Odd Man Out

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To Kathrina,

who showed me the way,

and Kitty and Judy,

who read every word along the way.

Special thanks to Neil and Dani.

Cast of Characters

Denver McCallahan—She was determined to find her uncle’s killer—no matter how dangerous it was.

J. D. Garrison—A country music star, he’d come to help Denver, but could she trust him?

Pete Williams—All he wanted was Denver, but how far would he go to have her?

Max McCallahan—Someone killed Denver’s uncle because he was getting too close to the truth.

Sheila Walker—The reporter had a nose for news but she was making the wrong people nervous.

Cal Dalton—He had an eye for Denver and every reason to want her stopped.

Maggie Jones—She feared she knew who killed Max McCallahan, and knew him too well.

Taylor Reynolds—Was Max’s old friend staying around to help or was he after Max’s woman?

Davey Matthews—The teenager wanted to be a private eye, but snooping wasn’t good for his health.

Deputy Sheriff Cline—Did he have his own reasons for not wanting Max’s killer caught?

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Epilogue

Prologue

Rain pelted the tops of the parked cars like rocks hitting tin cans. Rivulets of the icy stuff ran off the brim of J. D. Garrison’s gray Stetson as he hung back in a stand of snowy pines on a hillside overlooking the tiny Fir Ridge Cemetery. Hidden from view, he eyed the funeral service taking place beneath the swollen dark clouds covering the valley below. He’d been away far too long. He hunched deeper in his sheepskin coat, his head bent against the cold wetness of the Montana spring day, as he wished it hadn’t been death that had brought him home again.

Half the county had turned out for Max McCallahan’s burial even in the freezing downpour. Snatches of the service reached J.D. on the hillside. He had to smile at the priest’s portrayal of the old Irish private eye. Max must be turning in his grave to hear such malarkey. Too bad the good Father didn’t just tell the truth—that Max had been a big, loud, red-faced Irishman and damned proud of it. That he’d loved his ale. And that, if the need arose, he hadn’t been one to back down from a good brawl. The truth was, the devil had danced in the old Irishman’s eyes most of the time. But there’d also been another side to Max, a gentle, loving side, that a young girl had brought out in him.

As the priest led a prayer, J.D. studied that young girl—Max’s niece, Denver McCallahan. She was no longer a girl but she would always have that look because of her slight build. She stood under the dripping canopy at the edge of the grave, a large black felt hat hiding most of her long auburn hair and part of her face. Her manner appeared almost peaceful.

J.D. wasn’t fooled. He knew Denver’s composure was an act. Max had been her only family; she would have killed for him. J.D.’s jaw tensed under his dark beard as the tall cowboy beside Denver slipped an arm around her shoulders. He’d have recognized the man anywhere, not only because of his blond hair and his arrogant stance, but by his trademark—the large, white Western hat now dangling from the fingers of his right hand. J.D. swore, surprised by his reaction. He didn’t like seeing Denver in the arms of his childhood friend, Pete Williams.

J.D. looked up as an older woman joined him in the seclusion of the pines. She wore a worn wool plaid hunting jacket, Max’s, no doubt, jeans, a flannel shirt and boots.

“I’ve never been so glad to see anyone in my life,” Maggie said as she stepped into his arms. He hugged her to him, feeling her strength. Sturdy. That was what Max had called her. Sturdy, dependable Maggie. She’d been Max’s friend, his lover, his confidante. Although they’d never married and had lived in separate houses, Maggie had been the love of Max’s life.

Maggie stepped back, brushing a wisp of graying brown hair from her face, a face that belied her fifty-five years. She glanced at the cemetery below them, her expression as grim as the day. Dark umbrellas huddled around the grave like ghouls. Denver moved closer to drop a single bloodred rose on her uncle’s casket. Even from the distance, J.D. could see that she’d grown up since he’d been gone. A lot of things had changed, he thought, watching her with Pete.

“Shouldn’t we be down there at the funeral?” J.D. asked, still surprised that Maggie had suggested meeting here instead.

“Max knew how I felt about funerals,” she said softly. “And I’d prefer Denver didn’t know you’re back in town yet.”

His eyebrow shot up. “Why is that?”

“There’s something you need to know before you see her.” Maggie took a breath and let it out slowly. “Denver’s in trouble.”

He almost laughed. Ever since they were kids, Denver McCallahan had been in some sort of trouble; blame it on her fiery spirit, but it was one of the things he’d always admired about her. “What kind of trouble?” The moment he said it, he could guess. “She’s heard the rumors you told me about Max being involved in something illegal and she’s determined to clear his good name, right?”

“You know Denver. And while she’s at it, she intends to bring his killer to justice, as well.”

That didn’t surprise him in the least. “And I suppose you want me to keep her out of trouble while she’s doing all that?” He shook his head. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”

Maggie met his gaze and he glimpsed an expression in her eyes that startled him. Anger. Cold as the granite bluffs in the distance. “I’m asking a lot more than that, J.D. I want you to keep her away from Pete Williams.”

“You can’t be serious.” The rain fell harder, dimpling the spring snow’s rough surface. He stared at her with a puzzled frown, and realized she was serious. “Why would I do that?”

“I know things about Pete—” She looked away. “You just have to keep him away from Denver.”

“You’re asking the impossible.” He’d been gone for nine years and he hadn’t left on the best of terms.

Maggie pulled her jacket around her. “Denver knows I’ve never liked Pete. She won’t listen to me.”

J.D. watched Denver lean into Pete Williams’s embrace as the two stood alone beside the grave. “Denny won’t—” he stumbled on the childhood name he’d always called her. “Denver wouldn’t appreciate any interference in her life from me.”

“Oh, J.D., you know how she’s always felt about you.”

“She had a crush on me when she was sixteen, Maggie! Believe me, it didn’t last.” He remembered only too well how angry Denver had been that afternoon at Horse Butte Fire Tower when he’d told her he was leaving town. And how hurt. She’d been like a kid sister to him. He’d never forgiven himself for hurting her.

“If anyone can handle her, it’s you,” Maggie argued.

“I’m not sure there’s a man alive who can handle Denver McCallahan.” The umbrellas suddenly dispersed like tiny dark seeds across the snow. The rain turned to snow as the mourners headed for their cars.

“Just promise me you’ll do everything you can to keep Pete away from her,” Maggie said. “If you don’t—” She turned to leave.

“Wait, what are you saying?” J.D. demanded. Surely she didn’t believe Denver had anything to fear from Pete. “Give me a reason, Maggie. A damned good reason.”

To his surprise, her eyes filled not with their usual resolve but with tears. That anger he’d glimpsed earlier mixed with pain and burned red-hot. “Pete Williams killed Max.”

Chapter One

Denver ducked her head to the cold and the pain as she let Pete lead her away from the cemetery. The rain had turned to snow that now fell in huge, wet flakes. She walked feeling nothing, not the ground under her feet nor Pete’s steadying hand on her elbow.

“You’re Denver McCallahan, right?” A woman in her fifties in a long purple coat and a floppy red wool hat stepped in front of her; the woman didn’t wait for an answer. “I’m Sheila Walker with the Billings Register.” She flipped open her notebook, her pen ready. “I need to ask you some questions.”

Pete put his arm around Denver’s shoulders. “Ms. McCallahan just buried her uncle. Now is not the time.” He tried to pass, but the reporter blocked his way, ignoring him as she turned her full attention on Denver.

“This has to be the second worst day of your life. First your parents, now your uncle.” From a web of wrinkles, she searched Denver’s face with dark, eager eyes. “You think there’s a connection?”

Denver stared at the woman. Her bright red lipstick was smeared and her hat drooped off one side of her head, exposing a head of wiry black-and-gray curls. A scent of perfume Denver couldn’t place hung over her like a black cloud. “My parents were killed more than twenty years ago.” The murders connected? Was the woman crazy? Pain pressed against her chest; she fought for breath. Pete pulled Denver closer and pushed on past the woman.

“Who do you think killed your uncle?” the reporter asked, trotting alongside Denver. “Do you think it was that hitchhiker they’re looking for?”

“Please, I can’t—” Denver fought the ever-present tears.

“Leave her alone,” Pete interrupted in a menacing tone. They’d reached his black Chevy pickup. He opened the door for Denver and spun on the woman. “Back off, lady, or you’ll wish you had.” Climbing in beside Denver, he slammed the door in the reporter’s face.

She tapped on the window. “The rumors about your uncle, is there any truth in them?”

Pete started the pickup and peeled away, leaving Sheila Walker in a cloud of flying ice and snow.

* * *

“YOU DON’T BELIEVE IT.”

J.D. watched Pete leave with Denver in a fancy black Chevy pickup, then turned his attention back to Maggie. “That Pete murdered Max? No, I don’t believe it.” He and Pete had been friends and as close to Denver and Max as family. Through the falling snow, he could see workers pushing cold earth over Max’s casket with a finality that made his heart ache.

“I don’t want to believe it, either,” Maggie said. “Max loved Pete. He loved you both like the brother he lost.”

“Then how can you suspect Pete of murder?”

She took a long, ragged breath. “The morning after Max’s murder, Denver and Pete came over. I’d made coffee and sent them into the kitchen. You remember the photograph Max took of you, Pete and Denver at the lake on her sixteenth birthday?”

J.D. nodded; it had been right before he’d left town. He could still see Denver in the dress Max had bought her. A pale aquamarine. The same color as her eyes. “You gave me a copy of the photo.” He still had it. It reminded him of those days at the lake with Denny and Pete. Sunlight and laughter. A long-lost happiness twisted at his insides.

“It was Max’s favorite photograph. He always carried it in his wallet,” Maggie said. “I saw it the day before he died. It was dog-eared and faded and I wanted to put it away for safekeeping, but Max wouldn’t hear of it.” She stopped; he watched her fight the painful memories. “When I went to hang up Pete’s coat, I saw a piece of the photograph sticking out of his pocket.”

“Didn’t Pete have a copy, too?”

She nodded. “But I’d written on the back of the one I gave Max. I could still make out the writing. It was the photo from his wallet. Only...it had been torn.” She met his gaze. “Someone had ripped you out of the picture.”

“That’s not enough evidence to convict a man of murder.”

“I know, especially since Pete has an alibi for the day of the murder. Supposedly he was in Missoula with his band. But I called to check. The Montana Country Club band was there, but when I described Pete to one of the cocktail waitresses, she didn’t remember him. If Pete’s good looks didn’t make an impression on her, that blue-eyed charm of his would have.”

“That’s pretty weak, Maggie.”

“Pete wasn’t in Missoula. I’d stake my life on it.”

“I hope you won’t have to do that.” J.D. tugged at his collar; he wasn’t used to this kind of weather anymore.

“I have to go,” Maggie said.

J.D. walked with her to her Land Rover parked along the edge of the road in the pines. “It still doesn’t make any sense,” he said. “Why would Pete want to kill Max?”

“Max wasn’t part of anything dishonest if that’s what you’re thinking.” She hugged herself against the cold wetness. “I’ll admit something was bothering him.”

“What?”

She shrugged and opened her car door. “If Pete finds out that I called you or that I suspect him—”

“Dammit, Maggie, tell me why you’re so frightened. It has to be more than a hunch and an old ripped photograph.”

She nodded, fighting more than grief. “That last week, Max was...afraid.”

J.D. had never known the man to be afraid of anything, or anybody—no matter how big or tough they were.

She slid into the front seat and shoved her hands into the pockets of Max’s hunting jacket. “He seemed to be looking over his shoulder as if—” She broke off and shivered. “As if something had come back to haunt him. He was obsessed with death and kept talking about his brother’s murder.”

J.D. fought the chill that stole up his spine. “Denny’s father?”

She nodded. “He felt responsible for encouraging Timothy to become a cop. He blamed himself for Timothy’s death.”

“Maggie, what does that have to do with Pete?” J.D. asked.

She shook her head as if to chase away the memories. “I haven’t told anyone this because I was afraid of what Pete would do,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “The last time I saw Max, he was furious at Pete.” She bit her lip. “I’ve never seen Max like that. He said he had to stop Pete...before someone got killed.”

* * *

“I‘M SORRY ABOUT that reporter,” Pete said as they headed south toward the town of West Yellowstone. “Are you all right?”

Denver nodded, wondering if she’d ever be all right again. Leaning back in the seat, her hat in her lap, she watched the pines and snowfall blur by outside the window. Max dead. Murdered. It wasn’t possible. But worse yet were the rumors. She ran a finger through the water droplets beaded up on the brim of her hat, fighting the pain.

“You know, that woman was right...” Her voice broke. “People are saying that Max was dirty. That he’d gotten himself involved in something illegal.”

“Denver, why do you listen to it?” Pete demanded angrily. “You knew Max better than anyone. If your uncle had a fault, it was being too honest. Naively so.”

It wasn’t that she believed the rumors. She just couldn’t stand seeing Max’s named dragged through the dirt. But more than that, she knew the rumors were somehow tied in with the way Max had been acting the past few weeks. Secretive. Something had been bothering him. And Denver felt that if she knew what it was, she’d know who killed him.

“He’s gone, Denver,” Pete said, taking her hand as if he could read her thoughts. “As much as we both hate it, he’s gone. Leave it alone.”

Concentrating on the click-clack of the wipers, she closed her eyes. Now wasn’t the time to let grief blind her, not when there was something much more important that had to be done—no matter what Pete said.

“I think it would be a good idea if you stayed at my place and didn’t go back out to the cabin tonight,” he said.

Denver opened her eyes, tempted to take him up on it. Since Max’s death, she’d been having the nightmare again. “Thanks, but the cabin’s home and I need that right now.”

Pete’s look reflected a mixture of annoyance and worry. “I don’t like the idea of your being out there alone. It’s too deserted this time of year.”

“You know how I feel about the lake. I love this time of year because it’s quiet out there.” She touched his arm. “I’ll be fine.”

“I wish you’d change your mind.” He sounded angry.

And she wondered if he was talking about her staying at his place or about the argument they’d had earlier.

“I swear, sometimes you’re as stubborn as—”

“As Max?” she asked. Max McCallahan had given stubborn a new definition.

Pete’s smile faded. “Yeah. Max.” She could see him fighting painful emotions as he turned on the radio. Intermittent snow flurries, the newsman said. A slow, sad Western song came on. Pete took her hand. “I just worry about you.”

“I know.” She smiled, feeling the familiar tenderness she’d felt for him since they were kids. Pete, Denver and J.D. Max had called them the Terrible Trio because of all the trouble they’d gotten into. Pete and J.D. had been the older brothers she’d never had; now Pete was her best friend. She chastised herself for arguing with him earlier; he was just trying to protect her the way he always had.

She studied him, forgetting sometimes how good-looking he was—tall, handsome with his blue eyes and blond hair, and capable of being utterly charming. If only she’d fallen in love with him all those years ago. Instead of J.D.

Another song came on the radio. Denver saw Pete tense and her own heart lurched as it always did when J. D. Garrison’s voice filled the airways. “Number ten on the country and western chart and climbing,” the radio announcer cut in. “Our own J. D. Garrison with his latest hit, ‘Old Friends and Enemies.’”

Pete snapped off the radio. “I can’t believe he didn’t make the funeral.”

Just the thought of J.D. brought back the hurt and disappointment. In her foolish heart, she’d always believed J.D. would come home if she or Max ever needed him. Well, they’d needed him. And he hadn’t come.

“I doubt J.D. can just drop everything at a moment’s notice,” she heard herself say. “Maybe he didn’t get the message you left him.”

Pete shot her a look. “Still making excuses for him?”

She looked away. Loving J.D. had always been both pleasure and pain. And all one-sided. J.D. had never seen her as anything more than a kid. But sometimes his gaze had met hers and— And then he’d ruffle her hair or throw her into the lake. No, he’d never taken her seriously, even when she’d promised him her heart. Instead, he’d teased her. Just a schoolgirl crush. Puppy love. She’d get over it.

He’d been gone nine years, but she still saw his ghost lounging on the sandy beach beside the lake, heard his laugh on the breeze that swept across the water and felt his touch on a hot summer’s night as she stood on the dock, unable to sleep. She’d just never met anyone who made her feel like J.D. had.

But if J. D. Garrison were here right now, she’d wring his neck. For missing Max’s funeral. For breaking a young girl’s heart. For still haunting her thoughts.

It began to snow harder as they dropped down to the Madison River. A soft mist rose from the water, cloaking the bridge in a veil of white fog and driving snow. A local teenage superstition prophesied that if you didn’t honk as you crossed the bridge you’d be in for bad luck. Pete didn’t believe in superstitions. “You make your own luck,” he’d always said. Denver honked, partly out of superstition, partly out of tradition; J.D. had never crossed the bridge without honking.

As they crossed the bridge, Pete didn’t honk. The snow fell in a thick, hypnotizing wall of white in front of the pickup. Denver realized she could barely make out the Madison Arm sign as they passed it. She glanced in the side mirror and was startled to see a huge semitrailer barreling down on them.

“Pete?” Her voice cracked. Her heart caught in her throat. “Pete!” He looked back, his eyes widening as he saw it. At the last moment, the truck swerved into the passing lane. Denver thought it would head on around them, but instead, she realized with growing horror, the truck was edging over into their lane.

“Son of a—” Pete yelled.

Denver could see the huge semitrailer wheels right next to them. A scream lodged in her throat; the truck would either force them off the road or—

Pete hit the brakes. The back of the semi just missed the front of the pickup by inches as it swerved the rest of the way into their lane.

Snow poured over the cab in a blinding rush as the semi roared past. Pete brought the pickup to a skidding stop sideways in the middle of the highway. Denver stared through the falling snow, expecting another vehicle to come along and hit them before Pete got the pickup pulled over to the edge of the road.

He sat there gripping the steering wheel. “Are you all right?” he asked. His voice sounded strained as if the shock of their near mishap was just sinking in.

Denver took a shaky breath. Now that the danger had passed, she was trembling all over. “I think so. What was that guy doing?”

Pete shook his head as he looked at her. “I don’t know, but I could kill the bastard.”

Denver looked at the highway ahead, half expecting the trucker to come back and finish the job. “I can’t believe he didn’t even stop to see if we were all right.”

Pete swore as he steered the pickup back onto the highway and headed toward West Yellowstone again.

“Did you recognize the truck?” she asked. It had happened so fast she hadn’t even thought to look at the license plate.

“I’m sure it was just some out-of-stater who’s never been in a snowstorm before.” But Pete kept staring at the highway as if he expected to see the truck again, too. And Denver knew she wouldn’t feel safe until they reached town. No, she thought, she wouldn’t feel safe until Max’s killer was caught.

Chapter Two

Pete slowed on the outskirts of town. At first glance, West, as the locals called it, appeared abandoned. They drove down the main drag, past the Dairy Queen, a row of T-shirt and curio shops and Denver’s camera shop. All were still boarded up behind huge piles of plowed snow. A melting cornice drooped low over Denver’s storefront. Out of a huge drift peeked a partially exposed homemade sign. See You In The Spring!

The only hint of spring was in the rivers of melting snow running along the sides of the empty streets. Dirty snowbanks, plowed up higher than most of the buildings, marked the street corners they drove by. Everywhere, a webbing of snowmobile tracks crisscrossed the rotting snow still lingering in the shadow of the pines. Down a muddy alley sat a deserted snowmobile, its engine cover thrown back, falling snowflakes rapidly covering it.

Only a couple of gas stations had their lights on. Near a mud puddle as large as a lake, two locals sat visiting, with their pickups running.

It was April. Off-season. Snowmobiling was over for another winter and the summer tourist trade wouldn’t officially begin until Memorial Day weekend. Denver usually cherished this time of year, a time for the locals to take a breather before the tourists returned. But today, the town seemed to echo her lonely, empty feeling of loss.