Rodeo Rancher

by Lauren Wood

  Getting out, I told the driver to keep the car running. I didn’t imagine that I would be there that long. Ashlyn sounded upset and I was willing to help her, but I was sure that it would be something that was easy to fix. All I had to know was the problem and I would help her find a way to solve it. That as what I did after all. It was my job to fix problems for everyone else.

  Knocking briskly, I pulled the jacket tighter around me. I had forgotten how cold it was outside because of the heat in the car. Now I was reminded that it was the middle of winter and miserable in New York. It was the type of weather that made me want to pack up and go somewhere warm for a time.

  Ashlyn answered after a second row of knocks. When she answered the door, her eye makeup was runny and I could tell that she had been crying. Her face was a little puffy and her eyes themselves were red with grief. I didn’t know what happened, but it was not as small of a deal as I had imagined. She had been so blasé about it on the phone, yet now I could see that it was something weighing heavily on her.

  “Hey, what is going on?”

  I moved to touch her face and assure her that everything was going to be okay. I didn’t know that of course, had no idea and certainly no right to make such promises, but I hated to see a woman cry. It was my downfall and I cared deeply for Ashlyn. She had helped me in many ways, showing me the whose-who of the city.

  “I need your help Sam. I don’t know who else to go to. You are the best lawyer that I know and I need you to help someone very special to me.”

  “What happened?”

  She was very upset, which was understandable, but if I was going to find out what was going on, I was going to have to somehow get her to relax enough so that I could understand her. Right now she was two seconds from balling and finally I just hugged her to my chest and let her cry it out. It took several minutes for it to ease, but when she finally pulled away, there was a bit of relief in her eyes. “It is going to be okay. Let’s get some coffee, or wine, hell it is after five and see what we can do to fix this.”

  “What would I do without you Sam?”

  “You never have to find out.”

  She smiled at me, making the comment about wishing she was more my type. I waved her off, telling her that she was, though we both knew that we lacked a chemistry which was pretty important in a relationship.

  “Good because Stone is always out of town when I need him.”

  “Stone?”?

  She laughed and waved me off. “I don’t want to hear it. That’s his name.”

  There were so many things I could say about it and I did let a few slip while I poured us some wine. “Are you done?”

  “Yes, now what has you all in a frazzle that you called me in to save the day?”

  “Humble as ever I see.”

  “You caught me passed noon, what can I say.”

  She giggled at my crummy joke and that let me know that she was feeling a little bit better. I don’t know what was going on, but seeing a smile on her face was worth the trip.

  “So are you with me enough for some legal help?”

  I nodded that I was and decided to hold off on the wine because I may actually need my wits about me for a little bit longer. This could be serious.

  “So I have this friend from back when I first moved to the city…”

  “Ah, do you know how many great stories that I have heard starting out that exact same way?”

  “Stop interrupting or I will forget. This is serious Sam.”

  I took that sip anyways and waited for more.

  “So she went to Thailand for a small vacation. Just graduated with her Masters and this was like her gift to herself.”

  I nodded my head and understood perfectly. I had always put built in incentives into my goals so that when I reached one, I would look forward to whatever the prize was.

  “And?”

  “Well, I don’t really know all of the details about what or how it happened, all l know is that Meri is now in jail down there and she can’t talk to anyone on the phone and only her lawyer can see her there in person.”

  I could see where this was going and already I was trying to figure out my schedule in my mind. It was more fluid than anything else and I knew that I could move a few things around and I would be able to commit. As I said before, I owed Ashlyn and if she wanted me to go talk to the authorities in Thailand on behalf of her friend, I would be more than willing to.

  “Okay, so I see where this is going. I will go get your friend out. Do you know what she is in there for? It would help me to prepare before I get there. The laws there are very different than they are here.”

  “I don’t know exactly, but there is something about a missing person and they are trying to say that Meri had something to do with it.”

  “Could she?”

  Ashlyn looked offended that I had even made the wrong idea of thinking that. It was to me, one of the most obviously conclusions to come to, so I didn’t feel so wrong about it, not at all.

  “No, she is not like that at all. There is no way that she had anything to with it. Carol was her friend. They went there together. Had one last little party before they were supposed to board the plane to come home. I don’t know why they think she had anything to do with the disappearance, but she is stuck there and I need her home.”

  “That is a lot.”

  “I know Sam and I wouldn’t be asking you if I could do something more. You are the only one that I trust with something like this. Will you help me?”

  I had already decided that I would help her, long before I even knew what it was that she needed, but I was afraid she was asking for an impossible request. I don’t know how I would fix it or if I could, but I was going to try nonetheless.

  “I will see what I can do Ashlyn.” I didn’t mention how busy I was, but I did warn her that I may not be able to help. If her friend got into too big of a mess, there may be repercussions. But I was going to go to Thailand and figure out what I could do. If there was something to be done, I would bring the girl home.

  She launched into my arms and thanked me with a hug. I didn’t feel the way I usually did with a woman pressed against me like this. Ashlyn was different. She always had been. She was a beautiful woman, but she was more like one of the guys than some of my girlfriends. She saw things differently and I had never seen her so emotional. I had to know what was so special about this girl.

  “So how do you know her?”

  “We met not too long after I moved here to change my fate. I got in with the wrong people. Meri helped me out of a really bad spot and I owe her. I am always a woman that repays my debts. She would never take it before, but now she needs me and I want to do anything I can for her.”

  “Including calling in your own debts?”

  Ashlyn shook her head no. “You help me because you want to. I have told you before you don’t owe me anything Sam, but please help me.”

  I did owe her and I assured her that I would. I hoped more than anything that I was able to help her and her friend. If Ashlyn cared so much, then I was supposed to as well.

  “I will go over there and figure this out. We will have her back before you know it.”

  “I really hope so Sam. I know if anyone could help me, it would be you.”

  I wasn’t so sure, but I was sure that I was going to do my best. I left Ashlyn’s apartment and made my way home to pack. My assistant settled all of the slight arrangements that were necessary in less than an hour. I was on a redeye to Thailand. I wasn’t sure what was ahead of me, but I knew for sure that it was going to be interesting. With very few facts to go off of, at this point it was all assumptions and conjectures.

  Chapter 3

  Meri

  This was turning into a total nightmare and in my nightmare it didn’t seem to have anyone that actually spoke English in it, which made it even harder to figure out what was going on. I knew that Carol was gone, but I didn’t know why they were holding me in some cell instead of lo
oking for her.

  What’s worse was that I couldn’t make a call. This was not all like it was supposed to be. In all of the movies that I have ever watched, the person that goes to jail gets to make a phone call. This hadn’t happened. I didn’t have a lawyer, I don’t think anyways. I had several people ask me questions in the native language. I now wished more than ever that I had learned a little bit more before I had come here. I didn’t think I would be in this situation, but I should have known that something was going to happen. It really is just my kind of luck that things like this happen.

  So I waited in a cell for what felt like years, but was only a few days before things started to change. I still wasn’t sure if the change was going to be a good one or a bad one, but I did know that at least I was relieved to have someone that spoke English that I could understand. There were a few people that knew a few words, but that was mainly from TV and wasn’t consistent with any kind of real communications.

  “Miss. Ellin, I have been sent here to help you. Can you come to the bars please?”

  I was turned away from the bars, sick of the stares from everyone that passed by. When I turned around, I didn’t expect the tall American with the boyish good looks staring back at me. For a moment I had to wonder if I was seeing things. Had I fallen asleep and this was some kind of wishful thinking dream? If a lawyer did come to my rescue, he wouldn’t look like this.

  But if I was awake, I wanted to talk to someone that could understand me. I needed someone that could explain to these people that I didn’t do anything wrong or even just tell me what it was that was going on. I just wanted to know at least why I was being held and when I was going to get to leave this god forsaken place that I found myself in.

  “That’s me.”

  “I could tell since you are the only white woman in this place, although I was expecting someone different.”

  I didn’t know what he meant by that, but it felt like he was giving me a compliment in some off way. I didn’t want that. I wanted to know that he was here to get me out or at least give me some answers. I had never been so scared and frustrated in all of my life.

  “Yeah, that’s me. The stupid American stuck in Thailand prison and I don’t even know why. Are you here to help me get out?”

  “You don’t know why you are here?”

  I shrugged. “Not really. I went to a restaurant and then a club a few nights ago with my friend Carol. She was trying to stay here with Rico, but I convinced her to come back with me. We have to get out of our apartment and I am supposed to be in New York for a job. Now Carol is gone when I woke up and I haven’t seen her since. About five minutes after I woke up, the cops were surrounding the house and I was taken into custody. Nobody seems to know English and no one will tell me anything. I don’t know what I did or what I am supposed to do.”

  I let it all out and even though I didn’t think that any of it was going to help me all that much, all I could think was how much of a relief it was to get it off of my chest. I was confused, but at least I had someone that would understand me when I said something. The fact that someone else might be listening was more than I could imagine. It was that important.

  “Wow, okay, well that was a mouthful. How long have you been here?”

  “I don’t know. A week, a month? It feels like I have been here forever. I am starving and more than a little terrified of the water they want me to drink.”

  He handed me a bottle of water through the bars. “My plane just touched down, so I haven’t stopped anywhere. I will bring you some things when I have a minute. In these types of jails, the family usually brings what their loved ones need to get them through.”

  “Well I would appreciate it, but that doesn’t tell me what is going on? Please tell me that you know.”

  “You are being charged with her murder, Carol Dungee.”

  “She’s dead?” I felt like I had been hit hard, my body moving back a few steps. I had just seen her a couple of days ago. This didn’t make any sense.

  “Well they think she is, though there isn’t proof of a crime actually being committed because there is no body. Things are different here though. I tried to tell Ashlyn that before I came. I spent the flight going over some of their laws and I can tell you now that we have a long road ahead of us.”

  “Give me some good news please… What did you say your name was?”

  “Sam.”

  “Give me some good news Sam.”

  “I am here and I told our mutual friend that I would do everything I can to help you. I always keep a promise.”

  I didn’t know if he was talking pure crap or not. The man was handsome, almost too handsome to be taken seriously and I hoped more than anything that he wasn’t one of the many men that fell for Ashlyn. If that were the case, his competence may be in question, but he was as good as it was going to get. I didn’t know anything about him besides the fact that I could understand him and he could understand me. This business with Carol was going to take longer to process than anything else.

  “You need to find Rico. He was the last one with us and he was the one that Carol was seeing. I don’t know who he is, not really. We met him when we first got here and the two were inseparable the whole trip. Rico knows something.”

  He looked through some notes and told me that Rico had already given his statement to the police. “He says that the two of you were fighting about her staying. He says that you were the last one to see her alive.”

  It was just another blow and I was reeling with a dump of information. It was all too much and I grabbed the side of the bars.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I just haven’t eaten much in the last week or so. I need to sit down. Do you mind?”

  “Not at all. Let me check into my hotel and see where I can get with the local law enforcement. That will give us a better idea of why they are making this conclusion. I will also set up a deposition so that you can give your side of it. Maybe we can even get you some kind of bond or release pending the investigation. I am going to try my best to get you out of here Meri, I promise.”

  “You said that you don’t take back promises.”

  “I don’t, so when I say that, you will know that I am telling the truth. I am going to figure this out and I will be back here in a couple of hours.”

  I didn’t want him to leave. He was the only light I had seen in this particular tunnel in some time and I wanted him to stay and talk to me. I felt like I was missing that human connection. Not just that, but there was something about the man that appealed to me. Even in the midst of all of this, surrounding by such complicated circumstances, I had wanted him to stay just because I wanted to be around him. Sad, strange and even more confusing than all of the rest of the emotions running through me.

  But he left and I was left to ponder all of what he had said. I didn’t know what the charges were that kept me here, but even in my worst nightmare it wouldn’t have anything to do with killing my best friend. I didn’t even want to think about something happening to Carol. I knew that it was obvious something had happened, but I have no idea what. I knew that she was not there when I woke up, but my heart told me that Rico knew where she was and what happened to her.

  I tried to remember all that I could, but each thought left me quickly. I swear that it was because I hadn’t eaten in so long. I was just going to have to wait for my lawyer to come back. I was more worried at the minute about if I was going to get some dinner, far more than I was worried about what my legal strategy was going to be. I could only think of the short term at the moment because the long term was just too impossible to fathom.

  It felt like hours before Sam came back, but he came back. He didn’t have much good news to bring me, no easy fix as it were, but he did bring me food and at the moment I was far more interested in that, then anything else.

  The sweet talking man with the sexy smile was just going to have to wait.

  Chapter 4

  Sam

&n
bsp; She was starving. I could tell by the way she was only interested in food. So I let her eat while I talked to her jailers about her accommodations and maybe bringing some more things in there with her. The poor young woman was lying on a bed that was mainly dirt with a little bit of straw mixed in. I had a feeling that it was there to soak up the moisture as half of the ceiling was spider-webbed with cracks that I was sure would leak. It was appalling to me and it made me realize how insane it was for people back home to complain. This was no place for any human to be, let alone such a beautiful young girl.

  I wanted to know how Meri and Ashlyn knew each other. There was obviously an age difference, but I didn’t know what that meant. I didn’t know much about Meri, but she was now my client and information was power. The more I knew about Meri Ellin, the better I would be able to defend her when it came time to go to court.

  When I got back, she had tidied up the plates and wrappers. Everything was gone and I was surprised such a small woman could eat all of that so quickly.

  “Are you ready to talk to me Meri? We don’t have a lot of time. I need you to tell me everything that you remember, no matter how unrelated it may appear, that doesn’t mean that it isn’t significant in the long run, so I need it all, unedited.”

  She shrugged and told me that it wasn’t a problem. Meri was so sure of herself, but it didn’t take long into questioning to get that she wasn’t as calm and cool as she would have liked to have been. She was so focused on the guy name Rico that had popped up out of nowhere and I was inclined to think that way as well. But there was no proof on either count. It was all speculative and I was hoping that the lack of proof was what was going to get us out of this mess.

  “So what did you do after you left the club?”

  “I don’t know. I just remember dancing at the club and having a few drinks. The next thing I know, I am waking up in my bed at the hotel alone. Carol was nowhere around and I went outside to see if she was getting a morning swim before we left and there were cops everywhere. I couldn’t understand what they were saying, so I just went with them. What else was I supposed to do?”