B.J. Daniels the Cardwell Ranch Collection

by B. J Daniels

  Stacy shook her head and helped herself to a cookie. “It was a surprise.”

  “Speaking of surprises…” She watched her sister’s face. “Jordan is in town.”

  “Jordan?” Had Stacy known? “What is he doing here?”

  “I thought you might know.”

  Stacy shook her head and looked worried. “I haven’t heard from him since we were all here six years ago.” She made a face. “I still feel bad about trying to force you to sell the ranch.”

  Dana waved that away. “It’s history. The ranch is still in the family and it makes enough money that you and our brothers get to share in the profits. You know I think my lawyer did mention that he’d received notice that Jordan was divorced.”

  “I wonder how much of his ranch profits he has to give to Jill? That woman was such a gold digger.” Stacy laughed as she realized the irony. “I should know, huh? Back then I figured if I was going to get married, I might as well get paid for it.” She shook her head as if amazed by the woman she’d been. “Have you heard from Clay?”

  “No.” She helped herself to another cookie and sipped some of the milk. “He hasn’t been cashing his checks lately. My attorney is checking into it.”

  “That’s odd,” Stacy agreed. “Well, I need to clean up the kitchen.”

  “Thanks so much for giving the kids their baths and getting them to bed.” Mary and Hank had come in earlier to say good-night and have Dana read a book to them before bed. They’d been wearing their footie pajamas, their sweet faces scrubbed clean and shiny. They’d been excited about helping their aunt Stacy cook.

  “Thank you so much for all your help,” Dana said, touched by everything Stacy had done.

  “I’m just glad I was here so I could.” She smiled. “I didn’t know how fun kids could be.”

  “Wait until Ella is that age. Mary loves to have tea parties and help her daddy cook.”

  Stacy nodded thoughtfully. “Let me know if you need anything. Knowing you, I can guess how hard it is for you to stay down like this.”

  Dana groaned in response. She couldn’t stand the thought of another day let alone weeks like this. “Thanks for the cookies and milk. The cookies were delicious.”

  Stacy looked pleased as she left the room.

  Chapter Four

  Hud walked out with Jordan to the road, then followed him to the marshal’s office. Once in the office he got his first good look at his brother-in-law. Jordan had been only two years ahead of Hud in school, three years ahead of his sister Dana. His brother-in-law had aged, but it hadn’t hurt Jordan’s looks. If anything the years seemed to have given him character, or at least the appearance of it.

  “Why don’t you have a seat and start at the beginning?” Hud said dropping into his chair behind his desk.

  “I thought Liza was handling this case?”

  “Liza? You mean Deputy Marshal Turner?” He shouldn’t have been surprised Jordan was on a first-name basis with the deputy. He, of all people, understood the charm of the Justice-Cardwell genes. Dana could wrap him around her little finger and did.

  “Don’t think just because she’s a woman that she isn’t a damned good marshal,” Hud said to his brother-in-law. “She’s sharp and she’ll nail you to the wall if you’re guilty.”

  “If you have so much confidence in her abilities, then why are you here?”

  Hud gritted his teeth. Jordan had always been difficult. At least that hadn’t changed. “Several reasons. None of which I have to explain to you. But—” He held up a hand before Jordan could speak. “I will because I want us to have an understanding.” He ticked them off on his fingers. “One, I’m still the marshal here. Two, Liza has her hands full up at the site. Three, I want to know what happened on that mountain. And four, your sister is my wife. I don’t want her hurt.”

  With a smile and a nod, Jordan ambled over to a chair and sat. “Dana doesn’t have anything to worry about. Neither she nor the ranch is why I’m back in the canyon.”

  “Why are you here?” Hud asked, snapping on the recording machine.

  “It doesn’t have anything to do with family.”

  “But it does have something to do with Alex Winslow.”

  “Alex was a good friend from high school. I didn’t kill him.” Jordan sighed and looked at the ceiling for a moment.

  Hud noticed that he was no longer wearing a wedding ring. He vaguely remembered Dana mentioning that she’d heard Jordan was divorced from his ex-model wife, Jill. The marriage had probably ended when Jordan didn’t get the proceeds from the sale of the ranch.

  “If Alex was your friend, I would think you’d be interested in helping us find his killer,” Hud said. “Not to mention you’re neck deep in this. Right now, you’re the number one suspect.”

  Jordan laughed. “Does that work on most of your suspects?” He shook his head. “I came back because Alex called me. He hinted that he might know something about Tanner’s suicide but it was clear he didn’t want to talk about it on the phone. He said he’d share his theory with me if I came to our twenty-year high school reunion. The next time I talked to him, he sounded scared and wanted to meet at the falls. That’s it.”

  That was a lot. Hud wasn’t sure how much of it he believed. But at least he had some idea of what might have brought Jordan back to town—and it wasn’t family.

  “Tanner Cole committed suicide when the two of you were seniors in high school. Why would that bring you back here after all these years?”

  “When your best friend commits suicide, you never stop thinking you could have done something to stop him. You need to know why he did it.”

  “Unless that person leaves a note, you never know. Tanner didn’t leave a note, as I recall.”

  Jordan shook his head.

  “Did you talk to Alex before he was shot?”

  “As I told your deputy, I heard the shot, he stumbled toward me, there was another shot and he went down. All he said was the word Shelby. At least that’s what I thought he said.” Jordan shrugged. “That was it.”

  Hud studied him openly for a moment. “Maybe the bullets were meant for you and the killer missed.”

  Jordan sighed. “What are you insinuating?”

  “That maybe Tanner didn’t commit suicide. Weren’t you the one who found his body?”

  Anger fired Jordan’s gaze. “He was my best friend. I would have taken a bullet for him.”

  “Instead, another friend of yours took the bullet tonight,” Hud said. “You’re telling me you came all this way, hiked into the falls in the dark, just for answers?”

  “Why is that so hard for you to understand?”

  “What about Alex Winslow? Don’t I remember some falling-out the two of you had before you graduated?”

  “It was high school. Who remembers?”

  Hud nodded. “Is Stacy in the canyon for the same reason?” Stacy had been in the grade between the two of them.

  “Stacy?” Jordan looked genuinely surprised. “I haven’t seen or talked to her in years.”

  “Then you didn’t know that not only is she back in the canyon, she also has a baby.”

  Jordan laughed. “Stacy has a baby? That’s got to be good. Look, if that’s all, I need to get some sleep.”

  “Once Liza allows you to, I’m sure you’ll be leaving. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t upset Dana before then. She’s pregnant with twins and having a rough go of it.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Jordan said, sounding as if he meant it. “Don’t worry, I won’t be bothering my sister. Either of my sisters,” he added.

  “Then I guess we’re done here.”

  * * *

  A WHILE LATER, DANA HEARD HUD come in. She heard him go upstairs to check on the kids, before coming back down to her room. He
smiled when he saw her still awake and came over to her side of the bed to give her a kiss.

  “So everything’s all right?” he asked.

  “I’m the one who should be asking you that. You said there’d been a shooting?”

  He nodded. “Liza’s got everything under control. The crime techs are on their way from Missoula.” He sounded tired.

  “Stacy kept a plate of dinner for you. She made chicken, baked potatoes and corn,” Dana said. “Then she and kids baked chocolate chip cookies.” She motioned to the cookies on the tray next to the bed.

  Hud gave her a who-knew-she-could-cook look and took one of the cookies.

  Who knew indeed? Dana couldn’t believe the change in her sister. She felt horribly guilty for not trusting it. But even Stacy was capable of changing, right? Having a baby did that to a person. But Stacy?

  Unfortunately, the jury was still out—given her sister’s past.

  “Did she mention how long she’s staying?” Hud asked, not meeting her gaze.

  “She was planning to leave earlier, but I asked her to stay. I’m sure she’ll be leaving in the morning.”

  Hud nodded. She could tell he would be glad when Stacy was gone. Dana couldn’t blame him. Her sister had hurt them both. But she desperately wanted to believe Stacy had changed. For Ella’s sake.

  Unfortunately, like her husband, Dana had a niggling feeling that Stacy wasn’t being completely honest about the real reason she’d come to the ranch.

  * * *

  EXHAUSTED, JORDAN WENT BACK TO his cabin, locked the door and fell into bed with the intention of sleeping the rest of the day.

  Unfortunately, Deputy Marshal Liza Turner had other plans for him.

  “What do you want?” he said when he opened the cabin door a little after eleven o’clock that morning to find her standing outside. He leaned a hip into the doorjamb and crossed his arms as he took her in.

  “What do I want? Sleep, more money, better hours, breakfast.”

  “I can’t help you with most of that, but I could use food. I’ll buy.”

  She smiled. “I know a place that serves breakfast all day. We can eat and talk.”

  “No murder talk until I’ve had coffee.”

  “Agreed.”

  Liza drove them to the upper mountain. The huge unpaved parking lots sat empty. None of the lifts moved on the mountain except for the gondolas that rocked gently in the breeze.

  “It’s like a ghost town up here,” he commented as they got out of her patrol SUV.

  “I like the quiet. Good place to talk. Most everything is closed still. Fortunately, there are enough locals that a few places stay open.”

  The café was small and nearly empty. Liza led him outside to a table under an umbrella. The sun was low to the south, but still warm enough it was comfortable outside. A waitress brought them coffee while they looked at the menu.

  Jordan ordered ham and eggs, hashbrowns and whole wheat toast.

  “I’ll have the same,” Liza said and handed back the menu. As soon as the waitress was out of earshot, she said, “You didn’t mention last night that you and the victim were no longer friends at the end of your high school years.”

  “So you spoke with Hud.” He looked toward the mountains where snow dusted the peaks, making them gleam blinding bright. “It was a stupid disagreement over a woman, all right? Just high school stuff.”

  She nodded, not buying it. “What girl?”

  “I don’t even remember.”

  Liza’s look called him a liar, but she let it go. “I’m still confused why he contacted you. He must have had other friends locally he would have talked to.”

  “Obviously he must have talked to someone locally. One of them knew where he was going last night and killed him.” Jordan said nothing as the waitress served their breakfasts. He picked up his fork. “Look, do we have to talk about this while we eat? I feel like I got him killed.”

  “You can’t blame yourself, or worse, try to take the law into your own hands.” She eyed him for a long moment. “Why would I suspect that’s what you’re planning to do?”

  He chuckled. “If you talked to my brother-in-law he would have told you that I’m not that ambitious. Anyway, you’re the deputy marshal. I’m sure you’ll find his killer.”

  She took a bite of toast, chewed and swallowed before she said, “You contacted Tanner’s girlfriend from his senior year in high school.”

  Jordan took her measure. “Why, Liza, you’ve been checking up on me. I contacted Shelby before I went up to the falls last night. She said she had nothing to say to me about Tanner. That was high school and so far back, she barely remembers.”

  “You didn’t believe her?” Liza asked between bites.

  Jordan laughed. “High school was Shelby’s glory days. Just check out our yearbook. She is on every page either as president or queen of something. Not to mention she was dating Tanner Cole, the most popular guy in school. She was in her element. I’d bet those were the best days of her life and that nothing she has done since will ever compare.”

  Liza considered that for a long moment before she asked, “So you talked to Shelby before last night. Before the only word Alex got out after he was shot was her name?”

  “Like I said, she and Tanner dated.”

  “When you talked to Shelby, did you mention Alex or where you were meeting him?”

  He gave her an exasperated look. “Do you really think I’m that stupid? Alex was acting terrified. I wasn’t about to say anything until I talked to him.”

  “And yet you called Shelby.”

  “Yeah. I just told her I was in the area as if I was here for the twenty-year reunion and worked Tanner into the conversation. I didn’t realize then that anything I might do could put anyone in danger, including her.”

  “That’s so noble. But I thought you didn’t like her. In fact, I thought you were instrumental in breaking up her and Tanner.”

  He shook his head and took a bite of his breakfast. “You’re determined to ruin my appetite, aren’t you?”

  “Is it true?”

  “I couldn’t stand Shelby and that bunch she ran with. But you’re wrong. I had nothing to do with breaking her and Tanner up, no matter what Hud thinks, as I’m sure that’s where you got your information.”

  Liza lifted a brow. “You weren’t the one who snitched on her?”

  “Wasn’t me.” He met her gaze. “Why keep questioning me if you aren’t going to believe anything I say?”

  “I don’t want you involved in my investigation,” she said. “That includes asking about Tanner among your old friends—and enemies.”

  He smiled. “What makes you think I have enemies?”

  She smiled in answer as she smeared huckleberry jam on a piece of her toast.

  He watched her eat for a few moments. He liked a woman who ate well and said as much.

  “Does that line work on women?” she asked.

  He laughed. “Every time.”

  They finished their breakfast in the quiet of the upper mountain. She was right about it being peaceful up here. He liked it. But once winter came, all that would change. The parking lots would be packed, all the lifts would be running as well as the gondola. The mountain would be dotted with skiers and boarders, the restaurants and resorts full. He recalled the sounds of people, the clank of machinery, the array of bright-colored skiwear like a rainbow across Lone Mountain.

  Tanner had loved it when Big Sky took on its winter wonderland persona. He’d loved to ski, had started at the age of three like a lot of the kids who grew up in the shadow of Lone Mountain.

  With a start, Jordan found himself looking high up on the peak, remembering one of the last days he and Tanner had skied the winter of their senior year. Tanner had always been
gutsy, but that day he’d talked Alex and him into going into an out-of-bounds area.

  They hadn’t gone far when Tanner had gone off a cornice. The cornice had collapsed, causing a small avalanche that had almost killed him.

  “Hey, man. You have a death wish?” Alex had asked Tanner when they’d skied down to find him half-buried in the snow.

  Tanner had laughed it off. “Takes more than that to kill me.”

  * * *

  “I THOUGHT YOU’D BE HAPPIER down here,” Hud said as he opened the curtains in the sunroom. “You can leave the door open so you can see everything that is going on.”

  Dana shot him a look. Seeing everything that was going on was his not-so-subtle way of saying he wanted her to keep an eye on her sister.

  They’d all gathered around her bed after breakfast. Stacy hadn’t made any attempt to leave. Just the opposite, she seemed to be finding more things she wanted to do before she and Ella packed for the rest of their trip.

  “Is there any chance you could stay another day or so?” Dana asked her now as Stacy picked up her breakfast tray to take to the kitchen.

  Her sister stopped and looked up in surprise. Her face softened as if she was touched by Dana’s offer. “I’d love to. I can cook and help with the kids. Hud has this murder investigation—”

  “My deputy marshal is handling all of that,” Hud interrupted, shooting Dana a what-could-you-be-thinking? look. “Plus the crime techs are down from Missoula. I am more than capable of taking care of Dana and the kids and—”

  Dana had been holding Ella since finishing her breakfast. She quickly interrupted him. “Stacy, that would be great if you can. I know Hud won’t mind the help and I love having you and Ella here.”

  Her husband sent her a withering look. She ignored it and looked instead into Ella’s adorable face.

  “Is Auntie Stacy going to stay, Mommy?” Mary asked excitedly.

  “Yes, for a few more days. Would you like that?” Both children cheered.

  “Auntie Stacy is going to show us how to make clay,” Hank said. “You have to put it in the oven and then paint it.”