Wyoming True - Diana Palmer Page 0,31

he might not come back.

That thought haunted her. She’d already become fascinated with Jake, who seemed to be everything a true man should be. But he didn’t trust her, and that was part of any relationship; there had to be trust. She wondered how in the world she could win his.

* * *

THE PAIN HAD been bad. She’d gone out to see Rory, her saddle horse, and winced at the deep cuts on his flanks. She stood beside the vet while he used a local and stitched them, muttering about the inhumanity of some people. She agreed with him, angry herself that it could have happened twice. She mentioned that to the vet, who said that he’d be happy to testify if she could find the scoundrel who was responsible. She said she’d talk to the sheriff the very next day and follow up on Laredo’s call to him.

Later, when she was certain that Rory would heal, and when she’d checked worriedly on Gold, recovering in a nearby stall from similar injuries, she’d taken the ibuprofen with a few crackers and cheese, and an antacid. It was helping. It didn’t stop the pain entirely, but it was effective. At least it would deal with the inflammation.

There were narcotics that would have done a better job for pain, but Ida wouldn’t ask for them. She had no wish to become addicted to something that probably wouldn’t work for very long anyway. Anti-inflammatories were quite effective, and the pain was something she’d learned to live with.

She closed her eyes and finally fell asleep.

The next morning she was awakened by a knock at the door. When she opened it, in her long, concealing thick robe, she found Sheriff Banks on the porch.

He tipped his hat. There was a quiet, friendly smile on his face. The sheriff was ultraconservative and he’d known Ida only by reputation when she’d first moved back to Catelow. He’d talked to Cindy, who filled him in about her reclusive neighbor. And the night Cody had talked with her, when her screams had led Cindy to call the sheriff, a lot of his misgivings about the divorcée had been laid to rest.

Sheriff Cody Banks was tall, dark-eyed, dark-haired, a handsome man with a rodeo rider’s physique. Authority sat on him like a mantle. He was afraid of nothing on earth, and he’d been sheriff of Carne County for over nine years, reelected every time he ran with a unanimous vote. He was incorruptible, which kept him in office.

Ida invited him inside.

“Your cowboy said you had a suspicious injury to a horse,” he said without preamble.

“Yes,” she replied, all business. She folded her arms over her breasts. It was still uncomfortable being alone with a strange man. She trusted no one these days. “First it was one of my palominos. Now it’s my older saddle horse. Both have deep cuts on their flanks, but there’s no way they could have been injured accidentally.”

He pushed his hat back over his thick dark hair. “You think it was done intentionally?”

“Yes.” She shifted uncomfortably. “I’m sorry. I have to sit down,” she said after a minute. “I have metal screws in my hip and metal screws holding a metal rod into the bone in my thigh. This cold weather makes for a lot of pain.” She sat down, grimacing as the simple act sent a bolt of pain right through her body.

Cody scowled. “You never told me what sort of injury would cause that much reconstructive surgery,” he said flatly.

She sighed. “Being thrown over the side of a parking garage. It works quite well.”

He looked shocked. “That’s what your ex-husband did to you?” he added, outrage showing on his hard face.

“My ex-husband,” she agreed simply. “All the wealth is mine. He felt he was entitled to half of it. I divorced him while he was in jail awaiting trial for assault. There were no witnesses the first time, when he threw me over the wall, but he made the mistake of slugging me in front of a witness a few weeks after I got out of the hospital.” Her face was drawn with pain and bad memories. “He was supposed to serve five years for it, out of a longer sentence, but they let him out in three for good behavior.” She laughed without humor. “He phoned me the day he got out, demanding money again.” She looked up. The sheriff seemed unsettled. “He said some gangsters are after him for a gambling debt,