The Practical Pretender

by Danni Roan

  “I mean that Dewis told me that once he gets the ranch out of debt, he’ll refinance and give each of you a cash buy out for one third of the value.”

  Jack shook his head, unable or unwilling to comprehend. “Mack says that Dewis doesn’t know what he’s got here. Says there’s gas on the land and that when we get it, we’ll be rich.”

  “How does he know?” Penny said. “Who told Mack there’s gas on the land?”

  Jack shrugged taking an unfamiliar turn as the car sped along the main road. “Mack knows people.”

  Penny looked out the window not recognizing anything around her. “Where are we going?” She asked her heart skipping a beat. “This isn’t the way to town.”

  Jack stomped down on the gas pedal harder and the car raced forward along the winding road. “It’s a shortcut,” he said not meeting her eyes.

  Penny knew she was in trouble. Jack had not come to take her to Dewis. She had been all kinds of a fool to believe him and now she was on a road to who knew where.

  “Jack take me to town right now,” she demanded hoping the authority in her voice would make him obey. “I won’t tell anyone about this if you just take me to town.”

  Jack gripped the steering wheel harder, his knuckles going white as he sped along the road.

  “We aren’t going to hurt you.” he finally said. “Just get you out of the way until the time limit runs out on the will.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense,” Penny said. “Dewis and I are legally married.”

  “Yeah, but you have to stay married for at least a year for the will to be finalized.”

  Penny felt all of the blood drain from her face. A year; Dewis hadn’t told her anything about being married a year. He’d only said he needed a fiancée.

  “Well kidnapping me won’t do you any good,” Penny said. “You can’t expect to hold me hostage for a whole year.”

  “We don’t have to,” Jack said his eyes flicking toward her as the car began to climb. “In two more days if Dewis doesn’t come to sign the papers with his wife then he loses.”

  “That’s terrible!” Penny growled. “How could you do that to him? What has he ever done to you to deserve that kind of treatment?” Her voice rose with the horror of the whole plan.

  Jack cut his eyes toward Penny for just an instant as he started into the next turn but in that split second of distraction he missed the edge of the road and the car shot through the guard rails and into the ravine below with a deafening crunch of crumpled metal and shattered glass.

  Chapter 13

  Penny’s eyes fluttered open to a dark haze and she blinked to clear them. The hiss of something hot caught her ears and as she finally gained her bearings, she could see steam pouring from the crumpled engine compartment.

  Realization hit her like a blast of cold water and she tried to sit up but her shoulder harness had her pinned to the seat. Breathing through her mouth she tried to stay calm.

  She had been in a car accident. Turning with fear clutching her heart she took in the slumped form of Jack at the wheel. His head was resting on the steering wheel and a thin trickle of blood dripped from his lips but his eyes were closed and he appeared to be breathing.

  “Jack,” she tried but her voice came out a hollow whisper. “Jack wake up,” she tried again, but the man didn’t stir.

  The last thing Penny remembered was Jack taking the turn too fast and losing control as they smashed through the guard rails and into the ravine below. She had no idea how bad the accident was or even if she was hurt.

  Taking two more deep breaths she looked down at her body. She didn’t see any blood and only a dull aching in her right leg seemed to indicate anything was amiss. She needed to get out; she needed to see where they were.

  Carefully she unbuckled her seat belt her whole body shifting forward and making the car rock slightly. Pushing herself back into the seat a little further Penny tried to stand but a shooting pain through her leg made her gasp and sit back.

  Holding tight to the back of the seat with one hand for balance Penny craned her neck to see where they had landed. Behind her she could see the mangled guard rail at the top of the hill and the skid marks the car had left into the soft embankment. Turning her head to the right she peered down over the nose of the car at the slope below.

  Somehow the car had come to a stop in a catch of bushes that were holding the vehicle in place, but below her the slope continued for another hundred yards where the slope ended in a jumble of boulders and rocks.

  “Jack, Jack. Wake up,” she tried again, this time reaching out to feel the pulse in the man’s neck. She didn’t know how they were going to get out of this. Her leg was throbbing now and she could feel that her foot was stuck under something that had moved when they’d hit the railing.

  “Please someone, help.” she cried wondering what Dewis would think when he got back to the ranch and found her gone.

  Twisting in the seat again and trying to ignore the pain in her leg she tried to reach her purse that had fallen onto the floor of the back seat. It took her three tries, but she finally got it as tears of pain and frustration poured down her face.

  Rummaging in the depths of the bag she found her phone and pulled it to her with a happy sob. Flicking the phone on she dialed 911 but nothing happened. Pulling the phone away from her ear she looked at it shocked at absolutely no bars. There was no signal; they were in a dead spot.

  ***

  Dewis drove back to the ranch and parked in front of the steps, grabbing the bouquets of mixed flowers from the seat as he climbed out and dashed up the stairs to the house.

  “Penny,” he called stepping inside with the flowers behind his back. “Honey where are you?” he called again. “Don’t you have a kiss for your favorite cowboy?” Dewis had had a bit of time to think about the unconventional relationship that had come from their fake engagement. He wanted Penny to stay with him forever, not just to save the ranch but to be his wife for good.

  The drive to town had convinced him it was time to start romancing the lady so he could make his case.

  The sound of silence echoed back at him as he walked into the kitchen and Dewis scowled. Where could she be? Dropping the flowers on the table he hurried through the living room and back into the bedroom.

  She wasn’t there, so he peeked into the bathroom hoping to catch her there but she wasn’t there either.

  “Penny,” Dewis called again making his way back into the kitchen. The light indicating that something was on in the crock pot told him she’d been here but where was she now.

  Making a thorough search of the house Dewis came back to the kitchen slumping into a chair at the table and staring at the flowers. She was gone. Perhaps she had changed her mind and decided to go back to her own life and her own world.

  He knew things had happened too fast, but he would have thought she would at least say goodbye.

  Setting his hat on the table Dewis ran his hands through his sandy hair with a sigh. He’d given her his heart but it must not have been enough. Last night had been perfect. The whole world seemed to be stretched out in front of them and all they had to do was grab it.

  A strange itch seemed to wriggle down Dewis’s spine as he thought of Penny. She was so perfect for him. She was smart, funny, and practical. All things a rancher’s wife needed to be to survive the long days and often lean years of this life. It nagged at him her being gone. Again his eyes fell on the little light on the crock pot and something seemed to click.

  Surely she wouldn’t have bothered to cook if she had decided to leave. Jumping to his feet Dewis ran back to the bedroom, opening the closet and the drawers. All of her clothing was still there; though they weren’t anything much, he was sure she wouldn’t have just left them behind.

  Something wasn’t right about this whole situation, and a deep dread clasped his heart. Something was wrong and Dewis knew it, knew it into the core of his bones.

  Grabbing the phone he dialed the sheri
ff’s office asking if they had received an emergency call from the ranch. When he received a negative response on that he called the hospitals but no one fitting Penny’s description had been checked in.

  Taking a turn around the kitchen he scrubbed his hands through his hair again then nearly came out of his boots when the phone rang.

  “Dewis,” Mr. Barney said. “Mack’s here and says he wants you and your missus to come sign off on the ranch papers. He’s tired of the whole fight and wants to be done with it.”

  “Is Penny there?” Dewis hissed.

  “No, isn’t she with you?” Mr. Barney asked.

  “She’s missing,” Dewis breathed as once again that little light bulb sprang to life in his head.

  “Barney how long can you stall Mack?”

  “I’ve got all day,” the old lawyer said. “I think that he’s doing this because he knows something about Penny. You keep him busy and I’ll try to see what I can figure out. Is Jack with him?”

  “No, he’s on his own,” Barney said.

  “You keep him there and let me know if he lets anything slip.”

  The old lawyer chuckled on the other end of the line startling Dewis. “I’ll give him the old Perry Mason switch.” Mr. Barney said. “Let me know what happens.”

  The phone went dead in his hand as Dewis slammed his hat back onto his head and ran for the door. If Jack had come to take Penny where would he have gone?

  There were no signs of a struggle so he had to believe that Jack had tricked Penny into going with him. If Jack wanted to get someone out of the way for a while where would he go?

  Jumping into the old truck Dewis shifted it into gear and skidded out of the yard. He had an idea of where Jack would go.

  Pulling his cell phone from his pocket once more he dialed the sheriff again this time telling him what he thought had happened and asking what could be done.

  Chapter 14

  Penny glared at the unconscious man in the seat next to her but she really wanted to kick herself. She should have known better than to believe the skunk.

  She had managed to drag an old tattered lap blanket from the back seat and covered the man with it. The weather wasn’t exactly cold, but she was afraid if his injuries were serious he might go into shock and die. Even a skunk deserved some consideration.

  Again she tried her phone, but got nothing the thing was as good as useless here on this little slice of hill. How would anyone find her all the way out here?

  Tears spilled from her eyes again and her heart ached for Dewis who would believe she had abandoned him. He would think that she’d only used him then left before things could become real.

  “Oh Dewis,” she whined. “I’m so sorry. If I don’t die up here, I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

  Dark clouds skidded across the sky and a light breeze made the car sway on its precarious perch. Penny grasped the door handle as her heart kicked up the pace.

  If she ever got out of this mess, if she ever survived and Jack was whole and healthy again she was going to kick his butt so far up around his ears that he wouldn’t be able to hear for a week.

  Penny dropped her head letting her seatbelt hold her in place and breathed a prayer then let her weary mind drift off to rest.

  ***

  Dewis clutched the wheel of his old truck as it bounced around the winding road toward the old copper mine. Jack had always been fascinated by the place and if he needed to keep someone out of the way for a few hours or even days, it would be perfect.

  The old truck fish-tailed around a curve as the road started to climb and he eased off the gas letting the truck slow. He would be no use to Penny if he crashed before he got to her.

  The phone in his pocket beeped and Dewis answered.

  “Where you at son?” Mr. Barney asked. “Mack’s getting mighty hot under the collar.”

  “I’m on the road headed to the old copper mine,” Dewis shot back. “I think that’s where Jack took Penny. Can you keep Mack there a while longer?”

  “Will do,” Mr. Barney said as the phone went dead. Letting the phone drop to the seat next to him, as he started into the next curve, Dewis slammed on his breaks at the sight of the damaged guard rails, as the first spattering of rain arrived.

  Jumping from the truck Dewis trotted to the embankment his knees going weak at what he saw. Jack’s car was sitting nose down on the hill with nothing but a few scrubby bushes keeping it from tumbling into the bottom of the ravine.

  Hurrying to the truck for an old tow line, Dewis hooked one end to the shackles on the front of the truck then started climbing down the hill an inch at a time.

  When he reached the back bumper of the car, he looped the line around a brace securing it. Hopefully the heavier truck would hold the car if the bushes gave way.

  Easing himself along the passenger’s side of the car Dewis peered through the window. Penny sat slumped against her shoulder harness, her eyes closed peacefully and his heart seemed to stop.

  Was he already too late? Had he found the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with only to lose her so soon.

  “Penny,” he whispered as the rain began to soak through his shirt.

  Penny opened her eyes and stared into Dewis’s green eyes. “Dewis!” she cried sitting upright and making the car lurch.

  “Don’t move honey,” Dewis said “I’ll get you out.”

  “My leg is stuck,” Penny called back, “and Jack hasn’t moved once.”

  Dewis nodded touched that she was worried about the creep who had kidnapped her. “I’m going to open the door,” he said. “Stay as still as you can.”

  Penny nodded, holding her breath as Dewis eased the door open. The door caught on something outside and he pushed it shut gently then scrabbled around in the dirt until the door could open more fully.

  “Oh Dewis,” Penny cried as he reached in and grasped her arm. “I don’t know how you found me. I was sure you would think I’d up and left. I should have known better than to trust Jack, but he seemed so sure you needed my help.”

  “For a minute I thought you had gone,” Dewis admitted holding her tight. “Then I realized that’s not who you are.” He pulled back wiping the tears from her eyes with the pads of his thumbs. “Now let’s get you out of here.”

  Dewis knelt by the floor board looking at Penny’s foot that was wedged under the dash that had been pushed back when the car had gone through the railing.

  As gently as possible he shifted the panel out of the way easing her foot in the other direction and cringing at her gasp of pain.

  “I’m sorry honey,” he whispered. “Just hang on a little longer.

  Biting her lip to keep from crying out Penny clung to the side of the seat as Dewis finally got her foot free. The rush of blood to her extremities was excruciating and she cried out as the pain raced through her leg.

  “I’m going to get you out of here,” Dewis assured, worried that Penny was going to pass out on him as he unbuckled her seat belt while gripping her waist. “I think your leg is broken,” he continued as Penny slipped an arm around his shoulders.

  Penny only nodded as the throbbing in her leg increased.

  Turning Penny slightly Dewis reached under her legs with one hand supporting her back with the other while she clung to his neck.

  Squatting in the loose dirt of the hill Dewis strained to lift Penny from the car, his thighs and back protesting the effort as he shifted her smoothly from the interior and stood.

  “You’re going to have to hold on,” he said his voice firm. “This hill is steep and I don’t want us to fall.”

  Penny nodded as streams of tears spilled down her cheek and she burrowed her head into Dewis’s neck.

  “Dewey?” a groggy voice called from inside.

  “Don’t move Jack,” Dewis snapped. “I’ll be back for you but whatever you do don’t move.”

  “Why?” the dazed voice drifted toward them.

  “Jack, if you want to live, just t
his once, do as I say!” Dewis snapped.

  “Alright Dewey,” Jack said. “I’ll nap until you tell me what to do.”

  An ominous creaking sound from the underside of the car made Dewis tremble but he couldn’t do anything more than he already was. In the distance he could hear a siren’s wail and he prayed the sheriff was on his way.

  Slowly, one painstaking step at a time he began the climb to the top of the hill, the hackles rising on his neck at every click and crunch from the car behind him. If Jack tried to get himself free of the car, he wasn’t sure the old tow rope would be enough to save him.