Christmas At Cardwell Ranch. B.J. Daniels

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      At the door, he pulled his weapon and stepped in, even though he doubted the burglar was still inside. The condo had been ransacked in a way that surprised him. This was no normal break-in. Nor was it a simple case of vandalism. Whoever had done this was looking for something and was determined to destroy everything in his path if he didn’t find it.

      He moved carefully through the upper floor, then the lower one, before he returned to the woman waiting outside.

      “Is she...”

      He shook his head. “No sign of anyone. I’ve called for backup. Until they get here, can we talk in your vehicle?”

      She nodded and climbed behind the wheel. She’d left the SUV running, so it was warm inside. He couldn’t help noticing how neat and clean the interior was as he pulled out his notebook. “Whose condo is it?”

      “I don’t know their name. Mia told me that her parents own it. She is the one who’s been staying here.”

      “Mia?”

      “Mia Duncan. She went to work for my brother at the Canyon three weeks ago. I’m here helping out over the holidays, as you apparently know.”

      He nodded. He’d heard Ace’s sister had bought a house about four years ago up the mountain—about the same time her brother had opened the Canyon Bar.

      “Were you meeting Mia here after work?”

      Lily shook her head. “She left before her shift was over. I was worried about her, so I decided to drive up and check on her.”

      “Did she say why she left?”

      “No. That’s just it. She didn’t say anything. One of our patrons saw her leave with a man. The patron said he thought she’d been drinking.”

      He sensed that she didn’t see how any of this helped and hated talking about Mia behind her back. “Could the man she left with have been a boyfriend?”

      “She’d said she wasn’t seeing anyone, but I can’t swear to it.”

      “Did this patron describe the man he saw her leave with?”

      “Just that he was wearing a cowboy hat and driving a pickup.”

      “That doesn’t narrow it down much. What is this patron’s name?”

      She shook her head. “I’ve never seen him before. I’m sorry that I can’t offer much in the way of details. He had a Southern accent, if that helps.”

      “You’re doing fine. Did you see anyone leaving as you drove into the condo complex tonight?”

      “No. But as soon as I pulled up here, I saw that her door was partially open. I only went a few steps inside before I called you.”

      He’d seen her footprints in the snow. Unfortunately, the footprints of the intruder had been covered by fresh snow. Someone who knew Mia’s hours at the bar and knew she wouldn’t be coming home until the bar closed? But she left early. So where was she?

      Hud wrote down Lily’s cell phone number and closed his notebook as another patrol rig drove up. “I’ll call if I have any more questions.”

      “I don’t know Mia well, but I’m worried about her. This is the second night she’s left in the middle of her shift without telling anyone. Before that she was our most reliable employee.”

      He nodded. If it wasn’t for the ransacked condo, he would have just figured the woman had met some man and fallen hard. People in love often became less reliable employees.

      Hud assured Lily he’d let her know when he heard something. But he could tell nothing he might say would relieve her worry. After seeing the inside of the condo, he shared her concern.

      * * *

      WITH HER SHIFT finally over, Teresa Evans opened the back door of the bar and looked out at the falling snow. She had mixed feelings about seeing her boyfriend after the fight they’d had earlier before she’d left for work.

      But she didn’t have to worry about it. The main parking lot was empty. No Ethan sitting out here in his old pickup, the engine running, the wipers trying to keep up with the falling snow. No Ethan at all.

      The only vehicles were Reggie’s SUV and Ace’s old Jeep. Both were covered in snow.

      “Do you need a ride?” Reggie asked behind her, making her jump. The other server stopped to frown at her. “Are you all right?”

      “I’m fine,” she said a little too sharply.

      Reggie raised an eyebrow.

      “Didn’t Lily say Mia left with someone else earlier?” Teresa asked. “Her car’s gone.”

      Reggie glanced to the spot where Mia had parked earlier. Teresa followed her gaze. There was a rectangular spot in the snow where the car had been.

      “I guess she must have come back for it,” Reggie said with a shrug. “I hope she wasn’t as drunk as that customer thought she was. Bad night to be driving as it is.”

      “Yeah,” Teresa agreed. “Or to be working.”

      Reggie took hold of her arm and gently squeezed it through Teresa’s coat. “Hey, accidents happen. Ace knows that.”

      It took her a moment to realize that Reggie was referring to the tray of glasses she’d dropped earlier in the evening when she was clearing one of the tables. “Clumsy,” she said to cover the truth. “I think I’m coming down with something.”

      “Is everything okay with Ethan?” Reggie asked, lowering her voice, as they stood under the shelter of the small landing just outside the bar. Reggie didn’t look at her when she asked it. Instead, she pretended more interest in digging her keys out of her purse.

      Teresa stared through the falling snow, trying to conjure Ethan and his old pickup. “We’re good.” That wasn’t exactly true, but it was too cold to get into it out here in the wee hours of the morning. “I appreciate you asking, though.”

      “Hey, we’re friends. You sure you don’t want a ride?” Reggie said, looking around as she found her keys in the bottom of her shoulder bag. “I don’t see Ethan.”

      “He’ll be along soon. He probably just fell asleep. I’ll give him a call. If worse comes to worst, I’ll walk. It’s not that far.”

      Reggie looked skeptical. “You’d be soaked to the skin if you walked in this.” But she let it drop, no doubt sensing that whatever was going on with Teresa, it wasn’t something she wanted to talk about. “Well, then, I’ll see you tomorrow. I just hope it won’t be as crazy as it was tonight.” With that, Reggie stepped off the covered landing and headed for her car.

      Teresa found herself wondering when Mia had come back for her vehicle as she watched Reggie clean the snow from her car and finally drive away. She couldn’t shake the memory of what Mia had said to her earlier.

      Several cars went by, disappearing quickly СКАЧАТЬ