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John nodded.
“He’s awake and asked to see a Miss Reynolds. Is that you?” she asked Mandy.
“I’m afraid not.”
“When I told him we didn’t have any record of a Miss Reynolds being here, he asked to see someone from his team,” the nurse continued.
“That would be me. Come on, babe, maybe he won’t kill me if you’re a witness.”
Mac looked up when John entered with Mandy at his side. There was no sign of Willa.
“Let me guess, my darling Willa managed to free herself from federal custody?”
“I’m not sure she ever thought she was actually in custody. After all, you didn’t Mirandize her.”
Mac snorted. “What she thought was she knew better and never had any intention of doing as she was told.”
“I see you haven’t forgotten everything you learned about her when you were together,” Mandy said with a smile. “Too bad you didn’t remember fast enough.”
“Mandy, it’s not funny,” John warned.
“Let her have her fun, John.” Mac turned to look at Mandy. “When I catch up with your buddy, she’s going to wish she’d taken me up on my offer to stay with you and John until this is over.” He turned to John. “Where are we with finding Eastwick and Willa?”
“Your field guys are trying to pick up Eastwick’s trail. Thom and Adam are checking Willa’s house. When you found her and Eastwick, did she have some mustangs with her?”
“Yep. She closed a gate to keep them penned up. I suspect that’s where she’ll be. If so, just have someone up there to sit on her without her knowing. I’ll deal with her as soon as they let me out of here.”
“You’ll deal with her?” Mandy asked.
Mac nodded. “Personallyand up close. And from that point forward, I will ensure she stays out of harm’s way.”
“In the interest of saving you some wear and tear, don’t forget she’s one of the best shots I’ve ever seen and is considered the best tracker in the region,” John said. “In general, she doesn’t recognize or yield to authority any better now than when you two were together.”
“Well, that’s going to change. They should release me in an hour or two.”
“Against medical advice, I’m guessing,” John said.
“What do they know? It’s nothing. We can throw some disinfectant on it and a bandage, and I’ll be good as new. Doesn’t even hurt… much. We don’t have time. I need to track down Willa, and we need to get Eastwick before he hightails it to parts unknown and unextraditable. Why don’t you two take off? Mandy, you make him take you out to dinner. It may be your last chance for the next few days or weeks. If Eastwick really gets away, I’m going to need John with my team since he knows the case better than the rest of us.”
She grinned. “He was going to take Willa and me. I guess I won’t have to share now.”
She leaned over the bed and kissed his cheek.
“What’s that for?” Mac asked.
“I hope you feel better, and I’m glad you’re back, but don’t you dare hurt her again.”
“I won’t.” Mac took her hand in his. “I give you my word. Well, that’s not true. Let’s say I won’t wound her heart or her spirit again. Her ass… that’s another thing altogether.”
Chapter
Nine
Willa gave one last good stretch before saddling Gator and heading for the canyon. She looked at her phone and deciding she’d be better off without it, left it sitting on the tack box outside Gator’s stall. She needed to get those mustangs moved to another one of her hidey holes, as Mac had once dubbed them. She wouldn’t have much of a head start, but she hoped to have gained at least a few hours before anyone noticed she was no longer in protective custody.
She headed out, taking a shortcut to where the mustangs were, hopefully, undisturbed. The shortcut also had the advantage of utilizing less open ground. The problem was going to be moving the mustangs without being seen. In a perfect world, she would return to the canyon, give Gator some downtime, break down her camp, then move the horses after dark. She very much doubted she had that kind of time.
Once in the canyon, Willa secured her gear as best she could. She tightened Gator’s cinch, gave the big gelding a pat, and remounted. She laughed as the thought ran through her head that she wouldn’t mind mounting Mac again. She laughed even harder, thinking Mac was more stallion than gelding, and he liked to do the mounting. Her nipples beaded up under hersweater. Willa shook her head. She didn’t need to have her mind wandering in that direction. The fact she liked the picture she envisioned was bothersome.
