Cardwell Ranch Trespasser - By B. J. Daniels Page 0,32
off with him again. He called Hilde, wanted ten thousand dollars to tell her things about you.”
If she could have killed him again, she would have made this time much more painful. “Why would he do that?” she wailed. “It must have been the drugs talking.”
“I’m sure it was.”
“So what did he say when she got to his motel room?” Dee asked, trying hard not to let her fear show.
“He was already dead.”
Dee tried not to breathe a sigh of relief. “I’m sure he just wanted a shoulder to cry on.”
“But to ask her for ten thousand dollars for information about you...” Dana said, and looked at her.
Dee saw the doubt beginning to bloom and knew she had to nip it in the bud and quickly. “I told you Rick had turned to pills,” she said, and began to cry again. She’d learned to cry on cue so this was the easy part. “Well, the truth is...Rick had a drug habit. I’m so ashamed.”
“You have nothing to be ashamed of,” Dana said, quickly coming to her side.
“How could I have fallen in love with a man like him? I didn’t know for a long time. Once I realized...I tried to help him. But it was too late. He’d blown all his savings on his habit. It wasn’t love that brought him all the way to Montana or me. I was too ashamed to tell you this, but the real reason was to ask me for money. When I turned him down, both for money and his feeble attempt to get me back, I guess he was desperate. He knew Hilde didn’t like me.... She was probably ready to give him the money for any kind of dirt on me she could dig up. Oh, Dana, I’m sorry. I know she’s your best friend.... See why I feel so badly about all this?”
“But you shouldn’t. You haven’t done anything. We can’t control the way other people react.” Dana sounded sad.
“We need to do something to cheer us both up. I would love to go into Bozeman. We could have lunch, maybe do some shopping. What do you say?” She held her breath. She’d seen Hud go off to work this morning and had a pretty good idea that Dana didn’t have anyone to take care of the kids. Couldn’t really call Hilde, could she? Also, she’d heard Dana promise to make pies with the kids today.
“That sounds wonderful,” Dana said. “But I’m afraid it will have to wait.” Mary and Hank came running into the room, as if on cue.
“We’re making pies with Mommy today,” Mary announced.
Dee smiled, but did her best to look disappointed. “As fun as that sounds, Dana, would you mind if I borrowed your truck and went into Bozeman? You probably could use some time alone, and I need to do some shopping.”
“Of course. The keys are in the truck. Please help yourself. And when you come back, there will be pie!” Dana laughed as the kids began to cheer noisily.
Dee couldn’t wait to leave. “I might take the whole day, then,” she said, as she hurried upstairs to get her purse.
* * *
COLT CALLED THE shop the next morning right after Hilde opened. “How are you doing?”
She glanced across the street to the deli, half expecting to see him sitting in his usual place. She was disappointed to see that the table was empty. “I’m okay.”
“Did you get some sleep?”
“Yes. The wine and you stopping by helped,” she admitted.
“Good, I’m glad to hear that. I wanted you to know that I have to go up to West Yellowstone today on a burglary case.”
She could hear the smile in his voice and laughed. “And you thought you’d better remind me that I’m not to go near Dee?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Too subtle?”
“I appreciate you thinking of me.”
He was silent for a moment before he said, “I’ve been thinking of you for a long while.”
She didn’t know what to say, especially since a lump had formed in her throat.
“I wish that kiss hadn’t gotten interrupted.”
“Me, too.”
“How did things go with Dana, or shouldn’t I ask?”
“Not well. I know I should have kept my mouth shut, but Colt, I had to warn her. If I put even a little doubt in her mind...”
“You did what you had to. Listen, I probably shouldn’t be telling you this. Hell, I know I shouldn’t. I meant to tell you last night. When we searched Rick, we found three different forms of identification in