Bethany thought about the events of the day while she packed her big crew bag with the clothes from her trailer. She added some of the sexier outfits. She would try to tone them down once she had space to work on them.
She took the deed out of its hiding spot under her mattress. She wanted to leave it with the trailer but wanted it to be where nobody would think to look, and the mattress was too obvious. It was far more important than cash, but more difficult to hide. She walked around her trailer looking for the perfect hiding spot. Finally, she decided the tube that held the hose used to dump the sewer and grey water tanks would be a perfect spot.
At the Bailey house, a petite grey-haired woman about seventy in glasses answered Bethany’s knock. “Hi, you must be Lil, I’m Beth. Did Ida explain that I would be coming by today with the rent and some of my stuff?” She smiled at the cute senior.
“Oh yes, my dear. Ida is out back, picking the last of the tomatoes from her garden in her greenhouse.” She pointed down the hall toward the back door. “She told me we had the back rooms rented. Nice to meet you.” Lil opened the door wide enough to let Bethany enter with her large crew bag while she held out her hand to greet her. “Do you need help with that bag? Is there anything I can take for you?” she asked politely.
Bethany looked at the petite woman. “No ma’am, I can handle this easily. This is the only bag today; I’ll have a smaller bag tomorrow, along with some groceries,” she told the lady. “Let me take it up to the room and I’ll have the rent for you. Do you have a key for me?” She moved past Lil with the bag and headed for the stairs.
“Yes, you put your bag up in the room and I’ll get the rental agreement and the key for you. Month to month, right?” Lil was moving behind her and went straight as she turned up the stairs.
Bethany dropped her bag onto the bed. She pulled out her folded items and put them into the chest of drawers. She carefully hung up the nicer blouses and her two skirts. She’d brought several pair of Sketchers and one pair of dress shoes. She doubted she would get a chance to wear them, but they looked good in the closet. She would alternate wearing her cowboy boots and her sketchers at the store, so her feet would be more comfortable. She decided using the pocket of her pants in the drawer was a safe spot for her cash. She took out five hundred dollar bills and three twenties and headed down stairs.
She found Lil waiting for her at the bottom. “I don’t climb the stairs unless it’s absolutely necessary any more. Best not to risk a fall. Here’s the rental agreement. Sign it after you read it, and if you have the first and last month’s rent, I’ll give you a receipt.” Lil passed her a single-page document and a pen as she spoke.
Bethany handed her the five hundred dollar bills and stuck the twenties into her pocket. She glanced at the document and signed the bottom. “This should make it all legal,” she said. “This is so convenient to work that I may walk most of the time.” She passed the agreement back to Lil.
“Here’s your receipt and the keys. The square one is for the front door; the round one is for your room. We keep an extra for your room in case you lose that, but we charge you five dollars to remake it for you.” Lil handed her the keys and the receipt.
She took them and continued down the hall. “I’ll be back after work tomorrow. I want to spend tonight with my friends at the Ranch. They’ve been so nice and they’re boarding my horses.” She waved as she walked to her truck.
She found the local taco stand and enjoyed three crisp shells filled with spicy meat before she headed back for the Guest Ranch. She grabbed her book and went to her room without seeing anyone. She was ready for some peace and quiet. She would find Marcia and Matt after dinner.
She sat at the desk to begin reading. Gray had some valid points in his book, but not much to help Bethany with her confidence problem. However, it was a good read and there was a lot to remember about relationships, especially how to approach and work through them. She still needed to know how to accept or shun a compliment.
She’d gotten some decent advice when she Googled Flirting online at the library. The most important bit was to have an “exit strategy” in case she discovered the male was not one she wanted to attract. There was also good information about making eye contact and the casual touch during a conversation with a man you wanted to keep around. Considering the shock when she and Roger had touched today, she could verify that was a valid point. Touching was nice. So now, she had some information on how the sexy, confident redhead would act and an idea or two on how to escape if the man wasn’t what she was expecting. She felt better. She would work on her sexy clothes tomorrow after work to see if she could learn how to carry off the look without blushing.
She glanced at the clock and discovered it was after eight already. She went in search of Marcia and Matt, hoping that they were still in the lobby or great room watching TV and socializing. After her research, she felt better about the possibility of running into other guests and their appraising looks. So long as they remained polite, they could look all day long.
“Marcia, I was hoping to find you out here in the lobby, but I’m sorry that you are working at this time of the evening,” she sympathized with her friend. “Listen, I want to thank you and Matt for all you’ve done. I’m out of here early tomorrow, but I’ll be back to ride and check on the horses,” she told her. “It’s not that long to the 75 up in Wyoming. I’ll take Coup there, and Harley will go too--gives Coup company,” Bethany explained.
“Hi Beth. The hunters missed ogling you at dinner.” Marcia gave her a wicked grin with that one. “I think they’re all out in the spa if you want to join them; they’ll make room for you.” She laughed at her own comment. “Matt and I aren’t planning on going to Wyoming.”
“Do you plan to go to that Spaghetti Feed and Bazaar this weekend?” Bethany asked her. “I was thinking it would be a good way to get to know everyone.” She smiled at the thought.
“Yeah, Matt and I’ll be there. Let’s sit together if we can,” she said. “Food starts at six. We’ll look for you during the day and see you at the Pavilion if we don’t connect before.”
“Okay, if not before, I’ll see you on Saturday at the Bazaar.” She waved at her friend and headed back to her room. She wanted to soak, but she didn’t want to encourage the hunters, those men were just short of rude the day before. She decided to enjoy a glass of wine in her room and a soak in the bathtub. She poured a glass of wine while she ran the water ran for her bath. Lowering her body into the hot water forced a hiss that turned into a sigh from her lips. Closing her eyes, she let the cares of the day slip away. The wine was cold and the water hot; a girl didn’t need much more than that.
She lay back and thought of the people she’d met and seen today. The cowboys were cute with their natural shyness and good manners. Samuel Cole was an ass, but that didn’t make him a murderer. It did move him to the top of her list. Roger was sweet and his touch exciting, but that didn’t make him innocent of all wrong; it just moved him down the list. Who else would gain at Richards’s death?
Lily’s brother Phil ran the ranch for Roger while he was at college and in the military. He might be a wild card in all of this. As far as she’d found out, those were the key players and none above suspicion. She might meet Phil at the Bazaar. Tomorrow she’d need to let the Ladies’ Auxiliary know she wanted a ticket. Norman would know how to reach them.
Even with her brain buzzing from the steam, the wine, and all the unanswered questions, she almost fell asleep in the tub. However, the water got cool quickly forcing her to climb out and into bed, certain that she would be awake for another hour or two going over everything.
“What??” She sat up at the sound of her alarm. She remembered nothing beyond climbing into bed, but it was six and time to get up. So much for an expected sleepless night, she’d slept like a baby. She turned off the alarm, got ready for work, put her clothes, makeup and toiletries into her crew bag, and then walked around the room making certain she left nothing behind. Satisfied, she went to the lobby for a cup of coffee and a doughnut. The hunters were there. “Hi, Beth, come over and have some breakfast with us. You know it’s the most important meal of the day and we could use something nice to look at. Help our digestion.” They all laughed at the sally.
“Thanks guys, but I have to get to work. Have a good day hunting, be safe.” She smiled, waved at them, took her coffee and left for work. She might be early, but she would rather hang out with Norman than the hunters. She felt that she’d handled that well and it was a good way to start the day.
She arrived at work and the store was quiet. “Hi, Norman. Looks like the rush hasn’t started yet. How’d it go with Samuel Cole yesterday?” she asked. “Did you tell him you’re going to dock my pay for not meeting his high standards of service?” She smiled at Norman as she put her purse behind the counter.
“That old bastard, excuse my language but he drives me to it, nothing could make him happy yesterday.” Norman frowned at the memory. “He must have a boil on his butt or something. You could’ve taken his order; there was nothing special to it. He just wanted to create havoc. It makes his day.” With every statement, Norman sprayed and cleaned the counter. She wondered that there was a surface left.
“Hey, Henry at the library told me about the Bazaar on Saturday,” she said. “Will I be getting off in time for it? Sounds like fun.” She was walking around the store straightening merchandise on shelves and noting what needed to be refilled as she spoke.
“Oh, we close at noon on Saturday. The ranchers and cowboys are done shopping by then, no need to stay open,” Norman said. “You’ll have plenty of time. Marge from the Ladies Auxiliary should be by today. It’ll make her day to sell you a ticket.” He chuckled at the thought. “It’ll be a feather in her cap if she does. That’ll make the Bazaar media page; hope they can make enough spaghetti for all the cowboys who’ll suddenly develop a hunger for it.” Norman laughed at the thought. “I don’t know, though, our business might go down next week if they all get to meet you on Saturday. Maybe I need to keep you busy here doing inventory or something.” She couldn’t tell if he was serious until she caught the twinkle in his eyes.
“Are you trying to save me, the cowboys, or sales?” she asked him. “At the rate it’s been going, by Saturday, they’ll have all been in here for fly spray, so you won’t miss many sales.” She continued moving around the store as she smiled at Norman. He really was a sweet old man. His wife spoiled him, but he deserved every bit of it.
With the coming and going of customers, the morning flew by. Norman helped her with the more difficult orders, but most were easy enough to take and put into the register.
“Look smart, here comes Marge and she looks determined. Nice her to death, okay? If you don’t, Helen will fire both barrels at me tonight.” Norman was watching a stout woman in a modest dress and hat approach the store almost in a quickstep as he spoke.
“Norman, what’s this I hear about you having a new employee?” the matron called to him across the store. “I couldn’t believe my ears when Helen told me that you had a woman taking Suzie’s place while she’s out having her daughter.” The woman came to a stop in front of Norman and ran out of words at the same moment.
“Marge, I was going to call you. Beth’s heard about the Bazaar and wants to come and eat on Saturday,” he assured the matron. “She gets off work at noon, so she has the rest of the day to spend there before dinner at six. Marge, I’d like you to meet Beth. She’s new in town.” He’d motioned Bethany over as he spoke, and Marge turned to face her.
“So nice to meet you, Marge, Norman has told me that you are the force behind the Auxiliary’s Bazaar this year. I can’t wait to see it.” She held out her hand to the older woman, smiling her friendliest smile as she did so.
Marge, with the wind out of her sails, carefully looked her over before holding out her hand to be shaken. “Nice to meet you. The tickets are six dollars and that covers both entrance to the Bazaar and the All You Can Eat dinner,” she informed Bethany. “Do you need tickets for your family, or only for you?”
Bethany felt Marge was about as subtle as a steamroller. “I just need one for me, thank you. I have no family in Colorado.” She took six dollars from her pocket and offered it to Marge.
“Well, you should know that this town is like one big family and we like to have new members.” She smiled warmly at Bethany, thinking of several bachelors who might now come to the dinner. “Will you be coming to church on Sunday?” Her look got speculative with the question.
“Riverview has such a lovely church; I do believe I’ll be there on Sunday.” She smiled at her again.
“Well, that’s settled. Here’s your ticket, don’t lose it. See you on Saturday.” Marge marched out with more energy than she’d marched in, but stopped just outside to pull out her cell phone and text someone a message.
Norman laughed at her. “I didn’t figure the old bat knew how to use one of those things; guess it proves you’re never too old to learn.”
Bethany joined his laughter and watched Marge use her thumbs for a full two minutes. Must have been some message she sent. As she was watching Marge, a vehicle on Main caught her eye. A black SUV. She stepped farther back into the store. Maybe it belonged to a local, maybe they were just scouting around the Meadows place, maybe it had nothing at all to do with her; she hoped.
Bethany tried not to panic but thought of her truck parked out back. Did they get the plate number when they visited the Ride Camp? If so, she needed to change that tag, and quickly. “Norman, you have a collection of old license plates in the warehouse. Can I borrow one?” she asked. “I know it won’t be legal, but I want to put it on my truck as a joke on the Bailey sisters, see if they notice the age of the tag--you know, from long ago,” she lied. “They’re so sweet and nosy as all get-out. This might just confuse them for a day or two. I’ll keep my current plate in the cab with me in case I get questioned.”
“Sure, take whichever one you want. The girls should recognize any of them, but they may take a day or two to register the difference.” Norman smiled at the idea of playing with them over this.
She watched the SUV park in front of the diner; the kidnappers got out and went inside. Damn. She went to the warehouse and chose a plate from the collection that most closely resembled the current license plates for Colorado. It was from the sixties, but she didn’t think it would draw the eye to the date, so long as the overall color and numbers were close to the current plates. She grabbed a screwdriver, took the plate out and quickly changed it for the one on her truck. Then she put the current plate under the passenger seat.
Her mind was racing as she wondered if she could have done something that drew them to this area. The R-M Ranch was here, and so was Roger; maybe they were trying to find him. Maybe they wanted to watch Roger’s mail in case Richard had mailed the deed before he was captured. They wouldn’t know that Richard was paranoid about everyone who might gain from the deed. Mostly the Cole family, but his own family was not above suspicion either.
She watched the SUV while she worked and saw the killers come out of the diner almost an hour later. They must’ve eaten lunch. She watched them drive off and then saw the SUV on Main twice more in the next fifteen minutes. They must be cruising the side streets looking for her rig. If they came in here, she would have to brazen out the meeting. She’d changed a lot since she bumped into them in Monte Vista.
She’d no more gotten that thought into her head when the SUV parked in front of the Co-Op and the taller man got out and walked into the store. “Hi, I think I’m lost. I’m looking for the R-M Ranch and can’t remember which way it is from town. Can you help me?” The killer had walked up to the counter where Norman was just finishing with a customer.
“Well, the R-M is to the east out of town. Are they expecting you? You might want to call first. Ranchers are in and out all day.” Norman was vague about the location of both the ranch and the owner.
“Thanks, we’ll take our chances. We want to look at some stock,” he told the old man. “Also, do you know of any endurance riders around here? I compete back East and would like to connect with other competitors in the area while I’m out here.” The killer was sounding a little too casual in his questioning. She wanted to hide but stood her ground back in the tack section where she’d positioned herself. Close to the back door, but still close enough to the front to watch the SUV and hear the conversation.
“You asking about motorcycle riders? If so, check with Jimmy at the gas station; he might have information on all the bike riders in the area. I don’t know any, sorry.” She was proud that Norman had a great poker face when he was lying. She could have hugged him.
“No, old man; I’m asking about horseback riders. You know, long distance racing?” The killer’s voice betrayed his impatience. “Why would I stop at a feed store to ask about motorcycles? Are you certain there aren’t any around here?” His look of disgust at Norman’s ignorance was an insult in itself. Even if Norman had wanted to be helpful, that look and attitude just cost the killer any assistance.
“Nope, sorry. Now if you’re done with the forty questions, I have work to do. Have a good day.” Norman turned his back on the man and began rearranging the shelf behind the register.
The kidnapper stalked out of the store and got into the SUV, slamming the door as he did so. She once more was able to breathe. Bethany hadn’t realized that she’d been holding her breath but she drew in a huge breath and let it out slowly in an effort to get her heart back to a normal rhythm.
“You do know they were looking for me, don’t you?” She had to talk to Norman about the men hunting for her.
“Yes, I got a text from Betty at the diner that these guys were real nosy and asking about any new women in the area, as well as asking about the R-M,” he said; eying her with some suspicion. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”
She paled at the statement about them quizzing Betty. “Did she tell them I was here and working for you?” She asked. “Any of the town folk I’ve met could give them information about me working here; is that why they stopped here?” She was suddenly worried that she would need to move on before she brought trouble to the nice people in Riverview.
“No, Betty sized them up before they even sat down. No way would she have given them the time of day, much less told them about you or Roger.” Norman snorted at the idea. “We take care of our own in this town,” he stated. “Those boys reek of trouble; no one’ll help them, not even for money.” Norman reassured Bethany that she would be safe here, where the inhabitants were more like family than neighbors. “I sent them the wrong direction for the R-M; hopefully they will spend an hour or more figuring out that I had my East and West confused.” He smiled at the thought of them driving east looking for the ranch that was located five miles west of town. “As I said, we take care of our own. I’m texting Roger that strangers are looking for his spread so that he can post men at the house in case those idiots find the ranch.”
“Norman, I need to tell you that Richard Meadows is dead. I saw those guys kill him,” she confessed. “They don’t know how much I saw, but they want me out of the way because they think I saw something. I think they already killed the other witness, but I have no proof of it.” Bethany frowned. “I can’t go to the cops, because I don’t know who paid them and whoever it is may have a lot of pull; I could easily disappear.” She shook her head. “I won’t put you in danger by telling you everything.” Bethany was close to tears. “Please, please don’t tell Roger about his father. I don’t want him in danger, either. Let’s just wait and see what happens with those guys,” she pleaded. “If they clear out, great, maybe the danger is past and the rest of the story can be told. If they stay around, maybe we can find out who paid them. Do you think you can keep quiet for a few days?”
“No wonder you went so pale when that man came in. Good thing he didn’t notice you.” Norman patted her back. “That’s how I knew for certain that I wasn’t going to give him any straight answers to his questions. I trust Betty’s judgment, but she can be paranoid sometimes. But the look on your face for that split second when he came in showed terror.” Norman covered Bethany’s hand with his own gnarled one. “We can wait if you wish, but trust me, Roger was an Army Ranger, and he can take care of himself. Several of his hands served with him in Afghanistan; none of them are strangers to guns and trouble.” He assured her.
She felt a surge of relief with this information; if Roger wasn’t involved, he might need to fight for his place. Someone wanted it badly enough to kill his father over the deed. “Thanks Norman,” she said. “If things don’t clear up in a week, we’ll go to Roger together and I’ll tell him the entire story.” She smiled at the old man.
They dropped the subject. At lunch, she drove her truck down to the Baileys’ and took her remaining items up to her rooms. She left her truck at the boarding house and decided to walk the two blocks back to work. It was a beautiful late summer-early fall afternoon. The stream of curious cowboys had all but dried up. Either they had all been in, or the remainder expected to see her at the Bazaar on Saturday.
She saw the SUV drive through town once more from the east headed west. It had taken them about two hours to head west looking for the R-M. Bethany hoped that Roger had gotten the text and was posting guards around his ranch. She wanted to go riding when she got off work, but decided it would be safer to go the next morning. She cleared it with Norman that she would be late to work but be there in time for his lunch and would stay to close at seven.
Bethany was putting on her sweater to leave when she heard a familiar voice. “What did those guys looking for my place look like?” Roger walked in asking Norman about the incident.
Bethany walked over to them. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but I’ve seen them before. They drive a black late model SUV, an Escalade, I think,” she told him. “I’ve seen them twice before. I’m not certain who they are, but they look dangerous.” She continued, “One is about your height and weight, all muscle. The other is older, about five foot ten and wiry rather than well-muscled. Does that help you at all? We were surprised they asked about the location of your ranch.” Bethany knew that she should have left rather than become part of this conversation, but she wanted to watch Roger to see if his face revealed any knowledge of the men or their mission.
“Well, they either didn’t find my place or decided not to visit me after all,” he said. “I’m not advertising any stock or machinery for sale, so I don’t know how they heard of the ranch.” His confusion was in his voice as well as his face. “Spring calves don’t sell for another month, and they go to the auction. I wonder what they wanted with me?” Roger seemed to be thinking aloud as he spoke. His eyes were looking at the wall, concentration etched in his expressive face. “The boys and I’ll keep a look out. If those men were looking for a place to burglarize or rob, they might have picked the wrong victim.” His smile was grim. “I hear they were also asking about endurance riders. Think I’ll call Matt later and let him and Marcia know these guys may visit them, too.”
Bethany drew a sharp breath at that thought. Matt and Marcia would tell Roger her story about the ex that wanted her rig; she decided to tell him part of the truth. “Matt and Marcia know about these guys. They helped me get my rig up here by switching trailers to throw these men off my trail,” she told him. “They think it was my ex, but these men are after me for something I witnessed,” she confessed. “I have no clue why they want the R-M.” Bethany felt immediately guilty about the partial truth; it was part lie, too.
All three turned at the sound of the door opening. A tall stranger in a suit entered, looking around, walked directly up to them reaching for something in his inner suit pocket.
“Excuse me, my name is Agent Braden Sparks and I need to find the R-M Ranch.” The newcomer pulled out a leather wallet, flipped it open and flashed the credentials at them, flipped the badge closed, and put it back in his pocket all in one smooth move. “I’m with the FBI; would one of you direct me to the ranch?”