Page 52 of Wyoming Bodyguard
“You know I can’t see that damn thing.” Walter grumbled and searched for his reading glasses on the cluttered stand beside him. His hand shook slightly as he perched the glasses on his nose then grabbed the phone. “Where’d you find these?”
Setting down her spoon, Lily clasped her hands in her lap. “In the bunkhouse back at my ranch. They were hidden in one of the beds.”
Walter frowned. “That’s strange. You’ve never had cattle over there.”
“No, sir. Cattle have never been one of our income streams. Do you have any idea why someone would have the tags?”
“Can’t be sure but sounds like someone was up to no good. Especially if they’d hid some other ranch’s cattle tags on your property. Why not ask whoever has access to the bunkhouse? They could answer you better than some old man who’s been out of the game for a while.”
Lily cleared her throat, her nerves on full display.
Madden wrapped her clenched hands in his own. “We spoke with one of the ranch hands on our way here and he claimed to have no knowledge of the tags. The other ranch hand is dead.”
Walter studied the screen. “And you think his death is connected to these tags?”
Madden shrugged. “We’re not sure.”
“One thing I do know is these tags are from different ranches.” Walter leaned forward to hand back the phone. “Each ranch has their own specific tag. Use the same color, same shape, same type of lettering. A couple of those tags matched, but most were different.”
“How could someone who worked for us get access to tags from other ranches?” Lily asked. “What would be the purpose?”
Madden’s gut dipped. There might be a couple of different answers to Lily’s question, but in his mind, one was glaringly clear.
And it didn’t paint a very pretty picture.
Walter met Madden’s gaze as if seeking permission to offer an explanation. He understood how hard it’d be for Lily to hear, but there was no way around it. Madden gave a tiny nod, encouraging his dad to continue.
“Have you ever heard of cattle rustling?” Walter asked.
Lily’s eyes grew wide. “You mean like stealing cattle?”
Walter nodded.
“You don’t really think that’s what was happening, do you?” She bounced her gaze between Madden and Walter, as if willing one of them to offer a different option.
“It’s hard to say.” Walter scratched the bottom of his chin. “But I don’t see any other reason someone would be in possession of so many different tags then hide them. This man who died, did he have any financial problems? Hardships?”
“I don’t know,” she said.
The heavy sensation in Madden’s gut turned hard as a rock. Daniel may or may not have had financial struggles in his life, but Tremont Ranch certainly did. “Any idea how much cattle are sold for these days?”
Walter let out a long, rattling sigh. “Son, it’s been years since I’ve sold cattle. I can’t say what the exact rate is these days.”
He loved his father’s modesty, but he also knew the old man kept a pulse on as much as he could since the day he’d sold his land. He may not be running a cattle ranch any more, but Walter McKay was still a rancher and would be until the day he died.
Shifting the tray to the side, he leaned forward to rest his forearms on his knees—his gaze found his dad’s. “I don’t need an exact amount. Just a ballpark figure. Hell, even an idea of what you sold one steer for years ago. That might be enough to put this damn puzzle together.”
“You’re looking at maybe around three dollars a pound, give or take. That fluctuates depending on the economy, as well as the costs associated with taking care of the animals.”
Lily’s jaw dropped. “How much does a cow weigh?”
If the circumstance wasn’t so serious, he’d laugh at Lily’s shock. As a rancher, she’d have an idea of how much it’d cost to keep the steer alive, but she wouldn’t be privy to all the money ranchers put in to keep their cattle healthy. “Depends, but at least five hundred pounds and up. If you pass a certain weight, the price can drop a little when selling.”
“So that many tags would mean thousands and thousands of dollars’ worth of stolen cattle.”
“Possibly,” Madden said, not wanting to jump to conclusions yet.
“How can we get to the bottom of this?” she asked.
