Page 6 of Silos and Sabotage

Almost immediately, sirens started blaring in the distance. It was one of the perks of living in a small town like Heart Lake. Not only did they experience few medical emergencies, the paramedics didn’t have far to drive when it happened.

Gage waved his fingers beneath the nose of the woman in his arms to make sure she was still breathing. She was, but just barely. He muttered a prayer for her to hang on until help arrived. It had been a while since he’d performed CPR on anyone. He’d greatly prefer to leave that up to the medical professionals.

As the ambulance sirens wailed closer, he took a rapid inventory of what was sitting on the table in front of them. Besides the stack of menus and the usual collection of condiments, there was only a single glass of water and a small bowl of lemon wedges resting there. Unsure if he was looking at a crime scene, he made a mental note to gather everything he could from the table and take it with him. That way, the forensics team at the local PD or one of his friends at the medical lab downtown could run some tests on them.

Maybe he was jumping to conclusions too quickly, but his gut was telling him not to rule out the possibility that a dirtbag like Billy Bob Bolander might’ve dumped something inside the unconscious woman’s water glass. Gage had never laid eyes on him before. But according to local gossip, he was the black sheep of the hallowed Bolanders. Gage couldn’t have cared less who he was related to. A person’s pedigree didn’t give them the right to mistreat a woman the way he’d been doing.

None of which explained how she’d known Gage’s name or why she’d been looking for him. She wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. Or any other jewelry, for that matter. No watch. No sunglasses. No handbag. She’d been remarkably stripped down for a woman.

The ambulance careened into the parking lot, flashing its lights and screaming its sirens. Then the sirens stopped. Moments later, a pair of paramedics rushed through the cracked glass door, wheeling a stretcher between them.

While they loaded the pale woman onto the stretcher and placed an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose, he reached for the napkin she’d discarded and tore it in half. He used the two pieces to lift her glass of water and the bowl of lemons.

Casey watched him, snorting in disgust. “Really, Gage? I appreciate what you’re doing for that woman, but that doesn’t change the fact that you chased away one of our best customers. And now you’re taking our glassware with you, too?”

“It’s evidence.” He gaped in astonishment at her. “Add it to my bill if you want.” This was the first time he’d ever seen the teen without a smile on her face.

“No, it’s okay,” she mumbled, looking uncomfortable as she turned away from him. “You’re one of our best customers, too, Gage.”

Too?He stared after her, trying to tamp down on his anger. “I can’t believe you just lumped me and that piece of scum in the same category.” There was a distinct possibility that the guy was the whole reason a woman was currently being loaded into an ambulance outside.

“I wasn’t referring to Billy Bob precisely. I haven’t seen him in a coon’s age.” Casey rolled her eyes as she moved around the preparation counter and returned with a box of plastic wrap. She tore off two squares and helped him seal them over the water glass and bowl of lemon wedges. “I meant the Bolanders, in general. His dad and older brother like to stop in now and then.”

Gage grunted. “For your sake, I hope they’re nothing like the Bolander who just left skid marks in your parking lot.” They certainly weren’t very friendly to newcomers in town. Gage could vouch for that. He’d been trying for ten straight months to get an audience with one of them. So far, they’d failed to return any of his calls or emails.

“Nope. They’re a lot nicer, and they tip well.” She blew out a breath as she moved back behind the counter. “That said, they’re not the kind of folks we’d want any trouble with.”

It almost sounded like she was afraid of them. Gage tucked that bit of information away for later. He found it odd that he’d been in town for nearly ten months before meeting his first Bolander, though he’d been trying his hardest to do exactly that. He’d driven past the big Bolander & Sons sign above the entrance to their ranch dozens of times. He’d even counted their silver grain silos dotting the fields along the highway on the way into town. There were eighteen of them, six less than the twenty-four stone and concrete silos of their biggest competitor on the other side of the road, Radcliffe Industries.

“About the woman in the ambulance…” He caught Casey’s eye again. “Did she give you her name?”

“Nope.” She plunged her hands into the sudsy sink in front of her and started washing glasses. “All she did was order water and breakfast that she’s clearly not going to eat.” She pointed one damp finger at the plate on the warming tray behind her. “It’s too bad. She looked like she could use a meal.”

Gage agreed with her assessment, but he didn’t have time to keep chatting. He hurried after the woman on the stretcher with the glass of water and bowl of lemons in hand. “I’ll follow you to the medical center,” he hollered to the paramedic who was sliding behind the wheel of the ambulance. There was no way he was heading home until he figured out how the Jane Doe they were transporting to the medical center knew his name and why she’d been looking for him.

The driver nodded without looking up and slammed his door shut. The ambulance took off, wailing its sirens again.

Gage sprinted to his Ford Bronco. Normally, he would’ve taken an extra second or two to admire the classic ranger stripes he’d paid a nice chunk of change to have painted over the black and beige paint job, which was also new. At the time, he’d jokingly told the detail guy it only made sense for a retired Army Ranger to have ranger stripes added to his fully restored 1966 Bronco. The detail guy had stared blankly at him for a moment before catching the pun.

Gage hurriedly plunked the sealed glass of water in one of his cup holders and tossed the bowl of lemon wedges in the passenger seat. Then he started the motor and gunned it after the ambulance.

Yeah, he was speeding, but everyone wearing a badge at the Heart Lake Police Department knew his vehicle and knew what he did for a living. They tended to give him and his coworkers at Lonestar Security a free pass on stuff like that. For one thing, they didn’t speed unless it was absolutely necessary in the line of duty. For another thing, it was pretty obvious he was following an ambulance.

He reached the sprawling white medical center, grabbed the first available parking spot, and took off at a jog toward the ER. Once inside the waiting room, he hurried over to the receptionist’s window and flashed his Lonestar Security badge. He wasn’t sure how far it would get him, but it was worth a try.

“I’m with the Jane Doe,” he announced briskly.

The woman in blue scrubs was typing frenziedly on her computer. She paused long enough to glance at his badge and nod. Then she tapped a button on the cabinet next to her desk. The Authorized Personnel Only door to his left popped open. “Second bay on the left,” she intoned.

He stepped inside the emergency room, slipping his security badge to the outside of his left pocket in the hopes of looking like he was on official business. He was careful to stay out of the way of the white-uniformed staff moving in and out of the curtained-off bay in front of him. Since it was the only hub of activity in the room, he could only presume the Jane Doe was on the other side of the curtain.

Gage moved to the back of the bay, pulled back the curtain, and stepped inside. After a few curious glances his way, the medical staff pretty much ignored him.

The next hour or so passed in a flurry of vitals, blood tests, and physical exams. Gage paced away the time, sometimes inside the curtained-off area, sometimes right outside of it.

The white-haired ER doc finally walked up to him, beckoning him to walk with him away from the alcove. “Are you the guy who followed the ambulance here?” His gaze flicked to Gage’s Lonestar Security badge.

“Yep.” Gage gave a vague shrug. “Are you able to share any updates?”

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