“I curse you, Earl Blacke.” Daelin marched up the knoll on Madeline Street, past her sister’s tiny cottage, which had become her home, across the field of brush toward a dirt road leading to Blacke’s Ranch Resort and Spa. It sat behind the lava flow, hidden from town, in a world of its own.
Fists balled, she skirted through bramble snatching at her slacks, snagging her sweater, urging her to head back. She didn’t, ignoring the dust coating her shoes and the stones wanting to twist her ankle.
On the winding drive up to the ranch house, Daelin’s temper gave way to the frosty breeze blowing down from the peaks. Gold and Swit Peaks made for natural air conditioners, so did the Cascades farther to the west. The cool peaks also worked well at drying out lips.
She slowed to a stumble, fishing a lip balm out of her bag, discovering the key to her sister’s Jeep. Daelin remembered finding the mangled keychain in the woods, but not exactly where. Trying to recall made her head ache. The plastic frame holding a mini photo of herself and her brother had been cracked and coated in blood. Right. One reason warnings kept pricking her spine, why finding the phone was urgent, why Daelin had a twisted gut. It bolstered her resolve, and she stomped up to the house.
Guests of the ranch relaxed on lawn chairs set out on the grand porch. Draped in blankets, they sipped hot drinks and drank in the magnificent scenery — the mountains, the lakes, the deer grazing a few yards away.
Scott Zayas, one of the managers of the resort, led four saddled horses down the driveway toward the guests. Spotting Daelin, he stopped. Square and brown, he barely reached her shoulder, the top of his cowboy hat included.
“¡Hola! Señorita Long. What brings you out this way?” Hints of wisdom graced his eyes and mouth in feathering lines.
Standing in front of him, she felt stupid. What did he know about Earl’s tricks and Charming’s fate? Most likely nothing. Most likely Daelin hiked out here for nothing. What did she suspect Earl of? He had fought the ghost with as much energy as she had, sacrificing himself to give her a clear shot at victory, yet he was all snarled up with the same uneasy feelings Daelin had about her sister.
She tugged at her lower lip. If Earl hid something, Scott Zayas would know. The townspeople said Earl and Scott were tight. “I heard from my sister.” She searched Scott’s eyes and mouth for a reaction.
He twitched to shoo away a moth fluttering in his face. His expression otherwise didn’t change. “Did she say what the Paleo Institute found? Must be something good for them to have been out this long.”
“Some long Latin words I could never hope to pronounce again.” Daelin laughed then gestured at the stately manor. Constructed from great cedar planks, glass, and stone, the house harmonized with the beauty around it, reflecting majesty in its enormous spotless windows. She wondered what Earl had done to get all of his money. “What I can repeat without garbling it is she left her phone here. She said in the house.”
Scott nodded. “She’s always visiting Señor Earl when she’s around.”
The horses shuffled behind him. One sporting a blue splotchy coat extended its snout to determine whether Daelin had any apples or carrots. She took a step back.
“Go on in. Mist is in the lobby and will lend you a hand,” he said.
Would it be so easy to get her hands on Charming’s phone? Maybe Earl had nothing to hide. “Thank you, Scott.”
“Glad to be of use. Neighbors should help each other, and I know you helped the boss beat that murder rap.”
The ghost had used Earl like a puppet, forcing him to twist off heads and kill two townspeople. For the first victim, the excuse of, ‘a spook possessed me and made me do it’, sounded too silly for reason, even reason in Settler. For the second poor soul, witnesses had seen the phantom use Earl as the murder weapon. The ghost had proved Earl’s innocence more than Daelin.
She smiled stupidly, unsure what to say, deciding to quit talking about murderous ghosts. A little bit of normal was always welcome in this town. “Thank you. It shouldn’t take me long to find her phone.”
He jerked his head toward the horses. “Want to come riding with us? I can saddle another.”
She skirted around the beasts. “No, I’m good.”
“You’re just like the boss, avoiding the horses.” Scott laughed then clucked at his hooved friends. They followed him across the lawn.
Two massive doors, one glass the other pine, made up the front entry. Inside sat a young woman, no older than nineteen, with a steep-planed face. Her skin, hair, and eyes all had the same shade of dark brown. Wearing a turquoise tunic that flowed past her knees and tan leggings, she made a pretty picture framed by the doorway.
Faded red leather graced the couches, loveseats, and ottomans arranged in the center of the parlor for optimal conversation. The back wall was all windows. Water poured down them in a waterfall cascading into an indoor bed of river rocks. A herd of bronze mustangs galloped in front of it. The mirror of East Lake stretched beyond it outside, adding its hush of majesty. Monitors on the left wall displayed all the activities a guest could enjoy around Settler, and a desk with stacks of brochures and a computer sat under them. Greenery accented cedar and glass tables. Corridors branched off both sides of the room.
Beside the young woman on the couch sat a cell phone and laptop. She checked the phone then glanced up. Standing before Daelin reached the porch, the young woman smiled as if she drank the sun. “Welcome to Blacke’s Ranch Resort and Spa. I’m Mist Rider. Did Charming say where she left her phone?”
Scott must have texted. Cowboys with cell phones. The idea twitched Daelin’s sour mood into a more pleasant one. “Hi.” She introduced herself. “I was able to get coordinates to get us within a yard.” She checked the GPS app on her phone then pointed. “That way.”
Taking the left corridor off the lobby, Daelin navigated it to a metal door. The door had a discreet Private sign adhered to it. “In there. Let me call to be sure.” She dialed her sister’s number, pressing her ear to the door. Mist did the same. A faint roar came from inside.
“The growl is your sister’s phone. Mr. Earl is always nagging at her to change it, says dinosaurs in this day and age are disturbing.”
On that Daelin would agree with him. A loud chirping beep followed the bellow, a sign Charming’s phone was dying. Daelin tried the knob. It didn’t budge. “Do you have the key?”
Mist shook her head. “Scott does. Let me go get him.” She strode down the hallway and hung a right. A few moments later Scott Zayas sauntered toward Daelin.
“That’s his private office,” he said.
“I just want to get my sister’s phone. You can stay the whole time.” She wished he wouldn’t. Earl had to keep secrets in there, and she wanted the time to unbury them.
“Está bien.” He unlocked the office and let her in, following her to Earl’s desk.
She dialed Charming’s phone again. The ringtone roared weakly, definitely coming from inside the desk. Daelin tried each drawer in turn, Scott peering over her shoulder.
In the top center drawer she noted a book on wild west outlaws. The photo on the cover reminded her of someone, but she couldn’t say who. With the book were some military patches and old photos. Earl didn’t strike her as ex military. What were those about? Scott gave her no time to dwell on the unearthed treasures.
In the top drawer on the right side of the desk, she found a laptop and power cords. A look at Earl’s computer could tell her a lot if Scott would leave her alone with it. No such luck.
The next drawer down contained a journal with a crystal clasp and a transputer, Rifter equipment. Earl’s name hadn’t been on the list in Patrick Swit’s journal. What if they were Charming’s things? Why would he have them? He had her phone. What had he done? Scott coughed over her shoulder. She’d have to think about it later, opening the last drawer.
Her sister’s phone lay on top of a file folder labeled Daelin. Why would Earl keep a file on her? She reached for it, needing to get a peek.
“That’s Charming’s there.” Pointing, Scott bumped against her arm.
Daelin couldn’t touch the file without him noticing. She’d have to figure out a way to get back in here and see what Earl Blacke had been up to.
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