Conspiracy in the Rockies by Cindi Myers

Author:Cindi Myers
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-10-26T18:34:10+00:00

Chapter Ten

Chris felt the heat of the fire while they were still some distance away. Flames engulfed the wooden posts on either side of the entrance to the Russell ranch, bright orange against the dusky sky. Sparks had ignited a pinion tree near the entrance and the fire was quickly reducing the tree to a skeleton. He looked around for a hose. By the time the fire department got here from town, the flames would have spread across the land—and the wind was blowing toward the house.

“We need to get some water on this,” he called to Willow, who was hurrying up the drive after him.

“This way!” She turned and ran, back down the drive and across to the equipment shed. He caught up with her in time to help her push back the big doors at the front of the shed. “We keep an ATV with a water tank and a battery-operated pump for putting out small brush fires,” she said. She flicked on the overhead light and started toward the back corner of the shed. “There are some shovels on the wall over there, and a pile of feed sacks we can wet down and use to beat out sparks,” she called over her shoulder.

He went to pull down the shovels and gathered up an armload of the sacks. Willow met him again at the open doors. “The ATV is gone,” she said. She shook her head. “I’m going to run back to the house and see if I can call Von at his cabin.”

Chris scanned the shed. A tractor shared space with a cultivator and other implements, including a wheelbarrow and a cement mixer. But no ATV. While Willow returned to the house, Chris ran with shovels and feed sacks toward the fire and began attacking any sparks that leaped from the main blaze.

Soon Willow was back at his side. “Von isn’t answering the phone at his cabin,” she said. “Help me fill some buckets and we’ll haul water over here in the truck.”

He helped her gather up half a dozen five-gallon buckets and started to fill them from the water hose, but she called after him, “We don’t have time for that. Get the water from the horse trough.”

A pair of horses ambled over to observe as he and Willow plunged buckets into the trough to fill them with water. Willow struggled to carry a full bucket to the truck while Chris followed with two. When they had all six buckets loaded, Willow jumped into the driver’s seat and shifted the truck into gear.

Though less than ten minutes had passed, the fire had spread, consuming most of the entry posts and the archway over it. Willow soaked the feed sacks in water and began beating at embers on the edge of the fire, while Chris soaked the bigger flames with water from the buckets. Then he grabbed a shovel and began scooping up dirt and throwing it on other areas of the fire. The two of them worked furiously, not speaking, for the next thirty minutes.

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