Sunrise Crossing

This was what he needed. A passion. A job. A goal to move toward. When he finished, he’d have pride in what he’d done, and no one could take that from him.

After a while, he heard a sound above his head. A slight movement, as if someone had shifted atop the loose boards stacked along one side of the loft.

Another sound. The creaking of the flooring.

As he had each time for a week when this had happened, he didn’t react. He simply kept working. If the invisible visitor had meant him any harm, he would have known it long before now. Maybe some frightened animal had taken shelter from the last month of winter, or maybe a drifter just wanted a warm place to rest before moving on. He’d been there in his teens. He knew how much a quiet, safe place could mean.

Yancy was lost in his work an hour later when a loose board shifted above and tumbled down.

A little squeak followed.

Yancy waited, then said calmly, “If you’re trying to kill me, you’ll need to toss down something bigger than a two-by-four.”

“Sorry,” came a whisper.

“No harm. I’ve known you were up there for a while. Want to come down and say hello?”

No answer.

“I got a thermos of hot coffee I haven’t had time to drink. You’re welcome to it.”

“You’re not calling the police?”

“Nope. Sheriff probably has his own coffee.”

Yancy thought he heard a hiccup of a laugh.

A slight woman dressed in jeans and a blue-checked flannel shirt moved down the ladder. Her long, dark braid brushed her backside as she lowered from step to step.

“I didn’t mean to spy on you,” she said, without looking at him. “The barn wasn’t locked, and I just wanted to be out of the cold a few nights ago. It smells so good in here I’ve found myself coming back.”

“It’s the fresh-cut wood. I love the smell, too.” He went back to work. “So, you walk at night also? It’s a habit of mine.”

She nodded. “I don’t usually come this close to town, but walking seems better than trying to sleep.”

“I know what you mean.” He handed her the thermos. “Coffee’s strong. It was left over from where I work, but it’s hot. Should take off the chill.”

She untwisted the lid and poured herself half a cup. “I like the sounds of the night and the way I can walk without having to speak to anyone. I can just walk and be a part of the land, the trees, the air.”

“You don’t like talking to folks?”

“Not much. I’ve just said more to you right now than I’ve said to anyone in days.”

He grinned, thinking no one at the retirement home would believe this story when he told it tomorrow. A pretty woman, about his age, with hair as black as midnight, hiding in his loft. And even stranger, she said she didn’t like to talk but yet she still talked to him.

He liked the idea that they shared a love for walking the shadowy roads and also for not having much to say. He was usually the one folks skipped talking to. “You’re welcome here anytime. I’m Yancy Grey and I’m remodeling—or probably more accurately, rebuilding—the old Stanley house.”

“I know. I can see that.”

She had a soft, easy smile, but sad eyes. Old-soul eyes, he thought, like she’d seen far more sadness than most. He remembered a few people in prison like that and had watched sad eyes go dead, even though the person looking out of them was still breathing.

“You live around here?” Yancy knew he would have remembered if he’d seen her before. At first glance she looked more like a sixteen-year-old kid, but in the light, she seemed closer to her late twenties.

“I have to go.” She backed toward the door. “I shouldn’t have bothered you.”

He saw panic in those beautiful winter-blue eyes. He forced himself not to react. One more question and he knew she’d bolt.

“No bother.” He turned back to his work. “It was nice to have the company, even if I did think you were a rabbit.”

She whispered, more to herself than to him, “How would a rabbit get up there?”

He shrugged. “How would a pretty lady? Come back anytime, Rabbit. No questions, I promise.”

She took one more glance around the shop. “I like this place. It makes me feel safe. My father had a shop like this one.”

“You are safe,” he added, knowing without asking that her father must be dead. If he’d been alive, she wouldn’t be searching for a safe place. “Drop by anytime. Only, beware—I might put you to work.”

She ran her small hand over the wood he’d just sanded. “I’d like that. I grew up helping build things. Some folks said my daddy was an artist, but he always said he was just a carpenter.”

Without a word, he handed her the sander and went back to work. She stood on the other side of the workbench for a few minutes, then began to polish. For an hour, they simply worked across from each other. Her skill was evident, and he found himself wishing that a woman would touch him as lovingly as she touched the wood.

When he lifted the final board, she set her tools down and whispered, “I have to go. Thank you for this calm evening, Yancy.”

“You’re welcome, Rabbit. Come back any night.” He sensed what she might need to hear. “I could use the help, and I promise, no questions.”

She slipped through the doorway so silently he almost thought he’d imagined her.

Folding up his toolbox, Yancy turned out the light. He’d enjoyed her company, even though he knew nothing about the woman, not even her name. For all he knew, she could be crazy. Maybe she’d run away from prison or a husband who beat her. Or maybe she was a drifter, just waiting to steal everything she could get her hands on. If so, it wouldn’t be too hard; he’d never bought a lock for the barn.

But she had no car. She couldn’t have come far walking and she wouldn’t be able to carry off too much. She also had no wedding band, so no one was probably waiting up for her. He sensed that she was as alone as he was.

He reached for his coat and wasn’t surprised to find it missing from the latch.

As he started back toward his little room behind the activity hall of the Evening Shadows Retirement Community, he smiled, glad that Rabbit was warm at least. At her size, his coat would be huge, for he had to be over a foot taller than her and probably weighed double.

Maybe he should have more questions running through his head, but the only one he could think of right now was, could he call what they shared tonight a date?

Yancy swore to himself, thinking how pitiful he was to even consider the question. She was probably just lost, or maybe hiding from something, and definitely a thief—she’d stolen his coat. Not dating material even for someone as desperate as he was to just do something as ordinary as holding a woman’s hand.

But, considering all her possible shortcomings, she was still the best time he’d had with a woman in months.

CHAPTER FOUR

DEPUTY FIFTH WEATHERS rushed into the county offices on Main Street in Crossroads, Texas, as if he were still running offensive tackle for the Texas Longhorns.

Grinning, he realized it had been four years since he’d graduated. He was forty pounds leaner and long past talking about his football days, but now and then he yearned to run with the crowds roaring once more.

He headed straight for the sheriff’s office. All hell was about to hit and he hadn’t even had breakfast.

He’d overslept, again, and that was something Sheriff Brigman thought should be a hanging offense. Plus, even though he’d worked until long after midnight, the report due today still wasn’t done.

Pearly, the county’s receptionist and secretary, who sat just right of the main entrance, always jumped when Fifth walked past. She was a thin, little woman who’d probably blow away if he sneezed, and in the two years he’d been working with the sheriff, she’d never smiled at him.

The first six months he’d been in town she’d asked weekly when he planned to leave. Lately, the question hung silently between them like last year’s Christmas tinsel caught on a slow-moving fan, fluttering silently as it circled.

He nodded at her.

At six feet seven inches, Deputy Weathers wasn’t likely to sneak up on Pearly, but she frowned like she could see doomsday coming when his shadow blocked the sun.

“There you are,” she snapped. “The sheriff’s looking for you.”

Fifth moved closer to her massive desk. If he got any nearer than five feet, it always made Pearly start to fiddle with her shawl fringe like she planned to unknit the entire thing if he came within touching distance.

“You all right, Miss Pearly?” he said in a tone he hoped sounded more kind than threatening.

“I’m fine,” she snapped. “You just startled me. Someone should have put a brick on your head ten years ago, Deputy Weathers.”

Fifth gave up any attempt at conversation and headed toward the sheriff’s office. He couldn’t help it if his father had cursed him with height and his mother hadn’t been able to think of a name for her fifth son, so she’d just called him a number. Everyone had crazy families. His was simply supersized.

“Sheriff Brigman is not in there,” Pearly announced, about the time he reached the door. “He’s out on the Kirkland Ranch. Said to bring the missing-persons flyers for the past month and maps of the county. Wants your help as soon as possible, so I’d suggest you start backtracking all the way to your car.”

Fifth thought of asking her why she hadn’t let him know right away. She could have radioed the cruiser he drove, called his cell or dialed the bed-and-breakfast where he’d overslept this morning. But he knew what Pearly’s answer would be if he asked: she always said that she’d been about to. The woman’s about to list would last her into the hereafter.

He turned and walked back past her desk, trying not to notice how she leaned away like he’d accidentally knock her down on his way out.

A few minutes later he climbed into his cruiser, wondering why some people treated men over six-six like they were alien invaders. Men who were six-four were apparently fine, but grow a few more inches and you’re out of the normal zone. It also didn’t help that deputies in Texas wore boots and Stetsons. That added another three or four inches.

When he’d played football in college, his height hadn’t been a problem. But now anyone lower by a foot seemed to think he might just accidentally bop them on the head. He’d made it through the academy and had served two years as a deputy without accidentally killing anyone.

As he drove toward the Double K Ranch that had been in the Kirkland family over a hundred years, Fifth Weathers tried to relax. He’d been in Crossroads since Sheriff Brigman was shot and almost killed two years ago.

At first it had been just a job, a chance to step out of a big office and work with a sheriff everyone in Texas respected. But lately, it was more than that. He was starting to care about the people. He’d matured from a green rookie looking for excitement to a seasoned officer who hoped never to have to pull his weapon again.

That is, if shooting a snake counted as a first time.

For the most part, the folks in the county were good, honest citizens who loved to tease him once they figured out he was on the shy side. The grocer offered to stack his daughters if Fifth would take both of them out. The Franklin sisters, who ran the bed-and-breakfast, were always trying to match him up with one of their relatives because they claimed the family tree could use the height. And from what he’d seen, Franklins tended to grow out instead of up.

Fifth wouldn’t have minded having a date. It had been a while. But even in college, when girls flocked around athletes, he hadn’t gone out much. He’d always felt awkward and never knew the right thing to say.

He blamed his mother for his awkwardness around women. You’d think with a dozen pregnancies she could have popped out one girl so her sons could learn to relate.

When he turned onto Kirkland land, Fifth put his problems aside and was all business. If the sheriff was here, there must be something wrong. Staten Kirkland was a good man who ran his ranch like a small kingdom. He wouldn’t be calling the law in on something minor.

Dan Brigman was on the porch talking to the rancher. All signs that Brigman had taken four bullets in an ambush were gone: the sheriff looked fit and strong; his hair had grayed to the color of steel, and his eyes always seemed to look right into the heart of folks. Fifth could think of no better goal than to model his career after this legend of a man.

“About time you arrived,” Dan said with a hint of a smile that told Fifth he wasn’t in any serious trouble this time.

“Sorry, sir. I overslept.” Fifth climbed the steps and offered his hand to Kirkland.

Dan nodded once. “I thought you might when I passed the office around midnight and saw the lights still on.”

“You’re working the kid too hard,” Kirkland said as he shook Fifth’s hand. “Come on inside, Deputy. We’ve got coffee and cinnamon rolls waiting. I need to show Dan the map in my office before we start planning.”

“Thanks,” Fifth answered politely, grateful that he didn’t have to admit that right now he was far more interested in the rolls and coffee than looking at any map. Caffeine and sugar should wake him up.

Fifth followed the two men through the massive double doors of the Kirkland headquarters as they talked about the weather. The sound of their boots thumping across the hardwood floor blended with the jingle of spurs Kirkland wore.

Fifth had been at the headquarters a few times before. A New Year’s party. A meeting of the new city planning committee. He liked the big old home, and it was one of the few places he didn’t have to watch his head. The Kirklands were tall and built their house to accommodate.

The main room was a forty-foot-long living area built with mahogany and leather. A dining area to the left had a table that would seat thirty. Kirkland’s huge office opened through double doors on the right, and a modern country kitchen was in the back.

The house reminded him of a remade set from the movie Giant. Pure Texas. Western, all the way.

Only it didn’t seem like a house that people lived in. It was the headquarters, set up for work and meetings. Fifth had heard that the family lived in a smaller place a few hundred yards away, which made sense. Kirkland had two toddlers, and no one would want to have to chase them all over this amount of square footage.

Fifth had just begun to feel his muscles relaxing when he turned the corner off the main room and saw Kirkland’s wife, Quinn, sitting at the kitchen table, talking to a woman about his age.

The stranger had short, reddish-brown hair, naturally curly, and blue eyes; she was dressed in a leather jacket and tan pants with boots laced almost to her knees. For a second he thought she looked like Amelia Earhart. Then he added one more fact as she turned directly to him and glared.

One look at him and, for some reason, the woman seemed to become angry as hell.

For a second, Fifth fought the urge to step back, maybe all the way to the door. Maybe farther. He might not have a lot of experience with women, but he could see rage flashing in her icy-blues like white-hot lightning. Take cover or run seemed to be the safest options.

The anger didn’t fit until he watched her slowly stand. He added one last statistic. Over six feet tall. The possibility they’d both stepped into a match-up trap occurred to him, just as it probably had to her.

Quinn just grinned, but Kirkland made the introductions. “Fifth, I’d like you to meet my wife’s niece, Madison O’Grady.” Now Kirkland was grinning, obviously unaware that his kin was firing a look that might kill the only deputy for miles around. “We asked her to come in this morning. Thought you two might like to get acquainted.”

“Welcome, Miss O’Grady.” Fifth removed his hat and offered his hand, hoping she didn’t bite it off.

The sheriff slapped his deputy on the shoulder. “So...ah...enjoy your coffee and rolls, Deputy. We’ll be back before you finish.” At least Brigman had the sense not to grin.

Quinn, Staten and the sheriff vanished, leaving him alone with the angry woman. The instinct to run was so strong he couldn’t get his tongue untied enough to speak.

Without asking if he wanted one, she poured him a cup of coffee and slid it across the table, not seeming to notice, or care, that boiling liquid spilled out.

He sat down. He’d had women look at him with total disinterest, or sometimes even with fear because of his size, but he’d never been the kind of guy to bring out hate—or passion, for that matter—in anyone. In fact, he’d always kind of thought that women his age viewed him as a friend more than anything else. He guessed he’d be like his two older brothers where women were concerned. He’d marry a woman who was a friend and settle into an easy kind of partnership.

Fifth drew the plate of rolls close before she decided to shove them over. Maybe if he ignored her she’d calm down. He downed the first roll in two bites. It smelled good, but he swallowed so fast he didn’t bother to taste it.

The second of Quinn’s famous cinnamon rolls was almost to his mouth when Madison O’Grady spoke.

“Well,” she snapped as she paced, “where do you want to do it? Here on the table? The couch is long enough but it might not be wide enough for us, or there are several bedrooms upstairs. Pick one.”

Fifth stared at the roll, figuring she probably wasn’t talking about eating. “Do what?” he said quietly.

“Have sex, of course. We were obviously brought here to meet. My whole family has been trying to match me up like the expiration date on me is about to run out. Last month it was a six-five trucker who stopped at the café. They thought I should drop everything and come meet him. Thank goodness he turned out to be married or I’d be on an eighteen-wheeler to Des Moines, Iowa, right now.”

Fifth must have still looked confused because she added, “Why waste time talking or dating or getting married? Let’s just do it right here, right now. We’re obviously meant for one another. We’re both over six feet.”

Fifth didn’t know what to do. She may have been angry, but damned if she wasn’t the sexiest woman he’d ever encountered. He must be a masochist.

He’d always been hesitant to have any one-night stands because he feared he might hurt a small woman. Now he wasn’t sure Madison wouldn’t hurt him.

“Madison!” Kirkland yelled from his office. “You fully gassed and ready?”

She didn’t take her eyes off Fifth. “I can be in the air in five.”

“Good.” The sheriff appeared in the office doorway. “Fifth, inhale another bite and follow Madison. I want you two gone as fast as possible.”

Fifth caught the surprise in her eyes a moment before she grabbed a satchel and ran for the back door.

He was right behind her. He had no trouble matching her long strides as she stormed toward a helicopter parked on the other side of Kirkland’s barn. “You’re the pilot.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes, and you must be the passenger I came all the way from Wichita Falls to pick up.” She glanced over at him. “You’re the expert on rough terrain they were talking about. I thought—I thought...”

“I think I know what you thought.” He grinned. “You’re not the only one who gets set up with strangers because of their height.”

“I’m sorry,” she said as she opened the passenger door.

“Forget it. How about we start over?” Fifth dropped his hat in the cargo bag and put on headphones. “You’re the pilot and I’m the expert.” He watched her circle the chopper and climb into the pilot’s seat before adding, “Only, I hope you’re a better pilot than I am an expert. I’ve been studying up for months, but I’ve had no field experience.”

“Climb in,” she shouted as she started the helicopter. “You’re about to have the ride of your life.”

Fifth folded into the passenger seat, bumping her shoulder as he buckled himself in. “So, I guess sex on the kitchen table is off the agenda?”

She laughed, then winked at him. “Not necessarily.”

Fifth froze. Now he was shocked, but by the time his brain cells fired, it was too late to run. They were already in the air.

CHAPTER FIVE

Peace

TORI WALKED THE rocky ground behind Parker’s house near Crossroads. The land didn’t look good for much as far as farming. One field near the road was plowed, but the rest seemed like it had always grown wild. Whoever built this house had wanted peace, she decided. The front porch faced the morning sun. Trees had been planted in a circle out back years ago and now offered a small meadow of shade.

She already loved it here. Her mind had settled, and she could feel herself growing stronger. When—or if—her stepfather found her, she wouldn’t be the same person as she had been two weeks ago when she vanished.

She was twenty-four, and it was time she took control of her own life. She should have done it years ago, but her mother kept saying that her new husband, Tori’s stepfather, knew best. He was a businessman, and he would run everything so that all Tori would have to do was paint. When Tori had protested again, at nineteen, her mother had reminded her of how the mixing of business and art had driven Tori’s father mad. He’d loved being the carpenter, working with his hands, but when his carvings began to sell for thousands, he lost the simple joy in creating.

Tori had backed off, letting her mother win, again. And again. And again. Letting her mother and stepfather handle the business side of her career so she could paint. Only lately she’d felt like a factory, always pushed to produce.

She twirled in the meadow. “Freedom,” she yelled, then laughed.

Maybe she’d paint today. Maybe she’d sleep in the sun. Maybe she’d go visit the man at the edge of town who called her Rabbit.

But, no matter what, she’d do what she wanted to do. She’d live her own life.

CHAPTER SIX

Dallas in cadet-gray rain

PARKER LOVED THE gallery after dark. The lights of a rainy Dallas surrounded her as they glowed through the forty-foot wall of glass that framed the building. Paintings seemed to float between the city and the rich, earthy reds of Saltillo tiles.

Somehow the art seemed to come alive as shadows bordered each creation’s elegant grace. Her gallery was a still, unpolluted kind of paradise that always made Parker feel safe and comfortable.

The possibility of dying couldn’t reach her here. She could push the prospect from her mind and just breathe.

She took one last walk through her world. She almost had everything ready. Her staff believed she had a scouting trip in the planning stages but she was, for the first time in her life, running away to have an adventure. To paint. To live. To help a friend.

For years, she’d been saying she’d take off when everything slowed down. She’d go to Crossroads, Texas, where she’d bought a farmhouse almost ten years ago. Her someday dream had always been to paint. She’d been driving from Dallas to Albuquerque one summer on the back roads and seen a For Sale sign hooked to a barbed-wire fence in the middle of nowhere.

On a whim she’d turned off a road that was posted as private. The land, if it had ever been tamed, had gone back to nature. One edge dipped down into a canyon with rich earth shades that took her breath away. The other direction spread over rolling prairie spotted with wildflowers and clusters of trees surrounding small ponds. She remembered seeing the little two-story farmhouse peeking out from behind a huge oak planted at the bend in the lane leading up to the place.

The old house was perfect. Small, with an unfinished attic that could serve as a studio. High ceilings with good light streaming in. Tall windows in the back with a canyon view. Heaven at the end of a private road. A painter’s hideaway. The rancher next door owned the small chunk of land and had said he needed money to pay taxes. She’d made an offer and he didn’t even bother to counter. Within hours she’d bought the place, hired a couple to clean once a month and headed back to the city.