Page 14 of Cowboy Mountain Man

“I’m with Hope now,” Harlan says, his voice low and powerful.

“Any trouble getting her equipment?”

“Yes.”

His voice changes so little that I look up. He explains what we found. Alden asks him to send a photograph of the note and update the deputy.

Then, he asks me, “Hope, are you comfortable having Harlan stay with you while we sort this out?”

Is this a trick question?

“Yes.”

“Good. He’ll get you settled somewhere secure. We’ll coordinate with the sheriff.”

The call ends. Rain freckles the windshield. Harlan switches on the wipers.

“That came in fast,” I say.

A few minutes ago, the clouds were gray. Now the trees ahead disappear behind sheets of water. “Mountain weather.”

“That feels like an explanation people use after you’ve already made a terrible decision.”

He glances at me. “What terrible decision?”

“Coming up a mountain with one bar of service and shoes selected for their charm.”

He looks down at my feet. “They’re boots.”

“They have aspirations.”

His mouth moves. Barely. I’m beginning to suspect that’s the Harlan equivalent of falling out of a chair laughing.

At the end of the driveway, he stops. Water runs down the road in little brown streams.

His phone buzzes again. This time, it’s the deputy. “Tree down past the bend,” Ellis says. “Road crew’s coming, but there’s a line tangled in it. Don’t try to get around.”

Harlan looks downhill. “How far?”

“Half a mile below your turnoff.”

“Anybody hurt?”

“No. I’m on the town side. You still at Bell’s?”

“Leaving.”

“Stay put until we get it cleared.”

“I’ll take her to my place.”

Both men pause while I side-eye Harlan, trying to figure out how I feel about what could be the best/worst thing that’s ever happened to me.

Clearly, fate has a sense of humor.

Ellis says, “Probably better. Power’s out up there.”

They end the call.