High Stakes Crime: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (Shelby Nichols Adventure Book 15)

by Colleen Helme

  With all of that taken care of, Ian set up a small camp stove and heated up some water for our dinners. After the water was hot, each of us chose a meal and found a place to sit and eat. Our conversation turned to the mine and the area Stewart wanted to look first. He pointed eastward toward a rocky ridge. “I think it’s got to be in that area. There are a lot of places with crevices that could lead into a mine.”

  “So is the gold in a cave or a mine?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “I’m not really sure, but I think it started out as a cave before they began to mine it. What I do know is that the entrance is near a rocky ridge.” He was also thinking there was a rock formation in the shape of a man that was on the south side of the area. If he could find that, he’d know which ridge to search.

  With our dinner consumed, Ian showed us how to fold up the remains of the pouch, then passed around a garbage bag for disposal. Being a newbie to backpacking, I hadn’t realized that everything we’d carried in would also have to be carried out.

  I took a seat on a log beside Uncle Joey, who’d been enjoying the silence of the setting. I picked up that he was glad he’d come, and was thinking that this was a nice break. Now that he could see how vast the mountain range was, he didn’t hold out much hope of finding any gold, but he could understand the draw of getting away from everything for a day or two.

  “It is peaceful here,” I agreed. “And quiet.”

  Ramos had stowed his backpack in Uncle Joey’s tent, and now he disappeared inside. He came out a moment later, wearing a sweatshirt and carrying the bag holding his hammock. Opening it up, he pulled out the hammock and began to tie it between two trees. Since he’d helped me set up my tent, helping him was only fair, so I hurried to his side.

  “I have to admit that this looks comfortable.”

  “Yeah. I thought it would be nice.” He finished tying the knots and sent me a challenging smile. “You want to be the first to try it out?”

  When he put it like that, how could I resist? “Sure.”

  He held it for me while I sat down. Before I got settled, he scrunched in beside me. With his heavier weight, I slid on top of him, and sprawled across his lap. I tried to push away and just made it worse. With our weight unevenly balanced, we tilted back a little too far, and the hammock flipped us out onto the ground.

  Lucky for me, I fell on top of Ramos, but my elbow jabbed him in the stomach. He let out an ‘oof’ and grabbed my upper arms while I fought to get off of him. Somehow, I ended up straddling him, which alarmed me even more. He hissed, and I struggled even harder.

  “Hold still,” he groaned. I stopped struggling, and he rolled to his side, pushing me off of him. I heard loud cursing coming from his mind, but it was drowned out by Billie and Uncle Joey’s laughter. Ian and Stewart soon joined them.

  Mortified, I scrambled to my feet and glanced down at Ramos, who looked like he was dying. “Are you okay?” I crouched down to touch his arm, and he held a hand up in surrender.

  “Just give me a second.” He clenched his jaw like he was in pain, but his mind was shuttered, so I didn’t know what was wrong. My gaze wandered a little lower, and my eyes widened. Holy hell. I thought I’d elbowed him in the stomach!

  “Shelby.” His low growl did something to my stomach, and I jerked my gaze back to his.

  “Uh… sorry about that.” Before I could stop, a laugh burst out of me. I covered my mouth with both hands, and laughed even harder. Ramos sat up, and I could see murder in his eyes. Worried, I got to my feet and backed away.

  Unfortunately, I tripped over a limb and lost my balance, tipping backwards onto my butt. Ramos slowly stood over me, and my eyes wandered downward again. Holy hell. Oops. Why did I keep doing that?

  He caught me looking, and I jumped to my feet, beating a hasty retreat to my tent. By then, everyone had calmed down, and I got busy brushing the dirt from my pants like nothing was wrong.

  Billie came to my side, still giggling a little. “That was hilarious. You should have seen it. I wish I had caught that on video so I could see it again and again.”

  I shook my head. Thank goodness she hadn’t. It was already bad enough as it was. The light was beginning to fade, with only a little time left before it got full dark. “Do you have a flashlight on you?”

  “No,” she answered. “It’s in the tent. Didn’t you bring one?”

  “Yeah… I just thought… I’ll get mine, and we can visit the latrine together.” I crawled into the tent and found my flashlight. Pointedly ignoring Ramos, I took Billie’s arm, and we left to take care of business.

  When we came back, it was almost full dark, and Stewart and Ian were stowing all the supplies for the night. Ramos had his hammock all set up with his sleeping bag inside and netting over the top. Heaving a sigh, I had to admit that it looked pretty cozy.

  Billie told everyone goodnight and slipped inside our tent, leaving Ramos and Uncle Joey waiting for me. Uncle Joey motioned me to follow him until we were out of earshot of the others. “Well? Anything we need to know before we retire for the night?”

  “Just one thing. Stewart was thinking about a journal entry where Jeremiah mentioned a rock formation in the shape of a man, sitting beside the ridge where the mine is located. So we should watch for that. I still think he wants to keep us away from finding the mine before he does, so we need to keep a close eye on where he goes tomorrow.”

  “That’s good to know. Thanks Shelby. I’m going to bed. Let’s hope we can all get a good sleep tonight.” Uncle Joey ambled back to his tent and crawled inside, thinking that the hike had tired him out more than he liked to admit. At least he had the tent to himself, and he hoped the air pad and sleeping bag were comfortable.

  “He’s amazing. Does he work out?”

  Ramos nodded. “He has a personal trainer.”

  “Oh.” I chuckled and shook my head. “Of course he does.” I glanced up at the dark sky, and my breath caught. “Wow. Look at all those stars.” Through the trees, the view was amazing. Wanting to see more, I stepped away from our campsite, closer to the hill.

  Ramos followed behind, and we climbed all the way up to the top of the ridge. From here, our view was unobstructed, and the whole sky was a mess of stars. We watched them in silence for a minute or two, and I found my neck had started to stiffen.

  “Want to sit down?” he asked me.

  “We might as well. I don’t think my pants can get any dirtier.”

  He cleared a spot with his foot, and we both sat on the hard ground. Ramos inched closer to me and leaned back on his hands. I held the back of my neck, to relieve some of the tension, and kept my gaze on the sky, hoping to see a shooting star.

  “Why don’t you lean your head against me for a minute?”

  I wasn’t sure that was a good idea, but the temptation was too much, so I scooted closer and leaned against him, letting my head rest on his shoulder. I stifled a groan and let out a sigh. “That’s better.”

  He rested his cheek on the top of my head, and I caught his familiar scent. Relaxing against him, I felt the peace and silence of the moment wrap around us like a warm blanket. Two shooting stars blazed across the sky, one right after the other.

  My breath caught. “Did you see that?”

  “Yeah. This view is amazing. I can see why people might like to go camping.” He was thinking it wasn’t so bad, but maybe that was because I was here with him.

  A cool breeze blew across me, and I shivered. He wrapped his arm around me and tugged me close. “Better?”

  I nodded, knowing I shouldn’t be sitting here like this, but not quite ready to leave. “Have you ever been camping?”

  “Sure. I’ve been camping, but not backpacking like this.”

  I chuckled. “I haven’t either. This is a whole new kind of camping. I’ve never been so far away from everything. It’s crazy how quiet it is.”

  “Yeah, and you don’t see stars like that in the city. I can even make out the Milky Way. Can you see it?�
�

  “You’re right. We’re lucky the moon’s not up yet.”

  Ramos nodded and rested his cheek against the top of my head.

  It was so tempting to turn around in his arms and lose myself in him. He smelled so good, and he was… I caught my breath and pulled away. “Uh… I’d better go.”

  “Stay,” Ramos said. “Just for another minute or two.” The longing in his voice caught at my heart, and I hesitated. Knowing I wasn’t convinced, he continued. “Nothing’s going to happen. Even if you wanted to kiss me, I wouldn’t fall for it.”

  His teasing tone brought a smile to my lips. “Okay. But only until the next shooting star.” I relaxed against his shoulder and he tightened his arm around me.

  His cheek rested on my head again, and I felt his smile as he spoke. “I don’t know if I can sit here that long… but whatever.”

  My lips quirked up, and we sat in silence for a few more minutes. I soaked in this rare moment between us, knowing it couldn’t last, but enjoying it just the same.

  A sudden rustling noise came from behind us, and my heart jumped. I let out a little yelp and scrambled to my feet. “Did you hear that?”

  Ramos chuckled. “I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.”

  “Ha, ha. What if it’s a bear? Are there really bears up here? I mean… there must be with that bear canister they have back at camp, right?” I backed up and nearly tripped on a rock.

  Ramos jumped to his feet and caught my arm. “I’m sure it’s not a bear. If anything, it’s a cat… a big cat.”

  Even though he was teasing me, I didn’t like it. “That’s not helping.”

  Ramos switched on his flashlight and we started down the hill. I stumbled, and he wrapped his arm around my waist, holding me tightly so I wouldn’t fall. After making it back to our camp in one piece, we stopped in front of my tent, and he dropped his arm.

  “You sure you don’t want to sleep in the hammock with me?”

  I chuckled. “Uh… not with our track record. But thanks anyway.”

  I crouched next to the zipper on my tent and tugged at it. After a few yanks, it still didn’t budge. Ramos let out a deep sigh, and knelt beside me, thinking that I couldn’t seem to manage without him, no matter how hard I tried.

  It must mean that I really wanted him tonight, even though I didn’t want to admit it, and this was my way of keeping him close for as long as possible.

  “I think the zipper’s just stuck,” I whispered.

  He snorted and held the bottom of the zipper with one hand and tugged up with the other. It opened right up.

  Damn, how did he do that?

  “Goodnight Shelby.”

  “Night.” I quickly stepped inside and pulled the zipper back down. He disappeared from view, and I sat down to slip off my hiking shoes. Leaving them by the entrance, I crawled onto my sleeping bag. It was too dark to see if Billie was asleep, so I took off my hoodie and pants in the darkness before climbing inside my bag.

  Using my hoodie for a pillow, I nestled in deep and tried to get comfortable. The air pad wasn’t as soft as a mattress, but it was lots better than the hard ground. Giving in to the exhaustion of the day, I turned on my side and promptly fell asleep.

  CHAPTER 11

  Sounds outside the tent woke me, and I sat up, surprised that I’d slept so well. I stretched, feeling the pain of every stiff muscle in my body.

  A groan sounded beside me, and Billie pushed her sleeping bag away from her face. “Is it morning?”

  “Yeah.” I checked my watch. “It’s just after seven.” The cold morning air sent me back under the covers.

  “Ugh.” Billie sat up and pushed her hair away from her eyes. She searched for her pants and began to get dressed.

  After she left the tent, I braved the cold and did the same. Donning a fresh shirt, I slapped on some deodorant and slipped my hoodie back on. My shoes and a double pair of socks came last. Before leaving, I found a comb to run through my hair and pulled it into a ponytail. Finally ready, I could hardly wait to get out of the tent where I could stand up straight.

  Emerging into the brisk air, I joined the others near Ian and Stewart’s tent. The sun peeked over the Eastern mountain ridge and began to warm the air. We spoke quietly while eating our breakfast bars. Most of us had slept well, and I picked up that Uncle Joey was enjoying the solitude. If he could stop thinking about all the work he had to do at home, he could relax and enjoy it more.

  After washing up at the stream, we drank our fill of purified water and refilled our bottles. Ian handed out bags of trail mix, granola bars, and dried fruit to take with us. He also passed out headlamps and told us to bring our flashlights. I put everything in my small backpack along with the first-aid kit, sunscreen, and other essentials that I’d brought.

  Before we left, I glanced at Stewart, knowing it was time to put my plan into action. “Before we go, can I look at the map again?”

  Stewart frowned, but shrugged and reached into his inner jacket pocket. As he did, I noticed a small, worn book tucked behind it. Was that Jeremiah’s journal? He opened the map, and we all crowded around him to see it better. He turned so the map was oriented in the same direction as our position and pointed to the east.

  “That’s where the ridges are with the crevices I spoke about yesterday. That’s where we’ll go first.”

  Just as I thought, the place he was more interested in was further away. He began to close up the map, but I stopped him. “Wait. What’s this area right here?” I pointed at the ravine he’d wanted to keep secret.

  His brows rose, and he swallowed. “It’s a little further than I think we need to go.” He wondered if I’d overheard his conversation with Ian, since that was the only reason I’d be interested in that place.

  “I think we should go there first. I don’t know what it is, but I have a feeling that’s where we need to start.”

  “A feeling?” Ian asked. “What are you talking about?”

  “Shelby’s a psychic,” Billie said. “She gets premonitions about things. If she says we need to start there, then I agree with her.”

  This was the first time Stewart and Ian had heard about my psychic abilities, and they stared at me in shock.

  I shrugged. “It’s true, but you know what would really help me out?”

  Neither of them spoke, so I continued, “Jeramiah’s journal. Old things like that usually have a latent energy about them that can help me pick up more information. Did you happen to bring it along?”

  Stewart’s mouth worked before any sound came out. He didn’t want to show me, but since I was staring right at it, he didn’t have much of a choice. “Yes. I did. It’s right here.” He stuck his hand inside his inner jacket pocket and pulled out the journal. “Do you need to touch it or something?”

  “That would help.”

  Resigned, he handed it over. The leather-bound book was small, more like an old address book of some kind. The brown leather was stained and worn, with yellowed pages inside. I held it in my hands for a few seconds before opening it up. “Where’s the map?”

  Stewart huffed. “On the last couple of pages, but be careful, they’re fragile.”

  I turned to the map and studied it to find any resemblance to the actual map Stewart had just showed us. I couldn’t make out a thing. The writing on the other side of the page was hard to read, but I caught a couple of words in a sentence about rocks.

  A slight breeze, carrying the subtle scent of mint, caressed my cheek, and my eyes widened. Had anyone else smelled it? I glanced at the faces surrounding me, but none of them seemed to notice. A breeze coming from the direction of the mountain ridge carried the scent again, only this time it was stronger and hit me straight in the face. “I think you’re right. We need to head that way.” I nodded toward the mountain ridge.

  Stewart pursed his lips, thinking that I’d looked surprised for a minute, like I’d really gotten something, but it could all be an act. Since that was the same direction he�
��d already told us to go, he thought it likely. He reached his hand out for the book, but I shook my head. “Can I keep it a little longer?”

  He let out a sigh, so I continued. “I’ll keep it safe. I promise.”

  “Fine.”

  “Thanks.” I tucked it into a pocket on my backpack and zipped it shut.

  With his lips pressed together, Stewart took the lead, and Ian followed behind him. Billie came next, and I followed her, with Uncle Joey and Ramos bringing up the rear.

  Ramos wondered if I was really getting something from the journal. Now that he knew I sometimes heard dead people, he wouldn’t rule it out unless I said so. I slowed my step until both he and Uncle Joey were within earshot. “It’s true, I’m getting something.”

  They both nodded, and we continued on our journey. The smell of sage and mint came and went, but it never let up, sending a thrill of excitement through me. Maybe Stewart had it right after all? We kept to the trail Stewart set and continued deeper into the mountains.

  An hour later, we were at the base of a ridge. We split up, staying within earshot, to look for crevices or spaces that we could explore. Stewart and Ian both looked for a rock formation that looked like a man, and Uncle Joey and Ramos did the same.

  I glanced at Billie. “Do you see a rock that looks like a man sitting down?”

  Her brows crinkled. “No. Why?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know for sure, but I think it might be a sign to tell us where to go.”

  Both Stewart and Ian were close enough to hear me, and they froze. How did I know that? Maybe I really was psychic? If that was the case, maybe I could actually find it. But where would that leave them? They’d have to share it with us, and they didn’t want to do that. Still, it was a catch-twenty-two, since they might not find it at all without me.

  Then it hit me. I’d lost the scent of mint. Did that mean we’d gone too far? I turned in a circle and sniffed the air, catching a fleeting scent as I faced north. “I think we should go in that direction.”

  Stewart’s brows rose. That was the direction for the gulch he’d wanted to explore. Resigned, he nodded, and we all headed that way. We came upon some thick vegetation and tried to find a path through, but it was too dense, so we ended up turning back the way we’d come to go around.