Page 5 of High Frequency

Stupid question, of course she’s not okay.

Shit, my interview. Pippa was going to watch Aspen.

“She’s a tough cookie, but I really should get her to the ER.”

“Of course. Go.”

I wave her off. I’ll have to take Aspen with me to the interview. Not the first impression I was hoping to make, but I have no choice. This is life as a parent, I just hope Junior is open-minded enough to not turn that into a strike against me.

“Take her to Sully. I just talked to him; he’s working at the ranch office today. Between him and Ama, they can watch Aspen while you go to your interview.”

Ama works at the High Meadow ranch. She wears many hats: she runs the kitchen, looks after housekeeping, does the ranch administration, and also happens to be married to one of my uncle’s teammates. I have no doubt she’s well-qualified to take care of my daughter.

Still, the idea of going to the ranch, when I’ve so carefully avoided showing my face there, is making me a little nervous.

One way or another, it looks like today might turn into a day of confessions.

Sully had agreed to put off talking to Mom for a week to give me a chance to get my shit together, and today would mark my cutoff. I’m hoping to at least have a job lined up before I’m forced to talk to her. It’s not going to be a fun conversation, regardless, but being able to show her I’m taking care of things will hopefully ease the way.

Mom never liked Jeff; thought he was a waste of space. Which, in hindsight, she was right about, although I hate to admit it. I think the fact he was nothing at all like any of the men who had been prominent in my life up to that point is what made him attractive to me.

He was different, all right. When I met him, he was working as a bartender at a pub down the block from the precinct. Good-looking, charismatic, funny, and he definitely had a way with words, singing poetry while slinging drinks. According to him, bartending was just to pay the bills while he pursued his dream of making it as a music artist.

What can I say? I ignored all the signs. Not even the fact he was forty-two and still rooming with two buddies was enough of a red flag. Granted, I had no illusions of any kind of long-term relationship, not until I found myself pregnant. Then everything changed.

At first it looked like he would step up to the plate, vowing to be there for me and our child. He moved in with me, quit his bartending job since he made less than I did as a detective for the Billings PD, and would work on his music from home while taking care of the baby.

He lasted a little over a month alone with Aspen at home. Then one day when I was at a doctor’s appointment with Aspen, he cleared out. By the time I got back, any and all evidence of Jeff was gone from the apartment. He did leave me a note, stating he was destined for greater things and parenthood was holding him back.

I don’t like admitting failure, and for all the mistakes I made in my life, putting my faith in that loser was the biggest mistake of all. There’s no doubt my mother will find a way to pry the whole sordid story from me. Pippa has been running interference for me with Sully, reminding him I’ll tell him what happened when I’m good and ready to, but I don’t think even Pippa can save me from my mother’s determination.

“There she is.”

I can’t even get through the door before Sully plucks my daughter from my arms. He must’ve been lying in wait for me.

Not a word for me, as he turns his back and carries Aspen down the hallway to the large ranch kitchen. I follow, carrying the diaper bag I quickly packed, but to my relief only Ama is in the kitchen.

“Oh, isn’t she precious,” Ama mutters, wiggling her fingers as she reaches for her. “Gimme that little nugget.”

Sully presses a kiss to Aspen’s downy head and reluctantly hands her over.

“It’s that I know you have an appointment,” Ama directs at me with a stern look. “But when you get back to pick her up, I’ll be waiting for an explanation.”

Shit. If there is anyone more single-minded than Mom, it’s probably Ama.

I’m afraid after today my poor life choices are going to be public knowledge.

Dan

“Don’t move.”

The young girl is shaking so hard, I’m surprised she hasn’t already fallen off the side of the cliff she’s desperately hanging on to twenty feet below me.

“I’ll be right down there to get you,” I promise.

I back away from the edge and grab the extra harness Wolff holds out for me, clipping it on to my belt. I plan to rappel down and hope to hell the girl hangs on long enough so I can get her hooked up.

When we got the notification from the sheriff’s office early this morning, I didn’t think we’d actually find someone out here. They’d gotten a call from a couple of hikers who’d walked down off Kenelty Mountain at the crack of dawn. The two had planned to spend the night on the mountain, but were woken up by screams in the middle of the night. When they went to investigate, they found a backpack, and spent some time looking for the person it might’ve belonged to, but without much success. So, they ended up packing their gear, grabbing the backpack, and hiking back to the trailhead from where they were able to call for help.