“I feel like a damn sitting duck,” he muttered under his breath.
“I hear ya,” Miller replied, sharing the sentimentas they pressed onward.
As they trudged through the knee-high grass toward the old barn, Deke held up a hand, to stop Miller. After taking a look around, Deke nodded for them to move again.
Miller silently walked beside Deke. When they reached the doors, Deke eased open the creaking back doors. The barn’s interior was almost pitch-black until he pushed the doors wider, and pale afternoon light poured in, illuminating drifting dust motes, spiderwebs, and the sweet tang of hay. Both men holstered their guns.
“Let’s see what we can find,” Deke murmured. “I’ll go up the left aisle, you take the right.”
“Got it, Agent,” Miller said, removing his flashlight as Deke did the same.
They advanced down parallel aisles between rows of empty stalls. Deke paused halfway, and swept the beam of his flashlight along the rough-hewn walls. It caught something glinting on the floor, a tiny flash of red. He pulled the plastic gloves on, crouched, and brushed away stray straw to reveal an ear tag. Fishing Rudy’s folded list from his pocket, he scanned the numbers.
“This one’s from Hollister’s herd,” Deke called softly.
“There’s some here,” Miller answered a moment later. Deke stood and crossed the aisle, handing over the list. “Matches,” Miller confirmed, tracing a finger down the chart.
“Perfect,” Deke whispered, tucking the tag into an evidence bag. “Let’s keep moving.”
They worked methodically, stepping over scattered straw and old feed pails, gathering ear tags one by one. In the dim light, the tags shonered, each stamped with an ID number.
“How many have you got, Deputy?” Deke asked after a few minutes.
“Seven,” Miller replied, counting into his palm.
“I have five. That’s twelve total. I think we have what we need.”
They strode out of the barn, pausing at the threshold to let their eyes readjust to the afternoon glare, then returned to the cruiser on the gravel drive. Deke secured the evidence bags in the back seat, then got into the cruiser. The engine growled to life as they headed back toward the sheriff’s department.
Once back at the department, they picked up the bags containing the ear tags and walked toward the building.
Miller extended his hand. “Thanks for letting me help out, Agent.”
Deke shook it firmly. “Deke, and I was happy to have the help, Deputy.”
“Jeff. Good luck with the rest.”
“I’m off to Clifton now to run these tags through the system.” Deke glanced up at the sky at a dark bank of clouds rolling in. “Storm’s brewing.”
Miller nodded. “Stay dry.”
Deke walked to his truck, into a breeze that carried the distant rumble of thunder. He placed the tagged evidence bags on the passenger seat of his truck, slipped behind the wheel, and eased onto the road home. Still two days off before returning Thursday to talk to the Winchester boys again. He could verify Rudy’s list against the official records at home. He pressed the call button on his steering wheel.
“Hey, Rudy,” he said when Rudy’s voice came through the speaker. “Thanks for the ear-tag list. You know I’ve got to cross-check these in the database.”
“No problem,” Rudy replied. “Let me know what you find.”
“I will. Talk soon.” Deke ended the call and watched the sky darken further as gusts of wind rattled his truck’s mirrors. At home, he’d assemble Ellie’s things once they arrived tomorrow. He hoped it was early so he could maybe steal a quiet afternoon Wednesday before returning to Maple Ridge on Thursday. He was going to wait to see if any of them wanted to talk, but he was tired of fooling around, and he was determined to get something out of them. With the rain on its way, he welcomed the thought of settling in, sipping hot coffee while thunder rolled overhead.
****
As Ava sat at the worn pine table in her kitchen, the soft glow of the overhead light illuminating rows of receipts and half-filled ledgers, but she couldn’t concentrate. It was getting close to the time she’d move to Clifton and it terrified her. Not because of her family, but because of the uncertainty surrounding Deacon’s intentions for her and Ellie. He had said they could live with him, but in what capacity? Were they to be a couple with a daughter, or simply a family sharing the same roof? Her attraction to Deacon still burned brightly, and she longed to get to know him as a man beyond their shared chemistry in thebedroom. But such chemistry alone did not make a relationship.
“Ugh, you keep telling yourself the same thing over and over,” she sighed, frustration bubbling beneath her calm exterior.
“Mama?” Ellie’s small voice pulled her back to reality.
“Yes, baby?” Ava replied, softening her tone as she glanced at her daughter sitting on the floor, surrounded by her dolls.
