Jason bit his tongue and took Winona’s hand. He didn’t like this bastard’s tone or his language—or the fact that he was singling out the women.
Deputy Marcs lowered her voice. “He must be one of those crazy sovereign citizens—anti-government types who live out of vehicles and tents. We get a fair number of them around here. Most of the time, they just want to be left alone.”
Jason was familiar with them. “Once in a while, we find one living in the desert on our land and escort them to our borders.”
He glanced back to make sure the guy wasn’t following them and saw that he was watching them, that idiot grin still on his face.
Chapter 10
By the time they reached their vehicles, the first snowflakes were beginning to fall. While Jack and Nate spoke with Deputy Marcs, Winona and Jason waited in Jack’s truck, out of the cold and the wind.
“I’m sorry for how that bastard spoke to you, Win.” Jason took her hand. “I can tell it upset you. It pissed me off, too.”
Jason was right. The bastard’s words had upset her. They had left a weight in the pit of her stomach, a sense of dread. “It’s not your fault.”
Jack and Nate had also apologized, though they weren’t to blame, either.
Jason’s jaw clenched. “I wanted to shut his mouth for him.”
Winona squeezed his fingers. “I’m glad you didn’t, given that Deputy Marcs was standing right there.”
“It might have been worth it.”
“You know what bothers me most?” After last night, Winona felt safe telling him this. “He knows where I live. He must have seen me somewhere in Scarlet. What if he comes to town? What if he comes to the clinic? He scares me.”
“Maybe it’s time to boost security there, install floodlights and cams and put a system on the front door that requires someone to buzz people in.”
“Buzz people in? In Scarlet?”
“If the people of this little town are as warm-hearted as you say they are, they’ll want you to feel safe at work.”
She supposed he was right. “I put a bell on the door after the attack so I would know when someone enters the clinic. Every time it rings, I tense.”
“We can look into your options when we get back to Scarlet.”
It touched her to think he cared. “Thanks.”
Jack and Nate climbed into the truck, prompting Winona to release Jason’s hand. They started the drive back to the house.
Nate glanced back at them over his shoulder. “We’re mighty grateful to the two of you for your help today. We know a lot more today than yesterday, and I learned a few things about cutting sign.”
Jason answered Nate with a nod. “You’re welcome.”
Winona couldn’t take any credit. “Jason did all the work. I identified animal poo and talked about ecosystems.”
But Nate wouldn’t accept that. “Hey, we learned from you, too, Winona.”
“I wish I’d gotten a look at the tread on that guy’s boots,” Jason said.
“I talked with Deputy Marcs about him.” Nate faced forward, took off his gloves. “She doesn’t think it’s him. He had no four-wheeler, no rifle, no wolf that we could see. Plus, he doesn’t look like he has money. To get a four-wheeler of that size up here, he’d need a trailer and a truck to hitch it to.”
“We’re looking for someone with a bit of disposable income, not some idiot who thinks he’s Daniel Boone.” Jack turned on the truck’s windshield wipers, the snow falling harder now. “I’m going to run it all by Janet tonight.”
Nate grinned. “My father’s wife used to work for the FBI. When they first met, he threw her off the property.”
“Which neither of you will ever let me forget.”
“Is that true?” Winona had a hard time imagining someone as kind as Jack throwing anyone off his land.
“It wasn’t my finest moment.”
Janet West was much younger than her husband—probably in her mid-forties. She met them outside the garage, her daughter on her hip, her dark hair pulled back in a ponytail. “How did it go?”
“Hey, Lily-bean.” Jack scooped the toddler into his arms, quickly brought his wife up to date, then introduced Janet to Winona and Jason. “We’re hungry, woman. What’s cookin’?”
Janet kissed his cheek, a teasing smile on her face. “Whatever you make, of course. The salad is done, and the baked potatoes are in the oven.”
While Jack and Nate fired up a big gas grill and handled the steaks, Janet gave them a tour of the house—they hadn’t had time for one this morning—and then invited Winona and Jason to kick back in front of the fireplace in the living room. She walked with a noticeable limp, and Winona seemed to remember something about her having been shot in the line of duty.
“Can I bring either of you something to drink—beer, wine, whisky?”
Jason sank onto a long leather sofa. “Whisky. Thanks.”
Winona sat beside him. “Do you have any flavored seltzer water?”
“We sure do—raspberry, I think.”
“Perfect.”
Janet disappeared, returning quickly with their drinks.
“Thank you.” Winona glanced around, feeling strangely safe and at home here, the stress of their encounter with the creepy guy melting away.
Or maybe she was just stunned by their surroundings. She’d never seen a house like this before. She’d never known that anyone lived like this. Not only did they have a gym and a sauna, but they also had a two-story library with a fireplace. More than once, she and Jason had exchanged looks, both of them astounded.
“They call this a house?” Jason had whispered.
Jason took his whisky from Janet. “Thanks. I’m looking forward to one of these steaks. McBride swears they’re the best.”
Janet nodded like she’d heard that before, her lips curving in a smile. “I would have to agree with him.”
Then Emily came bounding down the stairs in jeans and a pink, sparkly sweater, a pair of fuzzy bunny ears on her blond head, Megan, Nate’s wife, back from Denver and following her daughter with little Jackson in her arms.
Emily’s face lit up. “Winona!”
Winona was surprised the child remembered her. “Hey, Emily. How was school?”
“It was okay. I like my teacher, but Ms. Walker made us do odd and even numbers again, and that’s boring. How is Shota?”
“I went to visit him a few weeks ago, and he was doing very well. I have a newborn nephew named Shota now.”
Emily’s nose wrinkled in confusion. “You named a baby after a wolf?”
Winona couldn’t help but laugh and saw that Jason was smiling, too. “Shota is a boy’s name in my language.”
The little girl’s eyes widened with understanding. “Oh.”
Megan introduced herself to Jason. “I’m Megan, Nate’s wife. This is Emily, our daughter. She’s eight.”
Emily grew indignant. “I’m eight and a half.”
Winona thought she was adorable. “That half is important, isn’t it, Emily?”
“This is Jackson.” Megan lowered the toddler to the floor. “He’s two and a half and into everything.”