Calvin reached for his rifle. “Leave it for now,” the sheriff commanded.
He got to his feet and walked slowly, heading in the direction of the dead animal. Sheriff Almond and I followed behind. I was sure he didn’t believe we were telling the truth. He probably thought Calvin was my captor, and I had developed Stockholm syndrome.
The flies had already gotten to the mountain lion. They wasted no time when it came to death. A swarm of them buzzed around, dropping into the sticky blood. Its eyes were black, still marbles, and its tongue hung out from the side of its mouth.
“Well, shit. This thing has to be two hundred–plus pounds,” the sheriff said as he walked around the carcass, taking it all in. “You said it attacked you?” He looked to me.
I nodded. “Yeah, it was leaping in the air when Calvin shot it.”
A shiver ran down my spine. I’d be the one lying dead in the dirt if it weren’t for him. I never had that close of an encounter before. The closest I’d come to death was nearly getting swiped by a cab in the city. Now I understood how others who had faced it felt.
“You’ll want to contact the DNR, since it’s outside of hunting season, and let them know what happened,” the sheriff said.
Calvin nodded. “I was just about to do that before you showed up.”
“Mountain lion attacks are extremely rare.” He glanced at me. “You’re lucky to be alive.”
I pressed my lips firmly together and wrapped the sheet a little tighter.
“Something must be wrong with this one,” Sheriff Almond added as he gestured toward the animal.
“That’s what I was thinking,” Calvin said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen one on my property before.” He scanned the surrounding area.
“Glad you’re safe, ma’am.” He tilted his head and gave me a sympathetic look.
Redirecting his attention to Calvin, the sheriff raised his chin. “Now, the reason I came out here was about that missing woman Briana Becker.”
I wasn’t sure if Calvin tensed up or if I was imagining it. “Yeah, what’s up? Did you find her?” He shifted his stance, folding his arms across his chest.
“Unfortunately, no.” He cleared his throat. “But we did find her car broken down two miles from here on a back road.”
Wyatt had already told us about the car, so what was the sheriff doing here? Calvin looked down at his feet and back at him. Where was the sheriff going with this? From his tone and how he looked at Calvin, it seemed there was an accusation coming.
“Are you sure didn’t see her?” Sheriff Almond pulled the photo from his front pocket and held it out. “Get a good look,” he added.
There she was again, the bright eyes, long, blond wavy hair, dimples, and a pretty smile. Calvin examined the photo for a moment. “No, like I said before, I haven’t seen her. And she never checked in.”
“And you?” Sheriff Almond put the picture in my line of sight.
I shook my head. “No, I haven’t seen her.”
He gave a slight nod and pocketed the photo. “After seeing this I’m starting to wonder if something like this happened to her?” The sheriff looked down at the dead animal.
“Nature is unforgiving,” Calvin said.
Sheriff Almond gave him a peculiar look.
“You mind if I have a look around your property?”
I couldn’t see where the sheriff was looking because his aviators covered his eyes, but he swiveled his head to the left and to the right—like he was already searching. Did he think the woman was here? If she was, I would have surely stumbled across her. Or did he think Calvin had done something to her? My mind went back to the night I heard the woman’s scream. Was it her? I opened my mouth and was about to mention it but stopped. What if I was wrong? What if I had been dreaming? What if I actually hadn’t heard anything? It would further complicate things, so I kept my mouth shut.
“Have at it. I can show you around if you’d like,” Calvin offered.
“Yeah, sure. That’d be great,” Sheriff Almond said.
The two of them walked toward the barn, keeping their distance six feet from one another. Calvin glanced back at me with a tight smile, not his usual smile. I turned, heading back toward the house. And then it hit me. The ranch had no cell service, and if the Wi-Fi was down then, Briana wouldn’t have been able to check in even if she was here.
The warm water cascaded over me as I attempted to let fear and anxiety wash away with the blood. It swirled down the drain, a pinkish-red liquid. I knew there was something off when I got here. I felt it in the house. I saw it in Calvin. Perhaps it’s what attracted me to him. The danger of it all. The unknowing. Everything in my life had always been planned. There was never any room for spontaneity or things that weren’t a part of my schedule. That included fear. You don’t plan for fear. It was obvious the sheriff believed Briana had been here. I was starting to believe it too. But where was she now?
I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around me. My hand swiped the condensation buildup from the mirror, revealing a clean face but I could still somehow see the blood on it. Perhaps it was a part of me now. I took a deep breath and pulled open the bathroom door. As soon as I stepped into the hall, I crashed into another person.
“Calvin . . .” But it wasn’t Calvin.
“Sorry, ma’am. I didn’t expect you to spring out like a chicken.”
I wrapped the damp towel tighter around my body. “Who the hell are you?”
The man was hefty, dressed in dirty overalls. He had to have been in his sixties. His peppered hair was shaggy but not intentionally—just as if he didn’t take good care of himself. His nose was large, and his skin was covered in rosacea and patchy facial hair.
Loud footsteps made their way toward us. “Grace! Ahh,” Calvin paused as his eyes caught the scene before him “I see you two have met. This is Albert. He’s another Airbnb guest who will be staying here for the next couple nights.”
A wave of emotions flooded over me.
“I didn’t know another guest was coming, Calvin. On my booking, I actually requested to be the only guest.” I narrowed my eyes.
“I must have missed that, and I do have two rooms listed. So sometimes, although rarely, they can overlap. Albert here was a last-minute booking.”
“That’s true, little lady. I’m just passing through but needed a place to stop off to get some rest.” His smile revealed a dead front tooth.
“I see. Where’s Sheriff Almond?” I redirected my attention to Calvin.
He cleared his throat and slid a hand into his front pocket. “He left.”
“Already?”
“Yep, didn’t find what he was looking for.” His eyes bounced from me to Albert and back again.
I wasn’t sure how long I had been in the shower. Time didn’t seem to exist here in Wyoming. But he left rather quickly for someone looking for a missing person, especially on such a large property. Perhaps Sheriff Almond wasn’t convinced Calvin had been involved.
“I’ll be in my room.”