Page 13 of Cowboy

“Take out your heels and push the back of the shoe down,” said their leader.

“But, Boss, these cost me three grand,” whined the man.

“I don’t give a fuck. Do it!”

Clarice just smiled as they fixed the heels of their shoes. Staring off in the direction they needed to go, she prayed that the ex-SEAL would protect her granddaughter. If he didn’t, she’d kill these boys and then hunt him down.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Cowboy got the message that the team had left the ranch at 0400. He expected that on horseback, they would arrive within an hour or so. The sun was already up and high in the sky, shining down on them. It wasn’t hot, but it was pleasant weather for this time of year.

Allowing Autumn to sleep, he went back to the wreckage to find anything that might be personal for her or something that could have caused them to be shot down. Other than killing Liconitis, he couldn’t figure out why someone would do it.

In a small bin, he found a leather crossbody bag that had her wallet, keys, and a lipstick in it. He couldn’t help but smile. It seemed such an intimate thing. Putting it back in the bin, he lifted it, then grabbed a sweatshirt that had Cal State across the front.

When the crash happened, cans of soda and bottled water had rolled from the tiny galley area, along with crackers and a few other food items. Carefully making his way toward the tail, he crawled on all fours up the upside-down aisle. With the plane flipped on its back, he was working in an awkward position. There was a slight creak, and the plane adjusted an inch or two.

“Easy, girl. I just need another minute,” he whispered.

Opening the rear door, he found two leather suitcases. Both were filled with men’s clothing, so he left them there, assuming they were for Liconitis and his bodyguard. He found another small tote bag that appeared to be filled with magazines.

“Women and their damn fashion magazines,” he muttered. He was going to leave it, then decided it might be something she really enjoyed reading. Carefully making his way back out of the plane, he exited and climbed out of the plane.

Just as Cowboy started walking away, he heard the final creak of the aluminum on the plane as she crumbled against the earth, crunching together like an accordion. With his haul, he made it back to the camp just as Autumn was waking.

“Good morning,” she smiled.

“Good afternoon,” he grinned. “I thought I’d let you sleep, and then we could get started.”

“You should’ve woken me,” she said, standing.

“No, you needed the sleep. How’s the head?” She ran her fingers over the bandage and turned her head right then left, up then down.

“It seems okay. I don’t feel any dizziness or nausea, so that must be good.”

“I think that’s good. Let’s pack everything up, and we’ll get the hell out of here. I’m sure your grandmother is worried about you.”

Autumn rolled the blanket up and gathered her soiled clothing, shoving them both into one of the bags. When the horses were saddled, they allowed them to have as much as they wanted to drink, then walked along the creek for a bit just to get the feel of moving. Cowboy was still worried about her head injury and wanted to take it slow.

On the other side of the creek was a large drop-off into a ravine, where a gulley wash had created a deep, ditch-like structure. When the creek overflowed in spring, it would widen once again, encompassing the gulley wash. Until then, it was just a small creek and a deep ditch. Rising about it was a cliff face.

“I remember seeing that ravine when we were flying and thinking, ‘don’t crash there.’ It was probably the last thing I remember.”

“I wonder if whoever shot at you was up there, on the edge on the other side,” he said, staring at it.

“The creek is shallow here. We could cross and look,” she said. Cowboy nodded as they crossed to the other side of the creek and looked down into the ravine. If she’d crashed there, she wouldn’t have survived. It wasn’t hundreds of feet down, but it was deep enough that it would have killed her. The plane probably wouldn’t have been able to fly through it.

“I’m not sure how anyone would have gotten down there unless they slid down from this side, but they damn sure could have been on the other side. You still would have been relatively low here. It wouldn’t have taken much except an expert marksman.”

“Right,” she nodded. “I still don’t know why, though. That bothers me.”

“Me too,” he said, turning to face her.

Her light brown hair had streaks of gold from the sun. It was dirty and tangled, but for some reason, Cowboy thought it was beautiful. Her eyes were an interesting shade ofbrown, sometimes green, sometimes chocolate. A strand blew across her mouth, and he reached up, tucking it back behind her ear.

“Th-thank you,” she whispered.

“My pleasure,” he grinned, slowly leaning forward. Unfortunately, he never got close to his destination. The echo of a pistol shot rang out, and he grabbed Autumn, shoving her behind him. Scanning the ridge above them, he saw three men standing on the other side.

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