No Ordinary Cowboy (Mills & Boon American Romance) (Rodeo Rebels - Book 6) (6 page)

Damn it, Maddie.
Tony’s throat closed as he struggled against the urge to flee, but there was nowhere to run from the memories. The crumpled T-shirt had belonged to Michael. Tony sucked in a ragged breath then stretched out across the bed.

“He shouldn’t have died, Maddie.” Tony counted to ten—twice—but the damned tears leaked from his eyes. He rested his head next to the dog’s on the pillow. “Why Michael, Maddie?” He’d thought he’d cried every last tear for his friend in the days that had followed his death, but Maddie reminded him that he couldn’t outrun guilt.

Why hadn’t he coerced Michael’s backside off that bar stool?

Michael wasn’t drunk when I left.

I figured he’d call his father if he needed a ride.

That’s what Tony had told himself, but he’d known Michael wouldn’t reach out to his father. Cal Durango had worshipped the ground his son walked on. Michael had confided in Tony that his father had ridden broncs in high school but a back injury had ended his career before he’d graduated.

Cal Durango had lived vicariously through his son—taking credit for Michael’s rodeo wins as if he’d been the one riding the bulls. He’d also given Michael unlimited funds to pay for motel rooms, food and entertainment on the road.

Tony had worked part-time jobs in order to cover his entry fees. The only reason Durango tolerated Tony was because he’d looked out for Michael. Michael’s name drew a lot of attention from rodeo groupies—bimbos hoping to become wife and heir to the Durango fortune. Tony had made sure Michael remained focused on busting bulls and not buckle bunnies.

The night he’d left Michael at the bar had been a first for Tony. Unfortunately, it had also been a last.

Closing his eyes, Tony drifted off to sleep. Thirty minutes later, the alarm on the washing machine woke him. He switched his clothes to the dryer then noticed Maddie sitting at the front door.

“You read my mind, friend.” Tony clipped the leash to Maddie’s collar, grabbed his keys and went out to his truck to retrieve his night-vision binoculars and his loaded Beretta 96D Brigadier pistol from the glove compartment. Maddie was a large dog, but a hungry coyote or a pack of javelinas could take her down in a minute. Wild animals aside, the biggest threat to Tony was stumbling upon drug runners. Gear in hand, he locked the truck and walked into the desert—twenty-five acres that belonged to the trailer-park developer. There had been plans to divide the land into more trailer pads but the economic recession had stalled further construction, and for now residents used the area to walk their dogs and ride ATVs.

Tony followed a well-worn path through the scrub brush. Saguaros dotted the landscape, several of them full of bullet holes from delinquents practicing a game called cactus plugging. When Maddie stopped to sniff, Tony raised the binoculars and scanned the desert. Fifty yards ahead he spotted a coyote trotting in the opposite direction, and farther away a jackrabbit. If the rabbit was smart he’d hide before his scent reached the coyote. A sudden movement in the scrub caught Tony’s attention.

“Sit, Maddie.” The dog obeyed and Tony trained the binoculars on a large mesquite bush. Someone stepped out from behind the vegetation and ran north. Five more bodies emerged from the hiding place. If Maddie weren’t with him, Tony would have given chase, but he didn’t want to risk the dog getting shot if the suspects had guns. Instead, he followed the group with the binoculars as they made their way across the desert landscape. When they disappeared over a ridge, Tony called dispatch on his cell phone and made his way back to the trailer. He locked Maddie inside then went out to wait for his fellow border patrol agents at the entrance to the trailer park. Ricky Sanez and Danny Barker arrived a half hour later.

“How many?” Sanez asked as soon as he hopped out of the truck.

“Six. They’re running northeast. They disappeared over that rocky incline out there. I couldn’t tell if they were carrying weapons.”

Barker made sure his pistol was loaded, then lowered the tailgate of the truck and pulled down a metal ramp. Once they’d unloaded the ATVs, both men put on helmets and night-vision goggles.

Tony made a move to go with Barker, but the man held up his hand. “You’re off duty, Bravo.”

“No one knows this area better than me.” Hell, this piece of desert had been Tony’s backyard for years. He knew every rabbit hole and snake den for a mile in each direction. Besides, if he went back to the trailer he’d think about Michael and Lucy.

“Let him come,” Sanez said.

Tony hopped onto the back of Barker’s ATV. If they were lucky, they’d find the group and apprehend them without incident.

Chapter Six

T
ony was late
.

Lucy sat on the front bumper of her pickup and stared down the highway, waiting for a glimpse of the black Dodge. An early morning thunderstorm had rolled through the area, leaving behind cooler temperatures in the mid-eighties. Triggered by rainfall, the pungent smell of creosote bushes permeated the air and breathed life into the desert.

She adjusted her high-powered binoculars and scanned the area. Aside from an occasional piece of garbage that had blown through the barbed-wire fencing, there were no signs of animals or trespassers. Gold Dust Ridge, where the mine was located, might be a different story.

Although Lucy hadn’t visited the ridge in a couple of years, Pete, the ranch foreman, had driven out there six months ago and reported nothing amiss. A lot could change in six months.

A horn honked and Lucy swung the binoculars toward the highway. Tony’s truck sped toward her, Maddie sitting in the passenger seat. The pair looked right together, but Lucy’s heart ached for her brother—he should be the one driving with Maddie. She zoomed in on Tony’s face. His eyes were hidden behind his mirrored sunglasses, but she imagined a smoldering heat sparking from the dark brown orbs.

Last night she’d gotten little sleep—her dreams were filled with visions of Tony making love to her. Before dawn she’d awoken aroused and short of breath, as if Tony had sneaked into her bed and made love to her while she’d slept. She wished they could just pick up where they’d left off, but details of the night Michael had died stood between them, and that was all the reason Lucy needed to keep her head on straight around the border patrol agent.

Come clean, and tell him the truth.
The truth made Lucy nauseous. Even if her father forgave her, she doubted Tony would. Tony’s truck turned onto the property. After he drove through the entrance, she swung the gate closed and fed the security chain through the bars, then retrieved the cooler of water bottles she’d brought along. When she hopped into Tony’s truck, Maddie greeted her with a sloppy kiss. “Hey, girl.”

Maddie wagged her tail.

“Did she eat breakfast?” Lucy asked.

“I picked up a bag of dog food on the way to the station this morning.”

“You took her into work with you?”

“Yep.”

“I hope she wasn’t any trouble.”

“Maddie was on her best behavior.”

Lucy snapped on her seatbelt, and Tony hit the gas.

“Does your father know we’re going out to the mine?” he asked.

“I didn’t have a chance to tell him. He flew to California on business this morning before I got out of bed.”

The bumpy dirt road made driving a challenge, so Lucy kept quiet. Tony’s head swiveled from side to side taking in their surroundings. He stopped the truck twice to get out and study the ground. After a few miles, Gold Dust Ridge came into view. “Wait here,” he said. He grabbed his binoculars and left the truck.

As soon as he shut the door, Maddie whined.

“Big baby.” Lucy rubbed the dog’s neck. “He’ll be back, don’t worry.”

Tony surveyed the area, then bent over and picked up an object from the ground.

“What did you find?” Lucy asked when he returned to the truck.

He handed her a Mexican peso, then drove on.

Hopefully an illegal immigrant crossing the property had dropped the peso and not a member of a Mexican cartel. When Tony got closer to the ridge, she said, “Go left. It’s a shortcut to the entrance.”

“If left is the fastest way, trespassers will take the opposite route to throw off anyone following them.”

“Okay.” Tracking illegals was Tony’s area of expertise, not hers. Lucy counted only a handful of saguaro cacti in the area and was saddened that the landscape had been desecrated decades ago when gold was discovered. Years of environmental abuse had left Gold Dust Ridge scarred and ugly.

As soon as the truck drove past the ridge, Tony slammed on the brakes and Lucy grabbed Maddie’s collar to prevent her from flying into the windshield. Tony put the truck in Park and got out to investigate a small pile of debris littering the ground. Curious, Lucy joined him and Maddie whined in protest at being left behind.

Tony sifted through the trash—gallon-size water jugs, food wrappers, torn clothing and threadbare shoes. He lifted a jacket by his fingertip. “Look at this.”

“It belonged to a young girl.” The smaller size and pink color were dead giveaways. All the items appeared to be girls’ clothing, including a dirty athletic shoe with sparkly purple laces.

“They’re driving the girls in here.” Tony pointed to the faint tire tracks left in the sand after the early morning shower.

“The lock on the gate wasn’t tampered with,” Lucy said.

“They’re not using the west entrance.” He pointed southeast. “They’re driving from that direction.”

“There’s no gate along that side of the ranch.”

“I’m guessing they take down a section of fence then put it back up after they’ve gone through.”

She and Tony returned to the truck and he drove by the debris, careful not to run over any of the discarded items. When they arrived at the mine, Tony let Maddie out of the truck and the dog went off in search of lizards. Lucy and Tony discovered more trash and a smashed cell phone.

“I’d say you have enough evidence to support your claim that the girls are being transported through our ranch,” Lucy said.

“Your father will want more than garbage before he admits there’s any illegal activity on his property.”

Not if Lucy had anything to say about it. If young girls were being kidnapped in Mexico and marched across the ranch right under her family’s nose, she’d do everything in her power to convince her father to cooperate with the border patrol in order to stop this heinous crime.

The mine entrance remained boarded up and showed no signs of vandalism. “Is there another way in?” Tony asked.

“If there is, I don’t know about it.” Lucy followed Tony, stepping carefully over the rocks scattered across the ground. The last thing she needed was a sprained ankle before her first bull ride.

Tony stopped to examine a deep crevice between a pair of large boulders.

“What is it?” she asked.

“Possibly a way in.” He switched on the flashlight then got down on his belly and slithered through the gap, affording Lucy a bird’s-eye view of his muscled buttocks. After he disappeared from sight, he shouted, “Wait there.”

Fat chance. Lucy glanced over her shoulder. “Maddie, stay.” The dog wagged her tail but remained focused on the brown-spotted gecko she’d cornered.

Dropping to her knees, Lucy wiggled through the rock opening.

“Figures you wouldn’t listen to me.” Tony had removed his sunglasses and scowled at her from across the dim chamber.

“And miss out on all the fun?” Lucy remained on her knees. “God, it stinks in here.” She pinched her nose and breathed through her mouth. “What’s that?” She pointed at the object in Tony’s hand.

“Cable tie.”

“Police use that when they arrest protesters.” Lucy shuddered at the idea of young girls being handcuffed and left in the dark.

“Look at that.” Tony pointed to the wall above Lucy’s head.

“What does it say?” She couldn’t make heads or tails out of the graffiti-like marks scratched into the rock.

“Gang symbols.” Tony approached the cavern wall and rubbed his finger over the stone. “That’s the Spanish word for
kidnap.
”

“Do you think one of the girls did that?” she asked.

“Maybe. Let’s get out of here.” He motioned for Lucy to exit the cave first.

Lucy wiggled her way back outside where she discovered Maddie waiting, a lizard tail hanging out of her mouth. “Bad girl.”

“Maddie’s an excellent lizard hunter.”

“She doesn’t eat them, does she?”

“No.” He pointed to the dog’s mouth. “The tail’s still twitching.”

“Maddie, drop it.” Lucy stomped her foot on the ground, but the dog stared defiantly.

Holding his hand out, Tony approached Maddie. She relaxed her jaw and the lizard plopped onto Tony’s palm. He placed the slime-covered reptile on a rock then pointed his finger and warned, “No, Maddie.”

The dog whined but didn’t move from her spot.

“You’re the only one she obeys.” Lucy smiled at the boxer’s pathetic face. “You two belong together.”

“I’m moving, remember?”

Lucy didn’t need a reminder that Tony wanted to leave Stagecoach. “Maddie could go with you.”

“Don’t even think about it, Lucy.” Tony pitched a bottle of water to her, then poured half of another bottle into a bowl for the dog. Maddie lapped up the water before returning to her spot in front of the rock so she could keep watch over the sunning lizard.

“Now what?” she asked.

“I talk to the chief and discuss setting up a surveillance team to monitor activity at the mine.” Tony guzzled the remainder of the water. “Did you find someone to help you with your bull riding?”

“Not yet.” Lucy had planned to call Shannon later today for recommendations on instructors.

“You’re welcome to stop by my mom’s and use the bucking machine whenever you want.”

Practicing on a mechanical bull wasn’t the way she envisioned preparing for the rodeo in Ajo. “What I need is a real bull to test my skills.”

“You’re talking crazy.”

“You don’t think I’ll go through with the rodeo, do you?”

“I know you’ll try, but I’m betting your father stops you.”

Why was she surprised that Tony didn’t believe she’d stand up to her father? Shoot, she didn’t even have enough faith in herself to reveal the truth about what happened the night her brother had died.

Tony whistled for Maddie to get in the truck, but the dog no longer stood sentry by the lizard. Instead, she paced in front of the boarded-up mine entrance, sniffing the ground. “What’s the matter, girl?” he asked.

The boxer wagged her tail and whined.

“What do you think she smells?” Lucy asked.

“Not sure. Could be an animal.” Tony gripped one of the boards at the bottom and ripped it off. He got down on his hands and knees and directed the flashlight inside the cavern. “Shit.”

“What?”

Tony spoke rapid-fire Spanish and Lucy gasped. “Is someone in there?”

“A girl.” He got to his feet.

“How did she get in there if the entrance is boarded up?”

“These nails should be old and rusted,” he said, peering closely at the planks.

“They look new to me.” Lucy ran her finger across a shiny nail head.

“Someone’s removing the boards then putting them back in place.”

“What did the girl say?”

“She’s thirsty and hungry.”

“Is she coming out?”

“I hope so.” Tony tore off more boards until there was enough room for a person to crawl out, then he spoke to the girl.

Nothing happened. “She’s probably scared to death,” Lucy said.

Tony spoke in Spanish again, and finally a pair of small bare feet appeared in the opening. Her abductors must have taken her shoes so she wouldn’t try to escape.

Once the girl had wiggled out of the cave Lucy said, “Untie her hands, Tony.” The bedraggled female child was short and thin—Lucy guessed not more than twelve.

Tony snapped the plastic bands, freeing her hands, then fired off questions. The girl whispered one-word answers—mostly
sí
’s. The poor child looked tired and weak.

Lucy helped her into the backseat of the truck and handed her a water bottle. Maddie jumped in beside the urchin and Lucy smiled when the girl hugged the dog. She offered the child more water, then secured the seatbelt across her lap.

“What’s her story?” Lucy asked when Tony headed back to the entrance.

“She got left behind when the others were taken away.”

“How?”

“Fell asleep in one of the tunnels and didn’t wake up when the men came for them.”

“Amazing that her abductors didn’t try to find her.”

“My guess is that something scared them and they left in a hurry.”

Lucy glanced over her shoulder. The girl was filthy. “How long has she been in the mine?”

“A couple of days.”

“I can’t believe this has been going on right under our noses.” Lucy’s father would be livid when he heard a child had been abandoned at the mine, although she doubted he’d give Tony credit for being right about the human-trafficking ring. “How soon do you think you’ll organize a surveillance team?”

“Depends on how much information the girl gives us.”

“Did she tell you her name?”

“No. Once she believes we mean her no harm, she’ll tell us more about herself.”

By the time they arrived at the entrance to the highway, their passenger had fallen asleep.

“Tony?” Lucy whispered.

“What?”

“Keep Maddie with you for a couple of days. She makes the little girl feel safe.” And darned if the dog hadn’t sensed the child needed her.

“I suppose she’d enjoy Maddie’s company while she’s in custody.”

The big bad border patrol agent was a softy. Lucy hopped out of the truck, retrieved the cooler from the back and set it on the passenger seat. “In case she wakes up thirsty.”

“Thanks.”

“Let me know how things work out for her.”

“I will.”

Lucy shut the door. After Tony drove off she closed the gate and secured the chain. As she walked to her truck, she rehearsed how to break the news to her father that, whether he liked it or not, Tony Bravo was going to be crowned a local hero after today’s find.

* * *

T
ONY ESCORTED THE
young girl through a back door at the station. Heads turned as they walked down the hallway with Maddie.

“Where did you find this munchkin?” Officer Luger said when Tony stopped at the front desk.

“Is the chief in?” Tony wasn’t giving any details to the biggest blabbermouth in the building.

“Yeah, Romero’s in.” Luger nodded at the girl. “She a runaway?”

Ignoring the question, Tony guided his charge through the office. When they reached the chief’s door, he knocked.

“Come in.”

Tony ushered girl and dog inside, then shut the door. Romero’s eyes widened. Tony motioned for the child to sit. “Lie down, Maddie.” The dog settled next to the girl’s feet.