“Ellie,” he murmured, “is there anything I can do? Why don’t you let me talk to Shilah,” he said, and she broke away, shaking her head vehemently.
“No, Dad. Please, just leave it.”
After giving her a considering look he slowly nodded his head, deferring to her.
“I think I’ve already messed up enough,” she said. “He doesn’t want to see me or talk to me. And I don’t want to get you involved with this. I’m a big girl.” She forced a smile on her lips. “I can take care of myself,”
“Yeah, but you’re always going to be my baby girl.” He sat down in the chair next to her, sighing heavily. “Doesn’t stop me from worrying about you. Never will,” he finished gruffly. Again, her father brought a reluctant laugh to her lips.
“And I wouldn’t have you any other way,” she said, a small smile on her face as she glanced at her father.
Tired lines bracketed his face, and she felt a moment of guilt, knowing she was the reason.
For the last week both her father and mother had been worrying over her, since she’d been fired from the project.
And, although she hadn’t told them—not yet ready to talk about it, still sorting through the range of emotions, from pain and loss to betrayal—she knew they were also aware of her breakup with Shilah.
After wrestling with the decision about what to do about the photos, she’d come to the conclusion that simply because they existed, no matter who had taken them, she had no choice but to tell Clarence, her supervisor at Jasper and Brant.
When she’d made the call, afraid of what his reaction would be, she’d haltingly related the trail of events, and despite the shame, she admitted that she had entered into a relationship with Shilah Wilde. She’d continued, telling him of the pictures, how she’d found them and where.
There’d been a long moment of silence before Clarence had spoken. Afraid of his reaction, she’d been rendered speechless at his response.
Ethically, he had no choice but to pull her from the investigation and bring in another investigator. But he wouldn’t disclose the true reasons to anyone, least of all the USDA, not wanting to ruin Ellie’s reputation.
She’d closed her eyes, emotion overcoming her. She’d informed him that she believed the ranch was innocent of the charges, based on the blood work and her own observations. She had offered to pass the final report on to him so that he could give it to the new investigator. He’d quickly rejected her offer, his voice gentle, telling her that although he wouldn’t disclose what she’d done, he had no choice but to begin the investigation all over.
When she’d asked what that meant for the Wilde Ranch, he’d told her, regret in his voice, that it likely meant quarantine, due to time constraints. At her gasp, he quickly went on to say it would be only temporary.
“I’m fine.” Her shoulders slumped. “It’s just that now I don’t know what this will mean for the ranch. God, I feel so awful,” she said, her voice breaking. “And there’s nothing I can do about it. Until this is all cleared up… Dad, they could lose everything,” she said, tears burning her eyes.
“Ellie, this isn’t your fault, and there isn’t a thing you can do. I won’t lie and say this isn’t serious, damn serious,” he said, his face and tone grim. “But they’ll get through this. They’re a strong family. They’ve been through a lot.”
She nodded her head, swallowing the pain in her heart as Shilah’s face, bland, neutral as she had flung her accusations at him as he’d faced her, flashed in her mind. She hung her head down low, remembering the look of pain she’d seen in his dark eyes before he’d turned away from her and ordered her off his property.
Piggybacking that memory was the one of Shilah holding her close after they’d made love and sharing a part of his life with her…trusting her enough to share things he’d never shared with another, even the men he called brothers.
The flare of emotion in his beautiful eyes when he’d called her family.
She turned her face away from her dad, not wanting him to see the emotion she knew she was unable to hide from him.
She’d compromised her professional integrity and risked her license, the threat of which still loomed ominously over her head like a black cloud. But what hurt more than anything was the knowledge that Shilah had been playing with her, toying with her feelings, pretending to care for her as desperately as she had fallen for him.
He hadn’t even bothered denying the accusations.
She hardened her heart.
“God, how could I have been so stupid?”
Her father gathered her in his arms, and for long moments simply hugged her. “Baby girl, when it comes to love, there is no such thing as stupid,” he said, his expression thoughtful.
“I’m proud of you, Ellie. I always have been. And no matter what anyone says, I know that you are a woman of integrity. I know you wouldn’t…didn’t…allow your relationship with Shilah to influence you one way or another. And when they bring that new investigator in, and they find out the same thing you did, not only will the boys be exonerated, so will you.”
At his words, the small control she had broke away and she let the tears fall, crying silently as she allowed her father to hold her tight in his arms. “Thank you, Dad,” she whispered against his chest.
When she felt in better control, she pulled away and silently accepted the tissue he offered.
“Guess I’d better get back to work, Dad. Gotta clear all this up, send in my final report,” she said. Although Clarence had told her he wouldn’t need her report, Ellie wanted to complete the job, if for no other reason than her own professional satisfaction.
With a nod, her father leaned down and kissed the side of her head.
“Baby girl, no matter what, remember what I said.” Ellie smiled a tremulous smile and slowly he turned and left.
Ellie gathered the remaining documents, carefully placing them in the file folder and turned to retrieve her disk, the one she’d backed up with all of her information from the investigation.
Her professional dignity was about all she had right now, and no matter what, she was going to finish the job. It was all she had right now.
If she could just convince Clarence to submit her report, maybe she’d be able to salvage some of her dignity, knowing findings would be under tight scrutiny. Any chance she had of saving face…including her reputation, rested on her report.
She sat back in her chair, and blindly reached for her coffee, bringing it to her lips and grimacing as the now cold liquid slid down her throat.
She glanced over at the clock, and noting the time, knew that despite the lateness of the hour, she wouldn’t be going to bed anytime soon.
Between losing her job and losing Shilah, sleep was definitely not in the cards for her tonight, any more so than it had been for the last few days.
A frown marred her forehead as she thought over her last conversation with Clarence. At the time they’d spoken, she’d been so grateful when he’d said he wouldn’t disclose the reason she was leaving the investigation, she’d nearly wept in relief. Now she thought of the conversation and his avowals of believing that despite her relationship with Shilah she had no bias. He had declined her offer to submit her report.
She fully understood why he felt ethically bound to remove her, but why not accept her report? The question nagged at Ellie long after she’d left the clinic and as she lay in bed that night, eyes closed, yet sleep elusive. There was something about the complete faith he claimed to have in her that didn’t jive with his refusal to accept her report.
Why do that, unless…
Her eyes sprang open and her stomach felt as though it dropped to her knees, as a thought came to her mind of another reason he would have for getting her out of the picture.
She knew what she had to do, the only thing she could do, if for no other reason than she was damned if she’d let anyone set her up and blackmail her, covertly or not.
And that was exactly what Clarence ha
d done.
Chapter 25
Although she’d made the three-hour drive to Cheyenne by noon, at 7:00 p.m. Ellie was just pulling into the parking lot of the building that housed the executive offices of Jasper and Brant. A glance around the lot showed it to be as deserted as she’d hoped.
With her stomach tied in knots, Ellie cut the engine on her car and sat with her hands clenching the wheel so tight her knuckles strained.
She relaxed her grip and took a deep, calming breath. During the last week, time after time she’d found herself lifting her cell to punch in her supervisor’s number, only to lose her nerve and press the end button before the call could go through.
At first she had thought it was nerves holding her back, or the lack of courage in confronting the man. She had wondered if it was all in her mind, not wanting to accuse him of something so low.
And then she’d remembered in shame how she’d accused the man she claimed to love of the low act.
Throughout the long drive, she’d thought over everything that had happened, from her being fired to the ugly accusations she’d thrown at Shilah.
What kept cropping up in her mind was the careful way he’d held his body, the almost neutral expression on his face. But it was his eyes that had told a different story. His eyes held a different truth, one that in her hurt and anger…confusion, she hadn’t seen.
She’d made the decision to come to the office and confront him face-to-face. As she made the long drive, a different plan began to hatch in her mind instead, and so after her arrival, she waited until long after she thought he’d left for the day before making her way to Jasper and Brant.
With a heavy sigh retrieved her bag and left the car. Glancing around the nearly empty parking lot, Ellie hoped that she hadn’t made the drive unnecessarily and that Clarence was still in his office.
She walked to the entry of the building, and peering into the large glass double doors, saw a guard nearby.
She flashed her badge through the window for the guard to see, hoping her supervisor hadn’t yet gotten around to alerting the guards of her new status.
The guard glanced at the badge through the window and, when he lifted his key to unlock the door to allow her inside, she released the pent-up breath she held.
“Hi, I’m Dr. Ellie Crandall,” she said, smiling up at the guard. “Don’t suppose you know if Clarence MacArthur is still in?” she asked, flashing a purposeful smile on her face, hoping none of her anxiety showed.
The guard glanced down at his clipboard briefly, before looking back at her, shaking his head.
“’Fraid not, Dr. Crandall. Says here he left a bit ago. You just missed him,” he said, shaking his head, his glance falling to the small portable television behind his desk.
Ellie put on a faux look of disappointment, hiding the relief she felt that Clarence wasn’t around.
“Darn. Was hoping I’d catch him before he left for the day. I was supposed to give him something before he leaves town tomorrow.”
“Well,” the guard drawled, his eyes shifting to the television behind his desk before turning back to her.
“If you want you can go on up and put it on his desk. Said he’d be in tomorrow before he left for the airport,” the guard supplied, and Ellie grinned.
“That would be great,” she said and turned away.
She stopped, and turned back to the guard who was quickly walking back to his desk. She watched him pull out his chair, a grin of anticipation splitting his lined face as the theme music for Judge Judy blasted from the small set as a commercial ended. He rubbed his hands together gleefully, mumbling, “Oh, you ’bout to get it now, playa!”
“Oh, no…I didn’t bring my key. Thought I’d catch him in time. Don’t suppose you have the key?” she said, placing a sheepish look on her face, knowing the guard held the keys to all the offices.
She held her breath, hoping the lure of Judge Judy would prevent him from questioning her further. When he seemed to hesitate, his glance going to her and back to the television, Ellie rushed in to explain.
“It’s just that I have a plane to catch myself tomorrow. And if he doesn’t get this…” She allowed her voice to trail away.
After a considering look he nodded his head. “Guess that wouldn’t hurt anything. Here, why don’t I give you the key. Just bring it back when you’re finished,” he said and Ellie hid a triumphant grin, sending a silent thank-you to Judge Judy.
“Just don’t tell nobody,” he said with a wink.
She grinned back. “I love Judge Judy myself,” she said, and he laughed. “No fears…your secret is safe with me.”
Before he could change his mind…or before Judge Judy could dispense her legendary swift judgment and end the show, Ellie grasped the key and swiftly strode toward the elevator, her heart bouncing against her chest in part jubilation and part anxiety.
Before unlocking the door to the office, Ellie peered though the glass pane of the small sitting area, just in case Clarence was inside, rapping her knuckles against the pane lightly. When she saw no sign of movement, no sound, she slipped the key in the lock and quickly walked inside.
After spending the last twenty minutes unable to find anything—no documents, no files, nothing to show Clarence’s involvement in the photos—Ellie felt foolish, a cloud of despair cloaking her as she thought that maybe she’d been wrong after all and he hadn’t been involved.
Which would mean that someone at Wilde had been, she thought, her shoulders slumping in dejection.
Putting her hands on her head, she allowed her head to droop.
“What did I think I would find?” With a sigh she bent down to lift her bag from the floor where she’d placed it next to her.
As she did, she heard a slight ping and turned, glancing toward the computer.
She looked down and saw the message indicator on the left of the screen indicating a new email.
She’d opened the computer when she’d first sat down, surprised that he hadn’t locked it, until she’d tried opening several documents only to find them password protected.
But, when the email alert pinged again, quickly she clicked on the icon, breathing out a huge sigh of relief when she was allowed in.
Her elation grew in direct proportion to the knot in her stomach, when after going though his inbox, she saw her name on several of the subject lines.
Ellie Crandall
The lump that had been slowly forming in her stomach grew and with shaky fingers she clicked on the first file folder with her name.
This email had only a single sentence, stating, We got them…along with an attachment. She clicked on the attachment and within moments a kaleidoscope of images filled the screen, the same ones that had been slipped beneath Shilah’s door.
She drew in a breath. She’d never shown the photos to Clarence.
Chills ran over her spine as she opened the next document. In this one, Clarence had written to the USDA, telling them of Ellie’s resignation, due to a family emergency.
A week before she’d told him about the pictures.
The last document was an email from Clarence to someone at Rolling Hills.
I’ve gotten rid of her, she won’t stand in the way of our plans. Once the USDA finds out that it will take weeks to find another vet to take her place, they’ll have no choice but to shut Wyoming Wilde down, and it’s yours for the taking. I’ll expect the usual arrangements, sent wireless to the same account this time tomorrow.
Like dominoes in her mind it all fell into place, and Ellie’s hands fell to her stomach as it churned, making her literally sick as she thought of how stupid, how incredibly stupid she’d been. How could she have blamed Shilah, his family, for the duplicity?
She scanned the rest of the documents, her eyes widening at the deceit staring her in her face.
“You shouldn’t have come here, Dr. Crandall.”
Ellie spun around in her chair, her heart in her throat as she faced her supervisor. She glanced
from his face to the .35 he held in his hand as he kicked the door closed and advanced into the room.
Chapter 26
Ellie’s glance slid from Clarence, to the shiny .35 he held in his hand and back to meet his face. Swallowing deeply, she placed her printouts behind her back, trying to slip them into her purse without his noticing.
Dear God, what could she do…what could she say to him, she thought, racking her brains for a solution, anything to get her out of the office alive.
“I—I thought I’d catch you here, but I missed you.” She swallowed, dragging a trembling smile to her face.
“Now, Ellie, surely you don’t expect me to believe you just came here to shoot the breeze with me, did you?” he asked, walking inside the office and closing the door behind him. He reached behind his back and she heard a soft click as the lock slid into place.
Waiting for the fear to come, instead Ellie felt a steely strength rush over her. Purposely putting on a disdainful expression, she turned to face him.
“Seems like someone’s been a busy boy,” she said, one side of her lip curling upward.
She saw the surprise in his eyes, as he halted in his steps momentarily.
Sensing she had a slight advantage, she turned back to her purse and withdrew the photos, she faced him again.
“Had you just come to me in the first place, all of this,” she said, waving the photos in her hand, “wouldn’t have been necessary, Clarence.”
His glance slid to the photos in her hand, then back to her face. “Oh, really? And why is that?”
Firmly keeping a nonchalant smile in place she walked toward Clarence. Once she was close enough to him, she ran a finger down his chest, dropping her eyes.
“I’m sure we could have come to a…mutually satisfying…arrangement. It’s still not too late for that, you know.”
He frowned down at her, but she could sense his intrigue as well as the effect she was having on him, hiding her disgust at the way the front of his slacks bore evidence.
To Desire a Wilde Page 15
