Lauren glanced at Callie and nodded. “I’m glad.”
Kyle sneered at Lauren. “Why are you staying, Doc? To protect them?”
Lauren snorted and Kyle blinked at her in surprise. “I’m staying to save your life, Kyle.”
Kyle rubbed the palms of his hands on his pant legs. “Bullshit.”
Lauren leaned over Kyle and sneered back at him. “I’ll stay as long as Callie wants me to. I’d never come between a mother and her child, so I plan to help her with whatever she decides to do.”
“Like what? What’s she gonna do?”
“She may want help digging a man-sized hole, excuse me, weasel-sized hole, in the wheat field.” Lauren’s eyes were hard. “I admire Callie’s restraint. If you’d snatched my daughter, you’d already be missing sensitive body parts.” She glanced at his crotch. “Although I suspect an insect like you has none.”
Kyle crossed his legs and angled his body away from Lauren. He scoffed at Callie. “What a bad mom you are, leaving a kid that young by herself. You should tell her not to get into trucks with people.”
Callie glowered at him as she stalked toward him. Every muscle in her body screamed for her to pummel him.
Kyle had been walking toward her, but he scuttled backward and fell into a chair.
Callie towered over him and clenched her fists. “Lauren has a good idea. I own a thousand acres and two shovels. Nobody would miss you.” The ground was still frozen, but she’d tear through it with her bare hands to get Kyle out of their lives.
Kyle raised his hands above his head. “Hey, don’t kill me, girlie. It was only a bit of fun.”
Lauren remained beside her and Callie absorbed her strength. It gave her the power to fight him. “What the hell, Kyle. It wasn’t funny, and you damn well know it.” Callie’s voice dropped to a growl. “Leave and never return. Never speak to Becky again, ever, anywhere.”
“Hey, girlie, aren’t we friends? Given our business ventures and all.”
Callie snorted. “We’re not friends, never have been, and I don’t care if you talk to the RCMP. But if you do, I’ll tell them about this little stunt. And stand up to your father for once in your life, you gutless jerk. You’ll never bring him Poplarcreek on a platter and I’ll make damn sure he knows you’ve been lying to him.” He’d messed with her child, and no threats or secrets were going to keep her under his thumb anymore. If he wanted a war, she was ready.
Kyle paled and stuttered. “I took Becky to see some horses. Don’t make it into anything. I wouldn’t hurt Becky.”
“Why are you so scared, Kyle?” Lauren asked.
“I’m not scared. I’ll go. Shit, Callie. No need for that.” His words emerged in a pathetic whine as he scurried through the door.
As the sound of his truck faded, Callie let out a big sigh. “Thanks for staying.”
“How will you get your truck?” Lauren asked.
“I’ll run over with the tractor and tow it home.”
“Why would Kyle call the RCMP on you? Is there something you want to talk about?”
Callie shrugged and turned away, unable to meet Lauren’s eyes. The power drained from her body and she slumped into a chair at the table. She wanted to tell her, she did. But what if Lauren didn’t believe her? What if—
Callie rubbed wearily at her eyes. She needed to catch her breath and organize her thoughts for that difficult conversation with Lauren. That conversation would happen when she was ready. She was tired of being backed into corners. Besides, she was drained, and she desperately needed to speak with Becky. She’d told Becky to stay away from the Krugers, yet she’d gone with Kyle. That could never be allowed to happen again. Becky’s safety came first, before anything with Lauren.
Becky bounced down the stairs into the kitchen. “Lauren, are you staying for dinner?”
“I have to return to Kruger Farm and help Tommy with some sick calves.”
Callie followed Lauren outside and grabbed her by the front of her jacket. “Please, come to dinner. Please come back.”
“Why?”
Callie put her hand over her mouth and shook her head. She looked away, unable to make eye contact, but she hung on to Lauren with the other hand. She was afraid if Lauren left, she’d never come back and then Callie would never get a chance to explain. She admired Lauren and couldn’t stand the idea of Lauren thinking poorly of her.
Lauren softened. “I’ll come back when I’m done with Tommy’s calves. Maybe then you can tell me what’s going on?”
“I will. Thank you.” Callie let go of Lauren’s coat and smoothed the lapels flat. They stared at each other for several seconds and then Callie returned to the house. A sinking, painful feeling started between her eyes and spread until she couldn’t move her neck and shoulders. Hell, but she was tired of all the stress. Life had been simpler back in Surrey with Becky and Liz. Sure, there had been moments of worry when Liz was late coming home from work. But it was nothing compared to the constant worry of saving the farm, protecting Becky, watching out for the Krugers, and now navigating whatever this was with Lauren. She’d told Martha she had no time for a relationship. What if she let go and took Lauren in? Would that be so bad? But what would she have to give up to make it happen?
Chapter Sixteen
It was early evening when Lauren finished at Kruger Farm. Tommy had disappeared and left their farmhand to help and there hadn’t been a Kruger in sight. She briefly toyed with the idea of heading home, but she’d promised Callie and Becky to return and she needed to know what was going on. Why was Callie acting weird? One minute Callie was tough and calling her out for making a few suggestions. The next minute Callie was being ordered around by the Krugers and practically crawling under the table to hide.
Lauren grinned. There’d been no hiding earlier. Callie had yelled at Kyle and joined in the joke about digging a hole for Kyle. She gripped the steering wheel to choke it. Was Kyle a thoughtless ass or a manipulative monster? Why take Becky? Just to torture Callie? Harass her? He’d succeeded. She’d never seen Callie so scared or angry. She shook her head. The anger made sense but not the evasive answers and tears ten seconds after Kyle left.
Lauren pulled over and considered turning her truck around. She wasn’t sure Callie’s friendship or kisses were worth this kind of agitation. She had leftover pizza, a good book, and uncomplicated feline companions at home. It was tempting. Lauren sighed, pulled out, and drove toward Poplarcreek, but she wouldn’t spend all evening pulling the answers out of Callie. If Callie continued the evasive nonsense, she would go home. Enough was enough.
Lauren walked into Callie’s house, slid out of her boots, and hung her coat up. Callie was sitting at the kitchen table with her head hanging. She barely raised it to focus on Lauren for a moment. “Thought you were locking doors these days.” Lauren sat at the table, and when Callie said nothing, she launched in. “Why were you polite to Kyle this morning? He and his father have harassed you, bullied you, and threatened you. Then Kyle kidnapped Becky. Please, help me understand.”
“More is going on than you realize.” Callie reached for Lauren’s hand.
Lauren recoiled and jammed her hands in her pockets. If Callie touched her, she would crumble and do whatever Callie wanted. She needed to keep her distance to keep her head clear. “Trust me, please. I can help.”
Callie squared her shoulders. “I hate asking for help. But sometimes…”
“Maybe I’m being pushy, but Kyle’s a jerk. What’s happening?” Lauren couldn’t fathom the connection between Callie and Kyle. Lauren had returned for dinner because she promised, but her gut was telling her to run far and run fast.
Callie’s shoulders sagged. “He’s a jerk, but he…”
Lauren prodded gently. “He what? Does he scare you?”
Callie turned her back. “I didn’t tell you, to protect you.”
Lauren spoke louder than she intended to, but the bizarre situation was annoying, and she had difficulty controlling her frust
ration. “Protect me? How? Now I’m more confused. I don’t want protecting. What I need is honesty.”
Callie frowned at Lauren. “What’re you saying?”
“I don’t like games, Callie. I’ve had enough of them to last me a lifetime. Can’t you just be straight with me?”
Callie sighed and rubbed at her temples. “It’s just complicated, that’s all.”
Lauren closed her eyes and sighed, exhaling in one long breath. Here it was. Evasion and twenty questions. “It’s okay if you’re not ready to talk. But I’m tired, so maybe I’ll just go home.”
“So, the first time you don’t get an answer you’re leaving?”
Lauren sighed. “It’s been a long day and I’m tired.” She pulled the sleeve of her shirt to her nose. “And I smell like manure. I just want a shower.” And she wanted a peaceful evening. She stood. “No pressure. We’ll talk when you’re ready. I’ll get out of your way. I need to get off this merry-go-round anyway.”
“Please, don’t go. You promised you’d have dinner and visit with Becky and me.” Callie’s lower lip trembled.
Lauren’s back was rigid, and the pressure of a growing headache built behind her eyes. It would be heartless to abandon her in this state. “I’ll stay because I won’t disappoint Becky, but you and I have to talk this through. And I’d rather do it now than later.”
Callie nodded, looking defeated. “I’m not sure what to do, but I’ll tell you what Kyle did.”
They sat at the kitchen table. Callie clasped Lauren’s hand and, in a monotone, told her about the borrowed truck and trailer, the stolen cattle, and the trip to Montana. She described the faked identification tags and the phony health certificate and told her about him saying he’d implicate Callie and Lauren both.
Lauren dropped Callie’s hand and gaped at her. “This is serious. Why didn’t you call the RCMP?”
Callie shot to her feet and paced. “Because I’ll look guilty.” She spread her arms wide. “He used my truck and trailer. My cattle were on the trailer. When he crossed into the USA, he wore my coat and hat. He’s the same size as me and if he kept his head down, in the border surveillance video, they might mistake him for me. And I have no alibi except that I was here alone, like I always am.” Callie dropped into her chair and shook her head. “I don’t know what to do.”
“I signed those export health certificates.” Lauren scowled. “I’ll look guilty, as well. If CFIA decides I’m responsible, they may suspend my accreditation. No more working on exports of animals to the USA.” Lauren’s hands had gone white because she pressed them hard on the table as she leaned toward Callie. “And if the Saskatchewan Veterinary Medical Association convicts me of professional misconduct, they have the power to suspend my license or require me to do remedial training.” Lauren’s hands dropped to her lap as she hunched her shoulders. “Everyone will think I’m a criminal. How humiliating. Nobody can fake those identification tags or move them. Once you fasten them on, they break into pieces if you remove them.”
Callie buried her face in her hands. “Kyle said he removed them from one animal and fastened them through the ear of another. I don’t know how, but he found a way. It will be his word against ours.”
“There must be something we can do. Is there any evidence? Can we locate the cattle? Do you have witnesses? Are Heinz and Tommy in on it?” Lauren released her rapid-fire questions and watched Callie wince as each sentence slammed into her. “I have a copy of the export health certificate. I’ll call CFIA and have them speak with USDA. There must be records somewhere. He delivered them to a sale, and he received the money. That in itself should be a trail to follow.”
Lauren struggled to stay calm. She’d known better than to get involved with someone, and now she was in the thick of something potentially career ending. “It will be more awkward with the RCMP and CFIA because we didn’t report the incident earlier.” And if Callie had trusted her sooner, that could have happened.
“He sold them privately to a friend in Montana. To avoid a paper trail,” Callie said. “There’ll be no records anywhere, or not ones that’ll help us. No witnesses either. I don’t think Tommy’s involved, but Heinz knows. Maybe not before, but he knows now and is refusing to pay me for my cattle. I’m sorry you’re caught in this. They’re harassing me because Heinz wants my farm,” Callie said in a despondent tone, with her head pillowed on her arms. “I let you down. I’m so sorry.”
Callie made no eye contact and the abject misery she exuded compelled Lauren to stay at Poplarcreek. That evening they made no plans and solved nothing. Everything they talked about brought them back to a brick wall. Lauren didn’t want her professional name smeared, and Callie didn’t want to hand over control and take the risk that things wouldn’t go their way. And most importantly, Callie had a child to protect. Lauren understood that part.
Callie dug leftovers from her refrigerator and heated them for dinner. Lauren and Becky discussed Becky’s school and classes while they ate. It was the only safe subject there was to talk about. Becky was interesting and enthusiastic, and Lauren enjoyed the chat, but not so much she could forget Callie sitting as if her life had gone up in smoke.
“Mommy, after dinner, want to see the drawing I did in art class?” Becky asked.
Callie didn’t respond. She stared into space and stirred her food into mush on her plate.
Lauren smiled to reassure Becky, who looked worried. “I’d like to see it.” After that, she and Becky followed Callie’s example and ate in silence.
The silence vanished as Callie exploded to her feet, causing her chair to crash to the floor. She slammed her hands flat on the table. “It’s not just the cattle.” She bolted to the door, yanked on a coat, and disappeared into the night.
Lauren stared at the open door. “What the heck?” She regained her composure after a few seconds. “Becky, it’ll be all right. Stay in the house, okay? I’m going to help your mom.”
Becky nodded, her eyes wide, and didn’t say anything.
Lauren threw on her coat and boots and jogged to catch up to Callie. Callie emerged from the barn with a shovel and sprinted to her trailer. Lauren skidded to a stop. “What’s happening now?” Lauren found Callie in her stock trailer. “Callie?”
“Hold the light.”
Lauren clutched the flashlight to her chest as Callie thrust it at her. She shone the light, following Callie as she scanned the inside walls and floor of her trailer. While sweat streamed down her face, Callie shoveled the straw and manure from her trailer at a frantic pace. Soon Callie had the trailer scraped clean to the wooden floor.
Lauren remained quiet. The best plan was to stay to one side and observe the manic behavior. Callie was acting crazy and muttering to herself as she worked.
“It never had a wooden floor.” Callie dropped her shovel and snatched the flashlight from Lauren. She moved carefully through the trailer, shining the light on the floor and tapping with her foot. She stopped when she heard a hollow sound. Callie tossed the flashlight to Lauren and picked up her shovel. “Shine it here.” Callie pointed to a subtle two foot by two foot square cut into the wooden floor.
After two failed attempts, Callie pried up the loose panel with the tip of her shovel. She tossed the wooden panel and her shovel to one side and kneeled beside the hole. Lauren handed her the flashlight, and Callie shone it into the hole. Callie shoved her arm inside. “It’s got a bottom and four sides. I can touch the edges, but the box is empty.” When she withdrew, there was a dusting of white powder on her sleeve.
They stood for a beat and stared at Callie’s sleeve and at each other.
Lauren stared at the hole. “He built a secret compartment for smuggling drugs across the border. I read an article in the paper about this kind of thing. After Kyle drops the cattle in Montana, he can return to Canada without an inspection, because the trailer’s empty. Canada Border Services would question Kyle the same as they do other people when they enter Canada. If CBSA suspected something ille
gal, they have detector or sniffer dogs to inspect the trailer. But if he’s just delivered cattle, they’d barely give him a glance.”
“Would the dogs catch him?”
“There are many border points between Saskatchewan and Montana. Sonny Bishop, you remember she’s a CFIA veterinarian, told me most of these crossings are low volume and don’t have dogs. Even if there were a detector dog where Kyle crossed, assuming they’d look twice at him, the dog would have a difficult time smelling drug residue through a layer of fresh cow manure. I wonder if Kyle smuggled drugs for a gang, or if he’s doing it for himself?”
Callie wilted at the suggestion. “I should take it to the car wash and rinse it clean. Better yet, I’ll remove the floor and burn it.”
Lauren yanked off her wool cap and ran her fingers through her hair. “Don’t do that. The floor is evidence. Maybe it has Kyle’s fingerprints.” Lauren sighed. Even Kyle would have remembered to wear gloves. “I’m not sure if the RCMP can lift fingerprints from plywood anyway.”
Callie leaped from the trailer. She loped to the barn and returned with an ax.
Lauren stood to one side and struggled to sound calm. “Destroying evidence isn’t smart.”
Callie held the ax flat against her chest as tears slipped down her face. “This nightmare has to end. I hate these games and threats. They’re trying to chase me off my land so Heinz can buy it. I won’t let them win. Poplarcreek is Becky’s inheritance.” Callie’s sobs shook her whole body as she staggered against the wall of the trailer.
“I understand, Callie.” Lauren lifted the ax from her drooping arms and placed it on the floor. She gathered Callie against her and she rested her head on Lauren’s shoulder. Callie was desperate and vulnerable, and her tears slipped through Lauren’s defenses.
Callie sobbed for a minute. Then she straightened, yanked off a glove, and ran a hand across her face, smearing her tears with dirt. “Tomorrow morning after chores, I’ll call Doug’s lawyer and arrange for him to go with me to speak with the police.”
“Well done, Callie.” Lauren nodded in agreement. Maybe her professional credit would be in tatters, but smuggling drugs was a huge deal. Bigger than stolen cattle and fake identification tags. They had no choice. It was time to go to the police. She was pleased Callie had made the decision first, because she didn’t want to have to force the issue.
Veterinary Partner Page 13
