Bordello Walk by Melissa Bowersock

Author:Melissa Bowersock [Bowersock, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781795666916
Publisher: New Moon Publishing
Published: 2019-02-07T05:00:00+00:00

~~~

TWELVE

By morning, her concerns rose dramatically. Sam had had a much less than restful sleep, tossing and turning, alternately hot and cold, and his cough had worsened. When they got up and she got a good look at him, alarm bells went off.

“Sam,” she said, “you’re really sick.” She put a hand to his forehead. He was warm, but not hot. “Are you sure you want to do this today? You look like hell.”

He smiled grimly. “Such sweet words of love,” he joked. “Yes, I’m sure. We need to finish. Then we can go.”

“All right,” she said, “but how about we drive to Tuba this afternoon, as soon as we’re done? We don’t need to wait until tomorrow.”

He nodded. “Good idea. I’ll call Gabe and let him know.”

It was slight comfort to her that they would be putting distance between themselves and Jerome sooner rather than later. Over breakfast, Sam coughed repeatedly, hardly touched his food, and still looked tired. After breakfast, they returned to their room and packed hurriedly, loaded the car and checked out.

Lacey gripped the wheel as she drove. Some clouds had drifted in overnight, and had huddled atop Mingus Mountain above Jerome. There was a chill to the air, no doubt the result of the extra moisture. She glanced upward, wondering if it might rain.

Sam shoved his hands in his peacoat pockets, even with the heater on.

They arrived in Jerome at 9:30, and Lacey parked in front of the archives. It was up closer to the Grand Hotel, but she figured a few minutes of proximity would be easier on Sam than the boatload of stairs up from Main Street. She was about to switch off the car, but thought better of it.

“I’ll leave the heater on for you,” she said, reaching into the back seat for Zane’s book.

“No. I’ll go with you.”

She looked over. “Are you sure? It’ll just take a minute.”

But he was already opening his door and sliding out.

Blowing out a breath, Lacey shut the car off and followed.

There was no one inside the archives. They crossed to the counter, their shoes tapping on the floor in the stillness. Just as they reached it, Zane emerged from the side office.

“Hello,” he said, his welcoming smile taking in both of them.

“Good morning,” Lacey said. She laid the book on the counter. “Zane, this is Sam Firecloud. Sam, Zane Dick.”

The men shook hands over the counter. “Nice to meet you,” Sam said. “That book was very helpful.”

“Oh, good,” Zane said. “I’m glad I could help.” He slid the book his way. “So have you already… done your thing?”

Lacey shook her head. “We’re meeting Lorraine at ten.”

Zane stood hesitantly, as if not sure if he wanted to go put the book away or stay at the counter. Finally he grinned sheepishly. “I was wondering…”

Lacey laughed. “You want to come?”

Zane’s eyes lit up and he glanced hopefully at Sam. “Could I? If not, I understand.”

“Sure.” Sam shrugged. “It’s okay with me if it’s okay with Lorraine.”

Zane’s brow creased.

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