But he was finally thinking straight this morning.
“Going to take my walk,” he said to his deputy and the dispatcher as he headed for the front door. The town was quiet as usual. He would have loved to have taken credit for the lack of crime in this county. But with more cows than people, more open ranch and farmland than towns, there wasn’t much going on.
This part of the state had seen just the opposite of growth after the pandemic. More populated, prettier parts of the state had grown by leaps and bounds as people from big cities came looking for a piece of paradise. Dry Gulch wasn’t near any of that growth. Instead, the elderly population was dying off or moving on, often unable to talk their children into taking over the farm or ranch. The land had been picked up by neighbors as the population dropped.
The only bright spot in Dry Gulch’s future was the resort his brother was building. Something Cordell had said now had him thinking like the law again. He’d been confused about why Malcolm Mandeville would have any interest in this town. What could a major crime boss want with this small Western town? Yet two people connected to Mandeville were now in town, one apparently after Goldie.
Pushing that disagreeable thought away, he concentrated on Arnie Adams as he walked. Arnie had the criminal background, he’d been employed by Malcolm as a chef until recently and he didn’t have the kind of money he’d come up with to buy the café outright. Mandeville had to be behind it.
Why was the crime boss interested in the café?
In the alley, Max tried the back door of Goldie’s. Locked. He knocked, then knocked harder. He put his ear to the door. He heard a racket that sounded like it was coming from thebasement. Jackhammers? He felt his pulse quicken. What kind of remodeling were they doing down there?
He knocked again and listened. If there had been using jackhammers they now stopped, but he could hear movement inside. No one answered his knock. He walked around front and tried the door, knowing it too would be locked. He tried to see through the smeared soap covering the windows. Nothing. He banged on the door, receiving the same response he’d gotten at the back door.
As he started to turn away, he saw Arnie come out of the hotel. The man spotted him and hesitated for an instant before continuing on across the street toward him.
“Sheriff,” Arnie said. “Curious about what I’m doing with the café?”
“Now that you mention it, I am.”
The new owner chuckled. “You and the rest of the town, but I’m afraid you’re going to have to wait like everyone else. Unless of course you have a warrant, but then why would you?”
Max chuckled too. “Yes, why would I need one? All you’re doing is remodeling the café.” Malcolm Mandeville’s fingerprints were all over whatever was going on. Max could feel it and he could think of only one reason the crime boss would be interested in Dry Gulch, Montana. The man had something to gain. But how could buying a diner in the heart of the small, isolated town benefit him?
It had to be the bank next door. Legally he couldn’t demand to see what renovations were being done. But it wouldn’t hurt to ask, he told himself.
“Awfully noisy at the café,” he said. “What kind of renovations are you doing in the basement?”
“I’m sorry,” Arnie said. “Has there been a complaint?”
The sheriff shook his head. “Sounds like your crew is using jackhammers.”
“Old building. I’m taking out some of the old foundation and replacing it. Making some other changes. The place hadn’t been updated in years,” Arnie was saying.
Max couldn’t help but bristle, since the man made it sound as if Goldie hadn’t taken good care of her café. “I’m sure it’s more of a case of you putting your stamp on it.”
“There’s that too of course. Is that a problem?”
He shook his head and chuckled. “No, but all that noise your crew is making, it crossed my mind you might be making a tunnel to the bank next door.”
Arnie laughed. “Right in front of the local law’s nose?” He shook his head, his gaze avoiding the sheriff’s. “That would be foolish, now, wouldn’t it?”
“Or smart.”
“No, Sheriff,” the man said with a sigh. “I have no desire to go back to prison. I’m sure you’re aware of my criminal record. I came to Dry Gulch for a fresh start. I’d always dreamed of having my own diner. I’ve been told that I’m a pretty good cook. I’ll be doing some hiring if there are any locals interested. I’ll need an assistant cook and a couple of waitresses. I expect the place to be busy.”
The sheriff wondered about that. He had his doubts that the café would ever open—let alone employ several locals—but still he played along. “Clancy Roberts has waitressed at Goldie’s since she was a teenager. Might ask her. As for a cook, Ronnie Dean’s young, but he learned a lot while working at the café. He’s been working over at the hotel. Clancy was out of town, but I heard she’s back. I guess it will depend on how much you’re willing to pay to get them to work at your café. When are you planning on opening?”
“That’s part of the surprise,” Arnie said. “You know how construction goes, it’s often hard to tell when it will get done. If you’ll excuse me, I need to check and see how things are going.Have a good day, Sheriff.” He turned and walked around the side of the building through the alley as if headed to the back door of the café.
Max watched him go, his intuition telling him Arnie was cooking up something in the café and it didn’t involve food.
DONOVAN HAD BEENmentally kicking himself all day for turning Goldie down on the hillside yesterday. What had he been thinking? Unfortunately, he knew. Helikedher. He genuinely wanted to help her. Having sex with him wasn’t really what she wanted even though he wished she did.
Instead, she had wanted to end their agreement. While that was probably for the best since the fool sheriff didn’t appear to be weakening, Donovan didn’t want that. He feared that Goldie had inadvertently gotten herself involved in something dangerous by selling her café. He didn’t know what, but with Malcolm involved…
As he went down to the hotel lobby to see if he could get some lunch brought up to his room, he noticed the large black SUV that pulled up out front. The first thing that caught his eye was the Wyoming license plate. His gaze shot to the driver behind the wheel, but unfortunately with the sun glinting off the window, he couldn’t tell who it was.
