Chapter Twenty-Four
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The moment Joe stepped out onto the porch he felt as if he’d walked into a slab of invisible ice. Pausing his step, he stared up at the glowing crescent moon in the dark, clear sky.
“Joe? What’s wrong?” Courtney asked stopping beside him, then abruptly added, “Fuck! It’s colder than when I left that damn hospital.”
“That’s what’s wrong,” Joe said gravely. “It rained earlier. The roads will be treacherous.”
“Stop being such a wuss and get in the car, or do you just want to stand here and turn into a human ice sculpture.”
“Okay, okay, but I think this is a bad idea.”
“No! A bad idea is me still being around here when the sheriff finds out I escaped,” she snapped, walking down the steps to the car and climbing inside.
Pulling his gloves from his pockets he reluctantly followed, but as he settled behind the wheel he was filled with dread.
“Courtney, why don’t we just leave? You can take your revenge another time.”
“Another time? When? I can’t possibly come back. Once this is over we’ll be on a private jet on our way to Puerto Rico. You are coming with me, aren’t you, Joe?” she added, lowering her voice and placing her hand on his thigh.
“Yeah, of course, but this doesn’t feel right. The weather isn’t on our side! And we’ll have to get to that private airfield with the cops on our tail! It’s not exactly next door. It’s three hours away. The risk factor is too high. If we went straight there—”
“Joe, you know I’ve always lived on the edge,” she said, cutting him off. “I admit this is a bit dicey, but you know if I don’t deal with that fucking cowboy I won’t be happy. If you’ve changed your mind and don’t want to be involved…”
“Dammit, Courtney, you know I’d never leave you.”
“Then let’s go. The sooner we do this, the sooner we’ll be on that plane.”
Letting out a frustrated sigh, Joe fastened his seat belt, waited for Courtney to follow suit, then started up the car and drove through the campgrounds. The lane was gravel, so he wasn’t concerned, but when he turned onto the country road his fingers tightened around the steering wheel.
“Hold on, Courtney. I’m going to test the road conditions,” he muttered.
“You worry too much.”
“That’s better than not enough,” he shot back, lightly putting his foot on the brake. The car slowed, then stopped, and everything appeared to be normal, then he did it again with a little more speed and a sharper stop. “It seems okay.”
“Of course it’s okay.”
“I’m still going to take it easy.”
“At least we don’t have to worry about other cars. It’s just past 2 a.m and no-one around here will be out this late.”
“That’s another reason I’ll drive slowly. The sheriff might have a deputy hiding somewhere to catch late night speeders or people driving drunk. But Heather’s place isn’t far. We’ll be there in a minute, and at least there’s some light from the moon.”
“How far isn’t far?”
“I’d say…about a minute or two.”
He had heard the impatience in her voice, but still worried about frozen puddles and black ice he kept his speed down.
“I thought you said it was close!”
“It is…and there’s the fence. We’ve arrived. I’m going to turn off my headlights and just leave my parking lights on. I don’t want to alert the people in the house.”
“I don’t see a house.”
“I know, that’s the point. The driveway is really dark. I think it’s because of all the trees surrounding the property. Now you can see the staircase up to her place,” he added, speaking softly as he rolled forward. “Oh, no.”
“What’s the problem?”
“The carport’s empty. Her truck isn’t here. She’s not home.”
“Fuck!”
“Sorry, Courtney, but—”
“Hold on. Let me think about this for a minute. I bet she’s at the cowboy’s house. Hmmm. Maybe I can nail them both. In fact, it would be much easier and far less risky.”
“How?” he asked, cutting the engine.
“I have some stuff with me.”
“Stuff?”
“Stop being an idiot! The cops didn’t get it all at the show!”
“Ohh. Right. What’s your idea.”
“I’ll plant some in her place, find a way to do the same at his ranch, then call in an anonymous tip. I’ll make sure there’s enough to get them both in some seriously hot water.”
“But it’s the cowboy you want to take revenge on. Why are you so determined to cause problems for Heather?”
“She forced me to sell Henry.”
“But you told me you were glad to be rid of him. You said he was too much for you.”
“Yeah, well, she still took advantage of the situation. And why are you sticking up for her?”
“I just don’t think this is fair. By all means, go after Blake Coleman, but—”
“Oh, I get it. You like her.”
“Actually, I do. She seems to be a nice girl. But you know you’re the only one for me. Have I ever let you down?”
“No,” she replied, rolling her eyes, “but I’m going up those steps and getting inside her crappy little bird’s nest. If you want to join me, great. If not…then I’ll have to re-evaluate things. Maybe we’re not such a match after all. You can think about it while I find my lock pick,” she declared, opening her bag. “I know it’s in here someplace.”
The last thing he wanted to do was to step out into the chilly night air and be a party to Courtney’s nasty plan. But when she opened the door and climbed out he knew he had no choice.
He couldn’t lose her.
Not ever.
Not for any reason.
“Wait. I’m coming.”
Hastily moving around the car he saw she was already walking up the steps with a small flashlight lighting her way.
“I’m right behind you,” he called softly as he began the climb.
But just as he finished speaking her body jerked.
She was slipping.
He started to race up to help but his feet slid out from beneath him. Before he could regain his balance she tumbled on top of him and they both toppled to the frozen ground.