was heavy enough to siphon some of the air from her lungs. The night had grown colder, and each breath she struggled to take felt icy after the day’s heat.
“Maybe it’s a ghost,” she whispered.
Harris urged her into a jog.
Thing was, she thought, if ghosts existed, this one hovering in the woods might turn out to be what was left of her father. But if it was her father, why did the spirit feel so dark? Why was she suddenly afraid?
She let Harris lead her through the night, clinging to his hand. She’d been right. They were being followed, and the man in front of her knew this as well as she did. Clearly whatever he had been chasing out here now stalked them, and it was something Ranger Harris feared.
Halfway down the path, Skylar resisted the impulse to stop and face whatever tracked them. Only then would she confront the awful fear building inside her.
Her guide didn’t seem to share her impulse to stop. His hold on her wrist remained unyielding as he led her over rough, unfamiliar terrain ignoring holes and vines as though he saw every detail in the dark.
She couldn’t see a blasted thing.
He didn’t produce a flashlight, either, seeming to rely on his own internal GPS system. She supposed that rangers had to be familiar with the areas they patrolled and that Harris walked these same paths over and over on a daily basis. All she saw were glimpses of his back, highlighted whenever the moon peeked out from the clouds.
Deliberately, she didn’t offer the use of the flashlight she’d used to find him in the first place, now tucked inside her pocket. She was fascinated by how Harris maneuvered and afraid that if she shone that light behind her, the sanity she presently held on to might desert her. She was sure something otherworldly lurked on this hillside.
She thanked God that Harris wasn’t the kind of creature she’d almost expected him to be—though the voice he shared with the man in her dreams continued to plague her. He didn’t use that voice now, though there were questions that sorely needed answers. Questions having to do with wolves being bold enough to stalk two humans, or if it might be some other Colorado animal. Mountain lion. Bear. Recently escaped homicidal human.
The icy sensation of being tracked didn’t ease up as they ran. Traversing the downward path, Skylar felt positive she heard sounds of the creature breathing beyond the two of them.
She kept as close to Harris as possible and his grip on her remained a comfort. But although they had gone a fair distance already, the cabin’s porch light didn’t appear. Were they lost?
A gravel road suddenly loomed up out of nowhere, noticeable by its ghostly gray color.
“Stop,” she said, tugging at Harris’s hand. “This isn’t anywhere near the cabin. The road to Dad’s place is dirt.”
“Just a few steps more,” Harris urged.
When she saw the car, Skylar remembered what he’d told her about leaving it there. “We’re on the opposite side of the hill. Are we driving to the cabin?”
“I’m thinking it might be better to take you someplace else for the rest of the night.”
“You heard that stalker, too?”
“What stalker?”
More lies, in the form of withheld information. The rigidity of Harris’s arm gave away the fact that he knew much more than he let on.
“Answering a question with a question won’t get us very far,” Skylar pointed out.
“Maybe not, but my Jeep will.”
They reached the car, found the doors unlocked.
“That’s all you’re going to tell me?” she challenged, facing him over the car’s roof.
“I don’t want to scare you.”
“It’s too late for that. Is the rush in honor of a dangerous outlaw on the loose? I have a right to know.”
“Would that make you get into this car?”
“I’d just like to know what we’re running from.”
Harris blew out a breath. “I don’t know what it is for sure, okay? I only know that something is out there, and my job is to keep you safe.”
The moon was brighter here, away from the trees. Ranger Harris gestured for her to get into the car.
“I’ll take you to town, where you can get a room for the night,” he said.
“You, too?”
“Afraid not.”
Did he sound regretful about that? Skylar wished she could see his face more clearly.
“Should I trust you?” she asked. “We’re running from the unknown, but I don’t know you, either. Is it wise to get into a car with you?”
“True. I am a stranger to you. But at the moment, I solemnly promise you that I’m the lesser of two evils on this mountain.”
Cooperating, Skylar climbed into the vehicle. The worn leather seats smelled like the great outdoors. Like dirt and greenery and Ranger Harris.
She said, “Maybe I should have taken a closer look at that badge on your shirt.”
He pulled the badge off and tossed it to her as he slid into the driver’s seat. “Be my guest.”
Without a doubt, this guy could be infuriating. But what he had tossed her felt like a real badge. She’d seen a few in her time, so this probably meant Harris was one of the good guys.
Skylar closed her fingers over the metal as if it were a talisman to wield against things that went bump in the night.
“Anything you need we can pick up at the store,” he said. “I have an account there.”
“Does this store have alcohol?”
Harris turned the key and started the engine. “I’m sure it does.” After a pause, he added, “We don’t have to talk about what happened tonight if you’d prefer that.”
“You mean about what chased us, or what nearly took place in my bedroom?”
“Should I apologize for acting on that last one?”
“No.” Skylar closed her eyes briefly, listening to the familiar nuances in his voice that fanned her inner heat. “It wasn’t your fault.”
The car kicked up a spray of gravel as it moved. Skylar felt Harris’s attention on her.
“I needed a diversion,” she explained.
“From what?”
“The rest of my life.”
“Losing your father?”
“That’s the most recent blow.”
“Then I’m sorry we were interrupted, though it was probably for the best.” Harris sounded earnest.
“Yes. For the best,” Skylar agreed, leaning sideways as the car made a sharp left turn around a stand of pine trees. “It wasn’t really a wolf that made you run out on me, was it?”
Harris glanced in her direction without comment.
They rode in silence after that, which made the bumpy ride more uncomfortable. Eventually it became clear that the man beside her wasn’t going to offer anything resembling a decent explanation for what had happened in or around the cabin tonight. Then again, neither could she.
“You might want to pack your father’s things during the day and stay in town at night,” he suggested some time later.
“Being in town most of the time would be inconvenient.”
Again, Skylar felt the intensity of his silent appraisal.
“As