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“And this can’t wait. I only have a few weeks, Bay.” The sense of urgency hit her hard. “Then all the work I’ve done will go to waste and I’ll fail this assignment. I’ll fail my client.” Something she simply couldn’t abide.
Bayli said, “You’ve never even been to Montana! Come on, Scarlet. I know you’re an overachiever by nature, but this ranch is not going to be easy to find. You could drive for days before you figure out where the hell you are!”
The panic exuding from her friend aside, Scarlet had already made up her mind. She shoved through the lobby doors before a bellman could assist her and stalked toward a valet, saying, “Scarlet Drake. There’s a car here somewhere for me.”
“Yes, Miss Drake. At the front of the line.”
“Excellent. Thank you.” The driver appeared and Scarlet slid into the back of the vehicle as she told him, “The St. Francis.” Then to Bayli on the phone, she said, “Look, I’m not trying to get crazy here. But this is a cold case for a reason—the good leads have all been exhausted. Yet something in my gut tells me there’s more to the story. I want to learn it.”
And fully exonerate Michael.
Bayli paused, and Scarlet knew she was stewing over Scarlet’s tenacity. She wouldn’t be the first; wouldn’t be the last.
Finally, Bayli said, “I’ll send you all the info you need. But, Jesus, Scarlet. Be careful. Please.”
With a soft laugh to ease some of the tension, Scarlet told her, “Relax. It’s not the Wild, Wild West. It’s just Montana.”
“With light flurries later this afternoon, according to my weather app.”
“I’ll rent a Jeep or an SUV or something. I’m sure they’ll put chains on for me or whatever. And again, it’s modern civilization. I’ll bet they even have snowplows.”
“Guess you’ll find out.”
“Don’t worry about me.”
“Yeah, right. Like I wasn’t stressing when you went on your super-secret date last night.”
“I kept you guys in the loop. Thanks for having my back, by the way.”
“Oh, we’ll be doing that all right,” Bayli assured her. “I have new GPS solutions for both you and Jewel, for when she’s tracking down her elusive unicorns for negotiations and trading power on acquisitions. The two of you are a bit too Jane Bond for comfort.”
“Speak for yourself, danger magnet. I’ve never been kidnapped before.”
“Uh, well, that was just … I mean … It wasn’t so much a kidnapping as—”
“You were trapped, Bay. And it was incredibly hazardous to your health.”
“So’s the middle-of-nowhere Montana in a snowstorm—especially for a Cali girl.”
Scarlet smirked. “I’ll be fine. Send the directions I need. And thanks bunches. I love you to pieces.”
“Back at ya. And always have your cell close at hand, okay? Promise.”
“I swear. Now, I’ve got to make air and car reservations, collect my bag from my hotel, and do a little winter apparel shopping so I don’t freeze my ass off.”
“Water, blankets, first-aid kit, power bars, snow scraper, flare gun … Think you can get the rental company to pack all that in your vehicle?”
“Along with ropes for rappelling, a pickaxe, snowshoes, and—”
“Smart-ass.”
“Really, Bay?” She laughed. “A flare gun?”
“Yeah, you’re right. Fat lot of good it did for the Titanic.”
“I’ll be fine,” Scarlet insisted.
“Just keep me posted.”
