Page 138 of The Cowboy's Unshakeable Love

His mind kept going back to Ty’s girl, Shayna. The crazy bastard who’d taken her had marched her up into the mountains.

Tanner appeared in the doorway to the cabin, with Ford just behind him. “Ty told us what’s going on. What can we do?”

“We think that a woman named Jamie took her in a white Rav 4,” Trip told them.

Travis shook his head.

“No?” Trip asked. “You don’t think so?”

“Yeah, I do. But where’s she going? She’s not just taking her out for a joyride, is she? Deacon’s deputies aren’t going to just find her riding around on the highway. She … she’s going to want to get rid of her.” His voice cracked on the last few words, and Trip grasped his shoulder again.

“She’s not going to succeed though, is she?”

“And she’s not a local, right?” asked Tanner.

“No, she’s someone Retta knows from Georgia.”

Zeke was nodding. “So, where would someone who doesn’t know this valley go if they didn’t want to be found?”

Tanner shook his head. “I can’t think that way – I do know this valley.”

“I think we need to get out there and see,” said Ford. “Unless you have anything more concrete to go on, I say we test it and see. When we leave your place, some of us can go south and some go north – keep our eyes out for anything that might look like a good route to take if you wanted to …” He stopped.

Travis was glad that he didn’t finish that sentence. What would he have said? The thought that came to his mind was ‘if you wanted to get rid of a body’ – and that was a thought he wouldn’t entertain.

“Have you ever been here before?” Tanner asked Zeke.

“Not for years. I can look at it with the eyes of a stranger.”

“Do you want to come with me, then – I’ll drive?”

Zeke looked at Travis, and he nodded. “I’ll call you if we come up with something more concrete but for now, we might as well start searching blind.”

Ford looked back outside. “Wade just arrived; I’ll take him with me.”

“Thanks.”

After they’d all gone, Travis stared at Trip and Deacon. “I can’t lose her.”

“You won’t,” said Trip.

“Not going to happen,” Deacon added.

They spoke with such confidence that it gave Travis some strength. He had to have faith – in Retta, in his friends, in himself.

“I need to get out there and look – I can’t just stand around here waiting.”

“I’ll go with you,” said Trip.

“I’ll call Cash,” said Deacon. “See if there’s anything Amelia can do to track this woman down.”

~ ~ ~

Retta leaned forward and rested her head in her hands. She’d given up trying to hop a while ago. The third time she fell, she couldn’t manage to get back up. She needed to keep going, she knew that, but she needed to rest. Her head hurt so badly that it made her vision swim. She knew without a doubt that her leg was broken again.

She’d been frightened at first. She was all alone. Out here in the mountains, unable to walk. Even if she could make it back to the road, who knew how long it would be before someone came along? There wasn’t much traffic on the highways out here – a gravel road like this one might only see a car once a week.

She shuddered. She wouldn’t allow herself to think that way. She was no longer frightened. She was good and mad. She finally had the kind of life that she’d never even dared to hope for. She lived here, in this beautiful place, with her wonderful Travis. She was right on her daughter’s doorstep – closer than she’d been to her in years. They were part of each other’s lives. She was going to be a part of her new grandson’s life. She had all these wonderful new friends and the MacFarlands had welcomed her into their family.

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