“Four to five thousand gallons a day. I don’t know, you’d have to ask the bigwigs at the company on where it all comes from. I know much of it comes from the river.”
“Yeah, I saw trucks coming up from there. On the way back to Greeley.”
“That’s right. They have a pumping station down there. I think the company also has other sources. What do you do?”
Dani said, “I guess I kind of work with water, too. I’m a whitewater guide.”
“Cool. Whereabouts?”
“The Roaring Fork River. Outside Aspen.”
“Very cool.” His bison burger came. He put some onions and a pickle on it. “Sounds like a fun life to me.”
“Ever been there?”
“Once.” He took a bite. “Not too long ago. Mmmm …” He took a bite. “That was the right choice. So, hey, maybe I could show you if you’ve got some time …?”
“Show me what?”
“Where all that water comes from. That water facility down by the river. You seem to be interested.”
“I don’t know …” Dani shrugged. Maybe she had let it go too far. “We’re actually leaving later today. Besides, I thought you said you’ve never been there.”
“Hell, won’t take more than an hour.” The guy turned to her. “C’mon now, have a little pity on a guy who’s been out in the fields for a month. What do you say?”
What Dani would have said, had she not noticed two things that sent a tremor of caution running through her, was that she’d heard better pickup lines in grade school. But her eye went first to the guy’s hands, which were clean and smooth and trimmed down to the quick, and didn’t look like the hands of any oil field workman who’d been out in the field for a month.
And the second, since he kept glancing, was that a black SUV had pulled up on the street outside the café.
“So what’s your name?” the guy asked. His smile seemed to shift, no longer innocent and friendly. Now like there was something behind it. Almost professional.
That was when Dani placed where she had seen those hard, detached eyes.
“I’m sorry, I’ve gotta go,” she said, reaching in her bag for some bills.
“Dani, isn’t it? So what’s the rush?” he said. The man put his hand over hers, restraining her from going into her bag. A chill ran through her. Suddenly she saw who it was. Her mind hurtled back to the grainy photo Ty had shown her that he’d taken at Alpha. To Trey’s twisted and bloodied body she had found in the river.
“I’m John,” the guy said, still smiling, but the smile now frozen and empty. “John Robertson. Heard you were trying to find me, Dani.” He winked. “How about we just say, lunch is on me.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
Dani froze, bolts of fear rocketing down her.
Her heart went from beating a mile a minute to a dead stop. She took hold of her bag and tried to slide off the stool and away from him, her eyes never leaving his. Trying with everything she had not to show him the dread that was ricocheting in her chest.
“Why the rush, girl …?” Robertson tightened his grip. “Now that you finally found me, you don’t like what you see? So, listen up, here’s how we’re gonna do this …” The easygoing drawl hardened into a veiled command. “We’re going to walk out of here, nice and friendly like, and we’re going to get in that black SUV you see outside. Try something even remotely foolish, like yell or try to get away, and I’ll crack your arm in two right here, and I assure you, no one in here will do as much as lift a finger to help. So are we good …?” He lifted her hand back out of her bag. “And no point in checking to see if that uncle of yours is gonna come to the rescue. ’Cause he ain’t, I can assure you. I’m afraid he had a bit of an unexpected situation himself a few minutes ago.”
Dani froze. “What have you done with him?” Worry springing up in her.
Robertson made a kind of chirping noise. “Now don’t you worry about him, darlin’. You just come along. Nice and easy now. Now nod to me that you understand what I’m telling you and we’ll get going.”
“You’re hurting me,” Dani said under her breath, trying to wrestle her arm free.
“Just say you understand.” Robertson squeezed her even tighter, on a pressure point that made her feet buckle. “Or you won’t know what hurt is.”
She looked back at him, both in pain and terror. She didn’t know what they had done with Ty. Please let him be all right. But one thing was clear. Clear as anything she’d ever felt in her life.
She couldn’t get in that car.
Once she did, she knew she was as good as dead.
“I understand.” She finally nodded, and ripped her arm away. She looked around. Everyone behind the counter was working and the customers at the couple of tables still occupied seemed to be minding their own business.
“Good, then,” he said. “So we’re gonna walk out of here, kind of arm in arm, just like we were gonna go take that trip I talked about. And we’ll get in that SUV parked outside and no one will know the difference. So get on up now … and don’t make a move to run. Or I’ll crack that arm of yours like a twig. Just follow me.”
Robertson slowly stepped off his stool, and Dani desperately tried to make eye contact with the waitress and then the cook behind the counter. Maybe they sensed what was happening. But if they did, it was just like Robertson had said. Everyone was just going about their business.
“Something wrong with the burger, hon?” the waitress asked, seeing Robertson put some bills on the counter. “I could pack it up to go.”
“It was perfect,” Robertson said. “Something just came up.”
Dani caught her eyes. She gave her a look of alarm. Can’t you see what’s happening? Call the police. Do something! But she didn’t seem to understand. She only looked back at Dani without it registering, taking the cash. “Next time then.”