?”

  “Keep your voice down.” He leaned closer to the other patron. “Don’t think you’re getting out of this now. I still hold the trump card. Your accident. The girl who died because of you. If I talk to the cops, you go to jail for hit-and-run. Vehicular homicide. Not to mention any charges they want to add for all the vandalism and criminal mischief you’ve committed against the Double M.”

  Another bleary-eyed glower.

  “Was the zip line your only surprise for them?”

  Hesitation, then, “No.”

  He grinned, picturing the McCalls finding more damage to their startup business. “Good.”

  The saboteur’s hand tightened on a highball glass. “I shoulda never agreed to this. You’re the devil.”

  “Naw, just someone with the power to destroy you if you don’t help me get what I deserve.”

  “The Double M.”

  “Damn right.”

  A headshake and dark glare. “You don’t deserve squat, you piece of sh—”

  “Watch it,” he said, aiming a finger at his partner in crime. “If you piss me off, I might decide to go a different way with my plan and offer you up to the cops. My sacrificial lamb.”