Missing in the Desert

by Dana Mentink

  “The guy who’s running the vendor fair?”

  She nodded, her heartbeat still thundering in her chest. “He was my sister Corinne’s crush back in high school before she...”

  Levi finished her thought. “Before she disappeared.”

  “Yes.” The word came out as a whisper around the clog in her throat.

  Jude joined them. “Everything okay?”

  Levi filled him in.

  Jude settled his sheriff’s cap more firmly on his head. “That must feel strange, but it’s not a complete surprise. Plenty of people stick close to their hometowns. Your folks moved to Henderson at the end of Corrine’s sophomore year, right? That’s where you lived when she ran off?”

  Mara nodded. “Yes. Our last day here was a couple of weeks after my high-school graduation.”

  “I didn’t work for Inyo County back then, but I did some looking into the file after your accident. If I recall correctly, the cops interviewed Teegan, and he had an alibi. He said he hadn’t seen Corrine at all before she disappeared, and there was no one to disprove that.”

  Mara had read the police file, too. She imagined a million different scenarios of what might have happened. Now another scenario flicked to life. Corinne tracked Teegan down; he rejected her. Despondent, she drove into Death Valley and wandered off into a desolate canyon to die or found one of the thousands of small trails and never made it back.

  Guilt wormed up from the dreary place where she kept it locked up. They used to be so close, she and Corinne. They shared clothes, pooled their allowances to buy a flimsy backyard pool, split countless peanut butter and banana sandwiches as midnight snacks. How had they become so estranged that her baby sister had not confided her level of hopelessness? Not disclosed that she was in love?

  Mara had known Corinne was upset about something in the weeks before she left home. It wasn’t unusual. She’d been difficult since they’d moved to Henderson, just before Seth deployed. Sixteen-year-old Corinne had been moody, sullen, defiant. It was natural, she’d told herself, for a young teen uprooted from her high-school friends. Corinne had written dozens of letters, secretly mailing them without letting Mara see the address. Could she have been writing to Teegan? As far as Mara knew, the two had attended some games and rallies their first few years in high school, but her parents discouraged them from doing any dating since Corinne was so young.

  Some of Mara’s unease began to ebb. “You’re right. It makes sense that I would run into him, I guess. I didn’t know he’d stayed here in Furnace Falls, but like you said, that isn’t uncommon. It’s his hometown.”

  Levi frowned. “I don’t know the family well. They moved here when Teegan was in sixth grade or so, as I recall. Gene is in the long-haul trucking business, owns a company. He lives well outside of town. My mother knew his wife, I think. She died of cancer just after Teegan started high school.”

  So Teegan’s mom had been dying of cancer when Corinne met him. That could certainly explain why he hadn’t been as eager to keep a long-distance connection with Corinne as she’d been with him. He’d had a lot going on.

  Levi looked closely at her. “If it’s too much right now, Mara, I can take you home.”

  It was too much, worrying about her brother and having all the memories of Corinne circling like restless birds, but she wasn’t about to fold up and let the past divert her from helping Seth now. She shook her head. “I’m fine. Let’s go back to the meeting. I want to hear about the high-traffic events where we can put out flyers.”

  Jude grinned. “A mind for business. That’s what your dusty old ranch needs, Levi.”

  Levi shot him a look. “Thanks.”

  “Just call ’em like I see ’em.” Jude put a finger to his cap and headed for his car. “I’ll check on you later.”

  The next couple of hours passed swiftly enough, but Mara was continually distracted by Teegan. When they broke for lunch, everyone piled out of the auditorium to find long tables set out and Beckett Duke and his helper Herm manning a massive barbecue. The smell of burgers reminded her she’d skipped breakfast. A woman with long honey-colored hair twisted into a soft braid approached. Her rounded belly and the kiss she’d dropped on Beckett’s cheek indicated she must be Laney Duke, Beckett’s wife.

  She clasped her hands together. “Mara, I am just so sorry about the accident. I’ve been praying for you and Seth.”

  Mara couldn’t help but smile at Laney’s infectious warmth. “Thank you. He’s holding his own, and I’m almost back to normal.”

  She beamed at Levi. “Well, you’ve got a great partner in Levi. He cares for everything and everyone.”

  She wanted to break in and discourage the notion that she and Levi were partners, but Laney was bubbling on.

  “Please come to the Hotsprings sometime. We’d love to have you, and if there’s anything we can do...” She was interrupted when a little boy bumped into her leg.

  “Oopsy,” Laney said. “I don’t see everything below my belly button anymore. What’s up, Peter?”

  The dark-haired child was probably no more than five. His front tooth looked a bit snaggly, as if it was loose. “Ketchup pwease, ma’am.”

  Mara smiled at his adorable lisp as a woman appeared, a sun hat shading her fair skin. “Did he say please? We’re working on manners.”

  “Yes, Amelia, he sure did.” Laney handed over a bottle of ketchup to the boy. “I think you know Levi, but this is his friend Mara.”

  Was it her imagination, or did Laney imbue the word friend with a special something? It surprised her to think of Levi as a friend when she was supposed to be angry at him for manipulating her brother. She was still mad at him...wasn’t she? Was Laney trying to be some sort of matchmaker? But her smile was wide and innocent.

  Mara shook hands with Amelia. The woman was tall and thin, nose sprinkled with freckles. A long column of hair was collected by a flowered scarf that trailed down her back.

  “I’m pleased to meet you,” Amelia said. “There are so many new people this year. It’s our first time as a Camp Town vendor. It was too much before with Peter being so young. I’m an artist. We’re selling my watercolors.”

  “So you know Teegan, the man who’s organizing the vendors?” The question tumbled out before Mara had a chance to think it over. Her interest in Teegan would not abate for some reason.

  Amelia laughed. “I know him well,” she said. “He’s my husband, and this is our son.”

  Mara tried to smile back. She was trying to think of what exactly to say next, when Teegan approached, a burger held in one hand. He scrubbed a hand over his razor-burned chin, rubbing at a drop of ketchup below his lip. As he got a look at her, his face paled, and he twitched as if he’d been given an electric shock. His mouth opened in a little o of surprise.

  No need for more introductions. It seemed that Teegan Warrington knew exactly who she was.

  * * *

  Levi was close enough that he could feel the tension radiating off Mara. He offered his hand to Teegan to give Mara some time to recover. “Levi Duke. We’re running the horses for Camp Town this year. And this is—”

  “Mara Castillo,” Teegan finished.

  Amelia’s eyes went wide. “Corinne Castillo’s sister?”

  “Yes,” Mara said. “Did you know her?”

  “No. I mean, well, we never met. I moved here at the end of my senior year, but I remember hearing that she disappeared.”

  Teegan looked pained. “I didn’t realize you’d come back to town.”

  Mara explained about helping the Rocking Horse. That seemed to set Teegan more at ease.

  “Oh. Just here for a while, then. Hope you enjoy it.” He frowned. “We heard about your accident. Real sorry about that.”

  Amelia nodded. “How is your brother? That was a terrible thing.”

  “Holding his own,” Mara said. />
  “Glad to hear it.” Teegan patted his wife’s arm. “Honey, Peter should eat his lunch. We’ll be busy after the break.”

  “Sure,” Amelia said, casting one more unsettled look on Mara. “Come on, Peter. Let’s go sit and eat our lunch. Daddy will join us later.” She hefted her son, ketchup bottle and all, onto her hip. As she whirled away, she bumped into Gene Warrington who clutched a hot dog in one hand. He winced and steadied her as she righted herself.

  “Sorry, Grandpa.”

  “That’s okay,” he said, winking at Peter. “Save me a hot dog, will you?” He walked over. “Everyone doing okay over here?”

  “Sure, Dad,” Teegan said hastily. “This is Levi Duke and Mara Castillo. I, uh, went to high school with her sister for a while.”

  Gene raised an eyebrow and offered a wry grin. “Nice. How are you and your sister?”

  “My sister’s dead,” Mara said flatly.

  Gene blanched. “Oh, I am sorry. Folks around here will tell you I am famous for inserting my booted foot squarely in my mouth.”

  Mara sighed. “It’s okay. You didn’t know.”

  His mouth quirked in thought. “Wait, I remember that name now. Corinne Castillo, right? The police came to ask questions, and we sure kept our eyes out for that young lady, but we never did find her. I didn’t put it together that she was your sister. Please accept my apologies. Big Mouth Warrington strikes again.”

  Teegan wiped his brow. “Hey, Dad, I think they’re looking for you at the info table.”

  Gene nodded. “I’d better go. Again, I apologize for my remarks. It’s good to have you here, and I hope Camp Town Days will be a great experience for you.”

  Levi edged closer to Mara, wondering if it was all getting to be too much for her to handle, so soon out of the hospital. He needn’t have worried.

  “When was the last time you saw my sister, Teegan?” she asked.

  Teegan’s Adam’s apple bobbed. “A few times the end of our sophomore year, just before you left town. I told the police that when they came around. Why do you ask?”

  Mara shrugged. “I wanted to put together her last few days in my mind. For some reason, I thought she might have headed to Furnace Falls to see you the day she disappeared.”

  “To see me?” Teegan’s lip curled. “I’ll tell you nicely because you’re her sister and I know you must be grieved by what happened. I never saw her again after she left for Henderson. That’s what I told the cops, and that’s the truth.” He leaned closer. “I have a family and a business here, so don’t come around making trouble.”

  Levi was nose to nose with him in an instant. “Step back.” He did not raise his voice in the slightest, but Teegan must have been able to sense his intensity. “You’re out of line, and I don’t like your tone.” He said the last bit so low he figured it would stay between the two of them.

  Teegan eased away, a tentative smile forming. “I don’t want any trouble.”

  Levi did not move. “Then, we want the same thing. No trouble, just answers.”

  “I don’t have any. I dated her a few times when I was a teen. She’s dead. That’s all I know.”

  Mara said “Can we talk more? Meet privately?”

  Teegan kept moving away. “I am very busy. I have to go now.”

  He walked hurriedly into the Grange Hall, not stopping to look back.

  Mara blew out a breath. “What did you make of that?”

  “I think he doesn’t want to talk to you.”

  “Why would that be?”

  Because he knows something he’s not telling. Aloud Levi said “Not sure. Let’s eat something and go get the horses.”

  He led Mara to a table and fetched them both a couple of the sloppy hamburgers Beckett was busily grilling.

  She toyed with her napkin and stared at the burger and the bowl of beans.

  “Don’t like it?” he inquired.

  “It’s not the food.” She hesitated. “I appreciate you standing up to Teegan for me, Levi. That was kind of you. But I don’t want you to feel like you have to do that. I can speak for myself.”

  “I know. Just isn’t acceptable for a man to speak in that tone to any woman.”

  Her cheeks went pink. He liked the color, soft like the little wildflowers that popped up in the spring. He realized he was staring at her so he drank some lemonade.

  “So you stand up for all women, do you?”

  He had to look again at the flush in her cheeks, her eyes the color of the perfect cup of black coffee. “Yes, ma’am, but you’re Seth’s sister, so that’s another reason.” He tried to think for a moment what he’d said that made her look away. The delicate way her brows drew together and the troubled frown made him wish he could have encouraged a smile instead. Then he’d be able to see that light spark and hear her laugh again.

  His own thoughts startled him. He was supposed to be impressing her with his ranching acumen and keeping her safe until Seth made it through. That was all. Refocusing, he sipped his lemonade hoping the cold drink would clear his mental muddle. It went down the wrong pipe, and he coughed violently.

  Smooth, Levi.

  His coughing having subsided, they started in on their lunch. He was a couple of bites into his burger when he felt the hairs prickle on the back of his neck. He craned around and saw Teegan staring at Mara with an expression he could not fully decipher.

  Uncertainty?

  Fear?

  Whatever it was, Levi intended to keep Teegan in his sights.

  Friends close, and enemies closer...

  SEVEN

  Mara would not admit to Levi that her head was throbbing as they unloaded the horses from the trailer in an empty field near the Borax mine that afternoon. The ride would be a quick overview of part of the trail. Fortunately, the reenactment was only an approximation of the real thing. In actuality, the historical 20 Mule Teams made a grueling ten-day trip, hauling tons of the mineral from the Harmony Borax Works just outside of town to the railhead some hundred and sixty-five miles away.

  Today they would be riding from the Borax Works to the main visitor campsite and back. She was grateful it would only be a couple of hours’ adventure, since her body was still complaining from the wreck. Stabs of fear cut at her at unexpected moments. Her brother, her best friend. Would he ever wake up?

  She’d called the hospital again and promised to visit the next day, blinking back tears to hear that he was still comatose. She didn’t want to cry publicly, and for some reason it was harder to be stoic with Levi solicitously checking on her comfort. When he looked at her with those somber blue eyes, it made something inside her go soft and emotional. It reminded her that in the years following her high-school graduation, she’d been hard-pressed to get the gangly, silent cowboy out of her thoughts. What would have happened between them if she hadn’t moved away?

  Don’t forget what did happen, she told herself with a shake. All this time she’d thought Levi had lured her brother into the service and then roped him into a worthless ranch. Even if she’d been mistaken about who’d talked who into enlisting, the latter was still true, and she was wise not to forget it.

  Teegan and his unwelcoming reaction was a distraction. Get this ranch on its feet, Mara, so Seth will have something to wake up for.

  “I can do this alone,” Levi was saying. “We can get you a ride to the hospital if you need to be there.”

  “I want to see the route,” she said.

  “Sure, but—”

  “Levi,” she stopped saddling Pumpkin Pie and looked at him. She meant to give him a firm brush-off, to remind him exactly why she was there, but there was that blue intensity again, and something about his long, lean face and the way he looked at her that made her forget. “Thank you,” she said instead. “I know this is not how you meant things to go. I’ll try to be pleasant company. No guarant
ees, but I’ll do my best.”

  He ducked his head, and she thought she caught the corner of a smile. “I’m happy to have you along.”

  Happy? He didn’t exactly meet her eye, but she smiled, anyway. “Brings back memories. Remember when we went fishing instead of senior prom?”

  His laugh was deep and sonorous. “Yes, I recall we had to drive three hours in Austin’s truck to find a fishing spot and the engine overheated twice.”

  “I guess a fishing expedition when you live in the desert wasn’t the wisest plan.”

  “Fun, though. Never enjoyed a drive so much in my life.”

  He’d enjoyed the drive? Now it was her turn to look away as she mounted Pumpkin Pie before he could help her. “We didn’t catch a single fish.”

  He settled into the saddle as if he’d been born there, fluid, graceful, as if horse and rider were one being. “That wasn’t the important part.” He led his horse toward a group of others astride their animals.

  It wasn’t? Mara set her wonderment aside as they joined the throng riding past the Borax mines. She saw Gene calling out directions. Was Teegan out there, too? She moved her horse closer to Levi’s. The trail was relatively flat and accessible even for the replica wagons that traveled with them, pulled by sets of sturdy donkeys. She’d forgotten the sheer vastness of Death Valley and its surrounds. Wide-open, so much less populated than Henderson, and with a mysterious quality that made her insides unwind a bit. The strange desert sun that seemed to shine differently—was it the air? She pulled in a deep lungful and murmured a silent prayer that Seth would live to see it again.

  The temperature was in the mid-seventies, warm enough to permeate her muscles with a comfortable ease. The sky was cloudless, empty except for the wrens that skimmed the landscape looking for a meal. A jackrabbit poked his head above a hunk of rock and surveyed the intruders, whiskers twitching. She thought about Rabbit and how quickly he would be devoured if Levi hadn’t provided a home and shelter.

  Two hours passed with companionable chatter. The shock of being surrounded by men who looked like the one who had attacked her began to subside. There were a few women as well, eagerly conversing as they rode along. She caught a glimpse of Teegan. As soon as he connected glances with her, he immediately urged his horse into a faster gait and left her behind. Levi was somehow always close, no matter how many people milled along on the trail.