Page 31 of River Ride

Sheriff’s Office. Coyote Creek.

8:00 a.m.

“Morning Billy,” said Molly. “Only you this morning? Where is everybody?”

“It seems Miss Tammy took off in the middle of the night while we were all sleeping.”

“Oh, no. I was afraid of that. She seemed so unstable when I saw her here.”

“Worse than that. She took her uniform and she’s driving the sheriff’s squad. It’s been confirmed that she crossed into Canada.”

“No.” Molly reached for a tissue. “This is so hard for Travis, and Tammy has put him through so much already. I don’t know how he’s holding together.”

“That may be a secondary problem, Molly. Hope it doesn’t happen, but we cannot rule it out.”

“I understand.”

“Billy,” Ted walked into the squad room with a coffee in his hand, “only you and me today?”

“We’re it, Ted.”

“What should I start on, boss?”

“Go back to Brian Groveman’s place down at the Pass and see what you can find. Do a search of his house. We’ve got to find that guy. He knows something about Wayne Treadway’s death, and we need to talk to him.”

“Copy, boss. I’ll go look for him.”

Steve’s Big Wheels. Lethbridge. Alberta.

8:30 a.m.

Ray and Bobby shared a table in the busy truck stop. Ray had relaxed a little after Bobby gave him a calling down about his constant worrying and they’d been getting along better.

The pretty server brought them their lumberjack breakfasts, topped up their coffee and they dug in.

“I love this Canadian syrup,” said Ray. “I could almost drink the stuff.”

Bobby laughed. “You could use a few pounds, Ray. Maybe you should take a few swallows.”

They were almost finished their second cup of coffee when a couple of Lethbridge city cops came in and sat at the counter.

Ray started to fidget, and Bobby warned him off. “Don’t do it, Ray. Coffee and donut time for those guys. Don’t spoil if for them by acting like an asshole.”

Bobby waved their girl over for another coffee refill and they stayed put until the cops left the truck stop.

Shell Service Center. Calgary. Alberta.

9:00 a.m.

Tammy had been up most of the night and she needed sleep. She checked how much cash Lucy had in her wallet and it wasn’t a lot. After she filled up the Bronco, forty dollars might not be enough to get Tammy to Sicamous to the cabin where she needed to be.

“I need to make this money last. I can’t afford to sleep in a hotel.”

Groveman Residence. Black Eagle Pass. Montana.

9:15 a.m.

Ted parked his truck in Brian Groveman’s driveway and had a look around. The place was dead quiet, and he didn’t like the feel of it.

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