Cowboy's Reckoning

by B. J Daniels

  Henry had taken all this quite well, she realized. “So who do you think the man is watching your house?”

  “Alex, my former handler, says it could be a marshal sent to protect me from higher up and out of his pay grade. If that were the case, I suspect he is more likely here hoping to catch Barnes in the act.”

  “So you think he’s a US marshal.”

  She shrugged. “You were about to find out the hard way if you’d knocked on that door tonight.”

  He smiled at that.

  “You’re taking all of this a little too well,” she said, eyeing him suspiciously.

  “I have a confession.”

  Billie Dee pulled the quilt around her, suddenly cold. “If you tell me you know Gary Barnes—”

  “I’ve known men like him, but no, I haven’t met Barnes. Not yet, anyway.”

  “Henry—”

  “Remember earlier when I said there is often more to people than you think?”

  She nodded, afraid of what he would say next.

  “I can handle this for you,” he said.

  “Handle it? I don’t understand,” Billie Dee said on a ragged breath.

  “I served in the armed forces in a special operations group that was highly secretive and trained for this sort of thing.”

  She looked into his eyes. She’d thought he was a retired rancher. She’d never dreamed... “You were trained to stop a man like Gary Barnes?”

  He nodded as he reached across the space between them on the couch and took her hand. “I can help you. Trust me?”

  “With my life. But I don’t want you involved. I can’t bear the thought...” Her voice broke.

  He moved to her, and taking her face in his big hands, he said, “I already told you. I am involved.” And then he kissed her.

  CHAPTER SIX

  HENRY MADE SURE that Billie Dee made it safely to the Stagecoach Saloon the next morning before he swung by the motel. He’d told her part of the truth, but not all of it. Mentally he kicked himself for not telling her everything.

  But he’d feared that if he did she would try to push him away. He couldn’t let that happen. Not until Gary Barnes was taken care of. After that...

  He didn’t want to think that keeping this from her might make him lose her. He couldn’t bear the thought. Pushing it away, he concentrated on the job at hand.

  The rental car was still parked in front of unit eleven. As he neared the door, he could hear what sounded like the television, the volume up.

  He tapped at the door. No answer. He knocked louder and looked around. There were no other vehicles in front of the motel rooms, none in the lot except for an older model parked to the side of the office. He assumed that one belonged to whoever was working today. There was a laundry cart parked outside the first unit.

  Billie Dee had taken the news about his so-called “skills” well enough last night. He was thankful for that. Now if he could just see this to the end and keep her safe.

  He knocked even harder, and when still no one answered, he tried the knob. It turned in his hand. Stepping to the side, he swung the door open into the room. The television was on a news station, a weatherman talking loudly about high-pressure ridges.

  Past the bed, he could see the room’s occupant lying on the bathroom floor, the man’s legs sticking out at an odd angle. He stepped in only long enough to be sure the man was dead. Outside the room, he pulled the door closed and made the call. “It’s Larson. Going to need cleanup.”

  * * *

  BILLIE DEE STOPPED stirring the onions and peppers she was sautéing in a large skillet for a moment. Her mind hadn’t been on cooking all day. Henry hadn’t shown up earlier for their usual coffee. The onions began to brown too quickly. She pulled the skillet off and tried to calm down.

  He’d told her his plans. He hadn’t had to. She’d been sure that he’d go back to that motel. He planned to confront whoever was staying there. She kept telling herself that he was trained for this and that she shouldn’t worry. But she was worried. She felt responsible for getting him into this.

  “Billie Dee?” The back door swung open and Henry stepped in.

  She dropped the wooden spoon she’d been using and ran into his arms. He pulled her to him, holding her tightly. “I was so worried.”

  “Nothing to worry about,” he said.

  Drawing back, she looked into his face. “Did you—”

  “He was already gone.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. “So if he was a US marshal...”

  Henry shrugged. “Either way I’m not letting you out of my sight until I know you’re safe.”

  She did like the sound of that, she thought as she looked into his blue eyes.

  “So what’s cookin’?” he asked, glancing toward the stove.

  “Corn chowder.”

  “My favorite,” he said as he hung his hat on the hook by the door and shrugged out of his coat.

  Billie Dee smiled as she watched him make himself at home in her kitchen. It was her kitchen in almost every sense of the word. “Coffee?”

  “You know it.” He pulled out a chair and sat down.

  She realized he was acting as natural as ever, but she sensed a tension in him that he was trying hard to hide from her. Had something happened at the motel? But why would he lie? To protect her.

  Going to the coffeepot, she poured them both a cup and thought about calling him on it. But as she returned to the table with the coffee, she felt nothing but relief. He was all right. Whatever had happened, he was safe. Right now, that was all that mattered in the grand scale of things.

  But Gary Barnes was on the loose. If she was right, he was headed for Montana. Headed for her. She’d testified against him. He couldn’t let that go.

  She sat down at the table and started to pick up her coffee cup, but her hand was trembling too hard. Henry reached over and put his hand over hers and gently squeezed.

  * * *

  “I THINK IT’S time you saw the ranch,” Henry said after Billie Dee had finished making a huge pot of corn chowder.

  “Henry, I’m really not—”

  “It will keep your mind off things.”

  “Things?” She smiled.

  “You’re done here for the day, right?” he asked.

  “I suppose so. Okay. Let’s see this ranch of yours.”

  The sun had come out, making the fresh snow blinding in its beauty as he drove toward the ranch. He loved days like this in the winter. Blanketed in whiteness, everything looked sparkling clean. Clumps of snow hung in the pines, the breeze sending ice crystals into the air like fairy dust.

  He’d almost forgotten about Christmas. Now that the boys were raised and with his daughter in New Mexico... But this Christmas could be different, he thought as he looked over at Billie Dee. She was looking out at the beautiful winter day as if in rapture at the sight. He smiled to himself, entranced by this woman. If anyone seemed to live life to the fullest it was her. He wanted to live every minute with her.

  The thought of Gary Barnes made his stomach roil. After a crew had shown up at the motel this morning, he’d talked to his friend from the Justice Department.

  “We had a tail on Barnes, but he spotted it and managed to get away. We now know that Barnes boarded a plane to Montana yesterday.”

  Henry had clenched his jaw. “That was pretty obvious since you now have a dead federal agent.”

  “Barnes’s lawyer contacted us this morning. He is filing harassment charges against us. Of course, he claims to know nothing about what happened to the agent. Our hands are tied unless Billie Dee agrees to go into WITSEC.”

  Henry slowed at the turn into the ranch. Since his conversation with his friend at the Justice Department, he’d been second-guessing him
self. He didn’t like either of his options. He could convince Billie Dee to go into the program and never see her again. Or he could try to protect her from Barnes himself, but if he failed... He’d been out of this life for so long, was he really up to it now?

  The big rambling house perched against the side of the mountain came into view.

  “It’s beautiful,” Billie Dee said of the log structure.

  “My grandfather built it. The house has been remodeled and I’m sure it will be again.” He looked over at her. He thought about bringing her here one day as his bride—and realized he’d already made his decision.

  * * *

  “YOUR SONS AREN’T HERE?” Billie Dee asked after Henry had given her a tour of the house. Her favorite part had been his office on the top floor. The view was incredible. His bedroom was next to it with the same large windows that looked out at the mountain valley. She wouldn’t let herself imagine waking up to that each morning.

  “Tom and C.J. have gone to Missoula to look at a bull they’re interested in acquiring. They won’t be back until tomorrow.”

  Tomorrow? She turned to look at him and felt her heart bump in her chest. Was this more than a tour of the ranch? The thought of making love to this man... “Henry?”

  He took a step toward her. His cell phone rang. He mumbled under his breath as he pulled out his phone, checked it and said, “I have to take this. I’m sorry.” He stepped out of the room.

  Billie Dee could hear him talking in the other room. After a few moments, he appeared in the doorway. She saw his expression. Her heart began to pound. “What?”

  “There’s something I need to tell you.”

  She listened, her heart dropping. “You knew about me testifying against Gary Barnes all along and you didn’t say a word?” Billie Dee demanded.

  “We were afraid you would take off when you heard that he might be getting out.”

  “We?”

  “One of Alex’s bosses in the Justice Department is a friend from that special group I told you about.”

  “How long have you known?” She felt her eyes widen in alarm as it hit her. “You’ve known since that first day you stuck your head in the back door of the saloon to compliment me on my chili?”

  He looked away, making her swear under her breath.

  Tears burned her eyes. “So all of this was... All of that talk about adventures together...” She couldn’t even say it because it hurt too much. A few moments ago she’d been thinking about the two of them making love in that bedroom with the wonderful view.

  He reached for her, but she sidestepped him and put up a hand to ward him off.

  “That means you knew Barnes was going to get out of prison. You and the Justice Department knew months ago.” She bit her lip to dam the tears that threatened to overflow.

  “Yes, it started out that way,” Henry said, blocking her way as she tried to get past him. “I just wanted to protect you as a favor to my friend. But then I got to know you, Billie Dee.” He let out a pained laugh. “I got to know this remarkable woman who I fell in love with. Then it became a lot more than just trying to protect you. I have to keep you alive because if I let anything happen to you...” His voice broke. “I couldn’t bear the thought that I might lose you.”

  She shook her head, but she stopped trying to get past him to leave.

  “Billie Dee, I want those adventures more than you can ever know. I need them. I need you. I know that you and I will make one hell of a team.” He grinned and cupped her cheek in his hand.

  She leaned into it for a moment. Her initial reaction was not to trust him. But all this time, the morning coffee chats in the saloon kitchen, she trusted this man. “Why did you tell me about this now?”

  “I wanted to tell you last night but I chickened out. I was afraid you would push me away. I couldn’t let that happen, not with a man like Gary Barnes out there. But that phone call I just took? My friend at the Justice Department wants me to talk you into going into the WITSEC program,” he said.

  She pulled back to meet his gaze. “Is that what you want?”

  He shook his head. “If you went into the program I’d never see you again. I can’t bear the thought of that. But if you do it my way, I might get us both killed.”

  Billie Dee smiled through her tears. Yesterday she’d been convinced that not only was she entirely on her own, but also she was going to die. “I’m not going into the witness protection program.”

  “Then you’re with me?”

  She nodded. “I’m with you.”

  “I’d hoped you’d say that,” he said and pulled her into his arms. She pressed her face against his strong chest and soaked in the feel of him, the scent of him, the essence of this cowboy.

  He ran his hand down her hair to her back and pulled her closer. “I love you. I know I move too fast and I’ll wait, if I have to, for you to catch up, but—”

  She looked up at him, her hand going around his neck to pull his mouth down to hers. His arms tightened around her. The kiss transported her to another place where they were both young as teenagers falling in love for the very first time.

  When the kiss ended, they looked into each other’s eyes for a long moment.

  “I have a plan,” he said. “You might not like it.”

  Billie Dee put a finger to his lips. “Any plan is better than what I had. And, like I said, I’m with you, cowboy.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  HENRY DROVE HER back to her house as the sky deepened to twilight. He walked her to the door and stepped inside. It didn’t take him long to make sure that Barnes hadn’t already broken in and was waiting for her.

  Back outside, he walked quickly to his car and drove away. He hadn’t noticed anyone loitering in the area, but he also had made a point not to look too hard. He wanted Barnes to think it was safe for him to make his move. The sooner this ended, the better for all of them.

  Six blocks away, after making sure he hadn’t been followed, he pulled over and parked. His Glock was strapped on under his big winter coat. He climbed out and wove his way through her neighborhood, this time looking for Barnes. He didn’t expect to see him.

  Billie Dee was convinced just as he was that Barnes would strike in the dead of night. He would want the advantage of surprise. He would also want the darkness to help him make a clean getaway. The man was a cold-blooded killer and vindictive as hell, but he wasn’t suicidal. He’d already taken care of one marshal—and filed harassment charges because the feds had been following him when he got out of prison.

  Under normal circumstances, local law enforcement would be notified that Barnes was in Gilt Edge and a danger to one of its citizens. But since the sheriff’s brother and sister were her employers, Henry had guessed that Billie Dee didn’t want Flint knowing. Not that his friend in the Justice Department wanted the local sheriff involved, either.

  The program already had a black eye after Barnes had gotten to Billie Dee at the safe house. The last thing the Justice Department wanted was this turning into a media circus. If anything happened to Billie Dee... That was when his friend had called, glad that Henry was living just miles from where Billie Dee was working. The Justice Department had known for months that Gary Barnes might be getting out of prison. They had feared Billie Dee would run if she knew.

  So Henry had made a point of getting to know her. What he hadn’t expected was that he’d fall in love the way he had. But the woman was warm and funny, sweet and loving, and she could cook. He had felt himself coming back to life just being around her. And all the while, Gary Barnes had been hanging over their heads.

  If all went well, no one would ever know what was going to happen here. If it didn’t...well, then everyone would know because he and Billie Dee would be dead.

  As he neared the back of her house, he slowed. Last
night’s snowfall gave him the advantage of knowing if anyone had been sneaking around the house. Or if anyone might be in the backyard.

  Keeping to the growing darkness of the pines, he advanced on the house looking for tracks. There were none—other than his own—and there was no way to hide them. He went to the back, pretended to check the electric meter under the eave, then stepped to the back door. Up the steps and back down. Then he went around the opposite side of the house as far as one of the pine trees that had the least amount of snow under it.

  Backtracking to the rear door, he hoped to at least confuse Barnes if he noticed the tracks. He would hopefully not think too much of them since he was more than aware there had been a US marshal watching the house.

  Henry tapped and Billie Dee quickly opened the door and let him in. “No problems?” She shook her head. He could see that she was nervous. “Well, we’re in for the night,” he said as he shrugged off his jacket.

  * * *

  HENRY’S PLAN WAS SIMPLE. “He’ll want to get you alone, which is good since you don’t want him coming to the saloon and involving anyone else. So the best thing we can do is go back to your house and wait for Barnes to make his move.”

  Billie Dee still didn’t like Henry being involved. But seeing his holstered gun and the way he carried himself, she had no doubt that the man knew what he was doing. She felt herself relax a little. Still, when she thought of Gary Barnes her blood ran cold.

  “I have something for you,” Henry said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun. “You said you know how to use it, right?” She nodded and took the weapon. “It’s loaded and ready to fire.” He met her gaze. “Do you think you can kill him if you have to?”

  “To save myself, probably. To save you, most definitely.”

  Henry smiled at that. “I’m going to lie low, but I want you to do what you usually do. I want him to think you’re not worried. I want him to be cocky and make the first mistake. So I’m assuming that you cook here as well as the saloon.”