The Cowboy Next Door--Includes a bonus novella Read online

  He could see himself being driven, often in the dark of night, to a new house to live with strangers. He’d been ignored by some, made to feel small and insignificant by others, and in a few instances that were branded into his mind, beaten or punished in some other way. Not that he hadn’t deserved some of it. From his earliest memory, he’d been a rulebreaker. Over the years he’d morphed from a feeling of helplessness to a desperate need to take control by the only means he could—with his fists. Of necessity, he’d become adept at fighting his opponents and inflicting pain, all the while knowing that in the end he would pay a price for such defiance. The price could be as simple as being locked in a shed or cold garage, or as complicated as being sent to juvenile detention, where, as one of the youngest, he would find himself once again forced to fight for his life.

  If only it were that simple now.

  This time, there was nobody to fight. All he could do was race along a highway, a feeling of utter hopelessness making him want to strike out at anyone or anything keeping him from finding Penny.

  Penny.

  His sweet, beautiful Penny. What would she have to endure at the hands of a stranger whose only concern was collecting his pound of flesh?

  Sam forced himself to concentrate on the fact that she was no pampered princess. Growing up under difficult circumstances, she’d had to fight her own demons. But was she tough enough to fight a man bent on using her in a dangerous game?

  Feeling a growing sense of rage and frustration, Sam floored the accelerator, all the while studying every vehicle he passed.

  Mac and the others watched and listened as Ben, pacing the length of his office and back, spoke tersely into his cell phone with a state police detective. They could tell by the tight, pinched look on his face that he wasn’t getting the information he was hoping for.

  When he hung up, he composed his features before turning to them. “They have a name. Actually several names. He’s Emory Pittman. A known criminal. Home invasion. Assault with a deadly weapon. Home base is Canada, but he’s been branching out into the States. They suspect him of being connected in some way to the Russian mob. Bookmaking is the least of his criminal activities. Apparently he only engages in that for pocket money. If you call thousands of dollars chump change.” Ben rubbed at his temple, a certain sign he was getting a headache. “He calls himself Dog. Horse. The Pit Bull. Probably half a dozen other aliases they don’t know yet. He assigns a number to each bettor. That way, if the authorities confiscate his records, all they have is a list of numbers, but no names. He’s been able to avoid arrest by routinely changing phones and numbers. The state boys are still working on tracking the number Curtis gave them. Once they have it, they should be able to get an exact location. Unless,” he added with a frown, “he’s already tossed it and is using another new one.”

  “How long do they think it will take?”

  Ben hissed out a breath. The tone of his voice revealed his frustration. “As long as it takes. In the meantime, the state boys are sending their experts here to monitor all calls. They expect this guy to contact Curtis with his plan, using yet another new phone.”

  “Plan?” Mac looked hopeful.

  “It stands to reason he’ll reach out to Curtis. Curtis owes him money. Pittman wants to be paid. By now he’s hatched a plan to get what he wants.”

  Mac looked thoughtful. “Sam had intended to loan Curtis the money to pay off his debt. Since Sam isn’t here, I’ll phone the bank and make arrangements to make available whatever funds Curtis needs.”

  “We’re talking a lot of money, Dad.”

  Mac gave a quick shake of his head. “We’re talking about Penny’s safety, son.”

  He dialed the owner and president of the little Haller Creek bank and instructed him to prepare the proper documents. “I’ll stop by now and sign whatever you need signed.”

  Finn exchanged a look with his father before turning toward the door. “I’ve got my truck here. I’ll check with Sam and try a different direction.”

  “Hold on.” Ben’s voice stopped him. “What the hell good is it to just drive around without knowing a vehicle description?”

  Finn shook his head. “Like Sam, I’ll keep an eye out for a long-haired dude in a dirty truck. It beats sitting here waiting for this guy to play us like fish on his line.”

  Zachariah lumbered to his feet. “I believe I’ll go along with Finnian.”

  As they left, Mac also stepped out of the sheriff’s office and walked along Main Street to the bank.

  When he returned, it was obvious that he’d come to a decision. He turned to Otis and Roscoe. “I can’t disagree with Finn’s logic. I can’t stand this waiting either. I’d rather do anything than sit here feeling helpless. Are you in?”

  The two men were on their feet and starting toward the door.

  “I know you understand, son.” Mac lay a hand on Ben’s shoulder.

  Ben nodded. “If I didn’t have to follow the letter of the law, I’d do the same. As soon as Curtis hears from Pittman, I’ll let all of you know. And, Dad…” He managed a grim smile. “Thanks for coming through with the funds for this.”

  The two men shared a look before Mac strode from the sheriff’s office, trailed by Otis and Roscoe.

  A quick phone call to Finn informed them which direction he and Zachariah had taken, and where Sam was. Turning the truck around, the three men headed in the opposite direction at a fast clip.

  While Mac drove, Otis and Roscoe were silent as they kept their eyes on the road.

  Mac was grateful for their quiet presence. His thoughts were on Sam, alone in his misery.

  Mac had seen the bleak look in Sam’s eyes when he’d learned that Penny wasn’t with Dex Cantrel, but rather with a dangerous stranger. Dex was nothing more than a gambler. A pool hustler. The stranger was an unknown quantity, who might use Penny until he got what he wanted, and then…

  And then discard her.

  Mac pulled himself back from such dark thoughts. All his life, the darkest moments had always been swept away by an unexpected burst of sunlight. He would cling to the hope that this situation would prove to be the same.

  It had to be, he thought fervently. He’d seen the amazing change in Sam since Penny came into his life. Before, Sam had always been the wild card in their family. The hardworking, hard-playing man who regularly unwound after weeks of backbreaking work on the ranch by challenging the customers at the Hitching Post to endless games of pool, sometimes lasting all night. His had been a careless, casual existence. Since Penny’s arrival, he’d been content to spend his evenings at home. And why not? It’s what happened to a man in love.

  A man in love.

  Mac felt his heart pound.

  He’d know a thing or two about love. And about losing the love of his life. It had sent him into a spiral of despair that had almost ended in tragedy.

  He didn’t want that for any of his sons.

  Dear heaven, he thought. They had to find Penny before this madman did something that would change all their lives forever.

  Sam had found love, peace, and contentment. And in one terrible moment, it could all be taken from him.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  The sky over the tiny town of Haller Creek buzzed with light aircraft and helicopters.

  The sheriff’s office was crawling with men and women in various uniforms. The Montana State Police had sent their team of experts to set up a base of operations. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police International Crime Unit had sent their own team, since they had been investigating Emory Pittman and his link to Russia for over a year.

  Ben’s desk was littered with an assortment of high-tech devices ready not only to accept a call from Pittman and stream it to all interested parties, but also to collect and identify any background sounds that could be missed by regular communications. More equipment was set up around the room to pinpoint the location of his call within minutes.

  Curtis was seated at the desk, looking pale and v
isibly trembling as he listened intently to instructions on how to speak and what to ask when the expected call finally came through.

  Ben stood back, allowing the experts to do their jobs. He found these men and women to be respectful and efficient as they worked with very little interaction. They had been highly trained to keep distractions to a minimum while preparing a novice like Curtis Cash to follow their orders.

  When the phone rang, everyone stopped in their tracks. Though they’d been expecting the call, the shrill ringing in the sudden silence was a shock to the system.

  A detective put his hand on Curtis’s arm, cautioning him to wait. As explained, this was done to rattle Pittman, who expected his victim to pounce the second he called.

  At the third ring, Curtis was prompted to answer. When he did, dozens of devices were listening and operating at full speed.

  At Ben’s request, the call was also being forwarded to Sam, Finn, Mac, and the others.

  He tried to imagine them, pulling over along the interstate, listening with rapt attention to every word spoken. As instructed, Curtis kept his words and reactions to a minimum. “Hello?”

  “Thirteen?”

  Curtis swallowed and nodded before the detective motioned for him to speak. “Yes. This is Thirteen.”

  “Dog here. You didn’t keep your end of our bargain. So, to make it interesting, I’ve got something you want.”

  “Penny? You’ve got my sister? Penny, can you hear me?”

  The detective cut off his words with a hand over his mouth. He had already told Curtis to let Pittman do the talking in order to incriminate himself.

  Curtis swallowed and nodded.

  Pittman’s voice came back on. “Surprise. It came to me in a moment of brilliance last night. Somebody jumped in, eager to fight your battle. I thought I’d see if you’d be willing to do the same if the shoe was on the other foot. So here’s the plan. You’re going to bring me twenty thousand big ones…”

  “Twenty? But I only owe you ten…”

  Again his words were cut off by a spitting mad detective who made a throat-slitting motion to be silent.

  Curtis looked properly ashamed and shut his mouth.

  “The extra ten is to pay me for the inconvenience you’ve caused. I’ll call again in an hour with the location to make the drop. I’ll have an associate pick it up. He knows nothing about my plans and can’t be of any help to the authorities, if they decide to stick their noses in this. But if I don’t hear from him that he and the money are safe, somebody will pay. When I hear that you’ve followed the rules and haven’t tried to be cute, I’ll call again and tell you where to find your lost treasure.”

  “Find her? Won’t you exchange her for the money?”

  “Her? I don’t know what you’re talking about, sucker.”

  Around the room, the detectives winced. Pittman wasn’t about to incriminate himself over the phone.

  Pittman’s voice was slow and deliberate. A man with nothing to fear. “Now listen, kid. This isn’t my first rodeo. I’m not about to give you something you want and risk you trying to stiff me with a bag of shredded paper. First you’ll pay. Then, if I’m satisfied that you’ve kept your end of the bargain, you’ll hear from me.”

  “You swear you won’t hurt my sister?”

  The line went dead.

  When her abductor ended his phone call, Penny sat, trying to make sense of all she’d heard.

  This man wasn’t the pool hustler from last night, but her brother knew him. There had been no names exchanged, and yet, from the tone of their voices, they both knew what was happening. He’d called Curtis Thirteen. Why? She had no idea. And the man had called himself Dog. It suited him. He reminded her of a mad dog. Angry. Snarling. Practically foaming at the mouth.

  Curtis was being asked to pay him twenty thousand big ones.

  Oh, Curtis, she thought with a wave of terrible sadness. What have you done?

  And then another thought struck. This man hadn’t agreed to return her in exchange for the money. He’d said only that he would tell Curtis where to find her. And when Curtis had asked him to promise not to hurt her, this madman had hung up the phone.

  She shot a sideways glance at his grim profile. At that moment he turned and met her stare.

  Something flickered in his eyes. Something so dark, so evil, she had to suck in a quick breath to keep from crying out. She turned away to keep him from seeing her fear. But it was there, simmering inside her, and threatening to boil over and destroy her last ounce of hope.

  He didn’t intend to release her. Especially since she could identify him.

  That could only mean one thing.

  Sam sat staring at his cell phone without really seeing it. The moment he realized that Pittman had refused to admit having Penny, his heart had taken a painful jolt.

  Whatever tiny flicker of hope he’d harbored that her abductor would release her unharmed had just been extinguished.

  Penny was smart enough to know there was no guarantee that she’d be exchanged for the debt.

  Sam put his head in his hands as a wave of absolute despair swept over him.

  The man would never allow a witness to his crime to survive. That’s why he would have someone else collect the money. He would be far away before the authorities realized he had no intention of releasing Penny alive.

  He looked up at the sound of his father’s voice coming over his phone.

  “You heard, son?”

  “Thanks to Ben, I guess we all heard.”

  “I believe Penny is now in grave danger.”

  Sam’s voice was barely a whisper. But the pain was evident. “I believe that, too. Dad, I have to find her before…”

  “Hold on to hope, Sam. We’re all here for her. Finn and Zachariah are driving south. Otis and Roscoe and I are heading north on the interstate. The police will do all in their power to get her away from this madman. We’ll coordinate our efforts and we’ll find her. We have to.”

  “I know, Dad. I know.”

  Sam tucked his cell phone in his pocket and struggled to pull himself together. He needed to think like a criminal. If he wanted to get away with murder, where would he go?

  The thought came to him at once. With winter coming, and most of the ranchers’ herds already brought to the lower ranges, the hills became a vast wilderness.

  He turned his truck in the opposite direction and headed toward the distant high country, covered in mounds of snow.

  Penny listened as her abductor spoke in staccato tones to someone on the other end.

  “You did what I told you?”

  A nameless, faceless voice answered. “Yeah. Took me hours. Damned earth is nearly frozen. If it hadn’t been for that shelter, I’d have needed a backhoe.”

  “Just so you got it done.”

  “It’s done.”

  “Now you listen. There’s a fairground just outside the town of Haller Creek. It’s vacant this time of year. There’s a little toll booth at the entrance. That’s where I told him to meet you. Don’t open the bag of money there. And don’t show your face. Before you arrive, pull on your ski mask. I don’t trust this dumb cowboy to go it alone. By now he’s probably run to the cops crying like a baby. They won’t have much time to prepare, but you know cops. They’re probably already racing to the scene to get a few hidden cameras planted.”

  The voice said something that had him swearing. “I told you. They’re not going to grab you. They know I’ve got what they want. Just keep the ski mask on until you’ve driven away.”

  There were more words from the other end of the line, loud enough for Penny to overhear. “They’ll have my license number and the make and model of my car.”

  “That’s why you need to watch for a chance to ditch the car and grab another one. Some old lady picking up groceries. Or a teenager driving daddy’s truck. Someone who won’t fight back or give you any trouble. Use that to make the pickup, and then do it again afterward, in case you’re being caught on
camera. By the time the cops trace both vehicles, you’ll be long gone. Call me when you get to the motel and let me know it’s all there. Then I’ll make the final call to our fish.” He laughed, and the sound of it scraped over Penny’s already taut nerves. “Oh yeah. I’ll tell him where he can find his hidden treasure.”

  Penny couldn’t control the tremors that had her entire body shaking. Her thin cotton shirt and canvas sneakers offered little protection from the cold. She was grateful when her abductor cranked up the heat, but the shivering didn’t stop. Nerves, she knew. They had her by the throat, threatening to break her. She was absolutely terrified.

  Her abductor put the truck in gear, left the shelter of the abandoned shed, and drove a short way on a highway before he entered a narrow, rutted lane that snaked into the hills. He had tossed her cell phone out the window hours ago.

  Now they were climbing steadily, and the temperature had dropped considerably.

  She hadn’t seen a ranch or a herd since leaving the highway. She couldn’t deny the sense of doom that enveloped her. If this stranger decided to kill her in these hills, nobody would find her until spring.

  As the truck came up a rise, the trail disappeared, covered with a layer of fresh snow.

  They drove through a wooded area toward a windswept hill. Up ahead Penny saw a wooden shed, the roof sagging, the door swinging open and shut in a strong breeze.

  The truck came to a shuddering stop, and the driver stepped out and circled the hood before opening the passenger door. He took hold of her elbow and dragged her from the seat. She stumbled and fell to her knees.

  With an oath he lifted her to her feet and with a knife sliced through the zip ties around her ankles before forcing her to walk with him to the shed.

  It was little more than four walls and a dirt floor. In the gloom, as Penny’s eyes adjusted, she saw a big wooden box standing beside a freshly dug hole in the ground.