The news came on. Ray tensed as he heard first Josephine Vanderliner’s name and description, then his own, followed by a warning that both were considered armed and dangerous. He wished he was armed as the farmer reached under his seat and pulled out a tire iron.
JOSEY WATCHED THE sun drop toward the dark outline of the Little Rockies in the distance. The spring day was hot and golden and held the promise of summer.
The prairie glowed under the heat. It was so beautiful and yet so alien. She wondered what this kind of isolation did to a person and thought of Pepper Winchester and the Hoaglands.
For the life of her she couldn’t imagine what this ranch must have been like when all the Winchesters had lived and worked here. Children running up and down the long hallways. The kitchen would have been bustling with activity, the whole ranch alive with sounds.
Josey wished she could have seen it. She sighed and looked to the road, anxious for Virginia to return from town. Earlier, she’d caught Virginia as she was leaving. The idea had come to her in a flash.
“Would you do me a huge favor?” Josey had asked her and seen the woman’s irritation. “I just need to get some money wired to my mother’s rest home.”
Virginia’s interest had picked up instantly. “Oh, honey, your mother’s in a rest home? Why, she can’t be very old. What’s wrong with her?”
“Just give me a moment to get the money and the address.” She’d run back up the stairs, telling herself this was the only way. No one knew Virginia. And it wasn’t like involving Jack. Virginia couldn’t get in trouble over this since she really was an innocent bystander.
Josey had dug through the stacks of hundreds, choosing bills free of blood. She’d already set up her mother’s transfer, planning to move her mother from the horrible rest home where her stepfather had stuck her—to one where he couldn’t find her.
Virginia’s eyebrow had shot up when she saw the wad of money.
“I wasn’t sure I could get a check cashed anywhere up here, and everything with Jack happened so fast...”
His aunt had pursed her lips in disapproval. “Marry in haste and... Well, you know.” She seemed a little upset that Josey hadn’t satisfied her curiosity about her mother.
“Here’s the address. They’re expecting the money. I can’t thank you enough for doing this.”
Virginia had left then, promising to bring her a receipt and let her know that the money had arrived.
Neither Virginia nor Jack had returned and it was getting late. Josey got more restless by the moment. Tired of watching for both of them, she turned away from the window and went into the bathroom to bathe before supper, wondering if Jack would be back by then.
Her bruises were healing. So was the rope burn on her neck. Soon she wouldn’t have to wear the scarves. But she would have to disappear. As long as she was free, her mother should be safe.
She closed her eyes as she slid down into the warm water filled with bubbles. Once her mother was safe and she was sure nothing could change, then she would deal with the fact that she was wanted for murder and she had no way to prove her innocence.
She opened her eyes and climbed out of the tub, wishing she could go to the police and just get it over with. As she toweled herself and pulled on the bathrobe, she told herself that maybe if the police knew what had happened—
No, RJ was right. She would fry, and what would happen to her mother?
She thought about the rest of the bloody money in the armoire and felt nauseous as she opened the bathroom door and stepped out. Either way, she would never see her mother again, she thought, as she looked through her clothes for something to wear to supper.
“Are you all right?”
She jumped as Jack touched her shoulder. She hadn’t heard him return.
He looked so concerned, she was filled with guilt for dragging him into this, even if it had been his idea. She’d only been thinking of herself. She hadn’t considered the spot she was putting him in.
“You scared me.”
“I’m sorry.” He sounded as if he meant it. The last of the day’s light shone on his face through the open French doors, accentuating the strong lines of his face. “Sorry about a lot of things.”
“Sorry you brought me here?” She felt a little piece of her heart break off and fall.
“No,” he said. “No, you’re wrong about that. If I’ve been distant it’s just because...” He raised his hand, signaling to her to wait a moment, then walked over and locked the bedroom door. “Enid won’t be coming back in without us knowing it,” he said, as he dragged a straight-back chair from the small desk in the corner and wedged it under the doorknob.
“Jack?” Josey said. He turned to her, and she saw the look in his eyes. She’d noticed that he seemed different after his ride. More relaxed. More like the Jack she’d met on the highway.
“You want the truth?” he asked.
She swallowed as he moved toward her.
“I think it’s time I was honest with you. I’ve been pushing you away because if I don’t...”
JOSEY’S GREEN EYES widened in alarm—and something that seemed to simmer on the back burner as he moved toward her, his gaze locked with hers.
It had always been so easy to lose himself in that sea of green. He stopped just inches from her, saw her eyes fire as he reached for her robe sash and slowly untied it.
“Do you have any idea what you’re doing?” she asked, her voice breaking.
He chuckled. “It’s been a while, but I think I remember how it goes.”
She placed her hand over his to stop him, her eyes searching his. “Jack—”
He knew all the
