Chapter 23

The temperature had barely hit the upper forties today and, with dusk an hour off, it promised to drop. A chill laced the breeze and the scent of snow clung to it. Nate had grown up in the Midwest where all he had to do was blink and the weather shifted, but Wyoming was a whole different level of bipolar.

With all three barns stripped of shingles and one roof completely redone, he descended the ladder to call it quits. By tomorrow, he should have most of the job finished. He could punch out another thirty minutes, but his arms were jelly and Olivia didn't like him working alone late in the day. Besides, he didn't care for the look of the feud brewing between Olivia and Nakos in the gated pasture.

Feet on the ground, he wiped sweat from his brow and headed over as Olivia climbed on a horse. "What's up?"

"I'm riding over to Dead Man's Pass to bring Kyle and George a coil of barbed wire."

Nakos's jaw clenched. "You know I can't go with you and it'll be dark in under an hour. It'll take you thirty minutes just to ride out there."

Olivia's cornflower eyes dialed to castrate. "Beating a dead horse, Nakos. Enough already."

Nate held up a hand for peace. "Why can't you ride with her?"

"Someone has to guard the front and watch the radios in case of an issue, plus gate the horses as they come in for the evening." Nakos glared at Olivia. "We have the buddy system here for a reason and safety measures in place. Your rules, which I whole-heartily implement, and you're breaking code."

Nate scratched his jaw. "I can ride with her."

"No. You've been working all day. It's just a quick drop-off mission. I'm fine." Olivia turned her horse and glanced over her shoulder. "I have the equipment and a revolver." She leaned forward and nudged the horse into gear, taking off at a brisk pace.

"Damn her, anyway." Nakos whistled for the dog and pointed when Bones trotted out of a barn. "Follow Olivia, boy. Go."

When both dog and woman disappeared over a ridge, Nate faced Nakos. "Never seen her that mad." It was hot. All that fire simmering under the surface to match her hair.

"She only gets like that when you tell her she can't do something."

Sounded about right. "Want me to chase after her? I can hop on an ATV."

Nakos sighed. "Tempting, but no. We'll never hear the end of it and she's right. The guys will ride back with her."

Studying the foreman's tense expression, Nate's gut started to shift with concern. "But you're still worried."

"Anything can happen out there. It's why we have precautionary measures in place. The closer to dusk, the higher the bear activity. Especially at Dead Man's Pass. And that's only one scenario."

Well, shit. "Couldn't the barbed wire wait?"

Nakos removed his black cowboy hat, scratched the top of his head, and replaced it. "Yes, but it shouldn't. Kyle said a whole section was missing by the creek. It keeps the wildlife out and the sheep in. We could lose some if they wander that far southeast."

Not liking the sudden unease in his chest, Nate glanced at the barn, then to where Olivia had disappeared. "I think it's time you taught me how to put the horses away and man the radios."

"Yeah." Nakos looked at his feet and closed his eyes a second. "Now's not opportune, but follow me. I'll give you a quick run-down to get you started."

Just inside the main barn's door was a wall of cork and dry erase boards. A giant map of the entire ranch was tacked above a row of clipboards. Nate had seen the info before, but hadn't paid much attention.

"The ranch is divided into four sections based on direction, but each has several sub-areas." Nakos pointed to a spot southeast. "This is where Olivia's heading." He ran his finger along a blue squiggly line marked Devil's Creek. "The embankment is steep there and, due to proximity of the mountains, it gets its share of wildlife."

Nakos jerked his chin toward the dry erase board. "We've got ten full-time men, broken up into five teams. Their assignments are posted daily on the chart. They radio in a minimum of twice a shift, sometimes more if reporting an issue. No one rides alone and they return thirty minutes before dark, unless something major's going on. Signal is crap out here. Each team has a gun, a satellite phone, a first aid kit, and a walkie-talkie. You can always find who and where and what right here."

They were organized, that's for sure. Each phone number was posted, the guys' names, their locations, and what task they were doing. And Nate had to give them credit for safety guidelines. It was obvious both Olivia and Nakos cared about the people who worked for them.

"Sometimes Olivia or the guys like to take a ride alone on their time off. They have to sign in and out so someone knows where they are. This is the route we deemed secure." He pointed to a large area south of the house. "Home base phone and radio are kept on me or whoever stays back. Any concerns reported go on this board so I can dole assignments as needed." He showed Nate a mini-office where files were stored, along with emergency contacts. "We need a chart for you. I wouldn't know who to call if something happened."

"I don't have any family." Or friends, but he slid a blank employment form across the tiny desk and quickly filled out the appropriate former work, education, and skills boxes, listing Jim as his contact. Nate only talked to his former parole officer once in a blue moon to catch up, but the man had been good to him through the years. He probably should be notified if Nate got hurt. "There you go."

Nakos frowned at the scarce info, but said nothing.

The teams started returning twenty minutes later. They seemed to have it down to a science. One man stored equipment while the other groomed horses or parked ATVs. Nakos inspected hooves for injury, then stalled and fed the horses. Once finished, he checked the guys off on his board.

Every time Nakos glanced at the barn opening, Nate's gut clenched. The two of them may have gotten off on the wrong foot, but the foreman knew his shit and obviously cared about Olivia a great deal. If he was worried, Nate should be, too.

Kyle and George rode in, Kyle on horseback and George on an ATV. Both dismounted and started unloading, but Olivia didn't follow.

Nakos eyed the two men. "Where's Olivia?"

Kyle paused with a saddle in his hands. "Isn't she with you? When she didn't show by quitting time, I figured you had us holding off until tomorrow for the fence."

Nakos's eyes turned homicidal. "And it didn't occur to you to check with me first?" His voice boomed off the wooden planks. He pulled a radio from his belt. "Olivia, report in."

George's pudgy face paled. "She never said to wait when she responded by walkie-talkie."

Rubbing his neck, Kyle sighed. "I know. Leave the ATV in case we need it. Go ahead and grab dinner. I'll stay with them."

The bulky man strode off and Kyle's wide eyes met Nate's. "I figured he'd never let her ride that far this close to nightfall. Any of us, for that matter. She's fine, though. I'm sure she"

"Report now, little red!" Nakos stalked the barn opening as Nate's stomach landed near his knees.

Finally, the walkie-talkie crackled and emitted Olivia's voice. "I'm good. I finished rewiring the missing section. It wasn't as bad as I thought. I'm saddling in a sec and on my way back."

Nakos's shoulders sagged as he let out a hefty sigh. His breath expelled in puffs from the cooling temperature as dark descended. "You better cue up every five minutes. Do you hear me?"

Kyle put the saddle back on the brown horse he'd been riding. "I'll keep him ready, just in case." He petted the horse's flank. "Last fall, Rico and I were out at Blind Man's Bluff. We split up to save time and he got hurt. Dislocated a shoulder. Luckily, I wasn't too far from him, but Nakos flipped out. Accidents can happen easily, you know?"

Heart pounding, Nate nodded. Ice water swam in his veins as the fine hairs on his arms grew erect. He should've followed her, regardless of her argument. Thousands of what-if scenarios riddled his mind and his stomach revolted the sandwich he'd eaten for lunch.

"I'm gonna kill her." Nakos growled and brought the mic back to his mouth. "Olivia?" When she didn't respond, Nakos looked at Nate and shook his head. "She's pissed off and won't listen to me."

Kyle crossed his skinny arms across his chest, looking like the spitting image of his sister Amy when trying to put on a brave face. "I'm sorry, man. I didn't know she was meeting us. But she'll be all right. She said she's on her way."

Twenty minutes passed, then thirty, and every tick of the clock sent Nate's pulse hammering harder and dangerously close to stroke level. They waited outside the barn, a horse ready and ATV standing by. He could only hope to hell they were being paranoid. But if she was merely a thirty minute ride's distance, she should've been back by now. While he stayed put, joints locked in anxiety and gaze trained on the black horizon, Kyle held his horse's reins and Nakos paced tread patterns in the dirt.

At thirty-five minutes, Nakos tried reaching her again. No response.

"I don't care how mad she is, she wouldn't make you sick with worry going radio silent." Kyle adjusted his hat and looked at Nate. "Maybe you should try."

Nakos passed over the walkie-talkie and Nate called her name into the speaker. Nothing.

"Olivia, baby. Please." Acid ate the lining of his gut and threatened to burn a hole clean through his esophagus. Kyle was right. Even if she was spitting nails, she wouldn't purposely scare them. Something was wrong. "We're going after her."

Nakos nodded and faced Kyle. "Stay here. Radio if you see or hear anything. We'll use Hero's Trail up to the ridge. That's the most direct route and the one she'd likely take. Give Mae a call at the house and tell her what's up."

As Nate mounted the ATV and Nakos the horse, Kyle scanned the horizon. "Be careful."

Nate followed Nakos across prairie grass, over a few hills, and onto a beaten path. The complete darkness made navigation difficult and the new moon wasn't helping for illumination. Nate could barely see twenty feet in front of him. A cold wind stung his cheeks and freezing air grated his lungs. From the time they left the barn until they were almost to the location, the temperature had dropped at least ten degrees. Olivia had been wearing only jeans and a light coat when she'd ridden away.

Damn, but his chest was tight. Panic clutched his airway and nausea swirled in his gut. He despised this shitstorm inside him and had no idea what to do with the riotous emotions. Barring very few exemptions, he'd never had to worry about anyone but himself, and this was twice in a handful of weeks Olivia had him terrified out of his mind.