Sovereign Sheriff

Though her voice stayed calm, she betrayed her nervousness by twisting the black onyx ring on her pinkie. “How did you find out that I was coming to Wyoming?”

“I’ve got my sources,” Danny admitted. “And I’m staying close to the resort so I’m on top of things. It wasn’t hard to find out that you’d made a reservation. You’re a celebrity. Three or four of the staff mentioned your arrival.”

Jake believed him. The Wind River Ranch and Resort was a high-class place, but Dumont was a small town where gossip spread faster than wildfire. If the women on the staff were anything like his sister, they’d be excited about the princess. Unfortunately, Danny’s information wasn’t much help in pinpointing the men who came after Saida.

“You heard I had a reservation,” she said. “Then what did you do?”

“I was at the private airfield when your plane landed. I thought I might get some pictures, but you hustled into the rental car too fast.”

“At the airfield,” she said, “did you notice anyone else watching my plane arrive?”

He folded his arms across his skinny chest and leaned back in the chair. “Maybe I did.”

Now they were getting somewhere. Jake was tempted to step in and take over the interrogation, but Saida seemed to be asking the right questions.

“Tell me about these others who were watching,” she said. “What did they look like? What kind of vehicles were they driving?”

Danny smirked. “This is important, huh?”

She sat in the chair beside him. Though she didn’t actually touch him, she reached out with the full force of her personal charisma. “I must know what you saw and who you saw.”

Danny’s expression changed. Gazing at her, he seemed to be melting. An involuntary smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. His smug attitude disappeared as he leaned forward, wanting to be close to her.

And the princess reeled him in. Her left hand rested on the table, just beyond his grasp. With the other hand, she raked her shimmering black hair away from her cheek as she tilted her head to one side. She lowered her eyelids and slowly looked up at him.

A worshipful sigh pushed through his lips. “Oh, Saida.”

“Please tell me, Danny.”

“It’s a private airfield,” he said, “so there isn’t a lot of security. I parked in the lot and walked closer. I stayed in the shadows, out of sight. After you got into your rental car, I talked to one of the guys who unloaded your luggage. He told me you were going to see Sheriff Wolf.”

“Did you see him speak to anyone else?”

Danny shook his head. “I figured you were going to meet the sheriff at his office, and I wasted a lot of time driving into Dumont before I came here.”

“Other than the men who worked at the airfield, did you see anyone?”

“No, and I’m aware of other people. I try to be first on the scene with the exclusive photos.”

Jake glanced toward his deputy and gave a nod. They needed to add another item to their list of things to do: talk to the workers at the airfield and find out who else they’d talked to.

“There’s one more thing,” Danny said. “When I went to the parking lot, I almost got run down. This guy was hauling ass. He was in a black truck.”

That pretty much cinched it. Jake knew how the bad guys got their information. The real question was: Why? Why were they after the princess?

SAIDA WISHED SHE HAD gotten more from her interrogation of Danny. He had been in Wyoming from the start, snapping photos, and she wanted to look through those pictures and search for clues. She’d taken Danny’s card with the intention of arranging a meeting with him later at the resort.

Before Deputy Wheeler had escorted Danny from the house, Jake had insisted that he delete the photographs he’d taken of them on the porch. She was glad. The last time she’d been the starring topic of entertainment news, it had taken a toll on her privacy. A suggested romance with the handsome sheriff would distract from the important matter of finding her brother.

With Wheeler and Danny gone and Maggie still upstairs in her bedroom, Saida found herself alone in the living room with Jake. She had to take advantage of this moment before Sheik Efraim arrived. Somehow, she had to solidify her relationship with the sheriff and convince him that she was indispensable to the investigation.

“That went well,” she said. “Now we know how the bad guys found out about my arrival. I’m good at interrogating, aren’t I?”

He went to a chair by the fireplace and sat. “I’m guessing that you’re a woman who knows how to get what she wants.”

“A useful ability in an investigation.”

“I suppose.”

He had put up a shield to deflect anything and everything she said. Jake wouldn’t be won over by flattery. Nor would he be impressed if she batted her eyelashes and bestowed a thousand sweet smiles. Her last resort was logic.

She sat on the end of the sofa closest to his chair. “I’ve been asking myself why my brother came here. He’s a sensible man and never does anything on a whim. Why did he choose this place for the summit meeting?”

“The Wind River Ranch and Resort has a fine reputation.” Jake eyed her with suspicion. “No one seems to know exactly why he chose the place.”

“As his sister, I have a deeper understanding of Amir than anyone else.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“It was eight or nine months ago. He was in the United States on business and spent a few days with me in Beverly Hills.” That time was a bit of a blur. “I was so busy starting law school that I wasn’t very attentive.”

If she had been more alert, she might have picked up clues. It pained her to think that she might have missed something that could save her brother’s life.

Jake asked, “What did you talk about?”

They’d argued about her tabloid notoriety. Amir thought it was high time for her to settle down. When she’d said the same to him, he had seemed secretive. “I had a feeling about him. There was something different. Maybe he was involved with a woman.”

“I don’t know your brother,” Jake said, “but I’ve seen how women react to the other COIN princes. I’m guessing that Amir had plenty of girlfriends.”

“He has a reputation. Some refer to him as a black sheep. But it’s not true. My brother is nothing like our father. He was the great womanizer.”

Her father had disappointed her in so many ways. She tried not to think about him, opening that door released a gush of regret. “My father had a great fondness for the American West. He often told us stories about cowboys and ranches.”

“Maybe he spent time in the West,” Jake suggested.

“As a young man, he came to the Rocky Mountains.” One of the few occasions when her father paid attention to her was when she was learning to ride. “He told me about cowgirls. How they could ride and use a rope as well as any man.”

“And shoot,” Jake said. “Like Annie Oakley.”

“Oh, yes. I watched the movie.” She’d loved the stories and the independent spirit of Western women. “I wanted to be like those cowgirls. Amir is nine years older than I am, but he would play cowboy with me.”

“Did your father visit Wyoming?”

“I’m not sure,” she said. “I was very young when he told me those stories.”

“We can ask around,” Jake said. “Some of the old-timers might remember.”

“A wonderful idea.”