Chapter One
Chase Rivers glanced out from under the rim of his Stetson hat as his horse picked his way through the snow storm. His slicker kept him relatively dry, but the air was saturated with dampness. Chase gazed at the darkened sky frown wrinkles creasing his forehead. Usually by this time of year, the ground was solid. A couple of days and the snow would melt and leave behind a mess of mud and mire unless the temperatures dropped drastically and the frost set in deep.
So far, the winter had been too mild for the ranchers in the area. After such a dry summer and fall, all this snow wasn’t doing anyone any good. The ground wasn’t frozen enough to allow the snow to stay. It was early December and the fact that the ground hadn’t froze yet was a concern all the farmers were worried about.
Chase had been working this morning checking line fences. His ranch was home to about one hundred fifty cattle and horses. He was out checking his fences to make sure his animals stayed within the boundaries of his property. A bone chilling dampness filled the air. He nudged his horse, Beau to the edge of the creek watching the waters as they swirled and rushed past him. Because of the dry summer and fall the water level was down and Chase was worried. This stream weaved its way all over the property. His cattle and horses needed the water it provided to survive.
From the corner of his eye, he caught the sight of something that didn’t belong in the water. It was a small red shoe. Chase frowned and slid off his horse. Reaching into the water, he grabbed the shoe and hauled it out of the river. Looking at it, he found it was a woman’s tennis shoe. He glanced around but didn’t find anything else in or around the water that didn’t belong there.
Grabbing the reins of his horse, he began walking upstream. Around the bend of the stream, he found the wreckage of a car that had come off the road above the creek. A small dark blue sedan and the driver’s side bumper looked crumpled as it rested against the clump of trees. Chase could also see some damage to the back passenger side panels. He wasn’t sure what caused the damage in the back but could hazard a guess.
He quickly glanced up the embankment and found a slight indent of the path down the hill the car took. Snow had covered some of the indent and that told him the accident happened sometime during the night. The more snow that fell the more it would cover the evidence that there had even been an accident. One of the doors hung open and a young woman sat slumped in the front seat.
Chase made his way carefully over to the wrecked vehicle. The cold temperature had frozen the ground beneath his feet and the layer of snow on top had made the ground slippery. Checking the woman’s condition, he frowned. She had a nasty cut on her forehead and when he touched her neck for a pulse, she tried to stir, tried to move away from him but she couldn’t quite get there. Her skin looked pale and felt very cold to the touch except for the cut on her forehead. He glanced at the windshield and found a spot where her head had met the glass. The oval impact area was marked by a spider web effect in the safety glass.
The snow was melting on her warmer skin and Chase knew he couldn’t leave her here. Another couple of hours or maybe even sooner than that and she would freeze to death. She was dressed in black jeans and a blue sweater but she wasn’t wearing a jacket. He glanced down at her feet and found she was only wearing one shoe. She wasn’t wearing any socks. Her poor bare toes on her bare foot had a light layer of frost on them. How she lost the other shoe in the creek was anybody’s guess. All he knew was her body temperature was dangerously low and she needed his help.
He gathered her into his arms and carried her over to his horse. She wasn’t very big and she didn’t weigh more than a hay bale. He lifted her easily. “Ok Beau, I need you to stand still until we can get going.” Knowing he had to get her warm in a hurry, he draped her in front of the saddle then mounted his horse and adjusted her body to fit the curve of his own. When he thought she was secure, he opened his heavy coat and wrapped it around as much of her as he could reach. It wouldn’t be much but it was better than nothing at the moment. He gathered the reins and turned his horse toward home. “Ok, let’s go home boy. We got a damsel to rescue.”
It took him twenty minutes to reach home. He led the horse to a two-story ranch house that had been standing there for almost a hundred years. It wasn’t until he carried her to the house she began to waken. She groaned and tried to fight against his hold. Chase had to tighten his grip or drop her, and that’s when she pushed against him harder. He tightened his hold. Opening the back door, he walked through the kitchen and living room into his bedroom and laid her gently on the bed. He turned to look at the fireplace in the corner of the room and found the embers of the fire he built last night were nothing more than a few glowing embers. He quickly added a few more pieces of wood and soon, the fire was burning again. The flames began to heat the room and Chase felt satisfied it would continue.
He turned back to his guest to assess the situation. Knowing he had to get her warm, he stripped off her wet clothing and covered her up with a heavy quilt. She was completely out again as she offered no resistance when he undressed her. Then he went to the bathroom for a washcloth. Her forehead had dried blood caked around the cut. She also had a hell of a bump and as he bathed her wound, he began to assess how badly she was hurt. She hadn’t moved at all and it worried him. With as much as he was jostling her around she should have at least tried to wake up. When he came back, he took a moment to actually look at her.
Her hair was at a deep shade of red and pulled back into a tight braid. The dark red hair was shot with colors that ranged from gold to red and every color in between. Chase couldn’t see how long it was; the tail part of it was tucked behind her back. With her eyes closed, he couldn’t see what color they were but he’d bet they were green. Her face was heart shaped and very pale. He began bathing the bruise. Gently cleaning the dried blood away, he found the cut wasn’t as bad as it could have been. When the cut began bleeding again, he stopped and applied pressure to stem the flow.
She did try to wake up then but didn’t quite make it. She groaned and tried to turn away but he wouldn’t let her. She tried to open her eyes but the effort was too much for her.
Chase decided to let her rest. He went outside to take care of his horse.
Half an hour later as he was walking from the barn he paused and watched as a dark blue car drove up his driveway. He’d recognized the car immediately as belonging to Sheriff Grayson Trainer.
Grayson stopped his vehicle beside Chase and stepped from the car. Grayson was a shorter man than Chase, but he considered himself a better man because he wore the uniform of sheriff. Leaning against the car, he nodded to Chase and pushed back the hat on his head. His blonde hair was cut short. His eyes were hidden behind aviator’s sunglasses. His face was tanned from being outdoors all day long. “Good morning Chase.”
Chase nodded but didn’t return the greeting. “What can I do for you Grayson?” Chase asked politely. Grayson had reminded him on earlier occasions that he preferred to be called Sheriff, and Chase knew it but he refused to give him the prestige that came with the office. He didn’t like Grayson and Grayson knew it. The two men had grown up in the same town and theirs was a long time dislike of each other. Chase considered Grayson a bully and over the years, that hadn’t changed.
Grayson’s lips tightened for a moment. His hands twitched briefly as if they wanted to curl into fists. He held his breath then exhaled deeply as he remembered what he came for. “I received a bulletin from the police over in Coven Glade. I was asked to let all the area ranchers know about it. The police asked me to be on the lookout for a woman. She would be a stranger to these parts, and she’s wanted for questioning regarding a murder.” Grayson stood and adjusted his belt. He brushed his hand over the butt of his gun and watched as Chase’s eyes were drawn to his weapon. But they didn’t stay there more than a second or so. Grayson tightened his fingers at Chase’s disregard of him.
Coven Glade was a good ninety miles away, but it was the closest big city around. While most of the immediate area was ranchland, the nearest small town was Benton, population 753. It was only five miles away from Chase’s ranch. Benton wasn’t very big but it sported a post office, several small shops and a couple of bars. You could get a haircut in Benton and get a screwdriver at the local hardware shop next door. You could even get a burger at the local diner, but for any big purchases or a week’s worth of groceries, most of the local people went to Coven Glade.
Chase thought about the woman he had rescued, but he kept his thoughts to himself. “Sorry, I haven’t seen anybody around here.”
Grayson took off his sunglasses and glared at him. “If you see anyone you don’t recognize, call me immediately. This woman would just as soon shoot you as look at you.” His eyes narrowed and he looked as if he wouldn’t mind doing that himself.
Chase raised an eyebrow. He knew the idea of shooting him had given the other man some hint of pleasure. “Why is that?”
“Like I said, she’s wanted for questioning in a murder investigation. She’s armed and wouldn’t hesitate to shoot to get away. She’s also wanted for ripping off drugs and money from the crime scene.”
Chase got the feeling Grayson tried to make the woman out to be more than she was to shock him into helping find her. His expression didn’t change. He simply looked at Grayson, waiting for the other man to finish his business and leave. “What’s this dangerous woman’s name? What does she look like, just in case I run into her I mean?”
Grayson’s hand brushed against his gun. He looked as if he wanted to smash something. Taking a deep breath he told Chase, “She’s a small woman with dark red hair and her name is Bethany Morgan. That’s all I can tell you right now. The rest is police business and none of yours.” Grayson got back into his car. He glared at Chase through the window as he put his sunglasses back on. “If you see her, make sure you call me. Like I said before, she’s a dangerous woman, and I know how to deal with the likes of her. That is my job, dealing with criminals, you know.”
Chase simply stared at him. He didn’t bother to acknowledge the other’s man profession, figuring Grayson would take it as a point of acknowledging his own importance. Keeping his face neutral, he watched as Grayson’s car drove down the long driveway. When he turned right onto the highway, Chase glanced toward the house. He didn’t want to think about what Grayson would have done if he’d told him about the woman he rescued this morning. He realized he might be harboring a criminal, but he needed more information from her before he would decide what to do with her.
Chase climbed the steps of the house and before he went inside, he grabbed an armful of wood from the stack on the porch. The wind had picked up. It was blowing the cold in from the north and Chase could feel the cold bite of it. He had a feeling the temperatures would drop soon bringing with it more snow tonight. It wasn’t the time to get caught outside. He would have to make a couple more trips to the woodpile to get enough pieces inside to keep the fires going. He had LP heat for backup but he hated letting it take over. He preferred the warmth and coziness of a good wood fire.
He checked the wood-burning stove, adding a couple more chunks of wood before he glanced at the partially closed bedroom door. He knew he should check on his unexpected visitor to make sure she was all right, but when he opened the door, he found the bed empty.
He stepped further into the room. Panic set in when he didn’t find her right away. He glanced over at the window, but the window was closed against the cold outside. He went around the far side of the bed and found her there. She was lying on the floor tangled in the quilt. She was unconscious and her head wound had started bleeding again. She must have rolled off the bed, he reasoned to himself. Then he thought maybe that was a good sign and she had tried to wake herself up.
Chase picked her up and carefully carried her over to the bed. He pushed back the covers and laid her on the bed. She groaned and tried to push him away from her, but she didn’t have the strength to put up much of a fight. She tried to get up again but couldn’t. She fell back against the covers and tears fell down her cheeks as she whispered, “Ian.”
Chase frowned and covered her up. She didn’t seem like the murderer Grayson said she was. He could see a gentleness in her that didn’t fit with the type of person Grayson Trainer told him she was. He hadn’t quite figured her out. He laid the back of his hand on her face and noted her skin was still cold to the touch. He frowned when she turned her face into the curve of his hand. He got up to get her another quilt. Laying it on top of what she was already covered with, he watched as she snuggled down into its warmth. Chase watched her for a moment. He couldn’t help but wonder what happened last night that brought her into his world. Was it fate that brought her to him or something else? Doubt slipped into his mind when he remembered Grayson’s warning. This woman was wanted for possibly drug dealing and murder. From his point of view, something just didn’t add up with what he’d been told.
Chase moved over to the chair watching her sleep for a while. There were too many questions that needed answers—he was determined to get them before he decided what to do with her. He got up to put some more wood on the fire. When it was crackling again, he glanced at the window. The wind was still blowing the snow around outside and Chase knew this woman had been very lucky to be found when she was. She would have frozen to death otherwise.