“And I think that cutting me out of this so late in the game is cruel and unusual punishment,” Maddie groused.
“I’m not cutting you out. I’m just utilizing our assets in the appropriate manner.”
“That is the biggest load of double-talk I’ve ever heard.”
Nick grinned. She wasn’t wrong. “Look at it this way, you could be in the best position of us all. While we’re out searching, it’s possible that Cadence could stroll through the door and fall right into your lap.”
They both knew that was a load of bunk. “I’m really mad at you, Nicky.”
“Well, I really love you.” He gave her a quick kiss and then separated. “Once this is over and we’re back home, we’ll start talking about names. I’m thinking Nick Jr. has a nice ring to it.”
Maddie rolled her eyes. “I think Thor sounds fun.”
Nick growled. “You know I hate kitschy names like that, Mad.”
“Why do you think I selected it?” She was determined to remain angry, but it was difficult given how earnest he was. Ultimately, she relented. “I’ll be fine,” she promised. “You have nothing to worry about.”
“Absolutely,” Maude agreed. “I’m in charge and I won’t let her act out.”
For some reason, the suggestion calmed Nick. “I think that’s a fabulous idea. I’ll be in touch. Just ... try not to hold onto your anger for too long. It’s not good for the baby.”
Maddie’s mouth dropped open. “I’m going to kill you.”
“I love you, too.”
NICK PAIRED WITH BOONE AND HEADED to the alley behind the saloon. Cooper and Hannah went in the other direction. The goal was to find Cadence. The first group to stumble across her was to contact the others.
Cooper and Hannah started at the top of the mountain, in the spot where the lift dropped off the guests. From there, Cooper radioed to the office at the bottom. Rick was on duty and the man picked up right away.
“What’s the traffic like?” Cooper asked, trying to keep things casual. He didn’t want to risk tipping off the staff that anything was going on. That made it far more likely that Cadence might find out they were looking for her.
“It’s light,” Rick replied. “Nobody has been up in the last hour. You said only those with the psychic group were to be allowed up the lift. I’ve turned away a few random people, explained we were closed for an event, and then gave them the discount tickets for tomorrow like you told me to.”
“That’s fine.” Cooper exchanged a quick look with Hannah. “Has anybody come down?”
“Like who?”
“Like any of the guests. Have you seen any of them leave?”
“No. Was I supposed to see someone leave?” Rick sounded alarmed. “I didn’t miss anyone, did I?”
Since Rick was the diligent sort, Cooper had to believe he would catch any departures, even if distracted. There was nowhere to hide when riding on a lift. “I’m sure you didn’t. We’re just looking for one of the psychics. We thought maybe she slipped out when nobody was looking. It seems that’s not the case, though.”
“Do you want me to shut down the lift?” Rick sounded nervous. “I mean ... would that make things easier?”
“Um ... .” Cooper tilted his head, considering. “You know what? Shut it down for now. It shouldn’t be for too long. We just want to find this woman and talk to her. It’s not a big deal.”
“No problem. I’ll shut it down now. Just radio when you want me to turn it on again.”
“We’ll definitely do that.” Cooper stowed the radio in his pocket and focused on Hannah. “I don’t think she left.”
“So where is she?”
“I don’t know. We’re going to find her, though. I want you to stick close to me until we do.”
“That doesn’t exactly sound like a hardship.”
He winked. “We’ll see just how close we can get to one another later. For now, let’s start looking. She can’t have gone far.”
BOONE AND NICK HIT THE ANIMAL PADDOCK first. Tyler was outside with his goats and an excited Jinx, who yipped and frolicked as the goats chased him around a picnic table.
“I’m not going to feel sorry for you if those goats smack you in the behind, Jinx,” Tyler called out, his back to the approaching men. He seemed to be fixated on a piece of wood, to the point where he was oblivious to everything else around him.
“Tyler, you haven’t seen any of the psychics wandering around, have you?” Boone called out.
Tyler lifted his head, seemingly surprised by the sudden invasion. “I think they’re all down that way.” He gestured toward Main Street. “I thought they were doing readings on one another or something.”
“The bulk of the psychics are there,” Boone confirmed. “We’re looking for a specific psychic, though.”
“Which one?”
“Cadence.”
Tyler’s forehead creased. “I’m not sure I know who she is. Can you describe her?”
Boone did just that, even pulling an old photo up on his phone to show it to the animal wrangler. Tyler stared at the photo for a long beat and then his face cleared.
“Oh, I know who you’re talking about,” he said, bobbing his head. “She looks a little different now, but this is the one who ran the seance the other night.”
“The one who took over the seance,” Nick corrected. “That’s her, though.”
“Um ... I saw her about an hour ago,” Tyler offered. “She was walking in front of the jail with one of the other women.”
Boone was grim. “Do you remember which woman?”
“I just know she was a brunette. I wasn’t paying attention.” Tyler was rueful. “What’s going on? You guys look as if you have an agenda.”
“We’re simply trying to find Cadence,” Boone replied. “We have a few questions for her
