Picnic in Someday Valley (Honey Creek #2)(62)

Friday





Chapter 39


Colby


Friday morning was warm for late fall, when Colby pulled off the main road and started up to Brand Rodgers’s small ranch. It wasn’t easy to find. No signs. Gravel road. Trees blocked the view along a rugged hillside. This land was far more compatible for raising horses than any kind of crop.

Colby had the coordinates, but thanks to all the overgrown vegetation along the road, he missed the entrance to Brandon’s place twice. This guy didn’t even have a mailbox. Of course, why would a ghost need a mailbox?

Once he pulled onto Rodgers’s private property, Colby had a feeling he was being watched. The place looked too perfect to be a working ranch. No ruts in the drive, no piles of junk waiting to be hauled away. Not even any horse-shit piles. It was almost like someone had taken a picture of the perfect little place to hide away from everyone and created the Rodgers Ranch.

The house was small, but well kept. The barn looked freshly painted and seemed oversized. No chickens or dogs that might interfere with surveillance paraphernalia. No overhead cable lines. A man like Brand would have electricity, cable, the Internet. All underground, of course. That couldn’t have been cheap.

Colby pulled up twenty feet from the porch and killed the engine on his Harley. The second it died, silence surrounded him. If Brand was within a mile, he’d probably heard the bike coming. This would be no surprise visit.

Colby pulled off his helmet and waited for Brand to appear. He’d thought of coming up dressed like a ranger. In truth, the Texas Rangers didn’t have an official uniform, just like the first rangers didn’t. But everyone knew today’s rangers wore tan or gray slacks, a white shirt and boots. When Colby signed on, he’d even gotten an allotment for his hat, gun belt, and western boots.

But today he came in jeans and a dark brown leather jacket. He didn’t want to make this visit official. He wanted to offer his help if Brand needed it, and he’d accept the man’s help if the ghost offered.

After last night, Colby had enjoyed the morning drive, and this place seemed a million miles from Austin.

He’d needed to clear his mind of all the mess Thursday night. A car pileup on I-35. Three vans full of drugs involved. A dozen men pumped up on pills were traveling as guards.

When he got home at two a.m., adrenaline was still running in his blood and his eye hurt like hell. It had been too late to call Piper, but he’d texted so she’d wake up to know he was still coming. It would just be a day later than he’d planned.

He’d explain when he got to Honey Creek. She had two brothers who were rangers. She’d understand it wasn’t an eight-to-five job.

He’d stick to his plan. He’d talk to Brand Rodgers first. Maybe stop by LeRoy’s office and then let Piper know he had her problem in hand.

Colby almost laughed at his plan. Nothing in law enforcement was ever that simple.

A screen door banged against the frame just as he thought about how happy Piper would be to see him.

A tall man stepped onto the porch. Blue western-cut shirt, gray vest, jeans and boots. He was big, but Colby would guess there was not an ounce of fat on the guy. If Colby hadn’t seen Brand’s face once, he still would have known the man by his stance. He moved easy, deceptively slow, like a lion in tall grass. Brand Rodgers stood still and waited. Colby had no doubt he was taking the measure of him as well.

Rodgers’s stance was wide, ready for anything coming from any angle. His eyes narrowed as he studied Colby. His face gave nothing away.

Colby swung off the bike and pulled off his gloves, leaving them with the helmet.

“Mr. Rodgers, I assume.”

“Right,” Brand answered. The man didn’t ask what he was doing on his land. He knew he’d find out soon enough.

Few men made Colby nervous, but he was staring at one who did.

He decided to be honest. “I need your help. I’m—”

“I know who you are.” Brand’s voice was low. “The state trooper who saved lives almost six months ago during a fire in Honey Creek. You and the town’s new fire chief not only got the two women out, you also caught the arsonist.”

Colby relaxed a bit. He wasn’t a complete stranger to the man. That was great news.

“You’re Colby McBride, Texas Ranger now. Congratulations. You deserved it.” Brand stepped out of the shadow of the porch. His gaze never left Colby and his next words came slow. “I met you once before, a few years back, on a back road behind a warehouse just outside of Austin.”

“Good memory, sir.” Colby walked a few steps and was glad Rodgers didn’t react. “You ended a drug war that night. I heard they recovered a hundred guns from that warehouse and almost as many bodies. Must have been some fireworks inside that tin building.”

“I wasn’t there to shoot anyone. I was there to make sure one man didn’t get killed.” Brand relaxed a bit. “One undercover cop who would go on and make twenty big-time arrests in the weeks that followed. He’s the one who ended a big operation.”

Colby smiled. The guy trusted him or he wouldn’t have given any information away. They were on the same team.

“I’ve been following your career, McBride. Nothing professional, I just keep up with the little towns around here. Word is you’re sweet on the mayor.”