The New Cowboy Read online

  They headed out. “I think I’ve stumbled on to some real evidence.” He spent the rest of the time telling her what he’d discovered.

  Avery shivered. “You’re so good at this, it’s scary.”

  “What these thieves and vandals do is scary.”

  “I know. Artifacts are disappearing at an alarming rate.”

  He drove them up the mountain road under a threatening sky. Avery guided him to one of several sacred Crow spots along the way so he could see what they looked like. When he stopped the truck, she got out and ran over to the edge of the cliff. He heard her cry out.

  Zane hurried over to where she stood. “What’s wrong?”

  She turned a white face to him. “The main structure is gone!”

  “What do you mean ‘main structure’?”

  He could see there’d been an explosion of some kind, like a great scab against the landscape. Some rubble and broken rocks were all that remained. Grabbing gloves and an evidence bag, he scooped up some soil and debris to put in the truck. In the morning he’d express mail it to the crime lab.

  Avery stood at the edge of the cliff. “Everything was blown all over!” she cried with tears running down her pale cheeks. “This was a sacred place where a person could lie down on his fasting bed. Jarod came to one of these places. Maybe even this one.”

  Her moan shook him to the foundations.

  “Picture a coffin shape with walls of wood and rock about four feet long and two feet high. The structure had a nest-like feature with the long-axis oriented east to west so the person could face the morning star while they waited for their dream. That was the time they felt closest to the spirit. Oh, Zane—”

  She wept so bitterly, he forgot everything but the need to comfort her. In the next instant he wrapped his arms around her and rocked her for a long time. Avery sobbed into his neck as rain began to pelt them.

  “How can there be such evil in the world?” She pounded her fists into his upper arms and shoulders covered by his sweatshirt. “This was their sacred place.”

  He had no words. The only comfort he could offer was his body. Her outpouring of grief came from her soul where she suffered agony beyond what she’d found here. He was thankful she could let some of it out and not try to push him away because of their closeness.

  “Come on,” he finally murmured against her forehead. “Let’s get back in the truck before we’re soaked to the skin.” At this high elevation the temperature had dropped.

  Half carrying her, they made it to the cab. He turned on the engine and started up the heater so she wouldn’t chill. He always carried emergency supplies in the backseat and threw a blanket over her.

  “Here.” The rain pounded down as he handed her the thermos. “The coffee will warm you.” Her PTSD could send her into shock if he didn’t take care of her. The evidence of desecration was so horrendous to comprehend, he feared she might not get over it. Zane knew he wouldn’t.

  Someone had a vendetta, reminding him of Ned, whose bigotry had almost cost Jarod his life. But to come up to the mountains and blow up sacred ground was the act of someone who was out of his or her mind.

  “I’m taking you home now.” He reached in back for the sack that held a peanut butter sandwich he hadn’t eaten yet. She needed food. “Here. Eat this.” Zane put it in her hands. “I’ll hurry.”

  By the time they’d left the mountain, the rain had stopped. He drove directly to her ranch, but when he started to turn onto the road leading to her ranch house, she spoke up. “Do you mind if we go to your house first? I need to talk to you and don’t want to disturb my grandfather.”

  Nothing could have made him happier. “Are you sure?”

  “That’s my question for you. I know you’re hungry. Since I promised you dinner on me, how about I make you an omelet. After the way you helped me earlier tonight, I owe you.”

  Once they entered his house and had freshened up, they made dinner together. When he suggested she remove her suede vest to let it dry, she said she was fine and for him not to worry about it. Zane let it go. Now that the shock was wearing off, he didn’t want to do anything that would make her run. She’d let him hold her tonight without flinching. A far cry from what had happened in the trailer.

  They sat at the table to eat. “I’m going to capture those criminals, Avery.”

  “I know you will, but that isn’t what I want to talk to you about.”

  “If it concerns what you did to me with your elbow while we were in the trailer, I’m way ahead of you.” He couldn’t hold back any longer.

  She didn’t flinch. “I want to explain about that,” she said.

  “You don’t have to.” He took a deep breath. “Avery,” he began, “I felt your weapon before I backed away. To be honest, I’m thankful that after you were assaulted, you took steps to make sure it never happened again.”

  She pushed herself away from the table and stood up white-faced. He could tell she was trembling. “How do you know I was assaulted?”

  “Your PTSD gave you away long before the other night in the trailer. Your brothers believe it happened either right before you went away to college in Bozeman, or right after you got there.”

  “Jarod and Connor know?” she said, her voice anguished.

  “Let’s say they’ve speculated about it in private for years, but I was the one who brought it up to Jarod a few days ago. All three of us have feared it might have been Ned.”

  “It wasn’t,” she said so fast he believed her.

  Her brothers would be relieved on that score, but the crime was still there, having been committed by someone else. Avery’s terror took her beyond tears. “Who else knows?”

  “No one, and no one else ever will. If you’ll let me, I want to help you through this.”

  Her hands formed fists. “No you don’t. I couldn’t bear your revulsion or your pity.”

  He folded his arms. “What if I’d been the one assaulted? Would you pity me?”

  “Don’t play games with me, Zane. This is far too serious.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. A man or a woman can be assaulted by a man or a woman. If I told you it had happened to me, what would be your response?”

  She stared at him in horror. “I don’t believe it happened to you, and it’s not the same thing.”

  “It’s exactly the same thing when you find yourself violated and stripped of your ability to fight back.” He walked around the table toward her. “Did you go to the police when it happened?”

  * * *

  AVERY COULDN’T BELIEVE her secret was out. Zane had seen through her from the first time they’d met.

  “Yes. Just this past Monday the detective who’s been working on my case for eight years informed me that the police have arrested the man who assaulted me and two other victims.”

  Zane swallowed hard. “That’s a huge blessing.”

  She bowed her head. “I know what you’re going to ask next. The answer is yes, I’ve been seeing a therapist in Bozeman from the first week it happened. I don’t know what I would have done without her help.”

  Gratified by that answer, there was another question he had to ask. The hardest one. “Did you use that self-defense maneuver against me because you’re afraid of me?”

  Avery threw her head back. “No. You’ve never given me any reason to distrust you. But I was afraid that if you discovered I was wearing a pistol, you’d demand to know the reason why.”

  “Which means you didn’t want to have to explain the horror of your experience to another person.”

  “Yes, absolutely. Besides the doctor at the hospital in Bozeman, only the police and Dr. Moser know what happened to me. Now I have to add you to that list. It’s one too many.”

  “I’m not just anyone, Avery. I love you.”

 
; A caustic laugh escaped her lips. “You can’t.”

  “I’ve had my heart set on you for a year. Ask me why I sought you out the second I got home from Glasgow. Suspecting what I did about the trauma behind your PTSD made no difference to me. Now that I know the truth, I love you more for your courage. Despite your pain and fears, you’ve gone on with your life and you’ve excelled in so many ways, I can’t begin to count them.”

  “But you don’t see me the way a normal man sees a normal woman.”

  “Who’s normal? Define it for me. I know I’m not. When I met you at the funeral, I didn’t see a mark on your forehead that meant you were untouchable. What I saw was this exciting woman Sadie had talked about long before we came to Montana. I saw you look at me, too. You know the kind of look I mean. In that moment I felt something that had never happened to me before, not even with my first wife.”

  “Zane—”

  “Let me finish. I could have flown back to San Francisco after the funeral was over, but I didn’t because something inside me told me my future was here. But Ralph Bannock’s granddaughter lived next door and deserved a hell of a lot more than what I had to give her at the time, so I got busy in order to be worthy of her.”

  She put up her hands. “Don’t say any more, Zane.”

  “Why not? What is it you don’t want to hear?”

  “You’ve got this all turned around. For lack of better words, I’m soiled goods.”

  “I realize that’s the way you feel because of the assault. I can’t change your perception of yourself, but this far-from-normal man who has PTSD and dozens of other faults you don’t know about yet wants to marry you, anyway.”

  Avery gasped. “Marry—”

  “Of course. I want to live with you forever with Ralph’s blessing. If you can’t say yes to me yet, I’ll wait as long as it takes because I’m not going anywhere else and don’t want anyone else. Jacob had to wait seven years for Rachel. If he could do it, so can I.”

  She bit her lip. “You don’t mean it.”

  “Try me,” he fired back. “To be honest, I’d like to get married within the next month so we can just be together without always having to make up excuses. The physical side of our marriage can come later when you’re ready. I’m not asking for that. If there are problems, we’ll deal with them. What’s important to me is that we’re together all the time under one roof. I want to protect you and I can’t be apart from you any longer.”

  Zane was telling her wonderful things she hadn’t even imagined in her dreams.

  “This past year has been a nightmare. Admit that it killed you, too, when we had to say goodbye at the airport in Las Vegas. I came close to tossing it all in and begging you to marry me at the first wedding chapel I could find. I had this plan for us to live in Glasgow, and I didn’t care that you would have to leave your work for a while. That’s how badly I wanted you with me.”

  He had no idea she’d wanted the same thing.

  “Shame on me for not acting on my instincts, but my fear of not being able to provide for you the way I wanted to held me back from saying anything. I wanted to come home to the ranch able to support you and offer you the fabulous life I know we can make together. The rest will come because I refuse to let the dark side of life defeat us. All you have to do is tell me that you love me.”

  She hugged her arms to her waist. “I think you’re the most amazing man I’ve ever known, but I can’t say those words yet, Zane.”

  “I can be patient.”

  His confidence was one of his most appealing qualities. More than ever she didn’t feel she deserved him. “Maybe I won’t ever be able to say them, but I’m touched to the core that you’ve said them to me.”

  His gaze swept over her. “You’re shivering. Let’s get you home before you catch a chill. Being out in the rain soaked your vest.” Zane was aware of everything and took perfect care of her.

  He reached for his keys and they left the house in his truck. Before long he pulled up in front of the ranch house. “Tomorrow I’m planning to run in to White Lodge to do some shopping for Ryan. When will you be off work?”

  “I leave the dig site at four-thirty.”

  “How about we meet at Fairchild’s around five? You can help me pick out some clothes and toys for my nephew. I need a woman’s advice. Then we can go for dinner at El Farol.”

  His marriage proposal had changed everything. The incredible things he’d confessed to her had illuminated her world. This fabulous man wanted her for his wife. Was it really possible?

  Avery knew how she felt about him. And how could she turn down an invitation that included doing something fun for the cutest little boy in the world? Good looks and charm ran in the Lawson family from the oldest to the youngest.

  “I’ll try to be there on time.”

  “I’ll wait out in front. Get a good sleep, Avery.”

  She longed to throw herself into his arms. If she agreed to marry him, she could be in his arms every night of her life. Heat engulfed her before she hurried into the house and up the stairs. But by the time she got ready for bed, she was in a new state of agony. What he’d said about putting the physical aspect of their marriage aside until she was ready revealed his deep sensitivity. But what if they did start to make love and then she had a flashback or felt sick?

  How many rejections would have to happen before he could no longer handle it? To hurt him like that would add a new dimension to her level of guilty pain. He was doing everything in the world to reassure her, but the time would come when he’d lose patience. No man could be put off indefinitely without regretting his decision to marry.

  After removing her clothing, she put her pistol on the dresser and stepped into the shower. Her thoughts flew back to the incident in the trailer. When she’d reacted to his touch, he’d accepted it without a postmortem because he was a master at what he did for a living.

  To her shock he’d recognized her PTSD a year ago. While they were in the trailer, he’d discovered she wore a weapon. It was as if he had X-ray vision. She would never be able to hide anything from him.

  At first she was outraged that Zane had discussed her behavior with her brothers. But that was in the heat of the moment. Having calmed down, she found she was actually relieved he’d been the one to talk to them. Now that she’d admitted that she’d been assaulted, Zane would communicate that information to them so she wouldn’t have to say anything.

  Even suspecting what had happened to her, they loved her. She’d always felt their love. Her love for them was greater than ever because they’d never invaded her space, never pressured her or made her uncomfortable.

  Zane on the other hand had forced the issue into the open with that forthright manner of his. His excuse that he wanted to marry her was still too incredible for her to comprehend. He hadn’t even kissed her yet. Yet how many times had she wanted to feel his mouth on hers while they’d been dancing. He’d been right about them aching for each other.

  Oh, Zane. Avery wanted to marry him, but it could end up in disaster.

  * * *

  AT ONE IN the morning, Zane drove back to Laurel, armed with a search warrant. He parked at the side of the road leading into the Newell ranch and went the rest of the way on foot carrying a backpack that held his paraphernalia.

  The place was quiet. If there was a dog, it hadn’t started barking. Zane crouched down and tried to open the door of the Buick, but it was locked. He had better luck with the Sentra. The ashtray held half a dozen cigarette butts. Zane bagged several. In the process he saw a number of tools on the floor under the glove compartment including a pair of EOD cord/fuse cutters normally used by the military.

  Well, well, well.

  What could the son be doing with an expensive pair of cutters like those? If any dynamiting was going on at the ranch, why were the cutters
in the Sentra? He took dirt samples from the tire treads as well as from the ATV’s tires and bagged the evidence.

  Might as well check the entire property in case explosives had been hidden. The federal forest facility that had stored dynamite was only ten miles away. Explosives had been used to blow up those signs at the Shepherd Ah Nei Recreation area. But it would have taken more than one person to pull it off.

  He eyed the big trailer parked at the rear of the ranch house. It was the size of Connor’s and would be a perfect spot to store five hundred pounds of explosives. One of those trucks could have pulled that trailer, and another truck the ATV trailer. If necessary Zane would be back later to bag traces of dirt from their treads and check the odometers.

  Relieved he hadn’t been seen, Zane hurried back to his truck. On the way to the highway he notified the twenty-four-hour dispatch at the BLM in Helena to check out the other son. Zane intended to learn his whereabouts the night the dig site in Absarokee, as well as the Ah Nei Recreation area, had been vandalized. He reminded them to check the car’s odometer and get evidence from the tread.

  Could this be a father and sons’ operation? Or the plan of two brothers? Or even one brother and a friend? Any or all theories were possible.

  * * *

  BY THURSDAY EVENING the clouds were dispersing. No more rain. The air was fresh and clean as Zane and Avery walked out of the store loaded with gifts.

  “Ryan will love his new Big Wheel.”

  “I agree. He can tear around my house all he wants. You’ll have to come home with me so we can put it and the red wagon together.”

  Her smile thrilled him. “He loves to haul things around.”

  They’d picked out a blow-up swimming pool to put in the backyard. She’d chosen a SpongeBob SquarePants bathing suit along with some shorts and tops. Zane put everything in the back of the truck, then drove them to the Mexican restaurant a couple of blocks over from the store. After locking the truck, they went inside. He asked the manager to seat them in the back where they could have some privacy.

  Since he’d left Dr. Lindstrom’s office on Monday, Zane had been formulating a plan and hoped it wouldn’t backfire on him tonight. While they ate dinner he told her how his cases were progressing. As soon as he had word from the crime lab about the findings of the other brother’s car, he’d make arrests.