Safety In Numbers Read online

  “We’re being very selective of what we let her do, but she wanted to do this, and both Libby and I like the people involved,” Clay continued.

  The conversation remained pleasant for the rest of the meal. When they were finished eating, and Smokey and Kathy were clearing the dishes, Meredith shot him a quick smile. “Go on, cowboy, get a jacket and then it’s time to introduce you to a horse.”

  After he went to his room and she went to hers, they met in the hallway, both wearing jackets for the brisk morning air.

  “I can’t believe you’re going to do this to me,” he said as they left the house and headed in the direction of the stables.

  “Oh, stop whining, Mr. FBI Agent,” she chided teasingly. “If you ride motorcycles, then a horse should be a piece of cake.”

  “A motorcycle does what you tell it to do because it doesn’t have a brain. A horse is more unpredictable.” He grinned at her, noting how the morning sunshine sparkled in her hair. “I’ll tell you what, you ever come to Kansas City I’ll get you on a motorcycle and see how comfortable you feel.”

  Her smile faltered just a tad. “I may come to Kansas City someday. As much as I love it here I don’t see my future here forever.”

  Her words surprised him. “Really? Why?”

  “For a while now I’ve had a desire to get away from Cotter Creek, find my own place in a city where nobody knows my family.”

  “What would you do?” He’d never thought that Meredith would have any desire to leave this quaint town or her family.

  “I don’t know, maybe join a police department or go into private investigation or maybe do something altogether different.”

  “You know if you ever come to Kansas City and want to apply at the police department I could put in a good word for you.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate it.” She opened the stable door, and they walked in to see a young man brushing down one of the horses. “Good morning, Brian,” she greeted.

  “Morning.” He smiled pleasantly.

  “You want to saddle up Sugarpie while I get Spooky?”

  “No problem.” He led the horse he’d been brushing back into a stall, then disappeared into another stall.

  “I’m going to ride a horse named Sugarpie?” Chase followed behind her as she walked toward her own horse. “My masculinity balks at the very thought.”

  She laughed. “Would you rather I put you on a horse named Thunder or Lightning?”

  He pretended to consider it. “Nah, I guess Sugarpie is a good choice for a first ride.”

  He watched as she got to work saddling up Spooky. They hadn’t spoken about last night, but when she’d seen him this morning there had been a secretive smile on her lips and in her eyes that had made him want to take her into his arms once again.

  She was the strongest woman he’d ever known, not just in a physical sense, for he’d seen at the dance that she could take care of herself. But she radiated a quiet strength of character that he found incredibly appealing, a strength of character he thought every previous woman in his life had lacked.

  She didn’t need him. She would be fine when he left. At least that’s what he told himself. But there were moments when he saw such vulnerability in her eyes, moments when he thought he saw love for him in those green depths.

  He didn’t want her to love him. He didn’t want to leave here knowing he left behind pain. She’d told him she had no interest in anything long-term, in anything permanent, but something about the way she looked at him, the way she touched him denied her words.

  “All set,” Brian said as he led a huge chestnut mare toward Chase.

  “Perfect timing,” Meredith replied, her horse saddled and ready to ride, as well. She led both horses out of the stable and into the corral. “The only thing you have to remember is tug left to go left, tug right to go right and pull up on the reins to stop.” She flashed him a reassuring smile. “You won’t have any problems. Sugarpie is always willing to please.”

  He watched her mount her black horse and he couldn’t help but admire how good she looked, confident and relaxed, but almost regal.

  Although Chase had never been on the back of a horse in his life, he had seen enough western movies to know how to get on one. He placed a foot in the stirrup and swung himself up and into the saddle. “Piece of cake,” he said.

  “You look good in the saddle, cowboy,” she replied, then took off.

  Chase nudged his horse in the ribs with his heels and Sugarpie responded, following Meredith at an easy pace. It took him a couple of minutes to adjust to the rhythm and sway, but by the time they hit open pasture he felt as if he was getting the hang of the motion of the animal beneath him.

  Red was right. There was nothing quite as magnificent as riding a horse with the brisk morning air whipping through your hair and filling your lungs with the scents of earth and sunshine and horse. Add to that the pleasure of watching Meredith, with her hair tossing and her eyes shining and Chase was a happy man.

  The horse seemed to know the usual path that a morning run took and Chase had to do little but hang on as they began to gallop. It was as exhilarating as a motorcycle run and when Meredith finally reined in to slow her horse, he was almost sorry to do the same.

  “Not bad for a novice,” she said as they came to a halt.

  He leaned over and patted Sugarpie’s neck. “Thanks. You were right. This is terrific.”

  “You look like a natural.”

  “It’s a piece of cake.”

  “Oh, yeah?” Her eyes lit with a hint of challenge. “Then I’ll race you to those trees.” She pointed in the distance to a thick grove of autumn-colored trees. She took off, Spooky’s hooves thundering against the ground.

  He laughed and watched her go. He wasn’t a fool. He wasn’t about to match his horse-riding skills against a woman who’d practically been born on a horse.

  He was still laughing when the crack of gunfire split the air. Almost simultaneously he felt a piercing burn in his left side. The pain blackened his sight and he was vaguely aware of casting sideways before the ground rose up and smacked him in the face.

  Chapter 11

  “Chase!” The scream ripped from Meredith as she reached for her gun, jumped off her horse and hit the ground. She pointed her gun in the direction where she thought the shot had come from but saw no movement in the trees, couldn’t find a target to defend them against.

  Her heart thundered in her chest with sickening speed as she crawled on all fours across the ground toward Chase. As she reached him he rolled onto his stomach, his gun also out and pointed in the same direction as hers.

  “I’m okay,” he told her, but she saw the grimace of pain and the sweat that beaded his brow. Fear stole through her.

  “Are you hit?” she asked. “Where? Where are you hurt?”

  “My left side.” His hand holding the gun trembled just a bit, and her fear for him intensified.

  “We’ve got to get you back to the house. Spooky…home!” she shouted. “Home, Spooky.”

  The horse whinnied as if in response to the command and took off running in the direction they’d come. Sugarpie raced after, leaving Chase and Meredith alone.

  “Are you sure that was a good idea?” he asked.

  “Hopefully somebody will see them coming home without us and will know we’re in trouble.” She had scarcely taken her gaze off the stand of trees. “I don’t see anyone.”

  “That doesn’t mean nobody is there.”

  She was heartened by the fact that his voice was still strong, that he didn’t appear to be losing consciousness. “Why would somebody want to shoot you? I thought I was the one who might be in danger.”

  “If I find out one of your overly protective brothers did this, I’m going to be pissed,” he said.

  She knew it was an attempt at humor, but she couldn’t find anything humorous about any of this.

  “Maybe somebody found out I’m FBI and think I’m too close to finding out about who is
behind the land scheme,” he said.

  She didn’t know how long they remained there, guns pointed, before she heard the familiar sound of a pickup approaching in the distance.

  Clay’s truck kicked up dust as it sped toward them. Clay drove, Kathy rode shotgun, and Smokey sat in the back, rifle ready. The truck came to a halt a few feet from where they lay and Clay got out.

  “What happened?” He reached for Meredith, but she waved him away.

  “Help Chase. He’s been shot. It came from the trees.” She pointed to the grove, and both Smokey and Kathy aimed their weapons in that direction as Clay helped Chase up off the ground.

  Meredith cried out as she saw the blood that stained his side. “Get him in the back. We need to go directly to the hospital,” she exclaimed.

  Clay put him into the pickup, and Meredith and Smokey got in next to him. Within minutes they were out of the pasture and on the road to the hospital.

  “Can you tell how bad it is?” Meredith asked. She tried to fight the terror that shivered through her as she saw how pale he was, how much pain he seemed to be in.

  He forced a thin smile to his lips. “It hurts like hell, but my heart is still beating and my lungs are still breathing, so I’m guessing it’s not life threatening.”

  Unless he bled to death before they got him to the hospital, or unless some organ had been pierced they weren’t aware of. Her head filled with all kinds of terrible things.

  Chase reached for her hand and squeezed it. “Don’t look so scared. I’m tough. It takes more than a bullet to bring me to my knees.”

  “I’d just like to know what bastard did this,” Smokey said, his expression grim.

  “That makes two of us,” Chase replied. He closed his eyes, his face more pale by the minute.

  When they reached the hospital, two orderlies whisked Chase away, and Meredith sank into a chair in the waiting room, fighting back tears. Kathy sat next to her and took her hand.

  “He’s tough,” she said. “And he was still conscious when we got here. That’s a good sign.”

  Meredith nodded. “We need to call the sheriff. We have to report this.”

  “Is it possible it was just some sort of freak hunting accident?” Kathy asked. “Maybe somebody target shooting and didn’t realize you were in the pasture?”

  Meredith frowned thoughtfully. “I suppose anything is possible. Chase thought maybe somebody knows he’s FBI and thinks he’s getting too close to naming a guilty party.” She rubbed her forehead where a headache threatened to split her skin. “Maybe Sam Rhenquist told somebody about Chase.” She kept her voice low so that Clay and Smokey couldn’t hear their conversation.

  “As soon as I know Chase is all right I’ll have a little chat with Sam,” Kathy said, a steel in her tone that Meredith had never heard before. Meredith had a feeling there were many layers to the cherub-faced, blue-eyed woman seated next to her.

  “And I’m going to call Sheriff Ramsey now. I want him here.” Meredith took her cell phone and left the waiting room. She stepped outside the small hospital entrance and punched in the number for the sheriff’s office. Molly Richmond, the dispatcher answered.

  “Molly, this is Meredith West. Is the sheriff in?” Meredith asked.

  “He left a while ago. If I was to guess, he was probably heading out for lunch then was going to sit on Highway 10. You know he loves handing out those speeding tickets.”

  “Can you contact him and tell him to come to the hospital as soon as possible?”

  “I should be able to raise him on the radio.”

  Meredith hung up and for a moment remained standing in the brilliant noon sun. The world she knew had suddenly become a dangerous place. She’d always believed that her home and the surrounding land were a safe haven where nothing bad could happen. Now that sense of security was gone.

  The moment that she’d seen Chase slide off his horse and hit the ground, the full extent of her love for him had exploded in her heart.

  She’d allowed him in where no man had ever been before and knew when he left Cotter Creek she would never quite be the same again.

  She hurried back inside to wait for news of his condition and to wait for the arrival of Sheriff Ramsey. It took two hours before Dr. Carson came out to talk to them.

  “The bullet went right through his side. The entrance and exit were both clean and it hit nothing vital, although it did bust a rib. He lost some blood and I’d like to keep him overnight. But, he was damned lucky.”

  “Can I see him?” Meredith asked.

  Dr. Carson hesitated a moment then nodded. “Room 110. He’s got some pain medication in him but he’s doing just fine.”

  Meredith turned to her family. “You all might as well go on home. Let Dad know everything is okay.”

  Clay, Smokey and Kathy left, and Meredith hurried down the hallway, eager to see for herself that he was really okay.

  The curtains in room 110 were drawn to guard against the bright sunshine, but a dim light was on above the bed. Chase’s eyes were closed, and Meredith crept silently to the chair next to the bed and sank down.

  “I don’t think I’ll be riding a horse again anytime soon,” he said without opening his eyes.

  “How did you know it was me?”

  “I smell your perfume.” He opened his eyes. and to Meredith’s surprise she began to cry.

  She hadn’t been aware that she was going to; the tears just brimmed over and a deep sob tore from her. The emotion that she’d kept in check from the moment he’d fallen off his horse until now could no longer be suppressed.

  “Hey, don’t cry. I’m okay,” he said.

  “I know, but I can’t help it.” The words came out between sobs. “I was so scared for you.”

  There was no way she could explain the horror that had gone through her when she’d heard that shot, then had seen him slide off the back of Sugarpie and hit the ground.

  She scrubbed the tears off her cheeks with the backs of her hands and drew a deep breath to get herself under control. “I’m sorry,” she exclaimed. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

  He smiled. “Don’t apologize. I’m sorry I scared you.”

  “Maybe my bodyguard needs his own bodyguard,” she said.

  The smile fell from his face. “I’d like to meet the guy who pulled that trigger.”

  “I called Sheriff Ramsey. He should be here soon, and maybe he’ll be able to get to the bottom of it,” she replied.

  Chase nodded and closed his eyes, and Meredith knew he’d fallen asleep. She remained in the chair, watching over him. She found herself wondering who had watched over him when he’d been little and had been sick? Who had nursed him through the childhood illnesses? The father who had beaten him?

  It wasn’t pity that stirred in her breast, just a sadness. Even though she hadn’t had her mother, she’d had Smokey and Red to nurse her, to stroke her forehead and fix her special treats. She’d been a lucky woman and she hadn’t realized just how lucky she’d been until this moment.

  Maybe it was time to do as Chase had said, to let her mother go. She was tilting at windmills, thinking that she could solve a crime that none of the investigating officers had been able to solve at the time it occurred.

  Chase was right. Solving the crime wouldn’t bring her mother back. Solving the crime wouldn’t fill the hole that Elizabeth West’s death had left behind. It was time to let it go and get on with her life.

  She didn’t know how long she sat there watching Chase sleep before Sheriff Ramsey arrived. She stepped out into the hall to talk to him and explain what had happened.

  “And you think the shooter was in the trees?” Ramsey asked.

  “That’s where the shot came from.”

  “Did Dr. Carson dig out a bullet? If I have a bullet I’ll know what kind of gun it came from.”

  Meredith shook her head. “The bullet made a clean exit.”

  At that moment Chase called her name, and both Meredith and Sheriff Ramsey we
nt into his room where Ramsey questioned him further.

  “I’ll need somebody to take me out there and show me exactly where it happened,” Sheriff Ramsey said. “Maybe we can find a shell casing or something that the shooter left behind.”

  “I’ll be out of here tomorrow. We’ll do it then,” Chase said. “I don’t want Meredith out there at all.”

  She started to protest, but then decided not to argue with a man who’d just been shot and was on pain meds.

  Ramsey nodded. “I’ll ask some questions around town. It’s possible some damn fool was either doing a little target shooting or hunting and didn’t realize there were people in the pasture.”

  He closed his small notebook where he had been taking notes, then tucked it into his breast pocket. “You need a ride home?” he asked Meredith.

  “No, thanks. I don’t know when I’ll be going, and when I do I’ll just call somebody at the house to come and get me.” She wasn’t ready to leave Chase.

  “Then I guess I’m finished here. I’ll call you if I find out anything.” With those words Sheriff Ramsey left.

  “I’m not going to hold my breath for a phone call,” Chase said once he had gone.

  “Kathy said she was going to talk to Rhenquist and see if he told anybody that you were FBI. Maybe she can find out something that will point a finger to a shooter.”

  “If Kathy finds out who did this before I do, then I pity the guy. If she doesn’t kill him outright, she’ll make him wish he were dead,” he replied, his voice slurring with the edges of impending sleep.

  The day passed with Chase sleeping, then awakening to talk for a few minutes with her, then him falling asleep once again.

  The nurse came in at regular intervals to take his vitals and administer medication. The phone rang occasionally as members of her family called to see how he was doing.

  Night was falling when he encouraged her to go home. “There’s nothing you can do here,” he said. “I’d feel better if I knew you were at the ranch, sleeping in your own bed instead of here.”