Cardwell Ranch Trespasser

chapter Thirteen

Colt looked down at the photo. His heart sank. The photo was of two people, a young man and a girl with long dark hair. The young man was the same man still at the morgue in Montana—Rick Cameron, aka Richard Northland.

The girl—was definitely not Dee.

He told himself it had been a long shot, but now realized how much he’d been counting on Dee being Camilla Northland. Maybe Rick really was her boyfriend. Maybe she didn’t even kill him.

“This isn’t the woman in Montana,” he told Thelma.

“Like I said, she was only sixteen. I have no idea what she looks like now.” She took the photograph back. “You look disappointed. You should be thankful the woman in Montana isn’t Camilla. You should be very thankful.”

“Were she and her brother really that bad?” he had to ask.

The old woman scoffed. “They killed their parents. Burned them to a crisp. That bad enough for you? They tried to poison me. Camilla pushed me down the stairs once no doubt hoping I would break my neck. I hate to think what they would have done if I’d broken a leg and needed the two of them to take care of me. I finally ran them off.” Still clutching the photo, she sat down in a chair across from him and patted her shotgun. “I’ve always felt guilty about that.” Her gaze came up to meet his. “But I couldn’t have killed them even knowing what I was releasing on the world.”

He felt a chill at her words as she looked from him to the photograph and seemed startled by what she saw.

“I grabbed the wrong photograph. This isn’t Camilla. This is that awful girlfriend of Richard’s.” She pushed to her feet, padded out of the room and returned a moment later.

This time she handed him a photo of Richard and a girl standing on the porch outside. The girl’s face was in shadow, but there was no doubt it was the woman who called herself Dee Anna Justice.

At sixteen, she already had those dark, soulless eyes.

* * *

DEE HAD BEEN WAITING, so she wasn’t surprised when Dana finally asked.

“I know nothing about your father,” Dana said, as she was making dinner. “Do you have any idea why our families separated all those years ago?”

Mary and Hank were making a huge mess building a fort in the living room. The twins were in dual high chairs spreading some awful-looking food all over themselves and anything else within reach.

Dee moved so she wasn’t in their line of fire. Dana had put her to work chopping vegetables for the salad. Now she stopped to look at the small paring knife in her hand. She tried to remember exactly what she’d told Stacy.

“I really have no idea,” she said, thinking that if she had to cut up one more cucumber she might start screaming. Hud hadn’t been around all day. Spending “free” time with Dana and the kids was mind-numbing.

“Can you tell me what your father was like?” Dana asked as she fried chicken in a huge cast-iron skillet on the stove. The hot kitchen smelled of grease. It turned Dee’s stomach.

“He was secretive,” Dee said, thinking of his daughter. The real Dee Anna had never talked about her family, her father in particular, which had been fine with her because she wasn’t really interested. She liked her roommates to keep to themselves, just share an apartment, not their life stories.

“Secretive?” Dana said with interest. “And your mother?”

Dee gave her the same story she’d given Stacy. She had actually met Marietta Justice, so that made it easy.

“That surprises me. I can’t imagine why my family wouldn’t have been delighted to have Walter marry so well,” Dana said.

“Maybe they didn’t want him leaving here and they knew that was exactly what was going to happen,” Dee said, as she chopped the last cucumber and dumped it into the salad. The entire topic of Dee Anna’s family bored her. If Dana wanted to hear about an interesting family, Dee could tell her about hers.

“Tell me more about your side of the family,” Dee said, knowing Dana would jump at the chance. She tuned her out as she ripped up the lettuce the way Dana had showed her and thought about her plan. She felt rushed, but she had no choice. In order to make this happen, she had to move fast.

Hilde had done a lot of damage, but Dee was sure that after Dana and the kids were gone, Hud would lean on her. Eventually.

She thought of the man she’d met on the airplane. He was still over on the Yellowstone River for a few more days. All she had to do was pick up the phone and call him. She could walk away from here and never look back. All her instincts told her that was the thing to do.

Dee heard the kids start screaming in the other room, then the front door slam. A moment later Hud Savage came into the kitchen with Mary and Hank hanging off him like monkeys. All three were laughing.

“What smells so good?” he asked. Even the two babies got excited to see him and joined in the melee.

Dee watched him give Dana a kiss. She felt her heart swell. She’d never wanted anything more in her life than what Dana had. No matter how long it took, she would have this with Hud Savage. Only he would love her more than he’d ever loved Dana.

* * *

“SO CAMILLA IS the woman you mentioned back in Montana,” Thelma Peters said, and added under her breath, “God help you all.”

Colt’s heart was pounding. “If you know for certain that she and her brother killed their parents, why weren’t they arrested?”

“No proof. Those two were cagey, way beyond their years. She was far worse than her brother. Smarter and colder. She made it look like an accident. Anyone who knew Camilla knew what had really happened out at that house the night of the fire. She fooled everyone else, making them feel sorry for her.”

He thought about the way she’d worked Hud and Dana. Even himself that day on the river. Camilla Northland was a great actor. “And yet, you let them move in here.”

“They were so young. I thought I could turn them around. I dragged the two of them to church.” She shook her head. “It was a waste of time. The evil was too deep in her, and Richard was too dependent on her.”

“Would you mind if I took this photograph?” he asked.

“Please do. For years, I’ve prayed never to see that face again. I’ve always worried that when I got old, she would come back here.”

Thelma didn’t have to say any more. He had a pretty good idea now of what Camilla might do to the aunt who had taken her in all those years ago.

“Do you believe in evil, Marshal?”

He didn’t correct her. “I do now.”

She nodded. “I assume she’s already hurt people or you wouldn’t be here.”

He nodded, reminded that she’d gotten away with it, too. And might continue to get away with it because there was never any proof and she was very good at her lies.

“I pray you can stop her,” Thelma said. “I couldn’t. But maybe you can.”

* * *

HILDE WAS AT the shop when Colt called. After Dana had left, she’d been so upset she’d thought about going home. But she couldn’t stand the thought of her empty house. So she’d stayed and helped set up the new sewing machines with Ronnie.

When her cell phone rang, she jumped as if she’d been electrocuted. Ronnie shot her a worried look. Hilde saw that it was Colt calling and, heart racing, hurried into the break room and closed the door.

“Where are you?” she asked.

“On my way to the airport. I was able to get a flight out this afternoon. If I can make the tight connections, I’ll be home tonight.”

Home tonight. She thrilled at his words. “It is so good to hear your voice.”

“Rough day?” he asked. “Hilde—”

“Don’t worry, I haven’t seen Dee. Dana stopped by. I’ll tell you about it when you get back.” She braced herself. “What did you find out?”

“First, I need you to remain calm. I almost didn’t call you because I was afraid you’d go charging out to the ranch.”

“She’s this Camilla person who they think killed her own parents,” Hilde said.

“Yes.”

She closed her eyes, gripping the phone, emotions bombarding her from every direction. Relief that she’d been right about the woman. Terror since a killer was still out at the ranch with her best friend and her kids.

“Listen to me, Hilde. If you go charging out there or even call, they aren’t going to believe you—and you could force Dee to do something drastic and jeopardize everyone, okay?”

She nodded to herself, knowing what he was saying was true. Dana wouldn’t believe Colt any more than she had Hilde. “You’ve told Hud, though, right? So he’s going to take care of everything.”

“I’ve been trying to reach him. I’ve left him a message. He’ll know how to handle this. I need your word that you’ll sit tight. I’ll be there by tonight and this will all be over.”

She wished it were that simple. She prayed he was right. “Okay. I know what you’re saying. I won’t do anything.”

“Where are you?”

“At the shop. I couldn’t stay at the house.”

“I wish you would go home and wait for me. Lock the doors. Don’t leave for any reason.”

She smiled, touched by his concern.

“Hilde, I...I love you.”

His words brought tears of joy to her eyes. For years she’d waited for the right man to come along. Dana had been her biggest supporter.

“I want you to find someone like Hud so badly,” Dana would say.

Hilde had wanted that, too, but she’d thought it could never happen.

“Are you crying?” he asked.

She gulped back a sob. This was the happiest moment of her life and she couldn’t share it with her best friend. “I love you, too, Colt.”

“Okay, baby,” he said. “I have to go. I’ll call you the moment I land. Be safe.”

She hung up and let the tears fall that she’d been fighting to hold back all day.

A moment later, Ronnie opened the door a crack. “Are you all right?”

Hilde almost laughed. Dana and Hud weren’t the only people looking at her strangely lately. “Colt Dawson just told me that he loves me.”

Ronnie started to laugh, clearly relieved. “That’s wonderful. I guess you must be one of those people who cries when they’re happy?”

Hilde nodded, although some of the tears were out of a deep sadness. In a matter of days, her life had changed so drastically it made her head spin.

“Do you want me to stay with you?” Ronnie asked. “If you don’t feel like locking up tonight by yourself—”

Hilde hadn’t realized it was so late. “No, I’m fine.”

Ronnie hesitated. Of course she’d heard about Dee’s alleged attack and probably even the restraining order.

“I don’t think there will be any trouble tonight,” Hilde said, thinking she should have gotten a restraining order against Dee. As if a restraining order would stop someone like her.

As Ronnie left, Hilde locked up behind her. She wasn’t quite ready to go home yet. A part of her was still chilled by the news that the woman posing as Dee Anna Justice was actually Camilla Northland, sister of Richard Northland, both of them believed to be cold-blooded killers.

It was easy for Hilde to believe that of Dee. She knew firsthand what the woman was capable of. The fact that Dee was probably out on the ranch right now having dinner with Dana and Hud and the kids...

Colt was right, of course. Calling out there to warn Dana was a waste of breath. It could even make matters worse.

Hilde turned out the lights in the front of the store and walked to the break room. Closing the door, she pulled out her cell phone. At the touch of one button she could get Dana on the line.

She thought about what she could say. She hit the button. The phone rang three times. They were eating dinner. Dana wasn’t going to answer the call.

Hilde had just started to hang up when it stopped ringing. “Dana?” She could hear breathing. “Dana, I just called to tell you that Colt just told me he loved me.”

“I’m sorry, but you have the wrong number.” The line went dead.

For just an instant, Hilde thought she had gotten the wrong number because that hadn’t been Dana’s voice.

Then her mind kicked into gear.

It had been Dee’s voice. She’d answered Dana’s cell phone.

* * *

COLT COULDN’T BELIEVE he’d blurted it out like that. I love you. He’d said it without thinking. He let out a chuckle. He’d just said what was in his heart.

He considered calling her back to warn her again about doing anything crazy. He had debated telling her about Dee to start with, afraid of what Hilde would do. For a woman who he suspected had never been impulsive in her life, she had been doing a lot of things on the spur of the moment lately.

Like telling him she loved him, too.

He felt his heart soar at the memory of her words. He couldn’t wait to get home for so many reasons.

The moment he walked into the airport terminal, though, he felt his heart drop. Something was wrong. He could feel it in the air as he hurried to the airline counter and saw that his flight had been canceled.

“What’s going on?” he asked of a man waiting in line. He could hear a woman arguing that she had to get to Salt Lake.

“All flights into Salt Lake City have been canceled for today because of a bad spring snowstorm,” the man said. “Snow’s falling at a rate of six inches an hour. I just saw it on the weather channel. Doesn’t look good even for in the morning.”

Colt felt like the woman arguing with the airline clerk. He desperately needed to get home. But unlike that woman, he realized he wasn’t going to be flying.

He’d just reached the car rental agency when Annie called from the marshal’s office in Big Sky. “Ready to be surprised? Dee Anna Justice did book a flight to New York City for tomorrow.”

He was surprised. “You’re sure?”

“I had the airline executive double-check. Because I called concerned about Dee Anna Justice, I figure they’ll take her into one of those little rooms and do an entire cavity search,” she said with a satisfied chuckle.

Colt was trying to make sense of this. Dee was really leaving tomorrow? Maybe she was just covering her bets.

“Not only that, Hud announced that he plans to take Dana on a trip to Jackson Hole beginning Sunday. Jordan and Liza are going to stay at the house for a couple of days and watch the kids.”

“You’re sure Dee isn’t going with them?” he asked.

“Definitely not. He said he hoped things calmed down once Dana put Dee on the plane.”

Colt bet he did. “Thanks for doing this, Annie. One more thing. I left a message for Hud—”

“There’s been a break in the burglary case in West Yellowstone. He was up there today and he’s coming back tomorrow. That’s probably why he hasn’t returned your call.”

Either that or he’d seen who’d called and didn’t want to deal with his suspended deputy right now. While Hud had to be having his own misgivings about Dee, Colt knew that the marshal would be skeptical even if Colt gave him the information he’d gathered in Tuttle—until he saw the photograph of Camilla Northland and her brother.

* * *

“YOU’RE IN LUCK,” the woman behind the counter told him. “I have one vehicle left. I’m afraid it’s our most expensive SUV.”

“I’ll take it,” he said, and pulled out his credit card. Getting the paperwork done seemed to take forever. He glanced at his watch. Not quite noon. While he was waiting for the woman to finish the paperwork, he’d checked.

It was twenty-two hours to Big Sky. That didn’t take into account the bad weather ahead of him. He knew he wouldn’t be able to make good time once he reached the snow. He would have to make up for it when he had dry roads.

But he could reach Big Sky by late morning. He just prayed that wouldn’t be too late.

Finally, she handed him the keys. A few minutes later, he was in the leather, heated-seat lap of luxury and headed north.

Hilde had sounded disappointed when he’d called to tell her the news. “But I’m glad you’re on your way. Just be careful. I checked the weather before you called. It looks like that storm is going to stay to the south of us.”

Neither of them had mentioned what they had said to each other earlier.

“I can’t wait to see you,” he said.

“Me, too.”

“I’d better get off and pay attention to my driving.” He’d hung up feeling all the more frustrated that he couldn’t get to her more quickly. Hud still hadn’t returned his call.

He pushed down on the gas pedal, hoping he didn’t get pulled over.

* * *

DEE SAW HOW disappointed Dana was at dinner when Hud told her he had to go up to West Yellowstone the next day. Any other time, Dee would have felt the same way.

She touched the small vial in her pocket. Hud didn’t realize how lucky he was. Now she could implement her plan without involving him. This was so much better.

“I should be back by late afternoon,” Hud was saying. “What do you and Dee have planned?”

“She flies out tomorrow afternoon, so it’s up to her,” Dana said. She and Hud looked at Dee.

“I just want to spend the morning here on the ranch with Dana and the kids,” Dee said. “I don’t know when I’ll get to see them again, so I want to make it last. If it’s nice, I’d love to take the kids on a walk. I saw those tandem strollers you have out there. I thought we could hike up the road, pick wildflowers...”

“That’s a wonderful idea,” Dana said. “I could pack a lunch.”

“You’re not going,” Dee said. “You are going to stay here and put your feet up and relax. You have been waiting on me for days. It’s my turn to give you a break. The kids and I can pack the lunch, can’t we?”

Mary and Hank quickly agreed. “I want peanut butter and jelly,” Mary said.

“Mommy’s strawberry jelly,” Hank added, and Mary clapped excitedly.

“Good, it’s decided,” Dee said. “You aren’t allowed to do any work while we’re gone. When was the last time you had a chance to just relax and, say, read a book or take a nap?”

Dana smiled down the table at her, then reached to take her hand to squeeze it. “Thank you. I really am glad you came all this way to visit us. I’m just sorry—” Her eyes darkened with sadness.

“None of that,” Dee said, giving her hand a squeeze back. “I can’t tell you how thankful I am that you invited me.”

As she sat picking at her food, the rest of the family noisily enjoying the meal, Dee counted down the hours. She could feel time slipping through her fingers, but she was relatively calm. Once she’d decided what she was going to have to do, she’d just accepted it.

She’d learned as a child to just accept things the way they were—until she could change them. There was nothing worse than feeling trapped in a situation where you felt there was nothing you could do.

That had been her childhood—feeling defenseless. She’d sworn that the day would come when she would never feel like that again. It took a steely, blind determination that some might have thought cold.

But the moment she’d lit that match so many years ago, she’d sworn she was never going to be a victim again.