Page 11 of Setup In Montana

It felt like hours later when she woke again to realize John was still driving. She looked out through the darkness seeing no lights, no sign of a ranch let alone a warm ranch house where dinner was waiting. The road had gotten even narrower, and she could hear mud slapping the tires.

Startled, she sat up in alarm, still half-asleep. “We aren’t there yet?”

The rancher chuckled. “I should have warned you. The place is a good piece from the highway. But we’re close.”

Fear pressed against her chest like a vise. Where was he taking her? They should have been at the ranch by now, shouldn’t they? She glanced over at him. He was staring ahead, fighting the muddy road.

They were going so slow that she feared he might pull over and stop. Her hand clamped over the door handle. She glanced in the side mirror. Even if she managed to jump out and not break a leg, the horse trailer might run over her. Her panic growing, she regretted leaving Grass Range, regretted hitchhiking, regretted getting into a pickup with a stranger who may or may not even have a ranch down this road.

She began to ease the door handle up when the pickup came over a rise. Ahead, she could see nothing in the headlights now cutting a dim swatch of light through the rain. Where was he taking her?

* * *

THE SHERIFF COULD understand why someone would want to throttle Esther Mason. But he was still having trouble understanding why the person had actually done it.

He set about searching her small apartment, hoping to find an answer among all the knickknacks and collectibles that filled the space. Halfway through, the manager stopped by to tell him he had those lists the sheriff had asked for.

“What is that?” Vernon asked, sounding shocked by what he saw. Max had pulled out a large box of jewelry and knickknacks, small, framed photos and other trinkets. The box now sat on the table. “That’s Hazel’s father’s watch! I recognize that brooch as well.” He looked at Max. “Some of those things in that box are on the list of things that have gone missing since Esther moved in.”

Max considered the full box, wondering if one of these items was the key to the murder. The box had been labeled DIAPERS. “Let’s get the residents together and record each item as it is returned to its owner.” He told himself that if the killer had found what she was looking for, then it would no longer be in the box.

* * *

AT THE GLOW of lights ahead, Clancy’s hand froze on the door handle. Her heart still drummed frantically as she took in the lit-up, large, rambling ranch house. Several pickups were parked outside it. She could make out the dark shapes of barns and outbuildings.

“There it is,” the rancher said, pride in his voice.

Releasing the door handle, she slumped back against the seat as John slowed and pulled into the large yard. As he did, a young man came out of the house onto the porch.

“We even have a welcoming party,” the rancher said with a laugh. “Looks like you’re about to meet my oldest, Tanner.” John put down his window as the man came up to the driver’s-side door.

“I was about to send out a search party,” Tanner said. He resembled his father and was dressed much the same. But his look was a lot less friendly.

“Took a little longer because of the weather,” his father said and chuckled. “Picked up a rain-drenched young woman trying to get to Billings. Clancy, this is my son, Tanner. This is Clancy. Sorry, I can’t remember her last name.”

Clancy felt the son’s gaze fall on her. “What the hell, Dad?” she heard Tanner say under his breath. “You picked up a hitchhiker and brought her home?”

“Don’t pay any mind to my son,” John said as he opened his pickup door, forcing Tanner to step back. “He worries about his old man. Let’s get you into the house and into some dry clothes.”

Picking up her backpack, Clancy shrugged off the blanket and opened her door to step back out into the rain. She couldn’t help worrying what she’d gotten herself into, given the son’s reaction to her. John and Tanner had moved away from the truck. She could see the rancher admonishing his son, but couldn’t hear what was being said as she walked around the front of the pickup toward the house.

All she could think about was getting inside some place warm and dry. It was just for one night, she kept telling herself. Anyway, she couldn’t blame Tanner. Not even his father knew who he’d picked up off the highway and brought into his home or what she was running from. She hoped to keep it that way until she could get out of here in the morning.

* * *

VERNON GATHERED EVERYONE in the recreation area that was filled with tables and chairs, love seats, couches and recliners. Once they were all seated, Max brought out the box. The moment he opened it and dumped everything out on the table, an uproar came from the residents.

“I knew it!” Myrna cried. “I told you Esther Mason was a thief!” Most sat up in their chairs, anxious to see what all Esther had swiped from the other residents as well as see if their treasures were in the box.

As each trinket was returned, Vernon wrote down what had been stolen next to the resident’s name. It appeared everyone had been a victim of Esther’s kleptomania. None of the knickknacks or baubles looked to be worth much, except perhaps the antique watch that had belonged to Hazel Brockman’s father. But even that was probably valuable only to Hazel.

When the box was empty, the sheriff checked the names on the list against the missing items that had been returned. Only one name had no items written next to it. He looked at the name and room number and realized it was the one closest to the front door, where he’d seen someone watching from the window.

“Alice Chambers?” he called, anxious to meet her. When he’d come into the rest home, all the other residents had been gathered in the lobby. Except Alice? “Alice Chambers?” He heard murmurs as the residents also became aware that Alice hadn’t had anything stolen from her. Hazel Brockman was voicing her thoughts on it to Myrna Larson. It sounded as if they found it suspicious, too.

Vernon had said that all the residents had been instructed to come to the rec room, but it appeared Alice wasn’t in the room. Maybe the woman was hard of hearing. Or maybe she hadn’t complied, the sheriff thought.

“Why don’t I go get her,” Vernon said, but the sheriff stopped him.