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“My head hurts.” With a low moan, she stumbled a few steps, then let her legs collapse beneath her. She fell in a sitting position and swept her right hand across the uneven ground. There. No, not big enough. Damn. Her heart was beating so fast it was hard to catch her breath, and Randy was coming closer.
This one.
He leaned in, his hand outstretched. She listed to the side, ignoring the ache in her sore shoulder to put her weight on her hand. Her fingers clenched on the rock, the rough surface biting into her skin as she secured her grip.
“Britt?” Randy squatted in front of her. “Are you okay?”
She steeled herself against the unexpected concern in his voice. Hesitate and you die.
Chapter 33
Joel drove along Highway 7, alternating between pushing the speed limit on the winding roads and easing up on the gas. He was impatient to see Brittany again now that the case was solved, yet scared shitless over what to do next.
Did he dare tell her how he felt? If he did, what did he expect would happen? She’d stay here? Would he stay here? It surprised him how good that idea actually sounded
. They could buy a ranch, make a name for themselves raising and training horses.
Except Chicago still loomed as a possibility. He’d been there for a convention last year and hated it. If she wanted to return home to work with her father, would he be able to handle the city?
God, listen to him, trying to figure out what they’d do when he didn’t even know if she felt the same way. He might tell her he loved her and she’d walk away. Like his mother. Like Deanna.
Don’t think about that right now.
He eased up on the gas again until he could pass the slower car ahead of him. As he cleared back into his own lane, the cell phone vibrated in his pocket. He dug it out and thumbed the button to connect the call because only one person had the number. “You got him?”
“Where are you right now?”
He tensed at the urgency in the sheriff’s voice. “Couple miles from Highlands. Why?”
“Casey just called your cell phone. Gifford left with Britt about five minutes ago.”
Oh, God. White hot alarm struck like a bolt of lightning. She was supposed to be safe there. “How the hell did that happen?”
“He told them you were going to be late and that you asked him to pick her up. Mentioned me and a new lead we were working on.”
He pounded a fist on the steering wheel. “And since he’s been helping me with the investigation all along, they bought it.”
“Casey noticed he made a left turn when they left the ranch and called you to verify, which is how I got the call. Fortunately, Gifford didn’t disable his phone. I had an officer put a trace on it before we left the station, and GPS puts him about three miles west of the ranch. The signal stopped moving a couple minutes ago.”
Adrenaline jammed his foot down on the gas. “Sounds like the Long’s Peak Trailhead. I’m on my way.”
“I’m not far behind you. Be careful.”
He disconnected the call and shoved the phone back in his pocket. Dread settled deep in his gut as he blew by Highlands and kept going. The only reason he could think of that Randy would take her into the park had him pushing the limit of control with his vehicle on the sharp mountain turns. Visions of the animals from the past month turned his stomach, making him nauseous.
He never should have left her side. If something happened to her, he’d never forgive himself.
The miles rushed by, yet it seemed forever until he slammed on the brakes for the turn. Dust billowed up as his vehicle slid to a stop, his frantic gaze registering details. The gate was still chained. How had Randy gotten in? Where was he now?
Joel couldn’t see the parking lot through the trees and indecision crashed against urgency. Did he ram the gate and possibly alert Randy with the noise, or did he run in on foot?
A flash of movement through the trees caught his eye and he recognized the gray sweatshirt.
Brittany!
Heart lodged in his throat, Joel jumped out of the truck and rushed around the door to vault over the gate. It swung loose on his way over and sent him stumbling. Regaining his balance, he sprinted toward her along the road. She was nearly jerked off her feet when her long ponytail snagged on some brush, but she wrenched free and kept running.
When she spotted him, her sob of relief ripped into him. Two more strides and she was in his arms. He crushed her close, then in the next moment pushed her back to arm’s length. His heart jolted at the sight of blood spatter staining her skin and clothes.
