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“Good.”
“Caleb—” she said, hating herself for having to ask anything of the old man, but desperate to find her son.
“What?”
“Is Chase there?”
“Not now. Seems he had some business in town and then he went right down to the creek. But I’II tell him you called,” Caleb said coldly. “Soon as I see him again.”
“Thanks.”
She managed to get through the evening chores alone, all the while listening and praying for the phone to ring. It took twice as long to feed the cattle and horses and by the time she was done, she was sweaty, dirty and despondent. Rain peppered the tin roof of the barn and gurgled in the gutters, and the wind, blowing with gale force, shrieked around the buildings.
“Let him be safe,” she prayed quietly over the restless shifting of the cattle and the whistle of the wind. The facade she’d held in place all day began to slide away and tears slid down her cheeks.
Too tired to wipe them aside, she sat on a bale of hay and sobbed quietly to herself. “Oh, Cody,” she whispered to the dark interior of the barn while listening to the rain, “where are you?”
* * *
Through the sheets of rain, Chase looked at the stream and silently congratulated himself on a job well done. The clear water swirled over deep pools and rippled over strategically placed rocks and logs as it ran its course through Johnson’s land. Now, if Caleb kept to his word and didn’t disturb the banks while constructing his resort, there was no reason Grizzly Creek wouldn’t become one of the best trout fishing streams in western Montana.
He glanced at the sky and hunched his shoulders against the thick rain that was pouring from the heavens. Water ran past the collar of his jean jacket and slid down his back. Miserable weather, he thought in agitation, and unusual. Hot and dry one minute, a downpour the next.
“That about wraps it up,” Ben Marx said with a satisfied smile as he lit a cigarette and pushed his shaggy wet hair out of his eyes.
“All that’s left is to stock it.”
“And then we’re outta here, right?”
Chase nodded and wiped his hands on his jeans. “Right. You and the rest of the crew can leave tonight if you want; I’ll finish up with some of Johnson’s hands.”
“Whatever you say!” Ben drew on his cigarette and let it dangle from the corner of his mouth. “Right now I’m going to get the hell out of this rain and head into town. Check the action at Yukon Jack’s. I could use a beer and a change of scenery.”
“Take Frank and Brent with you,” Chase suggested, and watched as the bearded young man shouted to the rest of the men. They all climbed into a pickup, waved to Chase, and drove across the field to the gate in the corner and the dirt road leading to the center of Johnson’s farm.
Chase waited until they were out of sight and then slipped through the fence and ran up the slight incline toward the back of Dani’s house. He hadn’t seen her all day. Throughout the afternoon, he’d experienced an uncanny sensation that something was wrong; he attributed his discomfiture to the trouble with Cody the night before and the fact that the boy obviously preferred his father’s company to Chase’s.
“Can’t blame the kid,” Chase told himself, wiping the rain from his face and hair before sauntering up the back steps. He rapped on the screen door with a knuckle and wondered why none of the interior lights had been turned on.
“Cody?” Dani called, jumping to her feet. She’d been sitting in a corner of the couch, her feet tucked beneath her, her fingers absently scratching Runt’s ears.
“Nope. Sorry to—” Chase walked into the room and met her halfway. Immediately he saw the pain in her eyes. “—disappoint you. Dani?”
She couldn’t help the small cry that caught in her throat as she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. “Oh, God, I’m glad you’re here,” she whispered into his wet shirt. “Just hold me. Please.”
He did just that. Resting his head on her crown, he tightened his grip and said softly, “Believe me, I have no intention of ever letting you go.”
“Why didn’t you come sooner?”
“I was working . . .” He held his head back and studied her tear-filled eyes. “Hey, wait a minute. Something is wrong. Really wrong. Maybe you’d better sit down.” Guiding her to the couch, he scrutinized her while she slipped back onto the worn cushions and sniffed back her tears. “What’s going on?”
“Didn’t Caleb tell you?”
“I haven’t seen him all day,” Chase replied, every muscle in his body tensing. “What’s he done?” He pulled a clean, slightly damp handkerchief from the pocket of his jeans and wiped the back of his neck.
“It’s not Caleb,” she said, shaking her head and sighing.
His jaw clenched. “That bastard of a husband of yours has something to do with this, doesn’t he?”
