At the Crossroads (Buckhorn, Montana #3)(48)

Culhane refused to sit and began to pace as they waited. Jerome turned the full force of his attention on Alexis, making her feel as if she were in a bright warm spotlight. His blue-eyed gaze was so intense it was almost spellbinding.

“I know the former sheriff’s deputy, but I don’t believe we’ve met,” he said.

“Alexis Brand, also former sheriff’s deputy, now bounty hunter.”

Jerome clasped his hands together as if in prayer and smiled broadly. “Bounty hunter, how wonderful! What an interesting profession.”

His phone rang. He excused himself and picked up. “Yes, thank you so much.” He hung up and said, “I’m sorry, but Jana isn’t staying with us at the moment.”

“But she was here seven years ago,” Culhane said.

“I’m afraid that isn’t public information, but I will tell you that she has been a guest of ours.”

“Guest. Her father paid you for her to stay here seven months.”

“Possibly. I would have to look at her file, but that sounds about right.”

“What was she doing here?” Culhane demanded.

“What most of the women do who come here,” Jerome said. “They rest, they rejuvenate, they contemplate their lives and heal.” He turned those eyes on Alexis again. “I wish we had more time. I’d love to hear about this bounty-hunter business you’ve just started. Can I assume you’re taking in Mr. Travis here? I understand he’s wanted for questioning in Jana’s murder. But then, I believe you, too, Ms. Brand, are now wanted for questioning as well, in another incident. Such exciting lives you two lead.”

Culhane advanced on the desk like a mountain lion about to disassemble its prey. “You didn’t call for her file, did you?” He swore. She could see that he was estimating how long it would take the law to get here. He swung away from the desk. “Come on,” he said, and they headed for the door.

“We can’t get out of here,” she said as they jumped into the pickup and he started the engine. “You know those guards have been told to detain you.”

“We’re not going out the front.” He revved the engine and backed up, heading in the opposite direction they’d come in. He took what looked like a service road, tires squealing on the pavement before the road turned to dirt and wound through the pines.

Alexis had to hang on as he took one curve after another. Ahead in the pickup’s headlights, she could see an electronic gate blocking the road. It wasn’t as fortified as the front gate, but still...

Culhane tromped on the gas. “Hang on,” he said. “I’m going to have to buy Ford a new pickup.”

But right before they reached the gate, it slid open. They raced through and up onto a two-lane highway. As he made the turn, a piece of paper fluttered to the passenger-side floorboard. Alexis reached for it, just as she heard Culhane curse.

Sitting up she followed his gaze and saw the flashing lights before she heard the siren.

“They’re looking for a man and a woman,” Culhane said as he pulled off his Stetson. “Get down.”

She quickly lay over in the seat and, taking his hat and holding it close, held her breath. The hat smelled like Culhane. She breathed it in and closed her eyes. This might be the end. No way could they outrun a cruiser in this pickup. The sound of the siren was deafening as the cab filled with the glow of the patrol’s headlight. She could imagine the officer behind the wheel studying the back of Culhane’s head. Then the siren screamed on past.

She stayed down, waiting until the wail was lost in the darkness of evening. It wasn’t be the first cruiser they’d seen nor the last, she thought. They were both wanted by the law now. She’d left the scene of a crime and was on the run, aiding and abetting a suspected killer. Her parents would be so proud, she thought grimly and wondered how long before they heard that their daughter was now a wanted woman.

Alexis leaned over to pick up the scrap of paper that had fluttered to the floor. As she unfolded it, she read what had been hurriedly scrawled on it. She showed it to Culhane. “Appears you have a friend at Lost Sunset Ranch.”

CULHANE READ THE short note. I can help you. April. Followed by a phone number. He looked over at Alexis. “April was one of the young women we checked on one of the other times I went to the ranch. I wondered at the time why someone who seemed to have it all together like she did was living there.”

“You think she’s working undercover?” she asked.

He feared that might be the case. She hadn’t seemed like the others he’d come across out there. She hadn’t seemed lost. She’d seemed smart, observant, capable. He just hoped she knew what she was doing.

After putting some distance between them and the ranch, Culhane took a back road south, then pulled onto the shoulder and made the call.

“You’re looking for Jana, right?” April asked on the fifth ring. He got the impression that she hadn’t picked up until she was in a safe place away from the others. He was surprised that she had a cell phone. He thought that was something they weren’t allowed to have.

“Yes. Is she staying there again?”

“No. But I’ll call you back. It might be late.”

“That’s fine.” He disconnected. “April’s checking her file. In the meantime, I’m beat. Let’s get a motel for the night.” He could see he wasn’t going to get an argument out of Alexis. Even with her earlier nap, she looked as tired as he felt.