Page 22 of Battle Mountain

“Let’s hope it’s as easy as that,” Marybeth said. “What about the sheriff?”

“Rulon doesn’t trust him. But that doesn’t mean that I probably won’t meet with him and let him know what’s going on if I have to. It’s professional courtesy. Local law enforcement usually doesn’t like it when someone from the outside starts operating in their county. And from what the governor said, Sheriff Haswell definitely wouldn’t welcome me with open arms if I didn’t reach out to him at some point.”

“He sounds like our sheriff,” Marybeth said. Then to Kestrel: “You can’t just eat pepperoni, sweetie. You have to eat the whole slice, or at least try it.”

Kestrel sat back in frustration for a few seconds, then reluctantly reached for the pizza slice.

“While you’re gone, I might ask Sheridan to stay with me,” Marybeth said. “I can use the companionship, and she likes it when she doesn’t have to cook for herself.”

“I was going to suggest that,” Joe said.

“Plus, with not having Nate around…”

“Yes, I know,” Joe said more sharply than he intended to.

—

An hour anda half later, after Joe had secured all of the gear he thought he’d need for the mission and put it into the large toolbox in the bed of his pickup, Marybeth opened the door to the detached garage and leaned against the open doorframe with her arms crossed. She was wearing the oversized barn coat she wore to feed her horses and do other corral chores.

“You’re leaving tonight instead of tomorrow morning?”

“Yup. I thought I’d get a jump on it. This way, I can be in Warm Springs first thing in the morning.”

The town of Warm Springs was in south-central Wyoming and it was the closest village to Battle Mountain and the Sierra Madre range, where Rankin and Eisele had disappeared. The game warden station for the district was also located there.

“Are you taking Biscuit with you?”

“Nope. I’m leaving her here. She’s a better watchdog than Tubeor Bert’s Dog. I mean, as you constantly remind me, since Nate isn’t around…”

“He’s done it again, hasn’t he?” Marybeth asked.

“Who? Nate?”

“Governor Rulon. He’s put you in a tough situation, where if you succeed he can skate without anyone being aware of what might have happened, and if you fail he’ll blame you for the loss of his son-in-law.”

“That’s harsh,” Joe said. But it was partly true.

“I had a choice,” he said. “I could have said no.”

“But you didn’t because ultimately Rulon is your boss. And the boss of your boss. He could make our lives miserable if he wanted to.”

“Of course. But don’t forget how many times and ways he’s helped us out,” Joe said. “Times he didn’t have to step up.”

She said, “Promise me you’ll do what you can—but stop before you get yourself into a life-threatening situation. The governor got himself into this dilemma. It’s his problem, not yours. And not ours.”

“I’ll do my job and not cross the line,” Joe said.

“You’ve said that before.”

Joe draped his arms over the top of the wall of his pickup and looked her over. Marybeth appeared quite provocative to him, the slinky way she was framed in the doorway.

“Did you already read Kestrel a story and put her to bed?”

“Yes. She fell asleep faster than usual.”

“So we once again have the house to ourselves?”

Marybeth’s eyes widened for a beat when she realized what hewas suggesting, then she gently shook her head. “Not with a toddler down the hall, Joe.”

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