Secluded With the Cowboy (13 page)

After twelve rings, Nate still hadn’t answered.

Maybe I called the wrong number
. She disconnected and dialed again.

The other-woman scenario seemed like the best bet, even though it was absurd to anyone who knew her husband. Dylan’s middle name was loyalty. He wasn’t the sort of man who messed around.

Again, no answer.

After getting all psyched up to make the call, she felt a huge let-down. What was Nate up to this time?

Nicole tried to reach Nate again half an hour later. Then every fifteen minutes for an hour after that. Her nervousness about talking to him was replaced by a different brand of panic.
Fear of the unknown
.

“What’s he doing?” She paced in front of the dining table in the condo. “He’s out there.” She jabbed emphatically toward the sliding-glass doors. “Out there. Somewhere. Wearing his black ski mask. Hiding in the shadows.”

Dylan sat on the sofa, his long legs stretched out in front of him and his hands folded behind his head. His posture was typically laid-back. He appeared to be completely unperturbed and cool. He seldom showed emotion. Never let anyone see him sweat.

His attitude drove her crazy. “Dylan!”

“Yeah?” His lips barely moved when he talked. “What is it, sweetpea?”

This situation was shaping up to be a typical argument where she was hopping mad, literally shuffling from one foot to another, pacing and frantic. And he just sat there, as still and silent as a chiseled wooden sculpture of a cowboy.

“Aren’t you worried?”

“Hell, yes.” His eyes narrowed a fraction of an inch, which—in his case—indicated a massive show of emotion.

“How can you just sit there?”

“There’s nothing I can do to make Nate answer his damn phone,” he said with little inflection. He could have been reading a shopping list. “Things are going to work out.”

“Will they?”

“Life goes on.”

She stalked toward him, knelt on the sofa beside him and stared hard into his face. They’d come a long way in their relationship, and she wasn’t about to backslide into old patterns. “I’m trying really hard not to explode like an atom bomb.”

“And I do appreciate your restraint.”

The irony in his voice irritated her. “Don’t patronize me. Please. Don’t.”

Something in her voice must have sparked a realization, because he reacted. He lowered his arms and turned toward her. His gaze met hers directly. “You think I don’t see what’s going on here, but I do. I get it.”

“Get what?”

“When you were kidnapped, I had time to think. Plenty of long painful hours when I regretted every dumb thing I’ve ever done.” He paused. “Like now. I’m not handling this right.”

“Don’t blame yourself.” They were in this dance together. “I’m at fault, too.”

“Right before you got kidnapped, when we were talking in my office—”

“Arguing,” she said.

“Arguing,” he repeated her word. “You went storming off.”

“Like I always do when I’m so mad I can’t see straight. I needed to be by myself, needed time to settle down.”

“And I didn’t stop you,” he said.

“How could you? When I get worked up, it’s hard to—”

“Nicole,” he interrupted her. “Don’t make excuses for me. I should never have let you go. I’ve been doing this for years, taking the easy way out instead of stepping up and saying what I really mean. And what I feel inside.”

“Your feelings?” She was stunned by this brand-new willingness to talk about what went on inside him. “Who are you, and what have you done with the insensitive lout I married?”

“I’m changing. Making a stab at it, anyway.” He rose from the sofa. “When I say that things are going to work out, it’s because I believe it. I believe in us. You and me and the love we have for each other. I believe that no matter what happens, we’ll always come back to each other’s arms. We’ll always be looking toward the same horizon.”

“I believe it, too.”

“I like when everything is…normal. Peaceable. When there’s no confrontation. A smooth, steady ride with no bumps in the road.” He shrugged. “I never go looking for trouble. But sometimes it finds me.”

She wasn’t sure she liked the direction this was taking. “Are you talking about me? Am I a lot of trouble?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He took her hand and pulled her off the sofa and into his arms. “But you’re worth it.”

He dropped a light kiss on her forehead, then continued, “The crazy part is that when I’m working, I ex
pect problems. There’s always something—from a lost little dogie to a drop in the market. And I work hard to set things right.”

“I’ll say.”

Running the ranch sometimes meant being at his desk or in the saddle from sunrise to sunset. Dylan never shirked his responsibilities. There were days when she had to remind him to eat or drag him away from the desk at night to get some sleep.

“I guess,” he said as he brushed a wisp of hair off her face and tucked it behind her ear, “that I need to work just as hard with you. To face up to our problems and deal with them, instead of trusting that everything will take care of itself.”

She went up on tiptoe and kissed him. “That is the most romantic thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“That’s good. Because I don’t think I’ll ever be able to write you poetry.”

“I bet you could.” She gave him an encouraging nudge. “Go ahead.”

He looked up at the ceiling for a minute, then back at her. “Here goes. Roses are red. Green is the grass. I like the look of your round, little—”

“Okay,” she said. “Maybe you’re not a poet.”

“I could get into this,” he teased. “What rhymes with
boobies
? Shoe trees? Two peas?”

With a laugh, she said, “That’s enough, Shakespeare.”

She hugged him because he’d lifted her spirits. But she stepped out of his embrace because she was still edgy. “We need to focus on the problem. Why isn’t Nate picking up when I call?”

He sauntered toward the kitchen where he poured himself another mug of coffee. “It’d be good if Nate was
more predictable. The timing is causing a problem for Burke and all the people he has ready for the ambush.”

It was snowing at the ranch, a complication for their assault team. Burke had already told her to try to push her supposed meeting with Nate to tomorrow. “I’m surprised it’s not snowing here. We’re at a higher elevation.”

“Colorado weather,” he said, dismissively. “I was thinking about how you said he heard the train whistle blow when you were talking to him. Maybe he figured out where we are.”

“How could he?”

“A person could figure out where a train is at a given point in time on-line. But that might be too high-tech for Nate.”

“He did give me a GPS tracking device. Maybe he’s getting smarter.” She didn’t really consider this dire possibility. “Even if he knew we were in Glenwood, he wouldn’t know where we were staying. We’re registered under fake names.”

He nodded. “Or Nate might not be answering because he wants to mess with your head. Throw you off balance so you’ll be more likely to give him what he wants.”

“That sounds like something he’d do.”

She pulled out a chair from the table and plunked down. With her elbows propped up, she stared at the clean, white wall of the condo. So much of her interaction with Nate had been game playing. He’d hold out a shred of hope, then snatch it away. He’d brought her water and clothing, made sure she was comfortable, then left her alone for a full twenty-four hours. Even though she knew his identity, he continued to wear a mask.

Dylan leaned down beside her and whispered in her ear. “You don’t have to face him alone. I’m here.”

And Nate didn’t know that she and Dylan had mended fences, that their relationship was stronger than ever. For once, Nicole felt that she had the advantage.

She smiled up at her husband. “Before I made the first call to Nate this morning, I was thinking about ways I could convince him that I hated you enough to let him have his vengeance on you. I tried to think of you as an abuser or a guy who messed around with other women, and it was impossible. Completely, totally impossible.”

“And?”

“You’re a good man. A good husband. I’ve got nothing to complain about.” She stroked his clean-shaven cheek. “Except for your poetry.”

She picked up her cell phone again and put in another call to Nate.

This time he answered. “You’re late. It’s almost noon.”

His voice shocked her into sudden alertness. She forced a fake cough, remembering to sound sick. “I tried earlier. You didn’t answer.”

“Make another mistake like that, and you’ll be sorry.”

She noticed that he’d dropped the whisper. His regular voice was just as ominous. “I’m ready to give you what you want.”

“Why?”

“Because I can’t live in fear anymore.” That part was true, not playacting. “You want to come face-to-face with Dylan. And I can make that happen.”

“I’m listening.”

“We need to go over to the Circle M to check on the horses,” she said. “It’s snowing too hard today. But tomorrow. Ten o’clock in the morning. We’ll be there. Just me and Dylan.”

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Was Nate considering her offer? She closed her eyes, not daring to look at Dylan. She couldn’t allow her voice to sound strong or triumphant. She needed Nate to think of her as his captive.

“And what do you expect to get out of this?”

“Your promise that you’ll leave me alone.” As if she could trust him? As if she’d believe him? “Please, Nate. I can’t sleep. I keep throwing up. Please.”

“Stop whining,” he snarled. “I don’t believe you. You wouldn’t give up your precious husband.”

“I don’t want you to kill him. Oh, God, please don’t do that. But the Carlisle family has hurt you. Maybe Dylan deserves a taste of your vengeance. He doesn’t really understand what you’ve been through.”

“What is he? A blind man?”

“What you really want from Dylan is an apology, right? You want him to ask for your forgiveness.” She remembered how Burke had told her to get Nate to agree with her. “Isn’t that right?”

“That would be a start.”

“This is your chance.” She really hoped he was buying this. “You can tell Dylan what’s wrong with him and with all the Carlisles. Then you can take off.”

“What?”

“You can walk away clean,” she said. “Forget about the Carlisles. I know you kept a good chunk of the ransom money, enough to start a new life.”

“Tomorrow,” he said. “At the Circle M. Ten o’clock.”

“Do we have a deal?”

“I’ll think about it. You’ll have my answer later today.”

He ended the call.

She opened her eyes and looked at Dylan. Even when
she was playacting, she couldn’t throw him under the bus. But Nate didn’t seem to mind. It had seemed as if he was considering her offer.

“This just might work,” she mused.

D
YLAN DIDN’T SHARE
his wife’s optimism.

Though he sure as hell didn’t consider Nate Miller to be a mastermind, he knew the man to be cunning. Dedicated hatred fueled Nate’s cleverness. All he wanted was revenge. Since he’d already defied the law and had little hope of evading charges for Nicole’s kidnapping and the murder of Lucas Mann, Nate couldn’t expect to get away clean. He had nothing to lose.

The more Dylan thought about the possibility that Nate had tracked their whereabouts using the train whistle, the more he believed they could be in imminent danger.

Nicole held a brochure in her hand. She smiled brightly at him. “These hot spring caves sound amazing. I think we should dress up like Frankie and Johnny and go there for a sauna and massage.”

“You think they’d mind if I carry my gun?”

“Most people only wear a towel.”

Much as he liked the idea of Nicole wrapped in a skimpy towel, getting all hot and sweaty, he said, “We’re not safe.”

She frowned. “Nate believed my story. He’s going to hold off until tomorrow.”

“Do you trust him?”

“No.”

“Let’s look at it another way,” he said. “If Nate comes to Glenwood looking for us, he’s got plenty of cash to bribe hotel clerks.”

“Lucky for us, we’re not staying in a hotel. He won’t
find us.” She waved the brochure. “This is a vacation destination. There are dozens of places to stay.”

In this situation, the wealth of the Carlisles was a detriment. “Carolyn made our reservations. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that we’re staying in a fairly high-end place. Right off the bat, Nate could eliminate ninety percent of the motels.”

She slapped the brochure down on the table. “What should we do?”

He picked up the automatic that was resting on the table beside the sofa and checked the clip. “Put this in your purse, grab your jacket and let’s go.”

“Back to the ranch?”

“Burke’s got things under control there,” he said. “I want to get you somewhere safe. Let’s head for Denver. I can buy you some pearl earrings to match that necklace you got last Christmas.”

“Christmas shopping?”

“You bet.”

She gave a quick nod. “Give me a minute to pack my bags.”

In his mind, he envisioned Nate creeping toward the condo, positioning himself to take a shot as soon as they showed themselves. Dylan needed to be able to move freely, didn’t want to be burdened down with suitcases. “Leave the bags. I want to get on the road.”

“I can’t.” She headed toward the bedroom. “There’s something I can’t leave behind.”

He followed her. “What’s so important?”

She flipped open the top to her larger suitcase. “Just something.”

“What?”

She whirled to face him. “Lucas Mann’s ashes.”

“That old son of a bitch is dead, and he’s still causing me problems.”

“Lucas was like family.”

Nicole threw a couple more items in her suitcase and closed it. She had no intention of leaving behind the cardboard box containing the ashes of their late foreman. She’d brought his remains, thinking they might find the perfect place to scatter them. Maybe on the top of Mount Sopris. Or in the Roaring Fork River. In any case, Lucas was with them now, and she wouldn’t leave him behind.

Dragging the suitcase, she staggered through the bedroom toward the door leading into the hallway.

With his gun in his hand, Dylan opened the door a crack and peeked outside. “Give me the damn suitcase and take the gun out of your purse.”

She resisted. “I can carry Lucas.”

“I’ve got it,” he muttered. “I wondered why this suitcase was so heavy.”

“The ashes only weigh nine or ten pounds.”

“How the hell do you know that?”

“Looked it up on the Internet.” She glanced back into the room. “Maybe I should grab the laptop.”

“We’re going,” he said. “Now.”

At the door leading from the condo building into the parking lot, Dylan paused again to scan. They ducked and ran, jumping into the car as quickly as possible.

As he turned the key in the ignition, Dylan glanced over his shoulder to the suitcase in the backseat. “Buckle up, Lucas. Wouldn’t want you getting injured in an accident.”

She peered through the windshield as Dylan drove onto the narrow, winding road leading down into town. A perfect place for an ambush. She realized that she was gripping the handle of the automatic with her finger on the trigger. Instead of putting it down, she prepared herself to shoot. Nate could be hiding amid the surrounding trees, waiting to pick his shot. He could shoot out a tire. Fire through the windshield.

Adrenaline rushed through her veins and jumpstarted her pulse. When they circled through town and finally merged onto the highway, she breathed a sigh of relief. They were on their way.

Though it was entirely possible—likely, even—that Nate was still back in Delta, she felt that they’d made the right decision. “We dodged that bullet.”

“I could be overreacting,” Dylan said. “But I’d rather be too careful than not careful enough. I almost lost you once. It’s not going to happen again.”

A light snow had started to fall, blurring the rugged landscape of rocks and trees. In the past couple of years, forest fires had taken their toll on the canyon, leaving much of the sloping hillsides barren.

The snowfall wasn’t enough to seriously impede the traffic, and Dylan handled the SUV with easy expertise.

“I guess I can put the gun away,” she said.

“For now,” he said.

“Should I call Carolyn and tell her about our change in plans?”

“Not just yet. She and Burke have their hands full with preparations for the ambush. No point in second-guessing their operation. They might still need to put it into effect. Besides, we’ve got plenty of time to make that call.”

Leaning back in the passenger seat, she turned her head and studied his strong profile. He wasn’t wearing his usual cowboy hat, and his tousled black hair fell over his forehead. His gaze focused on the road ahead.

“Are you angry?” she asked. “Because I brought Lucas along?”

“It’s kind of sweet. Crazy, but sweet. I can’t really bring myself to hate the old man.”

“Of course not. Not after all the years he worked at the ranch.”

“It’s hard for me to forgive him. But you’re right, darlin’. The good times outweigh the bad.”

Her taciturn husband was becoming a pro when it came to forgiveness. In so many ways, he was proving the depth of character that she’d always known he possessed. She felt closer to him by the minute.

They were almost to the Vail exit when the cell phone in her purse rang. She recognized the caller ID. “It’s Nate. What should I tell him?”

“Pretend that you’re still at the ranch.”

She answered, “Hello?”

“Go to the front desk at the Mount Sopris Hotel in Glenwood Springs. There’s a package waiting for Dylan Carlisle. Both of you need to be there.”

Looking at Dylan, she repeated his words. “You want me and my husband to go to the Mount Sopris Hotel in Glenwood?”

“I made a reservation in your name.”

“A reservation under the name of Carlisle?”

“Be there within the hour.”

Anger burned through her. “How the hell can I be at that hotel in an hour? Check your GPS tracker. I’m at the ranch.”

“I know where you are,” he said. “In Glenwood.”

“Not anymore.” Dylan’s instinct had been right. Nate had been on their trail, but they’d outsmarted him. “We’re long gone.”

“Turn around. Go to the Mount Sopris Hotel, pick up the package and wait for further instructions.”

“Why the hell do you think I’d do as you say?”

“To save Maud.”

“You kidnapped Maud?”

Stunned, she looked to Dylan for help. In a low voice, he said, “That’s not possible. The sheriff was protecting her. Ask him for proof.”

Into the phone, she said, “I don’t believe you.”

“Proof of life.” She could hear the sneer in his voice. “That’s supposed to be the first step in a kidnapping. Dylan learned his lessons well. But Maud can’t talk right now. She’s in the trunk of my car. You remember that, don’t you? Being tied up and breathing in the exhaust fumes?”

A sob caught in her throat, but she had to be strong for Maud’s sake. It wouldn’t do any good to break down in tears, no matter how much she hated to think of her dear friend going through the same trials she had. “I want proof.”

“Maud told me a couple of things. She lived in the town where you grew up in Wyoming—Rawlins. On your sixteenth birthday, a friend of yours hit a stray dog
with his car. You took the dog to Maud and you worked together to save the animal.”

She vividly recalled the incident. Saving that stray was one of the reasons Nicole decided to be a vet.

He continued, “Maud’s middle name is Primrose.”

Very few people knew that.

“When she was thirty-five,” he said, “she was in a bad car accident and ended up having a hysterectomy. Want me to start describing her scars?”

Nicole was convinced. “Let me talk to her.”

“In good time,” he said. “Do what I told you first. And if you contact anybody, if I see one deputy sheriff, Maud’s dead.”

“Why would you kill her? She never did anything to—”

He had already disconnected the call.

D
YLAN PULLED OFF
the highway and parked on a side street. A few minutes ago, they’d been talking about Christmas shopping. Not anymore. Nate had turned the tables, and they’d lost every advantage.

“First thing,” he said, “we’ll do everything to make sure Maud isn’t hurt.”

Nicole blinked furiously, fighting back tears. “How do we know that he hasn’t already…”

“That’s not the way he works.”

Dylan was on familiar ground—he’d already been through one kidnapping scenario with Nate. “Give me your phone.”

“Why?”

“From now on, I’ll do the talking. You don’t have to go anywhere near that crazy son of a bitch. He’s not getting his hands on you. Not again.”

“I have to respond. It has to be both of us going into the hotel. He was specific.” She rested her hand on her belly and winced, and hoped she wasn’t going to throw up again. “If I don’t do what he says, Maud will suffer.”

“He’s not after Maud. Or you.” This much, Dylan knew for sure. “Right now, I’m his target. He wants his revenge against me.”

“Do you expect me to sit back and let you walk into danger?”

“I could ask you the same question.”

“We don’t have time to argue,” she said. “We have to be at the hotel in an hour.”

“Fine,” he started the engine. “We can argue while I drive.”

Circling around, he got back on the highway. His jaw was clenched tight. His mind raced. He had to find a way to keep Nicole safe. If it came to a showdown between him and Nate, that was okay. Dylan could handle himself.

“We can’t contact the police,” she said.

“Agreed.”

“And I’m coming into the hotel with you. Understand?”

In a way, he did understand. When she’d been kidnapped, he would have given his right arm to be with her. Or to trade places with her.

“Dylan? Talk to me.”

“I’ve got nothing to say.”

“You promised you wouldn’t pull the strong, silent routine! I know there’s something going on inside your head. You’ve got to let me in.” Through her anger, he heard a pleading note. “What are you thinking? Please, tell me.”

“I don’t have a plan,” he said. “All I know is that this time, I need to be smarter. To think one step ahead of Nate.”

He took his cell phone from his pocket.

“What are you doing?” she asked. “We can’t contact anybody. He’ll hurt Maud.”

“I’m not calling the sheriff.” Sheriff Trainer had already proven himself to be incapable of protecting Maud. “But I’m not following Nate’s rules. We need backup. I don’t know how bad the snow is at the ranch, but I’m guessing this isn’t good timing for a chopper flight. I want to get Jesse and Burke on the road.”

“Bad idea.”

“You haven’t had a chance to see those two guys in action.” Burke knew the ins and outs of negotiating. He was smart and capable of arranging a complex rescue. Jesse had to be the best damn tracker Dylan had ever seen in action. Plus, he was a sharpshooter. “I’m calling.”

She shook her head. “If Nate sees them, he’ll hurt Maud.”

“The last time I dealt with Nate, here’s what happened. He set up two points of contact in two different directions. I went one way and met with you. Carolyn delivered the ransom.”

That arrangement had worked successfully for Nate. There seemed to be no reason for him to change his tactic. “He’ll probably do something like that again. Send us off in different directions.”

“He can’t do that again. He doesn’t have two other people to watch the second position.”

But he had plenty of money for a hired gun. And Nate was playing with dynamite now. There were plenty of ways he could rig a second location. “We need to be prepared. I trust Burke and Jesse to stay out of sight.”

He made the call, emphasizing to Burke that they
needed to lay low. If Nate spotted them, there was no telling how he’d react.

“The roads are bad,” Burke said, “but we’ll be there as quickly as we can.”

Dylan stared through the windshield as he continued to drive. The exit for Glenwood Springs was only a few miles ahead. “I hope we don’t run into any problem at the hotel.”

“Park as close to the entrance as you can,” Burke advised. “Have your gun ready. Once you get inside, it doesn’t seem likely that he’d shoot you in the hotel lobby.”

Dylan agreed. “He said he left a package for me.”

“Could be instructions for what he wants you to do. Hang in there, Dylan.”

“There’s something I need for you to do,” he said.

“Anything.”

“Bring my hat.”

“You got it, cowboy.”

He exited the highway. Snow had begun to accumulate on the wreaths and evergreen boughs decorating the streetlights on the main road. The old-fashioned storefronts in Glenwood Springs looked as pretty as a Christmas card. At a stoplight, Dylan scanned the faces of the few pedestrians on the sidewalks. Nate wouldn’t stand out in a crowd. He was average height and weight, probably dressed in typical western wear.

Dylan drove past the Mount Sopris Hotel, a historic building. Made of sandstone and five stories high, the hotel had been built in the early 1900s to accommodate tourists and those who came to the hot springs for their health.

“You’re not stopping,” Nicole said.

“We’ve got a little time before Nate’s deadline.” He
glanced toward her, concerned. After their brief disagreement, she’d been quiet, and that worried him. “Are you okay?”

“Been better.” She forced a brave little smile. “Do you think he’ll try anything when we’re on the street?”

Though Dylan couldn’t comprehend most of what was going in Nate’s twisted mind, he had an answer for her. “I don’t expect to get gunned down outside the hotel. Nate wants revenge, wants to make sure I suffer for all the wrongs he blames on my family. He wants to see my face before I die.”

“Oh, hell.”

“Come on, darlin’. That’s good news. Better than winding up dead on the sidewalk.”

She shuddered. “Do me a favor, Dylan. Don’t reassure me with any more supposedly good news.”

He could tell that she was getting some of her spirit back, and he was glad to see her spunky instead of scared. “We’ve still got time. I want to take you back to the condo, where you’ll be safe. You can stay there until Burke and Jesse arrive.”

“That’s not going to happen.”

“I don’t want you putting yourself in danger.”

“Well, that’s too damn bad,” she said. “Nate wanted both of us—you and me—to show up at the hotel, and I refuse to do anything that puts Maud in more danger.”

“He’s not going to hurt her. Without Maud, he loses all leverage.”

“I won’t take that chance.” The determined edge in her voice told him further argument was futile. “I’m coming with you.”

Reluctantly, he conceded. “Starting right now, I need you to do exactly what I say.”

“Absolutely.”

How the hell had this woman ever thought of herself as a coward? As far as he was concerned, she was too brave for her own good.

“When I park the car,” he said, “wait for me to come around to your side and open the door. Keep the gun in your purse but within easy reach. We’ll hustle inside fast. Are you with me so far?”

“Got it,” she said. “Then what?”

“We’ll go to the front desk. I’ll pick up the package. I’m going to open it right there.”

“Okay.”

“Then we go up to our room.”

She reached over and touched his arm. “I love you, Dylan.”

“I know.”

He pulled into a slot on the street in front of the hotel, parked and exited the car. There were too many places on the old-west street where a man with a rifle could hide. A shiver went down his spine as he imagined taking a bullet between the shoulder blades.