Who was this man? And what was the deal with his reclusive grandmother? She reminded herself how bad her judgment had been lately, her hand going to her neck beneath the scarf and making her wince with pain. She hoped she hadnt just jumped from the frying pan into the fire.
As the Cadillac roared down the fairly wide gravel road through rolling grasslands and rocky knolls, she tried to relax. But Jack Winchester had her confused. He seemed like a nice guy, but nice guys didnt fool their grandmothers with fake wives.
Even though shed fought it, Josey must have dozed off. She woke as the Cadillac hit a bump and sat up, surprised to see that the road they were on had narrowed to a dirt track. The land had changed, becoming more rough, more desolate.
There were no buildings, nothing but wild country, and she had the feeling there hadnt been for miles.
Is the ranch much farther? she asked, afraid shed been duped. Again.
Sagebrush dotted the arid hills and gullies, and stunted junipers grew along rocky breaks. Dust boiled up behind the Cadillac, the road ahead more of the same.
Its a bit farther, Jack said. The ranch isnt far from a paved highwayas the crow flies. But the only way to get there is this road, Im afraid.
Josey felt a prickle of fear skitter over her skin. But come on, what man would buy you clothes just to take you out in the middle of nowhere and kill you? She shuddered, thinking she knew a man exactly like that.
You thought I was kidding about the Winchester Ranch being remote? Jack asked with a laugh.
When he had told her about where they would be spending the week, she had thought it perfect. But now she doubted there was even a ranch at the end of this road. It wouldnt be the first time shed been played for a fool, but it could be the last. Josey had a bad feeling that shed used up any luck shed ever had a long time ago.
She shifted in her seat and drew the backpack closer, considering what she was going to do if this turned out to be another trap. Jack didnt look like a deranged madman who was driving all this way to torture and kill her. But then RJ hadnt looked like a deranged madman, either, had he?
She stared at the road ahead as Jack drove deeper into the wild, uninhabited country. Occasionally she would see a wheat field, but no sign of a house or another person.
As the convertible came over a rise in the road, Jack touched his brakes, even though all she could see was more of the same wild landscape. He turned onto an even less used road, the land suddenly dropping precariously.
Are you sure youre on the right road? Her hand went to her backpack, heart hammering in her chest as she eased open the drawstring and closed her hand around the gun handle, realizing she had only four shots left.
Im beginning to wonder about that myself. I asked for directions back at a gas station in town before I picked you up, so Im pretty sure Im on the right road. The car bumped down the uneven track, then turned sharply to the right. There it is. He sounded as relieved as she felt.
Josey looked up in surprise to see a cluster of log buildings at the base of the rugged hills behind it. A little farther down the road Jack turned under a huge weathered wooden arch, with the words Winchester Ranch carved in it.
Her relief was almost palpable. Josey released her hold on the pistol, trying to still her thundering heart as the Cadillac bumped down the narrow dirt road toward the ranch buildings.
She frowned, noting suddenly how the grass had grown between the two tracks in the road, as if it hadnt had much use. As they grew closer, she saw that the cluster of log buildings looked old and deserted.
Josey reminded herself that the grandmother had been a recluse for the past twenty-seven years. At least that was what Jack had said. So she probably
hadnt had a lot of company or use on the road.
After what shed been through, Josey thought she could handle anything. But she suddenly feared that wasnt true. She didnt feel strong enough yet to be tested again. She wasnt sure how much more she could take before she broke.
As they rounded a bend in the road, her pulse quickened. This place was huge and creepy-looking. Sun glinted off a line of bleached white antlers piled in the middle of a rock garden. She noticed other heads of dead animals, the bones picked clean and hanging on the wood fence under a row of huge cottonwoods. As she looked at the house, she thought of the big bad wolf fairy tale and wondered if a kindly grandmotheror something a lot more dangerouswas waiting inside.
Jack parked in front and killed the engine. A breathless silence seemed to fill the air. Nothing moved. A horse whinnied from a log barn in the distance, startling Josey. Closer a bug buzzed, sounding like a rattlesnake. She felt jumpy and wondered if shed lost her mind going along with this.
Are you all right? he asked. He looked worried.
She nodded, realizing she was here now and had little choice but to go through with it. But this ranch certainly wasnt what shed expected. Not this huge, eerie-looking place, that was for sure.