Chapter Twenty-Four
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Brody and Annie had finished breakfast and were clearing up the dishes when they heard a car roll up the driveway. Looking out the window and seeing the sheriff coming to a stop they hurried out to meet him.
“Hey, Brody, hello, Annie. You got a minute?”
“Sure,” Brody replied. “Come on in. I was about to call you.”
“About what?” the sheriff asked.
“Someone broke into the house last night. It must’ve been during the storm. We had to bring the horses in and we were waitin’ in the barn until it passed. We were pretty wiped out when we got back and I didn’t notice anything at the time, but this mornin’ I found my coffee cup on the table. I’d left it on the counter, and there were four muffins in a container when we went out, but now there are only two. Most importantly, that frog,” he finished as they approached the back door. “I keep my key under it. The key is there, but the frog has been moved. Thanks to the rain it’s easy to see where it usually sits.”
“I’ll be damned,” the sheriff muttered, staring down at the obvious impression in the dirt. “Don’t touch it. I’ll see if we can pull some prints. Let’s go inside, I have some news as well.”
“Sure. You want coffee?”
“Normally I’d say yes but I’m coffee’d out,” he replied as they settled at the table. “So—here’s the long and short of it. Geoffrey Palmer had two men with him. It seems they’ve taken off.”
“You mean they left with Geoff?” Annie interjected.
“No. We have reason to believe Geoff Palmer is still here. It’s the two men who are gone. One of them was named Gabe Wilson. He checked into the Moonshine Lake Campgrounds claimin’ it was just him and his friend John Hammond. Then last night at the bar someone recognized Geoff Palmer from the police alert. Unfortunately he was gone before we arrived. This mornin’ a man called the restaurant from Gabe Wilson’s cabin and ordered breakfast to be sent over, but a short time later Gabe called the campground and said he’d left in a hurry last night, and not to allow anything to be charged to his card.”
“It sounds as if Gabe Wilson has turned on Geoff,” Annie exclaimed.
“Sure does,” the sheriff agreed. “He said Geoff Palmer was staying in the larger of the cabins. The campground called us and one of my deputies went out there, but apparently he just missed him.”
“So, as things stand now,” Brody began. “Geoff’s two guys have deserted Geoff Palmer. He’s still here but with nowhere to stay.”
“Exactly. So I’m guessin’ it was him who came over here durin’ the storm and somehow managed to get past Luke, the deputy on duty.”
“That’s because he helped me bring the horses into the barn when the storm hit,” Brody replied. “But he couldn’t have been gone more than ten minutes, if that.”
“Enough time to get in without bein’ seen,” the sheriff remarked.
“What should we do?” Annie piped up.
“Change the locks right away, and if you need to have a hide a key make it somewhere less obvious. Bella will warn you if anyone approaches the house, but only if she’s here. I’d like to have one of my deputies parked where my car is now instead of on the road. I know it would be an inconvenience, but—”
“Honestly, that would make me feel so much safer,” Annie said earnestly. “Would you mind, Brody?”
“Not at all, and thanks, sheriff.”
“You’re welcome, and both of you, try not to worry. We’re bound to catch up with him sooner rather than later.”
“I just don’t understand why a man as rich and powerful as Geoffrey Palmer would put himself at so much risk”
“Ego, he thinks he’s above the law, and if he gets into trouble his high-powered legal team will step in and handle things. And he’s right. So far his crimes are petty. Let’s hope he keeps it that way.”
“We really only have to worry about tonight,” Brody remarked. “Tomorrow my clinic starts and there will be people here all through the weekend.”
“Good to know. Okay. I’ll have one of my men come over and take prints off that key and frog. Now there’s a sentence I never thought I’d say,” the sheriff added with a chuckle. “And I’ll have the deputy sittin’ on the road drive in here and park where my car is now.”
“Sheriff, thank you so much for all your help,” Annie said gratefully. “This has been such an ordeal. Getting away from that awful man was extremely difficult and very scary. I’ll tell you about it one day, but just the thought of being around him again…I can’t begin to tell you…”
“Annie, you have made this whole town real proud, but even if you hadn’t we’d still watch out for you. You know folks around here take care of their own.”
“Amen to that,” Brody declared. “I almost hope Geoff does show his face around here again so I can rearrange it for him. And, Sheriff, before you say it, I swear I won’t go lookin’ for trouble.”
“Best you don’t. I’ll stay in touch,” the sheriff said, walking out the door. “I’m sure you’ll let me know if anything happens.”
“Brody, do you think Geoff will come back here?” Annie asked softly.
“Even if he does, there’s no way he’d stick around with a deputy parked so close to the house. But we’re late gettin’ to the horses, and I need to check out those paddocks.”
“We?”
“Yeah, darlin’. We. You and me. That’s how it should be. And there’s a new lyric for you.”
* * *
Settling into his car and rolling down Brody’s driveway, a dark frown crossed the sheriff’s forehead. After years in law enforcement he’d come to understand certain personality types, and he sensed Geoffrey Palmer was a man who wouldn’t give up until he achieved his goal. He wanted Annie and he wasn’t leaving Smoky Hill without her. But just how far would he go to get her?