The Sheriff

by Angi Morgan

  “It’s better this way. Less chance of word getting out that it’s a trap.”

  “I see. He said a couple of times that he didn’t think you’d be part of the equation again. So no one’s supposed to know except Cord. He knows, right?”

  “Yes. Please don’t think badly about my dad. He understands why I need to stay. Sharon’s still missing, and if there’s the slimmest chance...”

  “I need to assign you a larger protection detail.”

  “No. Please, Pete.” She leaned toward him. Close enough for him to see the strain on her face. “I have to do this.”

  “Not at the expense of losing your life.”

  “Again, it’s not your call. If you refuse to help, then you’re not part of the loop. You can step away, and we’ll get the Jeff Davis County sheriff to help.”

  “Over my dead body you will.”

  “Nothing that extreme, please. Like I told my dad, I promise I won’t make any detours. Straight to work. Straight back to your ranch. I won’t ditch my guard or anything like that. But if there’s a chance that Sharon’s alive and they still think I have some information, I need to be here to help.”

  “I admire your determination and courage, even if I think you’re insane for volunteering to do this.”

  “Thanks, I think.”

  He’d already planned to handpick her protection detail from both counties. He’d already spoken with his father about driving her and made arrangements for the house to be cleaned. It would be a pain driving her back and forth, but he didn’t care.

  Nothing would happen to Andrea on his watch. They might not have a future together, but she definitely had places to go and stars to discover.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The operation had lost one helicopter and five men. Patrice would be upset. More accurately, her employer would be angry. Indeed, she was due here any moment. He uncorked her favorite California wine to let it breathe.

  Homeland Security’s spy had stolen from him and had the power to bring down more than what Patrice had lost. He was certain Andrea Allen had been given information at her car in the desert—whether she knew it or not.

  Tomas had been too inquisitive. His intelligence should have given him away immediately as an undercover agent. But to his credit, he’d kept himself in the background operations for months. Unfortunately, their methods hadn’t been able to obtain how he was making contact with DHS to pass any information back to his superiors.

  If they hadn’t learned of Miss Allen’s importance, they might never have ferreted out the spy. He still wanted the young woman. Having her in his control was key to the next phase of operations.

  It had been highly improbable Patrice’s men would succeed in the abduction but well worth the try. The benefits far outweighed the losses. He heard the front door open.

  “Miss Orlando, please come in.”

  “I told you it wouldn’t work, Mr. Rook.” She dropped her purse on the floor and stripped off her jacket, tossing it haphazardly across a brocade chair. She saw the wine, tilted some into a glass and gulped the fine red elixir too fast.

  “Yes, you did.” He bit his tongue to remain pleasant. “But I also informed you that it didn’t matter to me what the cost was to you. The trucks made it into Manuel Ojinaga and we’re on schedule.”

  “I’ll need compensation for the men I’ve lost. Replacing them will cost me a bundle. I don’t want to dip into my reserve, drawing attention to myself.”

  “Naturally. These men will be worth the higher price. Unless you’d like to reconsider?”

  His fingers caught her exposed throat as she tossed back the last of the wine in the glass. She choked—partly on the wine, partly from the pressure of his grasp. The fragile handblown wineglass shattered on the floor. He should have waited until she’d set it on the table. Her fingers curled around his own, attempting to pry them away from her skin.

  As her oxygen waned, her eyes grew enormous as she realized he controlled whether she lived or died. He saw the acknowledgment in her face, in the desperation of her clawing hands and kicking feet. Her dress rose to show the tops of her stockings.

  Had she worn them for him today? Sex with her might be a satisfying distraction while he waited. He released his grip, immediately turning his back to give her a moment to recover.

  As he was concentrating on board three, his next move presented itself. “Aw, thank you, Patrice. Nc6 is a very nice move.”

  She coughed and sputtered behind him, then began tugging on her dress. Yes, it was time to remind her who was in control. He gathered her things and offered his hand to help her stand.

  “I’m in the mood to postpone the doldrums of business for a while. How about you?”

  The fright in her eyes spurred his movements. He controlled himself, restraining from pulling her along. He glanced at the six boards, committing the pieces to memory. Ready to be inspired while Patrice was at his fingertips.

  He opened the door, waving off his assistant. “Delay dinner an hour. Oh, wait, Mr. Oscuro.”

  Patrice’s stylish dress had a visible zipper down the back. He’d noticed straightaway that she was also braless underneath. It had been a long while since he’d reminded her where her place was. He jerked her to a halt in the hallway, tugged the zipper and waited to see if she’d let the dress fall.

  A small gasp of surprise was her only protest, and he’d let her have it. She dropped her arms to her sides and the dress amassed around her ankles with a gentle tug over her hips. He offered his hand again to help her step over the sleek red pile. She took it. The bruises on her shoulder and neck visible against her flawless skin.

  “Marvelous. Simply marvelous. That’s all, Oscuro.”

  He nodded to the near-naked woman. She brought a smile to his lips like no other could. But she needed to know he’d sacrifice her faster than a knight’s pawn if she defied him or took his courtesy for granted.

  Chapter Seventeen

  There’s a solid reason he believes he can’t get involved with anyone. You should ask him.

  Andrea tried to work on entering new information into her database. She’d managed to eke out a couple of sentences on her dissertation during the past two hours. Useless. Her mind kept coming back to Joe’s statement and wondering why he couldn’t just tell her what the reason was himself.

  “This is hopeless.” She shut the laptop lid and rubbed her aching eyes. All her things had been moved to the Morrison ranch house, but she still had her assigned room at the dormitory where she could work. She’d come early today, hoping to get caught up without any distractions.

  Distractions like Pete sleeping in the next room or working horses in the late afternoon. Yesterday from her window she’d seen him thrown from a horse. She’d wanted to run to him to make sure he was okay. Willpower hadn’t stopped her. She’d been frozen to the windowsill watching him take off his shirt to shake out the dirt.

  So she’d come to the observatory early in order to avoid those type of incidents today.

  Studying, applying herself or stringing words together for a paper had never been a problem...until now. She’d never had trouble sleeping at odd hours before. You got used to that when you studied the stars. Who was she kidding? Sleep deprivation had nothing to do with it. Every thought centered on Pete and the cryptic advice his father had given her.

  Just concentrate.

  Three nights watching the farthest regions of the galaxy and she couldn’t type up her notes. Learning the nuances of the 9.2 meter mirror on the telescope hadn’t relieved her or excited her the way it usually did. And if she did manage to keep on track for a few minutes, the next person entering the room would ask her about the shooting or share how she and Pete had escaped. Or they’d tell her what they were doing during the shooting. She’d either commend them or apologize to them.

  During the day, construction crews were down the hill at the Visitor Center repairing windows and bullet holes. The shattered glass had been swept up and thro
wn away. Pete’s dad had tried to capture her would-be abductors alive, but they’d all chosen to fight to the death. One had escaped into the woods and been tracked for several hours until he also stepped in front of a bullet.

  The manhunt was the reason authorities had delayed searching for them after she’d landed the Hiller chopper in the middle of nowhere. It was ridiculously hard not to think about the incident. Much harder not to think about Pete.

  Her hands smoothed the laptop. Was she ready to open it and get serious? No. She wanted to stop thinking of Pete. Andrea stepped out of the main room of the dormitory.

  “Hi, Bill. Need anything?” She spoke to the guards throughout each day, making a point to learn the names of the men who accepted the risk of protecting her.

  Pete had warned the deputies not to take the assignment for granted. Joe reminded them each morning when dropping her off at the ranch about potential attacks. He stressed the danger without disclosing specifics about the task force or possible trap they could be setting.

  “No, thanks, Andrea,” Bill answered, tipping his hat and resuming his watch.

  The crime scene and repairs had closed the main building and classroom. Neither was necessary for the star parties. From out here she could see the visitors lining up on the sidewalk, claiming their telescopes. It would be a beautiful night for stargazing.

  The observatory was short on staff and volunteers. She’d received an email asking for all volunteers to help with the class tonight. Her telescope was set and she wasn’t needed until much later. Why not help?

  There was no reason other than writing or compiling data. If she wasn’t going to do either of those, then she could give back a little. After all, she was the reason all the windows were broken.

  Technically, she’d promised not to do anything other than study at the observatory and sleep at Pete’s ranch. The Commander had forced a promise and then Pete had asked for one. But it had been two full days and three nights without another person making an untoward move against her.

  The closed spaces were beginning to make her twitch. She needed to move, feel a little free.

  Wasn’t volunteering to help kids considered part of her job? She’d helped a couple of times her first week and loved it. The star parties were so much fun and, man, oh, man, she needed some fun. It wasn’t like getting in her car and driving into town. She would still be at the observatory and keeping her promise.

  She pulled on tennis shoes and practically ran down the hill from her dormitory room. Bill stayed close after jumping into his squad car and repeating ten times that she needed to wait. She slowed and took a deep breath of the crisp clean air as she got closer to the café patio and where Pete had been shot.

  Last Friday afternoon, she’d taken the same walk to get to Sharon’s car. On that journey she hadn’t nearly been killed in a car accident, shot at on the observatory patio, stranded in the mountains or kissed by a sheriff. The very same sheriff who seemed to avoid her as often as possible.

  His days were full of work—doubly so since he’d joined the task force. Her days were full of sleep. Her nights were busy with calculations and stars. His were surrounded by dreams. At least she hoped they were.

  Stubborn man.

  Right now, this very minute, was about sharing her love for the stars. Helping someone—child or adult—find a constellation or a crater on the nearly full moon.

  There’s a solid reason he believes he can’t get involved with anyone. You should ask him. Joe’s words orbited around in her mind like a moon around its planet. They were constantly there with no choice but to continue.

  The next time she saw the sheriff of Presidio County...she was going to ask.

  * * *

  “THE SOURCE IS RELIABLE. They’re going to use the cover of the UFO Border Zone to move something major.” Cord McCrea had been trying to stop drug trafficking since transferring to West Texas almost ten years before. He knew the area and could get information from a dried cactus.

  The men who had followed Andrea to the observatory had inside information—from either the police radio or bugged cell phones. So he met Cord in an open area dead cell coverage zone between their properties. Making certain their conversations weren’t monitored or overheard. Pete wasn’t taking a chance with Andrea’s life. Not a second time.

  “How would they use the UFO convention? It’s not like there are crowds and crowds of people wandering everywhere. The thing draws a couple of thousand at best. And that’s during the concerts. They’ve only been having the conference for a couple of years now.” Pete caught himself shoving his hair back and resituating his hat. A habit Andrea had drawn to his attention when she’d arranged his hair with gel. His fingers had gotten stuck a couple of times in the stiff edges. After every shower now, he stopped himself when he reached for the styling tube.

  “I don’t know, Pete. All I can confirm is what my informant tells me. And that’s all he’s got.”

  “What’s the deal with your task force? Do I need to be doing anything differently?”

  Cord stretched his back. He’d been shot several years before by drug traffickers. All those men were behind bars or hadn’t survived a second confrontation. “Naw. Just keep being the sheriff and keep Allen’s daughter safe. You could let me know who you’ll be sending to the aliens conference.”

  “You got it.” Exactly what he’d thought. He’d been put on the task force only because of Andrea. “Cord, I know Andrea’s being used as bait.”

  “I didn’t think it would stay a secret from you long.”

  “Is that right? Why?”

  Cord raised a curious eyebrow. “Come on, man. I saw the way you two looked at each other. The tension the other night could be cut with a knife. She insisted on staying at your place, having you as her protection detail. Allen wanted you in charge of the border detail.”

  So those were her terms.

  Cord clapped him on the back. “I can see that brain of yours working, pal. That’s right. Miss Allen wouldn’t trust anyone else with her life. Just you. Go ahead, stick that chest out a little farther. Does that make you feel more important?”

  They both laughed, but he did feel more competent.

  “Just so you know, I’ll be filling her in on our suspicions that something’s happening. I want her to be prepared.”

  “Makes sense.”

  “Kate and the new baby okay? We haven’t seen much of her around town.”

  “They stay close to the house, but they’re great. Danver’s a regular roly-poly. Kate’s brother David is coming in at the end of the month, which is a code word for barbecue with the McCreas. Bring your dad.”

  “Sure. As long as this thing’s over by then.”

  “You realize that we’re never going to be done with drug traffickers trying to make a buck. We stop this group, another one is standing right behind it ready to take up the reins and harness a new set of horses. It’ll never be over,” Cord said sadly.

  “Job security. What more can a man ask for?” He shrugged. At least Cord had job security. The position of sheriff—no matter how competent Pete felt—might be out of the question for him.

  “There’s more to life, man. I hope you’ll find out what soon.” He tipped his hat. “See you around. I’ll give you a holler if my guy comes through with more info about the shipment.”

  “I’ll have additional deputies in or near Presidio. They were already on the schedule to be at the UFO conference. Hard to understand that’s the date they’re choosing...when we have more men posted there.”

  “My source is more reliable than they normally come. It ain’t gospel, but it’s close. Take care now.” Cord closed the door of his truck and drove out on the broken trail.

  Pete stayed put, leaning on his Tahoe, watching the first evening star shine in the darkening sky. Andrea would have been dropped off about an hour ago. His dad was driving her from the ranch to the observatory and a deputy would pick her up in the morning and drive her to the ra
nch.

  He would have to talk to her sooner or later. They couldn’t keep successfully avoiding each other. He finished his soda and crushed the can, tossing it into the back. A couple of minutes on the road and he could make a call.

  “Dispatch, reassign the driver for Miss Allen in the morning. I’ll be picking her up myself.”

  “You don’t say,” Peach answered. “I told Honey you’d come around.”

  “Thanks for the confidence.”

  “Well, we did raise you as a hero, not a coward.”

  “I’ll be signing off now, Dispatch.”

  “’Night, Sheriff.”

  Not a coward. For the past three days, he sure as hell had been one where Andrea Allen was concerned. Dammit.

  * * *

  PETE WAVED AT Randy Grady still on his feet at the door where Andrea was working. “Didn’t they have a chair for your shift?”

  “I didn’t want to get too comfortable and nod off. You said to stay on our toes. I thought your dad was picking up Miss Allen?” They shook hands.

  “He had an errand this morning, so I’m filling in.”

  “How’s the arm?”

  Pete stretched it across his chest. “Surprisingly good.”

  “Heard you passed out.” Randy snickered under his breath.

  “More from a lack of sleep than this thing.”

  “Right.” Randy sang a song as he said the one word, doubting. He trotted down the sidewalk and stopped. “She’s a nice woman. Any chance this protective detail will be over before she blows town?”

  “Don’t think so. Not with her father.”

  “Totally understand. I’d keep her for myself, too. I’ll head out, then.”

  “It’s not like that.” But at the back of his mind, he knew it was. Randy disappeared down the path, and Pete stopped himself from shouting a denial.

  He watched the sky lighten in the east through the treetops. Andrea would be out any minute. Why had he decided to pick her up? The dare from Peach? He had nothing to prove. Andrea would be gone at the end of the week without a glance back in his direction.