by Aimée Thurlo
“Absolutely not,” Elena said firmly. “We’ll get down to work and have everything back to normal as soon as possible.”
Burke watched Laura as she showed the repairmen who began arriving what needed to be done. Her jeans and smooth-fitting cream sweater accentuated the gentle curves of her body. She was petite, barely five foot one, made to please a man who would know how to be gentle with her. Experience told him a large man would have to be careful not to hurt her in bed. The vivid image that formed in his mind had his brain reaching meltdown.
He cursed himself silently. He had a job to do. Laura was part of a case and that’s all she’d ever be to him.
“Elena will be free in a minute,” she told him, looking back toward the kitchen, where her godmother was busy using the phone. Elena wanted a carved, solid wood door for the back, and had to find a shop that would work to her specifications. “She’ll answer your questions then.”
Burke’s thoughts centered on business. On this ground he was sure of himself and what he had to do. “I’d like to pay a visit to the man your godmother mentioned—I believe she said his name was Al.”
“Yes, that’s him,” Laura answered with a nod. “But I should warn you, Al Baca is a strange bird.”
Before she could say more, the contractor selected to work on the furnace problem arrived. Laura made sure he knew what was expected of him, then rejoined Burke.
Elena had finished in the kitchen by then, and was sitting at the breakfast bar, which divided the kitchen area from the living room. While Burke gathered the information he needed, Laura began picking up debris off the floor. Wolf remained with them, lying on the tile at the edge of the kitchen area, his ears up and his expression alert.
“I’m going to start by looking into why your home was targeted,” Burke said. “I’d like to begin by questioning your brother-in-law, but first I’m going to need his address.”
“He won’t talk to you,” Elena said flatly.
“But he might, if I go with him,” Laura said. “Well, let me qualify that—I can get you in the door,” she told Burke. “What happens after that is anyone’s guess.”
Burke considered it for a moment, then nodded. He had no legal jurisdiction, so having Laura there would be an asset. Though Baca might turn out to be trouble, Burke was more than capable of protecting her.
Doña Elena wrote down the address, and Burke paid close attention to the directions, because it was a rural area with few signs.
“All right,” he said, standing up again. “Let me go have a talk with him. If he’s responsible in any way for what happened here, I’ll know. I’m good at finding the truth.”
“I’d call ahead for you, but his phone service was switched off when he didn’t pay his bills,” Doña Elena said.
“It’s just as well,” he answered. “I don’t like to give people advance warning.”
Laura gave her godmother a kiss on the cheek. “I won’t be gone long. Don’t overdo any cleaning while I’m gone. I called a housekeeping service, and they can put away things while you supervise. You might want to start in your own bedroom.”
Elena met Burke’s gaze and held it. “Take care of my Laura. My brother-in-law is not the most pleasant of men.”
“I will. You have my word on that, Doña Elena,” Burke said, signaling for Wolf to stay with Laura as they reached the door.
Laura smiled, thinking that Burke had humored Elena with his right-out-of-medieval-times style of chivalry. But as she glanced at his face, she realized he’d meant every word. More curious than ever about him, she found herself glad for the chance to be alone with him in a relatively safe situation.
“I need to make a call, then get my car,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”
“You’re not taking the motorcycle?”
He smiled. “When I’m working a case, I have to take Wolf with me, and that means using the agency car.” Seeing the disappointment on her face, he added, “The chopper’s fun. When I’m not working, I’ll take you for a ride to one of my favorite haunts. I think you’ll like it.”
“Deal.”
As he strode off, Burke wondered about his sanity. Just because she’d looked disappointed was no reason for him to throw common sense out the window and invite her for a ride. Sharing a seat on the bike with her would be pleasant, but hardly a good idea. He visualized her riding behind him, her body pressed against his, her hands around his waist—then suddenly cursed. If he kept this up, the heat would damage his brain.
Burke called Handler on the cell phone and filled him in as he pulled the agency car—a gray SUV—out of the garage and drove next door to Laura’s.
“I’ll be very curious to see what you find out,” Handler said. “Just make sure the woman remains safe.”
“Affirmative.”
Burke’s thoughts drifted back to the time he’d failed to protect someone in his charge—an innocent who hadn’t had a chance. The blood spilled on that afternoon so long ago had left a permanent shadow on his soul. He’d never failed since then and he fully intended to keep that record intact.
As he pulled into her driveway, Laura and Wolf were waiting outside. Burke reached over and opened the passenger door, and Wolf immediately jumped in. The dog rode shotgun. It was his favorite spot.
Burke groaned, but Laura laughed. “Okay. I guess I’m supposed to sit in the back,” she said, and opened the door.
“No, wait,” Burke said. “Wolf, back seat!” Burke expected a protest, but Wolf looked at Laura, then, with a sigh, turned and leaped onto the back seat.
Laura shut the back door, then joined Burke in the front. “He was a pretty good sport about it,” she said laughing.
“He’s not always like that,” Burke said.
“I guess he likes me.” She smiled.
“Yes, I think he does.”
As they got under way, Laura glanced over at him. “Do you like being a P.I.?”
“The job suits me. Police work would have had too many rules and requirements.” He paused, then added, “Do you like your work?”
“Very much. In a way, you can say that I spend most of my day charting the road to places that have never been. My readers give me their time and, in return, I spin dreams for them.”
“I’ve never been much of a dreamer,” Burke said. He’d seen too much of life—the bleak side that most people never even knew existed—and all he’d ever had were bad dreams, the kind that usually sent Navajos to their medicine men for protection from bad influences or foretold events. He no longer had the power, or the inclination, to believe in dreams of happiness and the promise of a love that endured. Yet, as he glanced at Laura, he felt himself being drawn by her innocence. She was like a breath of fresh air to him.
“My imagination has always been my constant companion,” Laura said. “When things got really rough after my mom got sick, I was often lost in daydreams, where I could be anyone and go anywhere.”
And that same imagination would make it hard for any man to measure up to her standards, Burke thought to himself. How could anyone meet impossible ideals?
Laura shifted sideways so she could pet Wolf, who’d stuck his head between the seats. “I was really worried about Elena last night, but I think she’s going to be fine. Getting things organized and making sure jobs are done is what she does best.”
“You two seem really close.”
“We are. She’s always been there for me. Asking her to move in with me after her husband passed away was the most natural thing in the world.”
“For someone used to working at home and living alone, the transition must have been difficult.”
“Not at all. She’s family,” Laura said, her voice firm.
Burke nodded thoughtfully. Laura had the kind of courage that would always compel her to do what was right. He admired that. But what drew him to her went even deeper. It was the way her gentle heart reached out to others who needed her, and the loyalty she showed those she loved. Laura had an
innocence of spirit that warmed him like a ray of sunshine, and it was all packaged up in a body that could tempt any man who was still breathing.
“You have a beautiful home,” she said, interrupting his thoughts, “but I noticed that there aren’t any photos of your friends or family around. Do you keep all that stuff in an album?” she asked.
“There are no photos because there’s no one special in my life,” he answered simply. Then, making a spur-of-the-moment decision, he decided to show her Doug’s picture. “There is one photo I’ve kept. It dates back a ways, but it’s of an old buddy of mine. It was taken right after we completed basic training. Douglas Begay and I have been friends since we were kids.” He watched her reaction to the name, but there wasn’t one.
Burke reached into his back pocket and, as he drove, pulled out his wallet and handed it to her.
She took out the photograph, treating it carefully, as if she sensed how special it was to him. “And you’ve remained friends throughout the years?”
He nodded. “Ours is the kind of friendship that stays the course.”
She nodded, then slipped the photo inside his wallet again and handed it back to him. “I carry one of Elena,” she answered.
He slipped the wallet into his jacket pocket for now. If she knew or recognized Doug, she’d hidden it well. There had been no trace of recognition on her features, only curiosity.
Silence stretched between them. Finally Laura spoke, her tone somber. “I’ve been thinking a lot about everything that has been happening to me, Burke, and I want you to know that I intend to take an active part in finding out what’s going on. It’s me they’re after, and I’m not going to sit idly by while some crazy person turns my life upside down.”
Burke studied her expression. This was going to be a problem, but it didn’t need to be handled right now. “We can talk about this later. Right now I’d like you to tell me whatever you can about the man we’re going to see.”
“In all honesty, I don’t know him very well. I usually do my best to avoid him.”
“Have you been to his house?”
“No. He doesn’t like to have visitors.”
After traveling down the main highway, then along several graveled back roads between newly plowed fields, they arrived. Doña Elena’s brother-in-law lived in an old, unfinished stucco farmhouse at one end of a dried-up field close to the river. A few gray, dead apple trees lined an irrigation ditch on the side closest to the river.
“I understand that he rents this place for a song and that’s why he lives here,” Laura said. “But, geez, it’s pretty bleak to live on a run-down farm full of weeds and dead trees. You’d think he’d at least plant some alfalfa and cut down the trees for firewood.”
As they walked from the end of the dirt driveway to the rickety-looking front porch, they noted that the front door was open about a foot and the tattered screen door was swinging back and forth in the breeze.
“His car’s not here,” Laura said. “I don’t think he’s home, but it’s odd that someone who supposedly hates visitors would leave the door open like that.”
“I’m going to take a look around.” Burke glanced at the dog by his side. “Wolf, guard,” he said, then looked up at Laura. “He’ll take care of you.”
“I’m not staying behind. If Al’s around and sees you peering in a window, he’ll go nuts. I’m staying with you.”
“Okay. But stay behind me.”
Burke stepped up onto the porch, Wolf by his side, and knocked on the door, while Laura tried to see through the thin curtains at the window. The door swung open a bit more from the force of Burke’s knocking, but not far enough for him to see inside the darkened room. He gave the door another nudge, and when nothing happened, took a step forward. “Hello?”
“Stop!” Laura grabbed at his jacket and yanked him back.
“What’s wrong?” Burke asked, looking over at her, and signaling Wolf to stay.
“I just saw what’s inside through a gap in the curtain,” she answered, then pushed the door open carefully. Light filtered into the darkened room, revealing a large, bow-shaped mechanism on the floor, right in the path of anyone coming through the front door.
Burke’s blood ran cold as he saw the gleaming metallic teeth of a steel bear trap waiting for any unsuspecting intruder. It was cocked and ready, the jaws showing evidence of recent filing to sharpen the points. His leg would have been sliced all the way to the bone, and maybe broken, as well. He would have bled to death in minutes. “Good call, Laura, thanks.”
“Teamwork,” she answered, her voice wavering slightly as she stared down at the cruel device. “You see? You need me. I can always look at things from a slightly different angle,” she said with a tiny smile.
“I’m not big on partnerships, except with the dog.” This was the last thing he needed—an amateur sleuth who would tag along everywhere, telling him what to do. “Don’t let one lucky call go to your head.”
“I’ve already made up my mind. You’re going to need me to give you information and help point your investigation in the right direction. I need your expertise and protection. It’s a give and take situation.”
Burke clenched his jaw. Handler would love this. All in all, this was turning out to be a very bad day—and it wasn’t even lunchtime yet.
Chapter Six
Burke glanced down at Wolf and saw the dog had that panting grin that always made Burke suspect the animal knew far more than anyone realized. Though he couldn’t be sure, gut instinct told him that Wolf’s intelligence far surpassed what most people would have willingly conceded to an animal.
Burke looked at Laura, then around the front yard. “Stay here with Wolf. I’m going to get a piece of firewood and spring that trap. If a curious neighbor decided to go in, especially a child, they could sever their leg and die within minutes.”
“I can’t imagine anyone just wandering in around here. It’s pretty isolated. The closest home is what, two miles away?” she asked, pointing. “And I’m not even sure that’s a house. It could be a barn.”
“Yeah, all that’s true, but this is still an accident waiting to happen.”
“You’ll get no argument from me there.”
Burke picked up a piece of firewood from the stack near the side of the house, then tossed it onto the bear trap. The deadly jaws of the metal monster snapped the four-inch piñon log in two like a matchstick.
“A man who leaves something like that lying around isn’t playing with a full deck—either that, or he’s made some deadly enemies,” Burke said, joining Laura and Wolf once again.
“Both, possibly,” Laura answered. “Al is so annoying he’s bound to make enemies by the minute. I’m sure he’s got plenty of people who’d love to punch his lights out.” She paused, then added, “Me included.”
Laura stepped away from the house, looked around carefully, then decided it was safe to sit down on the trunk of a fallen tree. “So now what? Do we wait until he comes home?”
“If he doesn’t show up in twenty minutes, we’ll leave. But don’t sit there.”
She stood up quickly and glanced down. “Why? Is something crawling on it? Is it another trap?”
He shook his head. “That tree looks like it was hit by lightning at one time. The Dineh, the Navajo People, believe it’s bad luck to touch anything struck by lightning unless you’re a medicine man and properly prepared.”
Laura moved away out of respect for his cultural beliefs, and he gave her a grateful nod. At least she hadn’t argued with him, or just shrugged it off as superstition. It was funny how often people were willing to label someone else’s religious beliefs as superstitious, while taking giant leaps of faith with their own.
Unwilling to dismiss the cold prickly feeling at the back of his neck, he studied everything around them carefully. “We’re being watched. All I’ve got is a gut feeling, but I’m going to check it out. Walk back to the car. I’m going to take Wolf with me and check out the thicket bey
ond those pines.”
“If Al is the one out there, you’ll need an extra set of eyes, and me to run interference. He won’t hurt me, or even risk hurting me—not as long as he wants something from Elena.”
Burke was tempted to throw Laura over his shoulder, carry her back to the car and lock her inside, but he was nearly certain Handler wouldn’t approve of him treating a person he was assigned to protect in that manner. Still, the idea was tempting. “If you’re coming, let’s go,” he snapped.
He moved quietly, and to her credit, so did Laura. Burke remained focused on the dog, knowing Wolf’s senses were sharper than a human’s. If the dog sensed something, he’d signal Burke. Minutes passed slowly, but Wolf gave no sign that anyone was about. Still, the feeling that they were being watched persisted, and Burke had learned a long time ago never to ignore his instincts.
“Let’s go back. It’s time to leave,” he said firmly.
“Did you spot someone?” she asked, her voice a whisper.
“No, but there are too many places for him to hide out there. That puts us at a disadvantage, and I don’t want either of us to end up dead.” He put it bluntly, hoping to startle her into backing off a bit.
“As long as you’re with me, I don’t think either of us is really in mortal danger,” she said.
He stopped in midstride and looked at her. Was she actually telling him he could rely on her to protect him? Irritated, he began walking again. “You can be infuriating at times, do you know that?”
“Right back at you,” she replied.
Their eyes locked and, for a gut-clenching moment, he felt the attraction between them increase to a new level. He looked away quickly. The last thing either of them needed was for him to get distracted now. The woman was a walking danger zone.
“Be quiet until we’re back in the car. I have to stay focused,” he said.
Her eyes flashed with annoyance but she did as he asked, and he breathed a silent sigh of relief. He kept her close beside him, knowing that she was his responsibility—whether she knew it or not. But feeling the gentle warmth from her body stirred something in him. The more he fought it, the more restless he became.
