In a Cowboy's Arms (Hitting Rocks Cowboys)

by Rebecca Winters

  “According to Sadie, who confided in my grandfather, two other people made offers on the property before Daniel died. The place will be sold to one of them if no other offers come in before the deadline. The ranch is already in the multiple listings online. I’m afraid once my cousin sees it, he’ll outbid anyone else to make make sure he comes out on top.”

  “Which cousin is that?”

  “Ned.”

  “Ah, yes. Grant’s son, the one who’s always been in trouble. Why would he want to buy that ranch?”

  “Though close to a century has gone by without any evidence, Ned still believes there’s oil on the land. He’s determined to get his hands on it.” And on Sadie.

  “Do you know how many gamblers have squandered their lives going after that same pipe dream around these parts?”

  “Ned has never been able to let it go,” Jarod said.

  “From what Ralph told me,” Brigg mentioned, “that cousin of yours has some deep-seated problems. I recall hearing about the time when he and his friend were caught stealing some wild horses on federal land. It cost Grant plenty to keep that hushed up.”

  Jarod’s brow furrowed in surprise. “I didn’t know that. What happened?”

  “Instead of ending up in jail, they were charged with drunk and disorderly conduct. It took influence with the judge and a lot of money to keep that under wraps. Ralph said Ned’s father was continually bailing him out of some pretty nasty scrapes.”

  This was all news to Jarod. For Ned to have that kind of serious brush with the law underlined his cousin’s dark side. Jarod had no idea his grandfather had confided in Harlow to this extent.

  He winked at Jarod. “We’ll get there before Ned does. I’ll phone Mr. Bree at Parker Realty after you leave and set things in motion.”

  “When my grandfather hears that news, it’ll probably add several years to his life.”

  The lawyer smiled. “I owe him so many favors for sending business my way, I’m delighted to do this.”

  “We’re indebted to you, Harlow. Sadie’s been our neighbor since she was born. It’s time she had some joy in her life.” He stood to shake the lawyer’s hand.

  Harlow squinted at him. “I’ll give you and Ralph a ring as soon as I’ve spoken with Mr. Bree.”

  “Good. I’ll see myself out.”

  On the way to the underground car park, Jarod mulled over the new revelation about Ned. It triggered his memory to the time his cousin had accused him of stealing Chief. Though Jarod had gotten legal permission to keep the wild horse once he’d tamed him, Ned had been furious. Having always been in competition with Jarod, Ned might have decided to steal a wild horse to prove he could have one of his own, too.

  Since Sadie had come back, his toxic behavior around Jarod had an edge of desperation that bordered on instability.

  Ever since his accident, Jarod had wanted to know the identity of the person who’d intentionally tried to take him out. Sadie believed her father had been behind it. So much so that she’d left the state to protect Jarod. But if it had been Daniel, he would have arranged a series of accidents long before that night. Over the years Jarod had occasionally seen Sadie’s father out hunting in the mountains. He could have picked Jarod off at any time.

  He suspected that Daniel had used the accident as an excuse to frighten his daughter further, knowing how vulnerable she was at that point. The man had been born with few scruples, but he’d stopped short of murder, only threatened it.

  When Jarod really thought about it, there was only one person he was aware of who truly hated him for personal reasons. That was his cousin...

  The revelation coming from Harlow had made him see things in a different light. More and more he was convinced that his cousin was the guilty party and had gotten away with his crime for years now.

  On the night in question, Ned must have arranged for a truck ahead of time, probably from one of the friends he hung around with when they went off to keg parties. After driving his Jeep around town to throw Jarod off the scent, he’d gotten that friend to drive him to the crossroads where he’d ambushed Jarod. Or maybe Ned had borrowed it and was alone when he drove into Jarod.

  Needing evidence, Jarod decided to visit some auto paint and body shops while he was still in Billings.

  Before Ned had returned the borrowed truck to the owner, he would have gone to a shop for repairs, but not in White Lodge, where the police had already done a search.

  When he reached his truck, Jarod bought a hamburger at a drive-through before starting his investigation of the dozens of body and paint shops in Billings. The police had checked a few places here, but they could have missed some. Most places kept invoices, accounts payable/receivable ledgers and expense reports for a minimum of seven years, but generally longer. Sadie’s birthday had been May tenth, a Thursday. That narrowed the field as to time.

  It was a long shot, but he might come across a business that had done some work for Ned. He would have used an assumed name and paid cash.

  One by one he interviewed the service managers, hoping to come up with a lead. No one could give him information on the spot. He left his cell phone number for them to call him and also used his phone to retrieve a photo of Ned from the ranching office information for the managers to download.

  Tomorrow morning he’d leave early for Bozeman and go through the same process. It wouldn’t take as long to cover since it was a third the size of Billings, a city with a population over l00,000.

  On his way home, his cell phone rang. Hoping it was one of the body shops, he clicked on without looking at the Caller ID and said hello.

  “Hi!”

  His hand tightened on the wheel. It was Leslie. For the life of him he couldn’t muster any enthusiasm at hearing her voice. The only emotion at the moment was guilt that he couldn’t give her what she wanted. “Hi, yourself.”

  “Is this a bad time to call?”

  “No. I’ve been going nonstop and am just leaving Billings to drive back to the ranch. How was your day? Any new finds?”

  “A hide scraper made out of bottle glass.”

  Jarod nodded. “Sounds like traditional technology meshed with a modern material.”

  “Exactly. I’d love you to work with me one of these days. Am I going to see you tonight?”

  He’d already put her off once. “Let’s do it. I’ll meet you at the Moose Creek Barbecue in White Lodge at seven for dinner. You can tell me what else you’ve found.”

  “I can’t wait to see you.”

  Jarod didn’t feel the same way. “It’ll be good to see you, too. I’ve had a ton of business to do for my grandfather and will enjoy the break.”

  “Jarod?” she asked tentatively. “Are you all right?”

  He took a labored breath. “Why do you ask?”

  “I don’t know. You sound...detached.”

  “It’s not intentional. I’m afraid it has been a long day. See you tonight.”

  After he ended the call, he realized he couldn’t go on this way. Leslie needed reassurance, but Sadie’s unexpected return to Montana had altered the path he’d been plodding since she’d left, throwing him into the greatest turmoil of his life.

  What Daniel had told her that night had crystalized certain things for Jarod. If the statute of limitations hadn’t run out and he could discover the proof, Ned would be facing felony assault charges for using a borrowed truck as a deadly weapon. Worse, because he’d left the scene of the crime without reporting it or getting help for Jarod, Ned would be looking at prison time.

  If he didn’t reopen the case, the most Jarod would do was go to Tyson and Grant with any evidence he found and let them deal with Ned in their own way.

  His hand tightened around the phone, almost crushing it. What if he did find enough evidence to have the case reopened?
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  If Jarod’s uncle Charlo knew what was going through his nephew’s mind right now, he would intimate that the reason Jarod hadn’t received his vision yet was because his cry was selfish. Only those who were of exemplary character and well prepared received the truly great visions. With the taste for revenge this strong on Jarod’s lips, he was far from that serene place his uncle talked about.

  Chapter Five

  Saturday morning Sadie got breakfast for her and Ryan and then they went outside to an overcast sky. The small garden plot on the south wall of the house where it received the most sun needed work. While she watched Ryan toddle around with some toys, Sadie prepared the soil, then laid out black plastic to warm it up, a trick she’d learned from Addie Bannock years earlier. In a week she’d plant seeds.

  While her mouth salivated at the thought of enjoying sweet juicy melons all summer, her cell phone rang. She wished it were Jarod, yet she knew that was impossible. As Millie had said, Sadie needed to be the one to tell him there was no other man in her life. But that was complicated because he was seeing another woman.

  Even if he wanted to call Sadie, which he didn’t, he would have to use the landline because he didn’t know her cell phone number. With a troubled sigh she pulled the cell from her pocket and checked the Caller ID. One glance and her spirits lifted.

  “Zane! How are things going?”

  “Couldn’t be better. I’ve had all our mail forwarded to White Lodge. Right now I’m at the house sorting things. Tomorrow the moving van will come to put everything in storage. When they’re through here, they’ll load up the things from my apartment. How’s Ryan?”

  “Missing you. Just a minute. He’ll want to talk to you.” She walked over to her brother. “Ryan? It’s your uncle Zane. Can you say hello?”

  After Ryan greeted his uncle and babbled some other words not quite intelligible, she heard Zane chuckle and a conversation ensued with Ryan mentioning the juice he’d had for breakfast and one of the toy cars he held in his hand.

  “You have to hang up now,” she told the little boy. “Tell Uncle Zane bye-bye.”

  Ryan liked saying the words over and over, but finally Sadie put the phone back to her ear. “If I do the planting right, we’ll have fresh honeydew all summer.”

  “How about some cantaloupe, too!”

  “I’ll plant some of those and maybe some green beans.”

  “Terrific. Have you heard from Mr. Bree yet?”

  “No. I don’t really expect to until you have a prospective buyer for Tim’s house.”

  “Let’s hope it’s soon, but at least our Realtor has contacted him and knows we’re serious. If all goes well here, I’ll have the cleaners come and leave for Billings sometime Sunday in my Volvo. It can hold the main stuff you wanted me to bring along with my own.”

  “That’s great. What about my Toyota?”

  “The salesman at the dealership said he’d get a good price for it.”

  “I hope so. Dad’s old truck is on its last legs. I need to buy a used one.”

  “Understood. Depending on how late I get away, it might be Monday night before I reach the ranch.”

  “We’ll be waiting. Ryan will be thrilled. He keeps looking for you.” Right now he was down on his haunches, pushing his little trucks and cars through the grass.

  “I can’t believe how much I’ve missed him.”

  Her throat swelled. “He’s adorable.”

  “Amen.”

  “Is it going to be difficult to pull up stakes, Zane?”

  “No. I’ll always have my good memories, but my life isn’t here anymore.”

  “I know what you mean. Much as I love San Francisco, my home is here.”

  After a silence, Zane told her, “Don’t work too hard, Sadie.”

  “It’s saving my life.” Along with making a new home for Ryan, she needed to stay too busy to think. She’d tackled cleaning the house, including her father’s bedroom. Now the outside needed attention. “Thank you for taking care of everything, Zane. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “We’re family. Let’s agree we both need each other. Because of you I can feel a whole new life opening up. When everything fell apart, I couldn’t imagine putting one foot in front of the other.”

  She cleared her throat. “I’ve been there and done that.”

  “I know you have.” He knew the secrets of her heart. “Talk to you soon.”

  “Drive safely, Zane.” Her voice trembled. “If anything happened to you...”

  “It won’t.”

  As Sadie hung up, she felt a shadow fall over her. When she lifted her head she discovered Jarod standing there.

  “Sorry,” he said in his deep voice. “Once again I’ve startled you. Millie was out on the front porch washing windows and told me to walk around back.”

  After wishing he’d been the one who’d phoned her, she was so shocked to see him, she couldn’t think clearly. Somehow on Jarod a denim shirt and jeans looked spectacular. “No problem. As you can see, I’ve been getting the ground ready to plant.”

  “Shades of my grandmother Addie.”

  She nodded. He remembered everything.

  His enigmatic black eyes swept over her. “I drove over here to talk to you about the accident.”

  Jarod’s reason for coming was as unexpected as his presence. Sadie struggled to keep the tremor out of her voice. “Since you didn’t believe me about my father, I’m afraid any answers you need are buried with him.”

  He put his hands on his hips; pulling her attention to his hard-muscled physique. “I’ve given it a lot of thought and I don’t believe your father was the culprit, Sadie. That’s why I’m here.”

  Shock number two. “But he said—”

  “What he did was use a scare tactic to frighten you away from me for good,” Jarod cut in on her. “I’m convinced that when he heard I was in the hospital, he realized it was the perfect moment to play on your fears.”

  Sadie was afraid to believe it. “Then who could have done such an evil thing?” She removed her gardening gloves.

  “I’ve been doing an investigation and hope to figure it out before long. I wanted you to know that no matter how much pain your father caused you, he wasn’t responsible for trying to hurt me or he would have done it much earlier. Though he wished I hadn’t been in your life, we both know he was a troubled man with a terrible drinking problem. But it didn’t go as far as planning to kill me, so you can cross him off your list.”

  Her lungs had constricted, making it difficult to breathe. “But according to you, someone did want you dead.”

  His eyes narrowed on her features. “The police and I both felt that the accident had to have been premeditated. Someone went to elaborate lengths to set me up. It took someone whose dislike of me turned to hate. I’ll give you one guess.”

  Suddenly she felt sick. “Ned,” she whispered.

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “After you told me he’d been stalking you in town, I thought a lot about that myself. But for him to go after you like that...”

  “It chills the blood to think he could have done it to his own family, but I can’t rule him out as the prime suspect.”

  “I agree,” she whispered. Being a year younger than Jarod, Ned had been a senior when she’d started high school. He’d always chased after her. The more she’d ignored him, the more he’d mocked her friendship with his “half-breed cousin.”

  “He never hid his dislike of you.”

  After his graduation Ned had hung out in White Lodge with his friends and followed her around whenever she went into town. His actions were repulsive to her.

  “You’re the one girl who never gave him the time of day, but he never stopped wanting you. As our love grew, so did his jealousy. It’s my
belief he’d been following me on those last few nights when we met in the mountains. But I didn’t realize it until the night before you and I were going to leave for the reservation. I caught him spying on me as I rode to the barn.”

  Horrified, Sadie stared at him. “You think he was watching us wh-when—” She couldn’t finish.

  “That’s exactly what I think. But he couldn’t go to my grandfather claiming to have seen us when he had no reason to be watching us. That would have opened up a whole new set of problems for him.”

  “He was sick!”

  Jarod nodded. “The next afternoon after I hitched the horse trailer to my truck, he saw me leave with Chief and knew I was getting ready to do something with you. So he set me up, but he needed an accomplice and couldn’t use one of our trucks on the ranch.”

  “Who would help him do anything that hideous?”

  “His best friend, Owen.”

  “Owen Pearson? Cindy’s brother?” She was incredulous. “I know they used to drink and mess around like a lot of guys, but I can’t imagine him doing anything like that.”

  “I found out from my grandfather that Ned and Owen committed a crime a few years ago but it was hushed up.” Jarod told her what he’d learned from Harlow. “Ned could wheedle money from his father when he wanted. Don’t forget he and Owen have been friends for years and got into so much trouble, Ralph claims it turned Grant prematurely gray.”

  “I didn’t realize Ned gave your family that many worries. It’s still hard for me to believe Owen would go that far.”

  “I’ve been doing my own investigation.” Jarod reached in his back pocket and handed her a sheet of paper, which she opened. It was a photocopy of a receipt from a body shop in Bozeman. The repairs listed included grill and front fender work on a 2003 Ford F-150 pickup owned by Kevin Pearson of the Bar-S Ranch, brought in on May 10 and repairs completed May 16 of the year in question.

  “Jarod—” She lifted her eyes to him. Streams of unspoken words passed between them.

  “The manager of the shop didn’t recognize Ned’s picture. It’s been too many years. But whoever took the truck in paid cash up front. I checked the police report on my truck, which was totaled. Once I contact the department that investigated my case and give them this receipt, then the case will be reopened to see if there’s a match between the two vehicles.”