Cardwell Ranch Trespasser(21)
“It would be worth it, though,” she said as she heard a horse whinny out in the corrals. All this could be hers. Would be hers. She deserved Dana’s happiness. She deserved Dana’s life—minus the kids.
After getting dressed, she sneaked out and made the walk into town. It was only a couple of miles and she’d walked it before and gotten away with it. If anyone discovered her missing, she’d say she’d gone out to the corral to check the horses. She wasn’t worried. So far, they’d believed everything she told them.
* * *
THE NEXT MORNING, Colt tried to talk Hilde out of opening the shop. “Can’t you have someone else man Needles and Pins for a few weeks?”
Hilde touched his handsome face, cupping his strong jaw, and smiled into those blue eyes of his. He’d been so gentle, so loving, last night when they’d made love. At least the second time. Before that, he’d let his passion run as wild as horses in a windstorm.
Her skin still tingled from the memory. She’d never known that kind of wild abandon. Just the thought thrilled her. She’d awakened feeling as if she could conquer the world. Hadn’t she always known that she could be anything she wanted with the right man—in or out of bed?
“I am not going to let Dee or whoever she is keep me from doing what I love,” she said, as she felt the rough stubble along his strong jawline. “Especially this morning when I’m feeling so...”
He laughed. “So...?”
“Invincible.”
Colt pulled her to him and kissed her. As he drew back, he said, “I love seeing you like this, but Dee will figure out that you have her fingerprints and DNA. She isn’t going to take this lying down. You have to know that.”
She nodded. “Remember? I know what she’s capable of. And I know she isn’t finished. How long before we know who she is?” Colt had left for a while before daylight to go to the office to run Dee’s fingerprints. He had a friend at the crime lab he’d called.
“You’re counting on her fingerprints being on file. She might not have a record. Also, she might actually be Dee Anna Justice.”
Hilde knew Dee was slippery. She might have avoided getting arrested. Might never have had a job that required she be fingerprinted. She might even be who she said she was. But all Hilde could do was hope that not only was she right about Dee being an impostor—but also that the woman had had at least one run-in with the law so her prints would come up. The sooner Dee was exposed, the sooner she would be gone from the ranch.
“I just don’t want you getting your hopes up. The toothbrush was a good idea. We might be able to compare Dee’s DNA to Dana’s.”
“I should have thought to get Dana’s DNA while I was at it.”
“Don’t even think about,” he said, holding her away from him so she couldn’t avoid his gaze. “I’m serious. You have to stay away from Cardwell Ranch.”
Hilde nodded. By now Dee would have realized that her makeup and toothbrush were missing. Hopefully she was running scared.
* * *
COLT HATED THAT he had to go back down to West Yellowstone on the burglary case today. He didn’t like leaving Hilde alone.
“Can I see you for a minute?” the marshal asked, as he was getting ready to leave the office later that morning.
Colt stepped into Hud’s office.
“Close the door, please.”
He turned to close the door, worry making him anxious. Hud had always run the station in a rather informal way. Not that they all weren’t serious about their jobs. But Hud had never seen the need to throw around his weight.
“Have a sit,” he said now.
“Is something wrong?” Colt asked, afraid Hud had somehow found out that he’d sent Dee’s prints to his friend who worked at the crime lab.
“I wanted to talk to you about Hilde.” Hud shook his head. “I know, it’s not my place as your boss. Or even as your friend. But I feel I have to. Did you see her last night?”
Colt almost laughed. He figured Hud already knew that his patrol pickup had been parked in front of her house all night. News traveled fast in such a small, isolated community. Gossip was about the only excitement this time of year. It was too early for most tourists or seasonal homeowners, so things were more than a little quiet.
“Yes, I saw her,” he said, keeping his face straight.
“I’ve known Hilde for a long time. I’m concerned about her.”
“She’s been a little distraught,” Colt said. “She truly believes that Dee might be dangerous and is concerned about you and your family.”
“I gathered that,” Hud said with a curse, then studied him for a long moment. “I get the feeling you agree with her.”
“I think there is cause for concern.” He hurried on, before Hud could argue differently, knowing he was in dangerous territory. “You never laid eyes on this woman before she showed up at your door. You can’t even be sure she is who she says she is.”
“Dana sent her a certified letter that she had to sign for at her current address. And I’ve seen her identification.”
That surprised Colt. “Then you were suspicious.”
Hud sighed. “I had to be after the allegations Hilde was making. But she checks out, and Dana is enjoying her visit. She thinks Hilde is jealous. I can see that you don’t agree.”
“I’m just saying, you might want to keep an eye on her, that’s all.”
His boss looked as if there was more he wanted to say. Or more he was hoping his deputy would. But Colt held his tongue. His friend at the crime lab had promised to run the prints as quickly as he could.
Whatever the outcome, he hadn’t figured out what to do after that. Until then, there was little he could do.
“We finally got a positive identification on Rick Cameron,” Hud said, and tossed the man’s file across his desk to Colt.
He opened it, glanced at the latest entry and jerked his head up in surprise. “Richard Northland?” So he hadn’t been using his real name at all?
Hud nodded. “And before you ask, Dee had no idea he was lying about his name.”
Colt let out a laugh as he tossed the file back. “As your friend? Get Dee out of your house. As your deputy? I really should get to work.”
* * *
HILDE WAS LOST in the memory of last night with Colt as she unlocked Needles and Pins. Dinner had been magical. The lovemaking had been beyond anything she’d ever experienced. She’d been lost in a dream state all morning.
That’s why it took her a moment to realize what she was seeing.
The shop had been vandalized.
Bolts of fabric were now scattered over the floor. Displays had been toppled, and spools of thread littered the areas of the floor that weren’t covered by fabric bolts.
She fumbled her phone from her purse, her heart pounding as she realized whoever had done this could still be in the shop. That was when she noticed the back door standing open. The vandal had left a large roll of yellow rickrack trailing out the back door like the equivalent of a bread trail through the shop.
“911. What is your emergency?” she heard an operator say.
“My shop has been vandalized,” Hilde said.
“You’re calling from Big Sky?”
“Yes. Needles and Pins.”
“Is the vandal still there?”
“No. I don’t believe so.”
“Please wait outside until the marshal or one of his deputies arrive. Do you need to stay on the phone with me?”
“No. I just can’t imagine who would—” That’s when Hilde saw the scissors. Six of them. All stabbed into the top of her counter just inches from where she’d pretended to attack Dee to get the woman’s fingerprints.
* * *
“YOU LOOK TIRED,” Dana said when Dee came downstairs. “Did you sleep all right?”
“Like a baby.” Once she got into bed again. Last night’s exploits had left her exhausted. Clearly just what she’d needed since once she’d hit the sheets, she hadn’t had the nightmare again.
Dana was busy with the kids as usual. “It might be just as well that I don’t have anything planned for you today. Maybe a day just resting would do us all good.”
Dee didn’t know how the woman managed with four kids. She’d apparently just finished feeding the two oldest because she was only now clearing away their plates. She sent them off to the bathroom to wash up.
The two youngest were in some kind of contraptions that allowed them to roll around the kitchen. They’d gotten caught in a corner and one of them was hollering his head off.
Dana saved him, kneeling down to cajole him before she asked, “I made Mary and Hank pancakes, Dee. Would you like some?”
The kitchen smelled of pancakes and maple syrup. Dee heard her stomach growl. She was starved, also probably because of all the exercise she’d gotten last night. She’d been careful to stay away from any streetlights, and she was sure no one had seen her leaving and returning to the ranch.