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“What if they’re not really scared? What if the cartel sent them to track down Rose and report back? They could ride the horses back to civilization, steal a car, and be out of here”
“In that case, you’d win your beer But we’d have to go after theht of the heavy S with the 12-gauge shotgun that had belonged to Rose’s grandfather He swore silently Maybe he shouldn’t have taken a chance on the pair If he’d assu, he and Jasper wouldn’t be here now He’d let hio soft because he knew Rose cared about the runners for the cartel What had he been thinking?
“Do you think Rose will be all right?” he asked, changing the subject
Jasper chuckled “Sure She’s with Tanner He’s a tough man, and I’ve seen the way he looks at her, like he’d take on an army to keep her safe”
“But what if the cartel shows up?”
“Then Tanner ht need a little help froer to the Rimrock family
The sun was descending the arc of the sky Its rays h the leaves as the truck wound its way up the road Now they could see the line shack, a simple clapboard cabin with a chimney for the iron stove inside and an outhouse around the back
“No sign of life,” Jasper observed “Not even the horses”
“It’s early yet,” Bull said “Maybe they’re out riding herd” They pulled the truck off a wide spot in the road, clirassy slope to the line shack “Anybody home?” Jasper called
There was no answer
When they rounded the corner of the shack, they saw that the door was open
“So” Bull had taken his 44 out of the truck He paused to check the chamber and cock the weapon before they moved forward, cautiously now
They had nearly reached the threshold of the shack when the sood Lord,” Jasper murmured as he stepped into the doorway
Raul and Joaquin lay sprawled faceup, their blood spreading around them in clotted pools One had been shot in the chest, the other in the forehead Black flies filled the awful silence with their buzzing
The sight of the dead h But there was more Scattered over, around, and even partway under the bodies were dozens of bloodstained fifty- and hundred-dollar bills, sticking to their hands and clothes and lying in the blood The total, Bull estilance, aly, he understood