Part 14 (1/2)
”I think I have all I need,” Vonnie said. ”I'll leave you and get back to town.”
Her noncommittal remarks left Tank uneasy.
The old truck struck a pothole and went airborne. Haley clung to the door handle with both hands. The wind blew in through her open window and s.n.a.t.c.hed away the gasp that escaped her lips. Tightly packed spruce trees crowded against the side of the truck as the forest thickened.
”What are you going to say to him?” she shouted over the sound of the wind.
Tank slowed to miss a moose that meandered onto the side of the road. It lifted its ma.s.sive head and stared at them, as if asking what right they had to disrupt him. This place was like Jellystone with Ranger Smith and all the animals.
Tank pulled the truck off the road and got out. ”The dig is just over the hill. Let's walk from here. I want to watch him when he doesn't know we're here.”
”You still haven't told me what you're going to say. We can't just waltz in there and ask him if he's stealing artifacts and selling them.” She opened her door and hopped out with her walking stick.
”If he is, I'd like to find out who he's working with. He has to have a partner. He isn't gone from the dig enough to be handling the sale by himself, and Joy never noticed anyone else hanging around the site.”
”I didn't think about that. He's not likely to tell us anything.”
”That's why I want to watch him.” He took her arm and helped her walk along the trail. ”You're limping more.”
”This prosthesis isn't as good on rough ground.” Warmth rushed up her neck. They reached the top of the hill and looked down onto the dig. Nothing moved below. Even the wind was still. ”I'm not sure he's here.”
”Perfect. We can look around a little.” Tank took her hand and helped her down the steep slope.
His big hand completely covered her small one. The warmth radiated up her arm and touched her heart in ways she wasn't sure how to deal with. At the bottom of the hill, he tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow in a curiously courtly gesture that she found pleasant. She didn't think men like Tank La.s.siter existed anymore. Maybe Alaska was a throwback in more ways than one.
”I'll check the tent,” Tank said in a low voice. He ducked inside, then stepped back out, shaking his head. ”Just artifacts inside. Some are boxed like they're being taken out. No address though.”
”Let's find a spot to wait and watch,” she suggested.
”There's a cave over there,” Tank said, pointing.
Haley was shaking her head before he even finished talking. ”No, no, I'm not going in there.” Her vision wavered, and she thought she might need to sit down and put her head between her knees. Her chest constricted.
”Easy,” Tank said. ”Are you having a panic attack?”
She nodded, but couldn't squeeze any words out of her tight chest. He grabbed a camp chair and pulled it to her, then forced her down into it. Haley tried to drag another breath through her lungs but felt like she was trying to breathe through a straw. She wanted to run from this place and never look back.
”Is it the cave that's causing this?” Tank's mouth was next to her ear.
She nodded and leaned forward to put her head between her legs. Her vision began to clear, the pinpoints of darkness fading. Don't look at the cave. She turned her head, but her panic came rus.h.i.+ng back. She stumbled to her feet. ”I have to get out of here!”
Tank grabbed her and pulled her against his chest. He smoothed her curls with his big, rough hand. ”Shh, it's okay. You're safe. We're not going anywhere near the cave. You're not trapped. There's plenty of air.” His voice was a soothing rumble through his chest under her ear.
She clutched him, and her panic ebbed again. In his arms, she felt as though nothing could touch her, no wave of fear or destruction could swamp her. The clean scent of soap and the fresh aroma of fabric softener from his s.h.i.+rt wafted up her nose like the best aromatherapy. If she could bottle it, she would make her fortune in Phoenix, where she could ease the stress of living.
Tank's caress on her hair and back changed in quality. The tightness that spread through her chest then had nothing to do with panic. She lifted her head and looked up. Big mistake. She was lost looking into the dark, fathomless depths of his eyes. His lips parted, and then he bent his head.
Her heart slammed against her ribs. She stepped back. ”I think I'm okay now.” She felt curiously bereft when his hands fell away. She wanted to defuse the romantic tension between them, didn't she? Her gaze lingered on his lips, and his eyes darkened again. She tore her gaze away and swallowed. A sound distracted her.
”I think someone is coming.” Tank glanced around, then took her hand and tugged her toward a thick patch of fireweed. He pushed her down, then flung himself beside her on his stomach. ”Keep your head down.”
That would be easy to do. She needed to recover from the effects of nearly being kissed by a man she found too attractive for her peace of mind. Peeking up over the fireweed, she saw Ned approaching the dig. He looked around in a furtive manner, then stepped inside the tent. He exited a few minutes later with a box in his arms.
”That's the box I saw. It's full of artifacts,” Tank whispered in her ear.
His muscular arm lay over her back. Haley had a crazy impulse to snuggle against him. What had gotten into her? She'd always run the other way whenever an attractive man showed interest in her. Now she was not only hanging around but encouraging him. It had to stop. She s.h.i.+fted slightly, but he didn't take his arm away.
”I'm going to follow him. Wait here.” He left her. Crouching, he skulked through the site and trailed after Ned.
The bugs and mosquitoes were beginning to swarm. She'd forgotten her deet. Getting to her feet, she waved at the insects then hurried after Tank. She caught up with him behind the tent.
”I told you to stay put,” he whispered.
”I don't think he's dangerous,” she mouthed back. Peering around the corner of the tent, she watched Ned toss the box into the back of his SUV, then get inside and drive off. ”He's selling artifacts. We're too far away to follow him in your truck.”
”This time. I'll tell Chet about it. Maybe he can do some sleuthing.”
Tank seemed to have resumed his impersonal manner. Maybe she'd imagined the pa.s.sion she saw in his face, but there had been no mistaking her own. She needed to keep her heart as far away from Tank La.s.siter as she could.
Fifteen.
Tank decided he'd been out in the wilderness too long. That was the only explanation for his overwhelming attraction to a city girl like Haley Walsh. She wasn't his type at all. He liked blondes; she was a fiery redhead. Tall, willowy figures caught his eye, but she was the round, squeezable type. Sitting in front of a fire with popcorn was his idea of a good time, but he couldn't imagine Haley content with anything less than a fine dinner and a movie. He must have been off his rocker to have even been tempted to kiss her. From now on, he was going to keep his distance.
He found Chet in The Trappers Store. The place always reeked with the pungent odor of skins, kerosene, and taxidermy chemicals. Steel traps hung from nails that had been pounded high on the wooden walls and ceiling. Guns lined several racks behind the counter, and camping gear lined narrow walkways around and through the conglomeration of pots, tents, and heaters.
Chet pocketed the ammunition he'd just purchased and moved to join Tank at the door. ”You look about as happy as a wolf cub dropped in the middle of Cook Inlet. What's eating you?”
”I've been following up on Joy's claim that Ned Bundle might be selling off artifacts. You ever check that out?”
Chet pushed open the screen door, waved away the flies that made a beeline for his head, and strode outside. Tank followed. ”Be careful spouting off that nonsense. That's how you get rumors started.”
”Are you so sure it's nonsense? Haley and I scoped out the dig today. We saw him haul out a box of artifacts.” He hurried to match his stride to Chet's. The trooper stopped, and Tank nearly mowed him down. ”Anyway, about the Walshes-Haley and I sent off a test for accelerants on the ashes of the cabin.We'll have that back in a few days.”
Chet frowned. ”Why didn't you tell me? It looks bad to go behind my back like that.”
”It's Haley's right as next of kin to check it out.”
”She should work through the local law enforcement. My job is on the line here, especially with Bixby breathing down my neck.”
”We'll try not to stir up anything. But she wants to know what happened.”
Chet frowned. ”I guess that's okay, so long as you keep me in the loop. What about Ned and those artifacts? For all we know he was sending them out to a museum.”
”Maybe. But Joy is certain of what she saw. Did you ever check it out?”
”I asked him about the allegation. But he laughed it off, and I had no proof. I couldn't find any evidence that he spends more money than he makes. No unsavory types have been hanging out around town.”