Page 43 of Calder Country

It was for the best, Mason told himself as he eased her away from him. Her eyes were moist, her lips softly swollen from their kisses. Something in her look told him that this would have to be goodbye. Mason couldn’t argue with that. Seeing her again wouldn’t do her any favors. As men went, he wasn’t much better than Leo Colucci.

“I need to go,” she muttered.

“Yes, you do.” He fought the urge to pull her into his arms again. “No need for words. What happened . . . happened. But if you’re smart, you’ll get into that plane and fly away. Go to another town, another state, anywhere but back to this life and that man.”

She shook her head. “I can’t. There are things you don’t know. Obligations I have. My father—” She broke off, as if she’d been about to reveal too much.

“Your father is dead, Ruby. He would want you safe.”

“Yes. But that can’t be helped. Goodbye, Mason.”

She climbed into the cockpit and donned her helmet and goggles. Without being asked, Mason spun the propeller to spark the engine, then stepped back as she taxied the plane to the far end of the landing strip and turned it around.

As the sun rose above the mountains, the plane soared into the sky. Mason watched its flight until it vanished into the clouds. For a moment he allowed himself to imagine a different future—Ruby at his side, no bootlegging, no Colucci, no secrets, just a simple, happy life, raising a family on the ranch. But that would never happen. He had broken too many laws. So had Ruby. Sooner or later, there would be a price to pay. Maybe they were already paying it.

If there had ever been a chance for them, it had passed them by.

* * *

For Ruby, the delivery to Mason’s ranch had been the final run at the end of a grueling five days. Colucci would be returning next week. Meanwhile, she had earned some time off. As the driver let her off behind the Olive Hotel, she was already looking ahead to a room service meal, a hot bath, and a long night’s sleep. But first she needed to contact Agent Hargrave.

After climbing the back stairs to her room, she tossed her purse and her travel bag onto the bed. Had anyone seen her come in? Could one of the maids be watching for her, ready to report her movements to Colucci? She needed to make a phone call, and she didn’t want to do it from her own room.

Slipping out of the room again, she locked the door, pocketed the key, and walked to the far end of the hall. Most of the doors were closed, but a few vacant rooms had been left open for cleaning. After checking the corridor again, she stepped into the nearest one and picked up the receiver on the phone. The operator connected her with the number she requested.

The voice that answered after several rings was Hargrave’s.

“Is that you, Mrs. Weaver?” He never called her by her first name. “Are you on a safe phone line?”

“I’m in a vacant room of the hotel. It’s as safe as I’m going to find.”

“And you’ve made your deliveries on schedule?” He always asked her that question.

“Yes. The new plane—the DH-4—is wonderful.” She gave him a list of her customers by location, including Mason’s ranch, which was no secret. Hargrave had never told her what the agents did with the information she gave them. She was kept in the dark about their activities. It made sense that they didn’t trust her. Still, given the risks she took, she found it annoying that they didn’t keep her better informed.

That didn’t stop Ruby from wanting to know more. Today, with Colucci at a safe distance, she felt bold enough to speak up.

“How long do you expect me to keep working for you, with nothing to show for it? I don’t know if I’ve helped you at all. I don’t see anybody being arrested or any business being stopped because of what I’ve passed on.”

Hargrave sighed. “That’s because you don’t see the whole picture. We could keep shutting down those small operations forever. More would just take their place. But you’re giving us a pattern. We can use that pattern as evidence, to catch the man we call the Big Fish—the man running the whole illegal bootleg show in Montana.”

“But who is he? If it’s Leo Colucci, I can tell you everything you need to know. You can have him arrested when he steps off the train from Chicago.”

“Colucci’s small stuff. But he’s a link. We’re giving him plenty of line in the hope that he’ll lead us to the Big Fish.”

“What about Al Capone? Is he big enough?”

Hargrave’s laugh was humorless. “Capone’s out of our league. He’s got his fingers in more pies than you can imagine. So far, thanks to his lawyers, he’s been too smart to get nailed. But we’ve got our best agents on him in Chicago. The bastard will get what’s coming to him—it’s just a question of when.”

“I see.” Ruby took a deep breath. “One more question. What about my father? Is he all right? Will I get to see him, or even talk with him on the phone?”

“Not now. Any kind of communication with him would be too risky. But the warden reports he’s doing fine. His health is good. He gets along with the other prisoners. He’s even made a few friends.”

Friends. The word, which should have cheered her, struck Ruby with an unexplained chill.

“What friends?” she demanded. “I understood he wouldn’t be housed with other prisoners.”

“It’s nothing to be concerned about, Mrs. Weaver. Your father wouldn’t be happy sitting around alone, doing nothing. He’s been helping out in the prison library. The warden reports that he’s doing an excellent job.”

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