Safety in Numbers

The two men visited for a few minutes, then Dalton got another phone call and Chase left the office to wander the sidewalks and see what kind of vibes he picked up.

Being around Dalton was almost as difficult as being with Meredith. The deception of his friend didn’t sit well. But Chase had a job to do and work had always been the one thing he could depend on, the only thing he clung to.

Cotter Creek was a pleasant little town with sidewalks and shade trees running the length of Main Street. Benches every twenty feet or so welcomed people to sit a spell.

An old man sat on the bench outside the barbershop, his weatherworn face showing no emotion as Chase sat on the opposite end of the bench.

“Nice day,” Chase said.

“Seen better,” the old man replied.

“My name’s Chase, I’m here in town visiting the West family.”

“Too many strangers popping up here in Cotter Creek for my comfort and I’m Sam Rhenquist.”

Chase leaned back against the bench. “Nice town.”

“Used to be. Lately everybody’s been looking cross-eyed at each other, wondering who might be guilty of some things that have happened around here.” Rhenquist eyed him with a touch of suspicion and clamped his mouth closed, as if irritated that he’d said too much.

For the next few minutes Chase tried some small talk, but the old man was having nothing to do with it. Finally Chase rose, said goodbye and headed down the sidewalk with no particular destination in mind.

He knew the best place to pick up information would be the café; or wherever Dalton intended to take him for the night of beer and pool. People talked when they ate, and people really talked when they drank. No telling what little tidbit he’d be able to pick up that might help the investigation.

Eventually he wanted to touch base with Bill Wallace and Roger Tompkins, the two agents who were actively working the case here in town. He wanted to know who they had in their radar and what they might have discovered in the brief time they’d been in town.

It didn’t take him long to walk the length of the businesses on Main Street, then he crossed the street and headed back the way he’d come on the opposite side of the street. As he walked, his mind whirled.

He’d already learned two important things since arriving in town. The first was that Meredith West was sharp and he’d have to be more subtle with his questions than he’d been when they’d gone to the stables that morning.

The second was that for some crazy reason he was intensely attracted to the tall, dark-haired woman. If he allowed that attraction to get out of hand, he’d risk complicating his job here.

He’d share a simple lunch with her, then head out to the ranch and hope that Kathy had managed to glean some sort of helpful information about the rest of the West family.

He made it back to Meredith’s car and leaned against the driver’s side to wait for Meredith to return from whatever she was doing. It was damned inconvenient not to have a car at his disposal.

It had been Kathy’s idea to ride the bus into town. She’d thought being at the mercy of the West family for transportation would afford them more time to chat with the various members of the clan.

He should have put his foot down and told her it was a dumb idea, but he found it difficult to argue with Kathy about anything. Those twinkling blue eyes and sweet smile of hers hid a stubborn streak that always surprised him.

He straightened as he saw Meredith in the distance coming toward him. As she drew closer, he realized she looked different…softer…more feminine. It took him a minute to realize it was her hair.

Where before it had hung without rhyme, without reason in various lengths, it now feathered around her face, emphasizing the classic beauty of her features. She carried with her a large file folder bound with several rubber bands.

“Wow,” he said when she was close enough to hear him.

Her cheeks reddened slightly and she reached up to self-consciously touch a strand of her hair. “It’s just a haircut,” she said with a touch of belligerence.

“No, it’s more than that. It’s a total transformation,” he replied.

“It’s not a big deal,” she replied, obviously not wanting him to make it a big deal. “You ready for lunch?”

He nodded. “What have you got there?”

“Just some paperwork I want to read.” She opened the car door, set the papers on the seat, then locked the doors and gestured toward the café;. “Shall we?”

The Sunny Side Up Café; was in full swing serving a surprisingly large lunch crowd. They found an empty booth toward the back and settled in, but not before Meredith was greeted by half a dozen people.

She’d been attractive before, but with the new hairstyle Chase was having trouble keeping his gaze from her. “Is the food good here?” he asked as he opened a menu and forced himself to look at it. But it couldn’t hold his attention the way she did.

“Excellent,” she replied. She looked ill at ease, her gaze darting around the room then back at her menu.

“Is everything all right?”

Her bright green eyes met his gaze in surprise. “Yes, everything is fine.” Once again she made a quick sweep of the room with her gaze.

“So, tell me about your work,” Chase said after the waitress had departed with their orders. “It must be fascinating to be a bodyguard.”

“It has its moments,” she replied, then frowned. “Although lately there haven’t been as many moments as I’d like.”

“What do you mean?”

She picked up her napkin and placed it in her lap. “Business has been slow. None of us are working as much as we like.”

The conversation halted momentarily as the waitress appeared to serve their drinks. “You mentioned that before. What’s made things slow down?” Chase asked when they were once again alone.

“Who knows? I’ve talked about it some with Tanner, my oldest brother, and even he isn’t sure what’s caused the slow down. I guess people not needing bodyguard services doesn’t necessarily translate to lower crime rates in the city. You must stay very busy.”

Chase grinned ruefully. “Definitely. In the war on crime, the bad guys still seem to have the upper hand.”

Her gaze held his for a long moment. “Speaking of crime, did Dalton tell you that our mother was murdered years ago?”

She had the kind of eyes that could swallow a man whole and make him forget his surroundings. At the moment they radiated a soft vulnerability, a wistful need he immediately wanted to fulfill, no matter what it entailed.

It was he who broke the eye contact, disconcerted by his own reaction. “Yeah, Dalton told me about it.”

“Those papers I left in the car are copies of the reports concerning her murder. It was never solved and lately I’ve been thinking about it, about her a lot.”

There was an unspoken question in her gaze as he looked at her once again. “I thought maybe by looking at the files I might see something that was missed in the initial investigation. I’m not telling my father or my brothers that I’m looking into Mom’s death. I don’t want to upset anyone.” She paused a moment, then continued, “How long have you been a homicide cop?”

He suddenly knew what she wanted from him. “You want me to take a look at those files?”

She flashed him a grateful smile. “Would you mind? Maybe you’ll see something important, something that I’m not trained to look for.”

“Sure, I don’t mind.” He’d take a look at the files. It was the least he could do.

A few minutes later, the waitress delivered their food and Chase’s mind worked to process his thoughts and impressions. And the one thing that kept coming back into his mind was the fact that business was slow at Wild West Protective Services.

Somebody in Cotter Creek had worked with the men at MoTwin to identify the weak in town, the ranchers without family, the men who could easily be killed and their deaths look like accidents. Money had certainly changed hands…a lot of money. Had Meredith or one of her brothers panicked about the financial status of Wild West Protective Services and made a deal with the devil?