Rancher's Dream

by B. J Daniels

  But as she looked closer at the phone, she realized it wasn’t hers. Hers had been next to her on the bed when she’d awakened this morning. It was still there, she saw as she looked back into the bedroom.

  Suddenly she felt as if she was going to throw up. This is Ethan’s phone. Her heart began to pound harder as she realized what that meant. No wonder her calls had gone straight to voice mail. This also explained why he hadn’t called her.

  She frowned. But how had it gotten out here on the balcony unless...he’d been out here. He had come to their bedroom. But then where had he gone—without his phone? That was unheard-of. He would never have left it behind. Couldn’t. He would be completely lost without it.

  And yet apparently he had. She rubbed her forehead with her free hand, trying to make sense of it as she stared at the phone, uncomprehending. If he’d dropped his phone when he was out on the balcony... Had she slept so soundly on her wedding night that she hadn’t known he’d been out here at some point?

  Or had he come back yesterday, found her passed out again and come out on the balcony for some reason? To make a phone call?

  That seemed unlikely. She shivered from the cold morning air and pushed herself up out of the chair to go back inside. She closed the door and swiped the surface of the phone. The log-on screen appeared, but she didn’t know his backup pass code to unlock it. Ethan, she recalled, used his thumbprint.

  Her head ached worse as she tried to make sense of this. His phone was locked. But if he’d misplaced it, wouldn’t he have tried to call his phone to find it? Wouldn’t she have heard it ringing out on the balcony?

  A chill ran the length of her spine. She hugged herself as she had a horrible thought. The thumb in the freezer. Her pulse thundered in her ears. Had that been real? Or had she dreamed it? She’d had such strange dreams lately. Even worse ones since passing out on the bed that she couldn’t be sure what was real.

  But if there was a thumb in the freezer, she had a bad feeling it was Ethan’s. She would know it was his if it could open his phone. The thought made her shudder. It was crazy. Ethan was fine. His thumb wasn’t in the freezer. He’d just gone to New York or somewhere on business. He might already be back.

  She shoved his phone into the pocket of her jeans. She needed a shower but she didn’t want to take the time. Right now, she had to know if Ethan had returned. Even as she thought it, she knew better. He would have awakened her. Or at least tried. At this point, she didn’t know what to expect from him. He could have gotten in late and, thinking she’d had too much to drink, really slept in one of the guest rooms this time. Jet must have slipped alcohol into those drinks for them to affect her the way they had.

  Pocketing her own phone as well, she hurried downstairs. All of the doors to the guest bedrooms were open. None of the beds looked as if they’d been slept in. She fought the feeling of déjà vu. Was this how each of her days would begin? Her looking for her husband, wondering where he’d gone this time?

  At the kitchen level, she slowed. The house felt deathly quiet. She wondered where Jet was. She peered in, relieved to see that the kitchen was empty. No Jet.

  Drey hesitated. Her movements felt surreal as if still in a dream. She was sluggish, slow-thinking, her head pounding, her mind dull. All of this felt like a nightmare that she couldn’t wake up from. Since meeting Ethan, she’d often felt as if her life was no longer her own. Like now as she sleepwalked toward the refrigerator, headed somewhere she didn’t want to go, doing something she didn’t want to do. Something so crazy...

  She stopped in front of the appliance, but for a moment she couldn’t bring herself to open the freezer door.

  Taking a deep breath and letting it out, she grabbed the handle and jerked the freezer side open and blinked.

  The plastic bag with the thumb in it was gone.

  CHAPTER SIX

  DREY STOOD IN front of the refrigerator, the freezer door hanging open, for a full minute. The thumb was gone as if it had never been there. She’d dreamed it? What a horrible, crazy dream if that was true.

  But on closer inspection, she could swear that the plastic bag with the thumb in it had left a mark in the frost on the freezer shelf. It had been there. The mark wasn’t conclusive, but her memory of Jet pulling the thumb out of the disposal was so clear, it had to have happened.

  Jet. Maybe he’d changed his mind and taken the thumb to the sheriff. He’d made it sound as if he was going to do something if Ethan hadn’t shown up yesterday.

  Her feet were already moving before she made the decision. She rushed down the stairs to the first level. At the end of the hallway, she found the stairs down to what Jet had said were the staff quarters.

  She checked one room after another. Empty. Maybe Jet had left for good, leaving the way he had shown up—without any notice. It made no sense given that he’d said he would stay until Ethan returned and then leave. No more sense than the fact that Ethan had also disappeared.

  In the last room, she threw open the door to find Jet’s suitcase open on the bed. He must travel light, she thought, seeing the small carry-on suitcase and a laptop computer on the bedside table next to it.

  She tried to catch her breath, not sure if she was relieved or not to realize he hadn’t left. For a moment, she simply leaned against the door frame, trying to calm down. Her heart was racing. Jet had taken the thumb to the sheriff. It was the only thing that made any sense.

  So why did she still feel scared? She should be relieved. Jet had left without saying anything—just like Ethan had. But then again, she’d been lost to the world both evenings.

  Was it possible Ethan had returned and the two of them had taken the thumb to the sheriff? She realized she hadn’t looked out to see if Jet’s car was still out front.

  Turning back toward the upper part of the house, Drey noticed stairs down to what Jet had said was an underground parking garage. She took them, dropping into the cold concrete darkness. There appeared to be space for parking a half dozen cars. There was an unfamiliar vehicle in one of the spaces. She walked over to the white SUV and tried the door. It opened.

  Peering inside, she saw that the keys were in the ignition. Jet had mentioned that Ethan had left an extra vehicle here. She reached in to open the glove box and pulled out the registration. It was registered to Ethan Baxter. She put the registration back and closed the glove box as she exited the SUV.

  She was shocked by how little she knew about her husband, his plans, this house, his business. She stood for a moment, overwhelmed by all of it. Her head still hurt and she didn’t feel well. Nor was she looking forward to that climb upstairs. She considered taking the elevator but couldn’t bring herself to get into that box. Clearly Jet didn’t have that problem.

  After Jet had poured her into the elevator and sent her to the master suite yesterday, she remembered hearing the elevator leave again. He’d probably used it to bring his things in from his car. She suspected that as much as he complained about his brother, he liked his house and all Ethan’s high-tech gadgets.

  That thought made her even more uneasy about his staying at the house. How long would he stay if Ethan didn’t return? If only Ethan would come back. She checked her phone to see if she’d heard from either brother. She hadn’t.

  Jet could have simply gone into town to get something to eat. Or even to look for Ethan. Or taken the thumb to the sheriff because someone had taken it.

  She didn’t want to think about Jet’s return with the sheriff in tow—or to tell her that the thumb had been a joke and now everyone in the county would know.

  Drey started up the stairs, feeling lost. She’d quit her job as a librarian in Gilt Edge for Ethan because she thought she was going to be living in the Big Apple. Now what was she supposed to do with her time in this house if Ethan was going to be gone a lot?

  She knew the best thing she could do was keep busy. She headed fo
r the bedroom, scaling the stairs. As she did, she felt too aware of the cold quiet that hung in the house. Once in the master bedroom, she went to work putting away her wedding gown in the box that would be sent to some storage place. The gown would be kept dry and clean and at the right temperature until her daughter could wear it, Ethan had said.

  At the time, Drey had been touched by his thoughtfulness. Also she’d liked the idea of thinking that far ahead. But with Ethan missing... She’d begun to think of his absence as permanent and wondered how long she should wait before she called Sheriff Flint Cahill. Maybe Jet had already taken care of it.

  Inwardly she groaned. Even if Lillie hadn’t already told Hawk, the news would travel like a wildfire once Ethan was reported missing. Sheriff Flint Cahill was like family to her—just like Lillie and her twin brother, Darby, as well as Cyrus. Their other brother, Tucker, hadn’t been around when she and Hawk were in love. Now that he was back, she’d seen him only in passing—long enough to recently wish him happiness at his wedding reception at the Stagecoach Saloon, which Lillie and Darby owned.

  She hated to think that pretty soon everyone would know that her husband had left her on her wedding night. She cringed, embarrassed and growing angrier. She and Ethan were definitely going to have a talk about this when he got back. He wasn’t going to treat her this way ever again.

  Tears burned her eyes and all the fight went out of her. Her head ached. When was she going to admit that she’d made a mistake? She probably had to Lillie on the phone yesterday. She groaned at the thought.

  It didn’t take long to straighten up the bedroom after downing a couple of aspirin for her headache from the container in the bedroom. Jet seemed to think that Ethan had hired staff that would be arriving at any time. She hated the thought. It was bad enough being alone in this house with Jet without adding more strangers.

  At loose ends again after showering and changing clothes, she thought about making something for a late lunch but couldn’t face the kitchen right now. She remembered the SUV in the parking garage. She missed her own vehicle. Ethan had insisted she sell her small old pickup. She’d agreed—at that time still thinking they would be living in New York City.

  Now she yearned for something familiar. Something that was truly hers. Grabbing her purse, this time she took the elevator, just wanting to get out of the house as quickly as possible. Once inside the SUV, she hit the remote opener and watched the large garage door slowly open.

  She started the motor and drove out of the cold darkness, anxious for the feel of sunshine and freedom. The moment she was through the gate at the bottom of the mountain, she began to relax. She still felt as if her head was full of cotton.

  She hadn’t gone far, though, when she saw Jet’s red sports car streak past. She thought about where he’d been and what he might have learned that he was racing back to tell her. There hadn’t been anyone in the passenger seat so Ethan still wasn’t back. If he’d been to the sheriff, he might have reported his brother missing. She didn’t want to think about it. As warm as the summer sun felt pouring in through the windows, she shivered and kept driving.

  * * *

  NO MATTER HOW hard Hawk worked, he still couldn’t get it out of his mind. What if Drey was in serious trouble? What did anyone know about this Ethan Baxter? Except that according to the grapevine he was overbearing, demanding, obnoxious and generally what you would expect from some rich guy who had bought a piece of Montana and had no intention of being part of the community.

  Hawk had wanted to cut the guy some slack, hoping to be wrong about him. But everything he’d heard had made him sorry that Drey had chosen Ethan Baxter to move on with. Hell yes, part of it had been jealousy. As large as the Cahill Ranch was, his family knew nothing about real wealth. Certainly not the kind that bought New York City penthouses or built a shire like that glass-and-rock monstrosity on the side of the mountain.

  It didn’t help that Hawk could see it if he crossed into the forest service property adjacent to the Baxter property. Drey was so close now and yet...

  Back at the ranch, he unsaddled his horse and headed for his pickup. Every step of the way he mentally kicked himself. Stay out of this. It’s none of your business. You’re a damned fool for getting involved. That was his mantra all the way into town.

  As he pulled up in front of the sheriff’s office, he almost didn’t park. But he’d come this far. And if Drey really was in trouble...

  Cursing himself, he got out and pushed through the door. He merely waved to the dispatcher, who nodded that his brother was in. The sheriff’s office was down the hall, the door standing open. He walked in and stopped, still cussing under his breath.

  “Can I do something for you?” his brother Flint asked, humor in his expression. “You look upset.”

  Hawk took a deep breath, let it out and stepped farther into the room to stand over his brother’s desk. “Look, I can’t tell you how much I hate to ask you to do this. But Lillie is worried about Drey.”

  “Lillie is, huh?” His brother grinned.

  He tried not to turn and leave. Biting his tongue for a moment, he finally said, “I hate doing this enough without getting any crap from you over it.”

  “Sorry, please proceed.”

  “I don’t know if Lillie talked to you about Drey, but apparently her husband is missing. He might already be back and there would be no cause for concern, but I know Drey and if she is as upset as Lillie said she was, well, just in case...”

  “You want me to look into Ethan Baxter.”

  He felt a flood of relief. At least he wasn’t going to have to spell it out for his brother. “If you could just make sure that she hasn’t gotten herself into somethin’ bad.”

  Flint nodded. “I’ll make a few inquiries off the record.”

  “Thanks. And, Flint, I’d prefer this stay between the two of us.”

  His brother smiled. “You got it.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  DREY HAD PLANNED to go to the Stagecoach Saloon. She remembered when Lillie had fallen in love with the original stagecoach stop’s stone building. She had worried that it would be torn down if she didn’t save it, so she’d bought it. It had been her twin Darby’s idea to make it into a bar and café. The place had taken off, especially since their Texas cook, Billie Dee Rhodes, had come into the picture.

  She could just taste a big bowl of Billie Dee’s shrimp gumbo right now, she thought, as she headed down the road toward the saloon. But as she neared it, she realized she wasn’t up to facing anyone. Even if Lillie hadn’t told anyone in her family, Drey knew she couldn’t put up a front. She wasn’t a happy, blissful new bride. And right now she didn’t have what it would take to pretend to be one.

  Worse, she might run into Hawk Cahill. In the mood she was in, seeing her former lover was the worst thing she could do. Hawk would know. One look at her and he would see how upset she was. That’s if Lillie hadn’t already told him.

  After going on down the road, she finally stopped at the In-n-Out, ate a burger and fries in the car, tossing away most of both, and drove back to the house. She still had an upset stomach and her head felt filled with cotton.

  When she was almost to the gate, Ethan’s cell phone buzzed, startling her. She’d forgotten it was still in her pocket. She pulled over to the side of the road, drew it out and tried to answer it. Still locked. But to her surprise a partial message showed up on the screen.

  Where the hell are you? It’s insane here. I thought you were coming in? Ethan, this is starting to look—

  That was all there was and after a moment even that disappeared from the screen. Coming in? To the New York City office? So at least someone knew he had planned to be there. Maybe he was just running late.

  She pocketed the phone again, thinking about what Jet had said about his brother. He was all business. Still, it hurt. This was some honeymoon. It did sound li
ke whatever was going on was serious, though. Maybe it wasn’t Ethan’s fault.

  Shifting the SUV into gear, she was angry with herself for making excuses for the man. He should have left her a message. He should have called. So he didn’t have his cell phone. He still could have borrowed a phone to call to let her know he was all right.

  She called his office in New York. But the woman who answered said that Ethan was on vacation and not expected in.

  “Are you sure there wasn’t a meeting he was supposed to attend today?” she asked after explaining who she was.

  “If there was, it wasn’t on his calendar, Mrs. Baxter.”

  She drove toward the house, telling herself he could have had something come up unexpectedly just as Jet has said.

  At the gate into the property, she froze for a moment. Did she know the code to get back in? Panic had her heart racing. Then it came to her. The night of their wedding, Ethan had told her the code and said he would write it down for her. He hadn’t, but fortunately after years of working as a librarian, she had a knack for remembering numbers.

  She keyed in 102937. The gate slowly swung open and she began to breathe again. Being away from the house had helped a little. She still felt off balance. When she reached the house, she found the garage door was open. She could see Jet’s sports car in the cold darkness under the house.

  For a while, she’d forgotten about passing him on the road. Had he been to the sheriff? Had he taken the thumb they’d discovered in the disposal? She wasn’t sure she wanted to know what he’d found out.

  Parking beside his car in the underground garage, she climbed out and was startled when she heard Jet behind her. She swung around, trying hard to hide her sudden fear of being down there with him.