The Ranger's Reunion Threat

by Lara Lacombe

  The deputy nodded. “I think you’re right about that. So the question we need to ask is if this is an example of a prank gone wrong? Or do you think someone is trying to damage the ranch?”

  Isabel glanced at her brother. Diego avoided her gaze.

  The deputy caught her eye, his expression making it clear he hadn’t missed a trick. “This is the time when I ask if your family has any enemies or anyone who might want to harm your business?”

  “No,” Diego said just as Isabel replied, “Maybe?”

  Deputy Jackson smiled, though there was little humor in his expression. “Let’s try that again.”

  Isabel ignored Diego’s glare.

  “You know the Praline Energy Corporation?” At the deputy’s nod, she continued. “They’ve made an offer for our mineral rights. They want to put a fracking well on the ranch.”

  The lawman glanced from Diego back to her. “I take it this is a point of contention?”

  Jose snorted. “Indeed.”

  “It would be a mistake,” Diego muttered.

  “It’s a smart move,” Isabel shot back.

  The deputy lifted a hand. “I don’t really need to be here for this.” He faced Isabel. “Why don’t you tell me why you think there’s a connection between the cyanide trap and the energy company’s offer?”

  Isabel frowned. “I’m not positive that there is,” she began. “I just have a hunch that they’re behind this somehow.” She looked at Diego. “We talked last night that the company was making us a good faith offer, but if we refused, they’d use other methods to try to force us to sell.”

  Her brother nodded. “Yeah, like eminent domain or something similar.”

  “Well, what if they’re trying a different tack? We lost three cattle yesterday. If we start to lose more, we’ll have a big problem on our hands. We’d have no choice but to sell the mineral rights.”

  All three men stared at her as if she’d sprouted a second head.

  “That’s ridiculous—” Diego began.

  Deputy Jackson cut him off. “That’s certainly one theory,” he said smoothly. “But what you’re suggesting is highly illegal and would expose the company to criminal penalties and civil lawsuits.”

  Isabel’s heart sank as she realized none of them was taking her seriously. Even Abuelo was looking at her with pity in his eyes.

  She glanced down at her lap then rubbed her forehead with her fingertips again. Maybe she was tilting at windmills. The deputy’s words made a lot of sense, and he was probably right. In the grand scheme of things, their ranch was small potatoes. It was highly unlikely the energy company would engage in illegal activities for the sake of placing one fracking well.

  “Right,” she said softly. “I guess I’m still a little fuzzy from earlier. I must not be thinking clearly.”

  This time, the deputy’s smile was kind. “You experienced quite an ordeal this morning. The best thing you can do is focus on your recovery. My partner and I will check things out and let you all know if we find anything.” He flipped his notepad shut, a clear sign the interview was over.

  Isabel didn’t think his investigation would reveal much, especially since he apparently thought she was a crackpot. Nevertheless, she gave him a weak smile. “Thank you for listening to me.”

  “Of course, ma’am.” He touched the brim of his hat. “If there’s anything else you remember or think I should know, please reach out.” He pulled a business card from his shirt pocket and set it on the table next to her, tapping it with his forefinger for emphasis. “That goes for any of you,” he added, looking at Jose and Diego in turn. Her relatives nodded and thanked him quietly as he left the room.

  Isabel felt their eyes on her once they were alone again. Their skepticism hung in the air between them, an invisible cloud she could feel but not see.

  After a moment, Diego broke the silence. “I’m going to go look for Maria. Maybe she needs help finding a nurse.”

  When he was gone, Abuelo approached the side of her bed. He placed his hand over hers, his touch gentle.

  “What is it, mija?”

  Isabel shook her head, blinking as tears stung her eyes. “I’m not crazy,” she said softly.

  “Who said you were?”

  “I know what you’re all thinking. That I’ve cooked up some conspiracy theory to explain today’s accident.” She smeared away a tear trailing down her cheek. “But I know someone put that trap on our land deliberately. It wasn’t a prank gone wrong, or a surveyor who got lost. Someone is trying to hurt us.” She hadn’t wanted to articulate her suspicions, but she couldn’t ignore them.

  Abuelo squeezed her hand. “I know.”

  Isabel glanced up so quickly her nasal cannula nearly fell off her face. “You do?” A flicker of hope drove back the darkness of her despair.

  Her grandfather nodded. “I agree with you that this was a targeted act. But I am not so sure the energy company is behind it.”

  “I don’t want to believe that, either. But who else could it be?”

  The old man shook his head. “That, I do not know.” He sighed, glancing over at the door. “Your brother can be a handful at times. He often speaks without thinking. Maybe he offended the wrong person?”

  Isabel had to smile at the understatement. “That is definitely something to consider.”

  “But not now.” Her abuelo used his free hand to brush a strand of hair away from her face. “Leave the worrying to me, at least for today. Take this time for yourself, to rest and recover.”

  “Everyone keeps telling me to rest,” she muttered.

  “You should listen.” He smiled down at her. “Trust this old man. These troubles will still be here tomorrow. Build your strength today so you will be prepared to face them again.”

  It was good advice, and truth be told, Isabel was exhausted. Even though she wanted to keep going, there was a very real chance that if she tried, her body would simply revolt and force her to rest. With calving season about to start, Isabel couldn’t afford to be out any longer than absolutely necessary.

  “Sí, Abuelo,” she said. If she didn’t agree with him, he was liable to stick Maria on her case. That was definitely a battle she wouldn’t win.

  As if summoned by her thoughts, the door opened and Maria and Diego walked in together. The older woman walked to the side of the bed and placed her hand on Isabel’s arm.

  “I found the nurse, mija,” she said. “She said she’ll come soon with something for your head.”

  “Thank you.”

  Maria studied her face for a few seconds. “We will leave you now.” She gestured to Abuelo and Diego. “She needs to sleep.”

  “But they are keeping her overnight,” Abuelo protested. “One of us should be here.”

  “I can stay,” Diego volunteered. “I’ll take you two home and come back.”

  Isabel shook her head. It was kind of him to make the offer, but she didn’t want her brother keeping her company in her hospital room until she was released. If they spent that much time together, they were liable to wind up in another argument, and she’d have even more headaches.

  “I’ll be fine,” she said. “I’m going to spend most of my stay sleeping. There’s no need for someone to be here watching over me.”

  “Are you sure?” Diego searched her features, looking for any signs of deception. Some of Isabel’s annoyance faded in the face of his obvious concern. He really did love her. He just had a heavy-handed way of showing it sometimes.

  “I’m positive,” she assured him. “Go home. I know you all have a lot of work to do.”

  Diego looked down and ran a hand through his hair. “Well, yeah, that’s true. My first order of business is to take care of that trap.”

  A stone of worry formed in her stomach. “You be careful,” she ordered. “Take several men with you, and grab some
of my protective gear out of the barn—gloves and face shields at the least.”

  “I’ll be all right,” he said. “Unlike some members of this family, I know how to handle myself around an M44.” He nudged her foot with a sly grin, unable to resist teasing her. Abuelo and Maria turned in unison to glare at him. Diego’s eyes went wide in an expression of mock innocence. “What?” he asked. “Too soon?”

  Isabel merely shook her head, familiar with her brother’s twisted sense of humor. “You might want to do a thorough search of the area. I hope that was the only trap set, but there could be more.”

  Diego nodded, all traces of joking gone. “That’s what I’m afraid of,” he said. “Why stop at one?”

  The question cast a pall over the room, broken by the arrival of a nurse holding a small paper cup. “I have something for your pain,” she said brightly.

  She walked over to the computer system set up in the corner of the room. Abuelo leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Isabel’s forehead. “Remember what we talked about,” he said softly. “Rest while you can.”

  “Voy a dormir,” she replied. I will sleep.

  Maria squeezed her arm. “Tomorrow I will make your favorite enchiladas,” she promised.

  Isabel smiled. “That sounds wonderful.”

  Diego gave her foot an awkward pat. “Call if you need anything.”

  “Where is Wyatt?” Now that her family was leaving, Isabel was reminded of how she and Wyatt had arrived at the hospital. “He’ll need to ride back with you.”

  “He was still talking to the deputies when Maria and I came back,” Diego said. “I’ll find out what’s going on. Don’t worry—we’ll take care of him.”

  Isabel nodded. She wished she could have had more time alone with Wyatt to thank him again for saving her life. But it was probably better this way. They were never going to be more than friends who saw each other occasionally. Being around him would only cause her to become attached and make it harder for her to keep her emotions under control.

  The nurse walked over as her family shuffled out. “Name and birthday, please?”

  Isabel confirmed her identity and was rewarded with the small paper cup, which contained two round white pills.

  “This should help with your discomfort,” the nurse said, handing her the plastic cup of water Maria had recently refreshed.

  “Thanks,” Isabel said.

  The nurse smiled. “Of course. Push the call button if you need anything else.” She hurried out, leaving Isabel alone once again, with only her thoughts for company.

  Two days ago, her life had seemed simple. Now it was anything but. Between the upcoming calving season, the drilling decision, the cyanide trap and, oh, yes, the reappearance of the first man she’d ever loved, things were spiraling out of control. It was enough to make her want to run away, to take an extended vacation filled with ocean waves, soft sandy beaches and colorful drinks sporting tiny paper umbrellas. Just thinking about it made her head spin pleasantly.

  No, wait. Her clinical training kicked in. Those are the drugs. Whatever the nurse had given her was working. Her headache was receding as a warm, fuzzy sensation stole over her. She felt curiously lightweight, as though she might float off the bed at any moment.

  For a few seconds, her mind struggled to hold on to her worries and concerns. But it was no use—one by one, her thoughts slipped out of her grasp, her consciousness a boat shrugging off the moorings of logic. With a sigh, Isabel closed her eyes and surrendered to the inevitable.

  * * *

  She’s so beautiful.

  Wyatt sat in the chair next to Isabel’s bed, watching her sleep. There was nothing especially entertaining about the sight, but for some reason he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her.

  The deputies had finished questioning him a couple of hours ago. He’d turned down Diego’s offer of a ride back to the ranch—at the time, he was still talking to the lawmen.

  “I know a few park rangers who live in Alpine,” he’d told Diego. “I’ll call one of them and catch a ride back to the park tomorrow morning.” He’d already called in and asked for time off to deal with a family emergency, so there was no rush for him to return to the park.

  It was the truth, and at the time, Wyatt had intended to duck into Isabel’s room, say goodbye and then connect with one of his fellow rangers. But she’d looked so peaceful he’d found himself sinking into the chair, wanting to be near her. The sounds of her steady breathing soaked into his chest and calmed his still frayed nerves.

  As a park ranger, he’d elected to pursue additional training in medical emergencies and basic rescues. A lot of Big Bend was remote wilderness, making it hard to get help to the visitors who might need it. He’d encountered hikers and campers with problems ranging in severity from sprained ankles to heart attacks and heat stroke. He’d handled them all without missing a beat, never letting his emotions get involved. But this morning’s accident had been different.

  And he wasn’t going to try to pretend that he didn’t know the reason why.

  His heart had skipped a beat when he’d clapped eyes on the cyanide trap and recognized it for what it was. Fortunately, his training had kicked in a moment later, the autopilot taking over and allowing him to function. It was the only reason he’d been able to help Isabel. If he’d actually stopped to think about what was happening, he would have been too upset to be effective. His only regret was that he’d not pulled her back from the peril more quickly.

  Even now, hours after the fact, it rattled him to think about how things could have turned out. If he had gotten to her a few minutes later, if Ajax hadn’t made it back to the house so fast, if the medevac hadn’t arrived when it did—any number of seemingly small factors could have changed the outcome, leaving her dead and him heartbroken.

  And he would have been heartbroken, no doubt about it. Regardless of how their romantic interlude had ended a decade ago, he still cared about her. They’d spent too much time together while growing up to simply dismiss her from his life.

  But now that she was back, his general affection was in danger of sliding into something decidedly less platonic. It was a pitfall he would do well to avoid, since they would probably see each other on a regular basis.

  One thing he did know: sitting here in the fading light of the afternoon watching Isabel sleep was no way to keep his emotions in check.

  With that in mind, Wyatt placed his hands on the armrests of the chair and began to push himself up. The Naugahyde cushions squeaked in protest at the movement and, to his horror, Isabel stirred.

  He froze, half in and half out of the chair, and cursed silently. The last thing he’d wanted to do was to wake her. She might not appreciate finding him in her hospital room, especially since he knew his opposition to the drilling proposal had hurt her feelings.

  Moving carefully, Wyatt unfolded to his full height, wincing as the chair provided an unwelcome soundtrack for his every movement. He eyed the expanse of linoleum stretching out before him, knowing the heels of his boots would clop as he walked. Why was the damn door so far away?

  He made it a few steps before Isabel’s voice stopped him in his tracks.

  “Wyatt?”

  She sounded fuzzy, likely a combination of the aftereffects of the cyanide and her nap. He turned around with an apologetic half smile.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  Isabel rubbed her eyes with one hand and used the other to fish for the bed controls amid the thin sheet and blankets. The metal frame made a soft whirring sound as she raised the head of the mattress, allowing her to sit up with relative comfort.

  “It’s no problem. You didn’t, really. At least, I don’t think you did.” He could see the mental fog clear as she looked at him. “Why did you come back?”

  “I never actually left,” he confessed.

  “You did
n’t?” She frowned. “But I asked Diego to give you a ride back to the ranch. He told me he’d take care of you.” Her tone changed, making it clear she wasn’t happy with her brother.

  Uh-oh, Wyatt thought. He didn’t want to contribute to any misunderstandings between Isabel and Diego. If last night’s conversation in Jose’s study was any indication, the siblings already had enough to argue about.

  “He did offer, but I turned him down,” he said. “I was still being questioned by the deputies, and I wasn’t sure how much longer that was going to take. I didn’t want to ask them to wait for me, especially with so much work to be done at the ranch.”

  “Oh.” She frowned. “Deputy Jackson was only here for a few minutes. I wonder why they were so interested in talking to you?”

  Wyatt shrugged. “I think they wanted to make sure my recounting of the events matched up with yours.” They had also spent a fair bit of time asking Wyatt how he’d known what the trap was after catching only a glimpse of it in the dirt, and if he could account for his whereabouts over the past few days. The deputies hadn’t accused him of anything outright, but it was clear they were questioning if his presence at the ranch was a mere coincidence or something more sinister.

  Wyatt wasn’t worried for himself—it would take a matter of minutes to prove he had nothing to do with this. He just hoped the deputies would apply the same level of skepticism to the rest of the investigation and actually attempt to find out who was responsible for setting the trap, rather than writing it off as a wild-goose chase.

  “I guess that makes sense.” She didn’t look satisfied, though. He could tell from her expression she was working something out in her head, so he didn’t respond.

  After a few seconds, she sighed quietly. “Do you think they’re taking this seriously?”

  “Hard to say.” Wyatt returned to the chair and sat. “The fact that you were hurt this morning makes this more than just a routine case of trespassing. But they definitely have their work cut out for them. There are no witnesses, and I doubt they’re going to try to get fingerprints off the trap.”