At the Crossroads (Buckhorn, Montana #3)(62)
The first thing she did was make a run for it, and she tripped and fell face-first into the snow. He went after her, hauled her up and sighed.
Somehow, he got her off the mountain and into his pickup. Seriously, now what was he going to do with her?
He started the engine and prayed that Alexis was somewhere warm and safe and that he would get her back.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
ALEXIS WORKED A hole into the thick, itchy fabric, widening it with her chin until she could breathe. She lay back, sucking in the fresh air, before trying to force her head through the opening. The fabric tore, and she shoved her head out and managed to push herself into a sitting position, her back against the wall.
Looking around, she took in her surroundings. She was in a room without any furnishings other than the mattress under her. Through a small window over her head, she could barely make out the lower part of a tree in darkness outside. Basement, just as she’d thought. There was nothing on the white walls. Her guess was that it was a new house that was still in the construction stage and she was in a basement bedroom. Earlier, she’d thought that she smelled fresh sawdust. Other than that, she had no idea where she was or how much time had passed.
Sitting there, she listened but heard nothing at first except the lower murmur of voices in the next room. At the sound of footfalls headed her way, she quickly ducked herself back into the fabric and rolled over on her side on the mattress, her back to the door.
She heard the door open. Holding her breath, she listened, knowing whoever was in the doorway was also listening. Then the door slowly closed. She heard it click shut but didn’t move until she heard it being locked again.
“I think she’s asleep,” Deputy Terrance Cline said just outside the door. “How long do we have to stay here with her?” A mumbled response and then, “If it’s going to be all night, then I’m getting some sleep.”
She sat up again, coming up through the hole. As she tried to force her shoulders through the fabric, she could feel the straps binding her arms at her side slip a little. If she could just wriggle out...
But then what? She lay in the darkness. Her struggles to free herself and the past two days were taking their toll, but now that she could breathe freely, she felt better. She fought her bindings a while longer, before exhaustion got the better of her.
CULHANE HAD GOTTEN away, but now he didn’t know where to go. Garwood had Alexis. He thought about the faux-gem necklace. Garwood needed it—just as he needed Jana. Because of that, he wouldn’t hurt Alexis.
Unless it was already too late.
When his phone rang, he felt his heart bump against his ribs. Garwood with another deal? He’d half hoped it would be. He was ready to take any deal just to get Alexis back. He needed to hear her voice. He desperately needed to know that she was alive. He tried to hide his disappointment as he took the call. “Al?”
“I’ve got something. Not sure how much it might help. I kept wondering how Jana had gotten involved in all this and why the burglaries were happening in broad daylight. Jana was a housekeeper up at Big Sky. She had the run of a lot of expensive houses.”
What a gold mine for a kleptomaniac, Culhane thought, wondering what else she’d taken. Knickknacks, things that hadn’t been missed? There were just two things he needed to know. “Did she work for Atwater? And do you still have that soundproof music room in your house?”
Forty minutes later, Culhane was on his way to Big Sky sans Jana. She was locked in Al’s music room.
The drive up the Gallatin Canyon to Big Sky took longer because of the winter traffic. He remembered a time when it hadn’t been this busy. But that was before the ski resorts became so popular and the town grew and more people built homes and condos in the shadow of Lone Peak.
He’d found Atwater’s address on his phone. The problem was the Atwaters lived in an exclusive, gated community—much like Lost Sunset Ranch. Culhane drove up the paved road and stopped at the guard gate. Only one guard came out as if they’d recognized the faded Cardwell Ranch printed on the side of the pickup. Everyone in Big Sky knew Dana Cardwell Savage and the former marshal, Hud Savage.
“Who are you here to see?” the guard asked and checked the clipboard in his hands.
“Mr. Atwater, but he isn’t expecting me. I found something of his that I believe belongs to his wife.” The guard looked at him quizzically. “My name’s Culhane Travis.”
Culhane watched the guard go back into the booth and make the call. It was late. Snow drifted down through the darkness, the flakes like fairy lights in the glow of the guard station. He felt the darkness and cold soul-deep, his emotions swinging from an aching fear for Alexis to a murderous rage toward Garwood. He’d gotten into law enforcement because, like Alexis, he’d believed in right and wrong. Justice, he’d known, was much more elusive, but it was something to strive for. Working for Garwood, he’d become disillusioned. He couldn’t see himself ever going back to it.
“Mr. Atwater said for you to leave whatever it is here at the gate.”
He shook his head. He’d been expecting as much. “If he doesn’t want it...” He started to shift the pickup into Reverse, but the guard stopped him, just as he knew he would.
“In that case, take this. I’ve marked the Atwood estate on the map.”
Estate, Culhane thought as the gate slid aside and he drove into one of the most exclusive clubs. He’d heard a person had to put up millions of dollars before they could be considered. Famous names were often thrown around as to who lived behind these walls. He could see mansions tucked back in the pines as he drove.