Desperado

  By B.J. Daniels

  Copyright 2011 B.J. Daniels

  Smashwords Edition

  Table of Contents

  Desperado

  Her Sister's Man

  A Halloween Surprise

  The moment Rio caught sight of the woman in the crosshairs of his rifle scope, he knew he was in trouble. At first he thought the lone rider coming up the rocky ravine was the Corwin Falls sheriff.

  But if it was the sheriff, he’d certainly changed. Those curves had a definite feminine flair to them.

  From his lookout in the rocks, Rio watched the rider wind her way through the rocks toward him. He swore softly as she headed right for him, forcing him to position himself on a rock ledge at the mouth of Box Canyon. She had him trapped and he was betting she knew it.

  Squatting down on a rocky ledge above the trail, he waited for her, wondering what had brought her up here. After a moment, she rode into view, her attention on the tracks in the dust. She’d been following him!

  He waited until she was within a few feet of him, then readied himself to leap. It wasn’t until he’d pushed himself off the rock that he realized he’d recently seen this woman somewhere before. He couldn’t remember where in that instant and he didn’t have time to figure it out. He jumped, knocked her off her horse and to the ground.

  They both hit the dirt hard, Rio taking most of the impact himself, being the gentleman he was. He’d rather thought she would appreciate that. But something in the oath she muttered and the speed with which she slipped his grip told him she didn’t.

  He rolled over, coming up with only her hat in his hands to find her standing over him, a pistol in her hand.

  In a flash, he remembered where he’d seen her.

  In front of the Corwin Falls Sheriff’s Office two days ago.

  She hadn’t seen him. She’d been too busy arguing with Sheriff Brick Cabot. Brick seemed to think she was going to the Saturday-night dance with him. She obviously had other ideas about that.

  Rio raised his hands. He’d learned there were two lethal situations you didn’t want to make worse. A coiled rattlesnake, ready to strike. And a woman with a gun pointed at you.

  Her brown eyes were narrowed and steely. Her brown hair had fallen out of her hat and now dropped around her shoulders. Coated in dust, she looked a little more than irritated.

  Crossing her path had been a mistake. Rio knew it even before she smiled and opened her denim jacket. The badge gleamed silver in the sun.

  He looked from it to her face, unable to hide his surprise. Damn. Apparently she was Brick Cabot’s deputy.

  He dusted off her hat but hesitated offering it to her. “My apologies. I had no idea you were …”

  “The law?” she asked.

  “A woman,” he answered. “You know a man can’t be too careful out here.”

  “A man should especially be careful when he’s trespassing on private property, don’t you think?” she said.

  “Private property?”

  “You’re on the MacTavish Ranch.”

  He gave her a grin he’d been told was irresistible. “Are you sure?”

  The edge to her smile proved that theory wrong. “I guess I should know. I’m Delaney MacTavish,” she said.

  “Oh.” Rio had heard Patrick MacTavish had a high-spirited daughter. He just hadn’t heard she was beautiful.

  “And who are you?” Her gun hand was steady. This woman had used a weapon before and would again, probably with stunning speed if he made the wrong move.

  “Rio Wells. You can put your weapon away. I’m sorry if I wandered onto private property.”

  “Are you? Well, I just happen to be looking for rustlers. You haven’t seen any, have you?”

  A horse whinnied from up the canyon behind them. His horse. Hers had been spooked back down the ravine. By now, it was probably halfway home.

  “That’s my horse,” Rio said with a sheepish grin. “Gotcha.”

  She looked at him. “Your horse’s name is Gotcha?”

  He nodded, studying her. If he was a betting man, and he was, he’d bet that in a few moments she was going to want to take him in for questioning and he would be spending the night in jail. That would be very inconvenient, given his plans for tonight. “I’m not a cattle rustler, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  “I suppose since you’re not one of the rustlers, you won’t mind riding into Corwin Falls with me for a few questions with the sheriff.”

  Bingo! He really could call ‘em. He looked down at her hat in his hands. He’d been in tight spots before. Only quick thinking had saved him. He crimped the creases back into her western straw hat, then looked up at her.

  “Your hat, Deputy,” he said and tossed it to her. At the same time, he let out a loud whistle.

  Confusion filled her eyes as she made a grab for her hat, the barrel of her gun losing its target as his horse came barreling down on them.

  Gotcha drew her attention just long enough. Rio fell into Delaney, grabbing the pistol easily.

  He saw her gaze shift to his rifle near the rocks where he’d been using the scope to watch her earlier. They both made a dive for it, but he got there first. Gotcha came to a sand-throwing halt beside him and Rio grabbed his rifle, mounted his horse and apologized to the deputy.

  “After tonight, I’d love to stop by the sheriff’s office. In fact, I plan to. But I’m afraid I have other plans this evening.” He studied the deputy for any sign of a fight.

  Surprisingly, she didn’t seem about to offer any. Instead, she stood, feet apart, hands on her hips, a smile on her lips. “You do realize we’ll be seeing each other again, don’t you?”

  “Too bad we couldn’t have met under other circumstances,” he said tipping his hat to her. “Until next time.”

  “Next time.” She said it like a promise. Or a curse.

  For a moment, he wondered if she wasn’t taking this a little too well, as though she might know something he didn’t. He rode down the ravine, turning only once to look back.

  She was still standing where he’d left her. Still smiling. He didn’t like the funny feeling it gave him, but he shrugged it off. She was on foot, ten miles from town, fifteen miles from the nearest ranch house. He was home free.

  Rio took the long way to the spot where he’d hidden his pickup and horse trailer. The last cattle shipment was tonight and then it would all be over. By then he wouldn’t have to worry about the deputy – or their little run-in. At least he hoped not.

  He smiled as he pulled open the door of his pickup. The smile died as he stared down the double barrel of a shotgun.

  “Next time already, huh?” Delaney said with a grin.

  She motioned for him to put his hands up and then, cradling the shotgun in her arms, she reached for her two-way radio.

  Rio spotted her pickup, loaded with her horse, behind the rocks. Where the devil had that been parked? Near enough that her horse had been waiting for her and she’d beaten him out of the hills.

  “What are you going to do?” he asked, a little anxious now.

  “Call for backup. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “I do.”

  She laughed. “You’re something, you know that?”

  “I just think we should talk before you make that call.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him again as he looked down the dark barrel of her shotgun. “Talk. Fast.”

  “I don’t know if I can trust you.”

  “Trust me?” She had a nice laugh.

  He tried the grin again. Maybe it took more than once. “Well, you know you can’t trust me, right?”

  She agreed with that.

  “I want these cattle rustlers more than you do.”

  Realization came as quickly as a dust storm out on the prairie. Her eyes darkened, then fired with anger. “Let me see your wallet?”

  He sighed and pulled it out.

  She snatched it from him and let it fall open. “Rio Wells. Gotcha Investigative Agency? You’re a bounty hunter!”

  He was insulted by the way she said it. “I’m a gambler. I gamble on catching the bad guys based on my skills as a poker player. Do you play poker, Deputy?”

  “I never liked the odds.”

  “What do you think the odds are that you’re going to catch this rustling ring?” he asked, challenge in his words. “Wouldn’t want to put some money on it, would you?”

  She shook her head, tossed him his wallet and started to get out of his truck. “I’m going to forget that little incident up in the rocks. But if you want to keep your P.I. license, that is if you even have one, then I’d advise you not to get involved in an ongoing law enforcement investigation. Your odds of ending up in jail are real good. And I'll take my pistol back, if you don't mind.”

  He handed her the gun and returned her smile. “Watch your back, Deputy. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the bad guys from the good guys.”

  She looked at him over her shoulder. “You’re the one who’d better watch yours.”

  He planned to. She slammed his truck door hard, the sound ringing in his ears.

  You should have warned her.

  Like it would have done any good, he thought as he started his pickup. For all he knew she was in on the rustling. He hoped not, but he couldn’t help being suspicious. He’d seen her talking to Sheriff Brick Cabot and the next thing he knew she was riding up here. Coincidence?

  He guessed he’d find out tonight.

  Rio spent the rest of the afternoon getting ready. He’d checked
out the other rustling incidents and found they all had something in common. Local law enforcement had been called elsewhere, usually the result of an anonymous tip.

  More coincidence? Rio had his doubts. This batch of rustlers was big and organized and had infallible information. Which meant that if the deputy had been here earlier thinking this was where the rustling was going to take place, then the rustlers were definitely going to be some place else.

  It was a toss of the dice, but Rio thought he knew where they would hit next – as far away from the deputies as possible.

  He found himself a spot in the rocks above a small ranch road next to a pasture full of prime grade-A beef and settled in.

  It was almost dark when Rio heard a horse whinny. Half a second later, Gotcha whinnied back. His hand closed over his rifle. He’d been expecting the sound of semi trucks – not anyone on horseback.

  As he sat up he heard the creak of leather. Turning, he watched Deputy Delaney MacTavish swing down out of her saddle.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked as she moved to the large rock where he’d been napping off and on all afternoon.

  “I got to thinking about what you said and decided to follow you.” She sat down and leaned back against the rock opposite him so they were facing. “All that talk about poker…I’m calling your hand.”

  He grinned. “Shouldn’t have to wait much longer if I’m right and I’m betting I am. Where’s the rest of the law?”

  “At the old Miller place.”

  On the other side of the valley. “Let me guess, Sheriff Brick Cabot got a tip?”

  She studied him from under the brim of her western hat. “Watch what you say about the sheriff.”

  “He your boyfriend?”

  “He’s my boss.”

  Rio laughed. “I know that. What I’d like to know is what he means to you. I overheard him trying to ask you out. You turned him down. He seemed pretty insistent.”

  She looked away. “I don’t date my boss.”

  “But you used to?”

  Her gaze came back to him. She started to say something, but whatever it was, she stopped as she heard a sound below them on the hillside.

  Rio heard it too. He started to reach for his rifle.

  “I’m the law here,” she said.

  “Better deputize me quick then, because you’re going to need my help.”

  She gave him a look that said she wasn’t counting on it. Then she moved quietly to peer through the rocks down onto the old ranch road that skirted her property. He heard her let out an oath.

  Rio eased himself up as well, but he had a pretty good what she’d seen that had made her curse.

  A half dozen rustlers were rounding up her cattle and were now herding them toward a gate in the fence.

  Carrying on the wind was the low rumble of the semi trucks. They were moving without their headlights on, a trail of ghostlike trucks lit by the faint light of the moon.

  None of that was what had made the deputy curse. She’d recognized the leader of the rustlers.

  She started to rise, rifle in hand.

  He reached out and laid a hand on her arm. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. There’s six of them. One of you. And the leader of this group will shoot you, sure as hell.”

  He saw that she didn’t want to believe that. But she stayed down, both of them listening as the leader gave orders. The semis pulled in, their engines dropping to a low growl. The rustlers dropped the back gates, the metal banging open as the others opened the fence gate and began herding the cattle toward the open backs of the semi trailers.

  “I suppose you have a plan,” she said.

  Tonight Rio wished he did. Something more than a vague idea that he hoped would work and not get him killed.

  But that was the way he usually operated. Only tonight, he felt uneasy. Uneasy about his own abilities. Suddenly everything mattered more than it had. Tonight he was jeopardizing more than his own life. He liked Delaney, more than he wanted to. She was the kind of woman that made a man think about settling down. That in itself made him uneasy.

  “I often like to have a plan.”

  “How about now?” She sounded impatient. She wanted these guys as much as he did. Maybe more since they were her cattle and the leader was none other than her boss, Sheriff Brick Cabot.

  “I could sneak up on them and you could stay here and shoot out the truck tires,” he suggested.

  “Or you could stay here and I could go down there and arrest them.”

  “That’s a thought. Then after they shoot you, I could take out their tires so at least they couldn’t get away until the sheriff gets here. Oh, that’s right, he’s already here.”

  “Fine,” she said. “I go down there. You shoot out the tires. Don’t kill any of my cattle. Don’t shoot the sheriff either. He’s mine.”

  Rio tipped his hat to her. “You’re the deputy.”

  With that she slipped around the rock to work her way down the hillside. He gave her time to get close before he fired the first shot.

  The rustlers dove for cover. He shot out another tire, moving to a different rock as he worked his way down the mountain. The cattle that hadn’t got herded into the back of the semi trailers were bawling, looking confused and ready to stampede if given any reason.

  Rio kept his eye on where the deputy was working her way from rock to rock down the hillside – just as he was doing. He took potshots at the tires as he moved to keep the rustlers confused about where the shots were coming from and how many people were shooting at them.

  As the last tire blew, Rio heard the deputy call, “Sheriff’s Department! Drop your weapons and put your hands up!”

  A shot rang out. Rio aimed his rifle and put a bullet in the man’s leg. The rustler let out a cry and dropped to the ground.

  From behind a nearby rock, he saw the deputy look over at him disapprovingly.

  He shrugged and she called out again for the men to drop their weapons, move forward and get down on the ground.

  “It’s all right, Deputy,” the sheriff said stepping away from the rustlers. “I’ve got this.” He turned, gun raised, and ordered the rustlers to toss away their weapons and lie down on the ground.

  Then he turned and started toward Delaney, his weapon still in his hand.

  Rio kept his rifle trained on the sheriff.

  “Stay right where you are, Brick,” Delaney warned him, but the sheriff kept coming in her direction.

  “He’s still got his gun!” Rio called.

  The sheriff stopped. He hadn’t realized there was anyone with her.

  “What do you think you’re doing, Deputy?” Brick demanded. “I have this covered.”

  Her voice sounded calm when she spoke. “Sheriff, I’m only going to ask you once more to drop your weapon.”

  “You can kiss your job goodbye, sweetheart. I knew hiring you was a mistake. Women, they just don’t take orders."

  “I believe your orders were for me to go with the other deputies to the old Miller place across the valley. Isn’t that the anonymous tip you got, Sheriff?”

  He swore.

  “Your weapon, sheriff. Last time.”

  With his rifle crosshairs on the sheriff’s heart, Rio watched Brick Cabot give it some thought. He could practically see the wheels turning. Brick knew he had one chance to get out of this mess.

  The sheriff started to raise his weapon but before Rio could pull the trigger, Delaney fired, striking the sheriff in the arm. Brick Cabot's gun dropped to the ground and he stood staring at his bleeding arm, a stunned look on his face .

  Rio eased his finger off the trigger of his rifle and swung it back around to the five rustlers. One of them dove for the weapon the sheriff had dropped. Rio fired a shot, kicking up dust in front of the man’s face. The rustler dropped back to the ground.

  Delaney stepped from behind the rocks and walked toward the sheriff, kicking the gun out of his reach.

  Sheriff Brick Cabot grimaced in pain. “You just destroyed your career. I’m going to have you brought up on charges,” he said.

  Rio heard the disappointment in her voice as she said, “Sheriff you have the right to remain silent…”

  In the days that followed, Brick Cabot tried to convince the county attorney that he’d been working undercover and the deputy had blown his cover and almost gotten him killed because of her incompetence.