Chapter 1
One
Sunday
Black Rock Falls Sheriff Jenna Alton leaned on her husband’s tricked-out black truck, affectionately known as the Beast, and reminisced about her past life as DEA Agent Avril Parker.
With a new name and face, she had been placed in witness protection and sent to a backwoods town.
After a very short stint at being a deputy, she’d won over the townsfolk and been voted in as sheriff.
This had happened almost eight years ago and she would never have believed in her wildest dreams that she’d fall in love with a black ops sniper with a bounty on his head, living off the grid in Black Rock Falls.
Dave Kane had joined her team as deputy sheriff.
He’d been a man of many secrets, one of them being he was still a commissioned officer and could be called upon at any moment to serve his country.
He’d also received plastic surgery and a new name before being dropped into Black Rock Falls along with his handler, Dr. Shane Wolfe, who’d become a medical examiner for the entire state of Montana.
When Kane had confided in Jenna, he’d given her only the barest details of his past life, and in fact, she didn’t even know her husband’s real name.
Although she had overheard him telling their son Jackson as an infant that he was named after his father and grandfather.
It was a secret she’d take to her grave, because if the wrong people discovered Kane’s whereabouts, the entire family would be in danger.
She’d discovered Kane had suffered serious injury in a car bombing and had lost his wife and unborn child.
She’d also found out that he’d protect her with his life without hesitation.
It never ceased to amaze her how she collected damaged people around her.
Apart from her two deputies, Zac Rio and Jake Rowley, the rest of her team, including two teams of FBI agents who’d become close friends, all came to her as damaged goods.
However, they had bonded together and become a family of misfits.
It was only on rare occasions that Kane used his sniper rifle outside of his missions, but recently a new rifle range had opened.
It offered targets as far as two miles away.
To her surprise, shooters had flocked to the opening and they needed to book a time to use the range.
Rowley’s expertise was with a crossbow, but six months or so ago he’d purchased a sniper rifle and Kane had been tutoring him on technique.
The third person in the group was Special Agent Ty Carter, a close friend, ex-Navy SEAL, and a fine shot with the rifle.
Kane’s other student, Rhett Lawson, their new acquaintance and the current boyfriend of Wolfe’s middle daughter, Julie, joined all of them as they took their positions in a line, each making final adjustments to their sniper rifles to hit the targets two miles in the distance.
Each took three shots. A phone rang in the booth to one side of the range.
“Hold your fire.” A man came out with a phone in one hand. They waited for a few minutes. “Shoot now.”
The process went on, until they’d each made twelve shots in total.
Everyone climbed back into the Beast and they drove to the main building to wait for their results.
The targets came back, each one in order and numbered for each shooter.
To Jenna’s surprise, Kane’s target had only one bullet hole in the center; the others had various degrees of accuracy, Carter being the best from her perspective.
She walked up to Kane and stared at the target in his hand.
“I thought you never missed? I guess one out of twelve isn’t so bad.
Maybe you should be coming here more often? ”
“Maybe I should.” Kane raised an eyebrow and grinned at her. He turned to Rowley. “Great job. I knew you’d make a good sniper. Get in as much practice as you can.”
“I will, but right now, I’m heading home to spend some time with my wife and kids before some lunatic drives into town and starts killing people again.” Rowley chuckled and headed for his vehicle.
“Look.” Beside Jenna, Carter lifted Kane’s target and pushed his finger through the bullseye. “See how big the hole is? He hit dead center every time. Twelve perfect shots.” He slapped Kane on the back. “You’re a legend.”
Impressed, Jenna smiled at Kane. “Why didn’t you say something?”
“I don’t need to.” Kane shrugged. “You know I never miss.”
Jenna rolled up the target. “I’m keeping this. It’s not every girl who’s married to a legend.”
“Are you coming to Rhett’s place today? We can take the kids on a trail ride and check out the place where his parents died.” Carter walked beside them to the truck.
“You can.” Rhett shuddered. “I’ve already seen it. It gave me the creeps.”
“It’s not even nine yet.” Kane checked his watch and then looked at Rhett. “We’ll head home, pick up the kids and horses, and be at your place by ten-thirty.”
Jenna climbed into the Beast. She’d been anxious to take a look at the place where Rhett’s parents died twenty-two years ago.
He’d recently inherited Lawson’s Ridge, a massive prime beef cattle and bison ranch, at the age of twenty-five.
With the documents that came with it, he’d been given a letter from his father.
Dear Rhett,
How strange it is to be talking to the future you. My little boy is now twenty-five and a man, no doubt set in his ways and fresh from college. I must say whatever has happened to you since we last met, your mom and I love you with all our hearts.
Lately a few unusual things have happened around the ranch.
I can’t go into details because I might place you in danger.
I visited my trusted lawyer and made plans should anything happen to your mom and me.
I made it possible for the ranch to continue under the guidance of a rancher until such time you are able to take over.
I could see no reason why a lucrative business should fail, and this being the case, you will inherit a fortune.
I hope my parents raised you. I’ve already spoken to them and made them aware of the situation, and they will be caring for you until we get this sorted.
God willing, nothing bad will happen to us and you’ll open this letter after we’ve lived a full life, but if you’re reading this at twenty-five and we’ve been dead before you turned three, it was murder.
When the accidents started to happen, I figured someone was trying to make us sell up at a massive loss and leave the ranch, but lately, I’ve seen things that would make your hair curl. The sheriff has been out and found nothing unusual. I figure he believes I have an overactive imagination.
Hopefully, the problem will be resolved by the time you read this, but be aware, people are not who they seem.
Your loving father,
Christopher Lawson
Convinced his parents had been murdered, Jenna promised to look into the cold case.
Finally, she’d tied up a few loose ends with the serial killer murders that had occurred in Black Rock Falls during spring.
Time had moved swiftly. To everyone’s surprise, summer weather had arrived a month early and the landscape had bloomed in all its glory in June.
It was hard to believe her son Jackson would be turning two on the Fourth of July.
Also intrigued by the Lawson case, Carter had moved into the grand old ranch house with Rhett to spend his vacation time.
The FBI IT specialist Bobby Kalo, the youngest member of the team, would be along later.
Having a chopper at their disposal, Rhett and Carter planned to search the entire spread for anything that might point toward a reason for murder.
The ranch had been well managed by Ed Bowman in the twenty-two years since Rhett’s parents’ deaths.
Bowman was the cow boss during the time of his parents.
There were other old-timers at the ranch.
Josh Greenwood and Dirk Lovall had been there for over twenty years.
All these men were under fifty and more than capable of continuing to make Rhett a profit.
Rhett wanted to pursue a career as a children’s advocate, after being raised in foster care.
He’d decided to leave Bowman to run the ranch and had hired a housekeeper and cleaners to keep the big house maintained.
The house hadn’t been occupied since his parents’ deaths and having someone else living in the house with him made him feel more comfortable, as no one was sure if a threat still existed.
As Julie wouldn’t be starting her new job until September, the same time as Rhett, she’d moved into the house to keep him company and help him buy everything he needed to bring the old house up to date.
The staff had their own quarters, and Rhett had complained about rattling around the house alone and had an open invitation for guests.
As they drove away from the firing range, Jenna turned in her seat to look at Rhett.
“Has there been anything for you to worry about since you moved in?”
“Not really. Most times, the hands just ignore me.” Rhett pushed a hand through his thick black hair and smiled at her.
“They consider Bowman as the boss. I don’t figure half of them even know I’m the owner.
I’m just a pesky guy with the tats and Harley who doesn’t fit in with the cowboy crowd.
I don’t figure Ty will have that problem. ”
“It’s probably better they leave you on your lonesome.
” Carter removed his hat, smoothed his untidy collar-length blond-streaked hair, and grinned around his toothpick.
“They might see you as a threat—to most of them, you come from the big city. You likely talk too fast and things run at a little slower pace around these parts.”
“As long as they don’t try to kill me, I don’t care.
” Rhett blew out a sigh. “I found another safe at the house. It was tucked away in the back of my parents’ dressing room.
I haven’t figured out the combination yet and I can’t find it written down anywhere.
I’m hoping when I eventually get it opened that my dad left a few clues in there for me. ”
Jenna turned back in her seat and looked at Kane. “I’ve seen you open all sorts of things. How are you at safecracking?”
“I guess we’re gonna find out.”