SATURDAY, 9:34 A.M.
BRIDGER-TETON NATIONAL FOREST
Sweating and out of breath, Sheriff Haines paced the cave. He watched the opening. Fisted and refisted his free hand, the other gripping an oversized pistol.
“Why couldn’t you heed the warnings?” he asked. “It didn’t have to come to this. I didn’t want to hurt Charlie. She was doing just fine lost to the world. All you had to do was stop. Didn’t you think about her life? Now look what you’ve done.”
Her hands bound with plastic ties again, Willow pushed herself into the shadows and against the rocky wall as though a secret passage would open up behind her and she would simply fall through. She received pain as her reward when the wall denied her entrance. She couldn’t watch him anymore and turned her face. Where light illuminated, faded petroglyphs could be seen on the walls. Was this cave so secluded that no one had discovered it yet? He’d gone out of his way to find this hiding place.
Another guy was in the cave too. A bruise on his head, he was out cold. Sheriff Haines kept fidgeting with that Taser. She hoped he wouldn’t use it on her.
She hadn’t thought she’d find herself in this position again so soon after her experience last night, when she was freezing in the wilderness, left to face off with all manner of wild creatures. Still, that would have been better than facing off with a wild man.
One thing she knew. Sheriff Haines hadn’t been the one to carry her last night. He didn’t have a broken arm. Nor did he appear injured, even if she’d been wrong about the arm. Then who else was involved?
She just didn’t get it. Why didn’t he just kill her and be done with it?
Finished with his anguished discourse, he edged to the cave opening, stood in the shadows, and waited. All she could see from here was his silhouette. He had to be waiting for Austin to come for her. The sheriff had seen that she meant something to him. And now she wished she hadn’t allowed Austin to protect her or care for her. He probably thought he’d failed again, which would crush him after what he’d been through. But she understood—his brother had been dying. Nor did she blame him for going after Charlie.
His options had been limited.
Willow loathed tears. How she hated them, but she couldn’t stop them from streaming down her cheeks. She wanted to growl in anger, to force the tears back. But she didn’t want to draw the sheriff’s attention.
She knew Austin would be here soon and put himself in danger for her. He would follow the tracks to the hidden cave in search of her. She still wore the necklace, but he would need a signal to find her. Maybe she could do something to save herself. If she could find a rock, maybe she could approach the sheriff from behind and use it. Lift her tied hands. But the sheriff was taller than she was by several inches. He’d gotten the upper hand with Heath, a former Green Beret. What did she think she could do?
Heath . . .
God, please help Heath. Send someone to find him. Her heart said the prayer, but she struggled to believe anyone would find Heath in time to save him. He’d sacrificed himself for Charlie. Charlie! What had happened to her? Had the sheriff already disposed of her? She had to believe, to keep holding on to hope, that Charlie was okay. That they would all make it out of this alive.
Except, JT hadn’t made it out alive.
If he had lived, what would he tell her now? She struggled to recall his wise words, but they didn’t come to her. Nor did any direction from God surface in her heart.
If you could just show me a way out. Help Austin.
That’s exactly what needed to happen. Austin needed to find and save her, like he did last night. But he needed time to do that, so maybe she could help him along a little by hounding the sheriff with questions.
She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. “Why did you take Charlie all those years ago?”
His intimidating form shifted at the cave entrance, then he stomped back toward her. “I told you to keep quiet.”
“I deserve answers. And who is that guy? Just someone who got in your way?”
The sheriff crouched down to eye level, his presence formidable. Maybe she shouldn’t have asked. “You have it all wrong. I didn’t take her.”
“Then what’s this all about? If you aren’t behind Charlie’s abduction when she was a baby, then who is? Did you kill Marilee?”
“Enough with the questions. You thought you were some kind of investigator. Well, you got it all wrong.” Deep frown lines, coupled with overwhelming regret in his bloodshot eyes, made him appear ten years older. He shook his head and headed back to the cave entrance without giving her any answers.
Willow stared straight ahead. He was right. She’d failed miserably. JT never would have found himself in this situation if he had lived to come to Wyoming to follow through with finding Charlie.
The consummate puzzle solver, JT loved to fix things. Her thoughts went back to his response after one of her rage-filled moments six months after her parents had died. “If I could fix this for you, I would.” He was that kind of grandfather.
“You owe me an explanation,” she said. “My grandfather was killed because of this. He was everything to me.”
Sheriff Haines slowly turned to look back at her—the hurt and pain in his eyes more than evident. Could it be?
“I’d do just about anything for friends and family.” The sheriff’s words came back to her.
Only in this case, Heath hadn’t rated as friend or family. JT would have fixed whatever was broken in Willow’s life, if he could have. “That’s it, isn’t it? You’re doing this for someone you love. For a child, or a grandchild.”
The truth registered in his eyes, but he said nothing.
“Give it up, Haines,” Austin shouted from outside the cave. “I know what you’re up to. You can’t get away with it.”
Willow’s heart leapt with joy, but fear for Austin anchored it to the ground. “Austin, I’m inside and okay.”
Maybe her outcry had been exactly what the sheriff had wanted—otherwise he would have gagged her in addition to tying her up.
“If Heath dies because of you,” Austin said, “or if you hurt Willow, there isn’t any place on this earth where you can hide. Let her go.”
“I’ll trade her for you.”
“No! Austin, no!” she screamed. “You must know it’s a trap. He’s only going to kill us all.” Willow had no idea how Austin could get them out of this. The sheriff had the upper hand and he knew it.
She had to help. Somehow, she had to do something. Then Austin stepped into view, his hands lifted. The sheriff pointed his weapon at Austin as he entered the cave.
“What . . . what are you doing? Are you crazy?” She stared at Austin. His walking in there to give himself up was not the heroic act she had expected.
He grinned. Really? Something was funny? “I came for you. I’d think you’d show a little more gratitude.”
“He’s going to kill us,” she said.
“Shut up, both of you.”
“You can let her go now,” Austin said. “That was our deal. A trade. Remember?”
“I can’t let her go,” the sheriff said.
Austin didn’t seem to register the sheriff’s words. They hadn’t surprised him. He took in the guy still unconscious on the cave floor. “What? Are we going to wait for him to wake up before you kill us?”
“What do you mean?” Willow looked at the guy, who groaned. If what Austin said was true, they had a few precious moments and that was it.
“You’re smart,” the sheriff said. “I’ll give you that.”
“He wants it to look like this poor soul kidnapped and tried to kill us. You probably had intended that for Charlie, but she got away.”
Could it be true? That would mean Charlie was still alive.
“Even if she survived the river, if she’s out there somewhere, it’ll be her word against mine.”
“See, it was this guy all along, he wants the world to think.” Austin directed his words to Willow but kept his eyes on the sheriff. What was Austin planning? “This guy killed Marilee and tried to find and kill Charlie, but we got in the way. Once we’re all dead, there’s nobody to say it happened differently. But what I don’t get is why.”
“I think I do. I think someone was paying him to keep an eye on Charlie. If someone was close to learning the truth and finding her, then he was supposed to kill her,” Willow said. “He said he’d tried to warn us away, so he was the one who left the notes. In that way, he had hoped to save Charlie, but we didn’t heed the warnings. All this because someone he loves is in trouble. He needs money to save them.”
“I don’t owe you an explanation, but I didn’t kill Marilee. I’m sorry it had to come to this. I never intended for it to go this far, but now that it has, I have to protect my family.”
Now that was something Willow could relate to. “So you are a family man. Kids? Grandkids? What do you think they’ll think about their grandfather once they find out?”
His eyes glistened. “They won’t find out. I have to do this for them.”
“Surely no amount of money is worth murder. And Heath, he was your friend. You said he was like a son to you.”
“Desperation can make you do things you can’t imagine. Money means survival. Multiple organ transplants for a sick child when insurance has maxed out. People die waiting for their turn on the list. I would do anything for my grandson. I didn’t set out to kill anyone. I didn’t kill Charlie’s mother. I tried to warn you away from finding Charlie. Why didn’t you listen?”
“How’d you even find her?”
He scoffed. “Find her? I never lost her. I’ve been watching her for years. This is all on you. Now I’m in too deep, and have no choice but to follow through. Tanner will be taken care of now. He’ll have his whole life ahead of him.”
The weight of his words pressed against her heart. She sank to the ground. “Someone paid you. Someone is paying you to do this. Who is it? I want to know before I die.”
Hurt flickered in Austin’s eyes. She read the message there. Have a little faith.
Seriously. He would get them out of this?
“So what’s the plan?” Austin asked. “It’ll have to look like there was a struggle between me and that guy to explain the knot on his head and his concussion. Maybe I hit him and then he shoots me and I bleed out?”
Why was Austin giving the sheriff ideas about how to kill him? Willow stayed where she was on the ground. She had no idea what he was doing. He’d lost it. Really lost it. Maybe it had everything to do with the fact that he’d failed that last assignment with the FBI and it was messing with his mind now.
She couldn’t stand to watch. Couldn’t stand to see him losing his mind right before her eyes.
“He’s a good man, Willow. He’d be good for you.”
Austin had come with baggage. At the time, JT had seen past all that. What would he say if he could see them now?
“You think you’re some kind of hotshot, don’t you? That you’re going to somehow save the day.”
“I do.”
Suddenly Austin flicked out a knife and threw it at the sheriff, who fired his weapon. The knife stuck in his chest, in his heart, and he fell backward, dropping the gun.
Austin fell to the ground and Willow crawled to him. Grimacing, he sucked in a breath.
She cupped his face and peered into his eyes, hoping and praying he was still with her. “Austin, please, are you okay?”
“Yes,” he croaked out. “I wore a vest. Figured I would end up standing between you and danger.”
He crawled over to the sheriff. The man’s expression was dazed and pale, his eyes glazing over. Deputy Taggart rushed into the cave holding Heath’s rifle. “Glad I gave you my vest,” he said.
“My kids . . . my grandson,” Sheriff Haines pleaded. “Please help him get the money. I did it for him.”
“If you didn’t kill Marilee, then who did?” Austin asked.
He shrugged. “Charlie . . . didn’t have to die. If you had never found her, she could have lived.”
His eyes unfocused. He was gone. Willow shut her eyes. They still hadn’t found the connection. She’d completely missed Sheriff Haines as a possible suspect.
While Deputy Taggart used his radio to call for help, Austin cut the ties on her hands and feet and helped her stand up. He wrapped his arms around her. How many times would she end up in his arms under these kinds of circumstances? She longed for the day, for the moment, when she could be in his arms because . . . because they were meant to be. She pressed her face into his chest but only felt the hard vest that had protected him. She stepped back and looked into his eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“It hurts a bit.” He took off his shirt and removed the vest.
The man at the back of the cave stirred. His voice was gruff. “Oh man, you killed the sheriff? I would have liked to have made him suffer before he died.”
Willow eyed the guy. Had he been pretending to be unconscious? “Are you okay? And who are you, anyway?”
“Clyde. Clyde Everett. I loved Marilee. I wanted to marry her, only she had a thing for some other guy who wasn’t even from here. But all these years and she couldn’t get over him.” Clyde wobbled as he stood and reached for the wall, his voice cracking with anger. “He’d come back to town. She was going to go see him. Meet him at a motel. But someone killed her instead. And this guy, a sheriff for crying out loud, he grabbed me at my house and shocked me with that Taser, tied me up to bring me to the cave. Knocked me out again. My head is killing me now.”
“Who?” Austin asked. “Who was she going to see?”
“I don’t know his name. But if he loved her like she thought he did, he wouldn’t have left her. But if you can believe this jerk sheriff, it wasn’t him who killed her. I think he was lying.”
“I need to get back to my brother to make sure he’s okay.” Austin turned his attention to Willow. “I went looking for Charlie.”
She nodded. “But you found me.”
He weaved his hands through her hair, raw emotion pouring from his eyes. Her heart stumbled around inside—she was dizzy with what she felt for him.
“To find Heath.” She stepped back, fearing what he might say. “Let’s go get your brother.”
“You go on,” Deputy Taggart said. “I’ve called for emergency services and law enforcement. I’ll stay here with the sheriff’s body.”
“Come on, then.” Austin took her hand. “Let’s get back to Heath. We have to stay alert. Don’t forget that Charlie’s still in danger. The sheriff wasn’t the one running this show. He didn’t do this alone.”
She hated saying the words, but Austin needed to know. “Heath was alive when I left him to get gunshot wound powder,” she said. “He didn’t tell you how bad he was. I never made it back with the powder.”
Was he already dead? Would Austin blame her?