“Coal-fired,” the rancher said. “Coal trains come down from Gillette.”
Suddenly, Robert was talking to Stenko again. He said excitedly, “Dad, we might have just found it. We might have just found your way to salvation. It’s a miracle because there it is out there, right when and where we need it.”
Stenko had no idea what Robert was talking about. He didn’t care. He wondered if he would last the night.
“How long has that single headlight been behind us?” Robert asked the rancher.
“Since Lusk,” the rancher said.
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Why should I? You think the sheriff is chasin’ us on a motorcycle? Is that what you think?”
“You know, I don’t have any problem putting a bullet in your brain. You’re a damned rancher. You’re as much of a problem to the planet as my dad. I think you’re both useless.”
The rancher said nothing.
Robert said, “Take that exit. I want to check something out.”
29
JOE ENTERED THE RECEPTION AREA AFTER HIS DISCUSSION with Coon and strode over to Marybeth where she sat in an armchair. She looked up expectantly, and he squatted down beside her. Both Sheridan and Lucy were asleep on vinyl couches, and he didn’t want to wake them up if he could help it.
His voice was soft but urgent. “Coon managed to track the location of my cell phone. Nate is just about to enter the town of Rangeland from the north.”
Marybeth said, “Rangeland? What’s in Rangeland?”
“Other than Stenko and Robert, I don’t know.”
“That’s enough, isn’t it?”
He nodded. “I’m going with them. They’re getting their helicopter ready at the airport, and we’re leaving in five minutes.”
“Any idea how long you’ll be gone?”
He shook his head. “I’m not sure. But I think this will all be over soon.”
She reached out and touched his cheek with her fingertips and glided them over his stubble. He knew she was thinking of Janie Doe when she said, “I hope Stenko can help us. When I think of that poor girl in there, I want to cry. It’s like she’s no one. No name, no anything. We’ve got to find out who she is, Joe.”
“Maybe Stenko . . .” he said.
“Let’s hope so.”
“Have the doctors said anything more?”
She pursed her lips. “I talked to one of them a few minutes ago. He said there’s been some brain activity, but it’s sporadic. She may or may not regain consciousness.”
Joe waited a beat while the significance of what Marybeth said gained hold. “Ever?” he asked.
“Maybe,” she said. “It’s possible she might come out of it. It’s happened before, I guess. This is where doctors become observers instead of experts—they’re hoping for a miracle just like we are. But he said there’s nothing they can do other than keep a close eye on her.”
Joe stood. “Maybe you should take the girls to a hotel. They shouldn’t be sleeping here.”
“I’ll wait a while,” she said. “In case Janie wakes up. But yes, I’ll find a place near here and get the girls a decent place to sleep.”
He put his hand behind her head and gently pulled her toward him and kissed her. He wasn’t sure what to say.
“Let me know as soon as you find out something,” she said.
“I will,” he said. “You, too.”
On the way out of the room, Joe lightly brushed Sheridan and Lucy with his hand so as not to wake them.
But Sheridan opened her eyes. She said, “You’re leaving without me?”
“Yes.”
She blinked back sudden tears.
Said Joe, “We make a good team. You were great, darling.”
“But you’re leaving me behind.”
“This time, yes.” He said, trying not to look over at Marybeth, who was no doubt watching the exchange with concern.
Sheridan turned away and stared out the window into the dark.
Joe squeezed her shoulder as he left.
THE LAST TIME he’d been in a helicopter, Joe recalled, was when he was doing an elk trend count north of Buffalo. The experience had been harrowing and he’d been violently airsick, much to the amusement of the contract pilot who, he thought,
