already taken pictures of where the wire had been cut and of the feed sacks left behind while Jack and Duke were repairing the downed fence.
“So, you say you’re missing six head?” Butler asked.
Jack nodded. “Three big steers and two cows, one with a calf.”
Treat was making notes as Butler asked questions, but he soon popped up with one of his own.
“Who owns the place that backs up here to yours?” he asked.
“Mylo Bailey, but his daughter, Rhonda Bailey, who’s a nurse at the hospital in Blessings, had to put him in a nursing home over a year ago. As far as we know, the house and the place have stood empty ever since,” Duke said.
“Property with no one in residence is a good way to get in and out without being noticed. It’s obvious they came across it because the tracks are visible on the other side,” Treat said. “We’ll be heading over that way as soon as we leave your place. Oh, one other thing. Are your cattle branded?”
“No, but they all have numbered ear tags and the initials DJT below the numbers…for Duke and Jack Talbot,” he added.
“Okay. We’ll be checking in with local auction houses, too,” Treat said. “I think that’s all for now. If you own game cameras, it might be a good idea to put some up. If the rustlers make a return trip, you might get lucky.”
“Good idea,” Duke said, and then he and Jack led the way out of the fields back to their house. The deputies left as Duke and Jack went inside.
“I’m making coffee,” Jack said, as he went to the kitchen sink to wash up.
“And I’m going to the office to work. Let me know when the coffee is done, and I’ll come get some.”
“Oh, I’ll bring you a cup,” Jack said. “Go do your thing. I’m getting meat out to thaw for supper. I don’t know about you, but I’m starved. We missed dinner. Want me to bring you a sandwich to go with your coffee?” he asked.
“Sure. Whatever we have,” Duke said, then hung his work jacket on the peg by the back door, washed up, and then went down the hall to the office.
But as soon as he sat down, his thoughts flashed on the little redhead he’d taken home this morning, and he wished he’d had the nerve to ask for her phone number. He wanted to call her just to hear her voice again, but he couldn’t. And then it dawned on him that the hospital might have it in their records, so he turned on the computer. While it was booting up, he sent Hope a text, then pulled up the farm account and began posting the bills and payments. When Jack brought the sandwich and coffee a few minutes later, Duke stopped long enough to take a bite, then kept working.
He had finished half of the sandwich and was working on the last half when his phone signaled a text. He wiped his hands, then grabbed the phone to read what she’d sent.
Dear Brother-in-law, we’re not supposed to give out patient information. Go see her tomorrow and ask her yourself. If she wants you to have it, she will give it to you.
P.S. I love you, but not enough to get fired. LOL
Duke sighed. He hadn’t thought that through, and he returned the text.
My bad. I didn’t think about that. Sorry, Hope.
Then he added a smiley-face emoji and hit Send, finished off his sandwich, and went to refill his coffee.
* * *
Deputies Treat and Butler drove straight to the Bailey property. The empty two-story house looked a bit forlorn. The yard hadn’t been mowed in ages, and there was a layer of dust all over the windows. It was a shame. The house itself had once been a showstopper in the area.
The central part of the house was two-story redbrick, with white clapboard, single-story wings on either side. It had white shutters in need of paint, and there were a few missing shingles.
The old barn behind the house was a big two-story with a gambrel roof and a loft opening above the doorway below. It had once been painted white, but was mostly gray now, and the pen built behind the barn appeared to be made of welded pipe that was red with rust.
It didn’t take them long to find obvious tracks coming and going in the dirt driveway, and after taking more pictures, they matched up the tire treads at the