Peril by Ponytail (A Bad Hair Day Mystery) (15 page)

His sexy gaze stirred her longings. “Maybe you should.”

That activity diverted them for a while. When they were both dressed once again, Dalton phoned his cousin to check on Carol’s condition.

“She’s left the hospital and is back home with orders to rest for today,” Dalton told Marla. “Wayne doesn’t need us for anything right now.”

“Good. What shall we do for the rest of the day?” She consulted the resort schedule. “I’m not interested in Birding for Beginners or Navajo Basketry. There’s mountain biking, a fishing expedition to some lake, team penning, or a yoga class.”

“I’d like to talk to Uncle Ray about some of these developments. Are you up for another trip to Craggy Peak?”

“Okay, but when do you want to go to Wendall? Bob suggested we speak to Garrett’s superior there.”

“The sheriff should have covered that ground.”

“True, but Wendall is just beyond Sedona. The scenery there is supposed to be spectacular. And truth be told, a change of pace would be welcome.”

He tickled her under the chin. “It’s our honeymoon, remember? We’re supposed to be relaxing here and enjoying the amenities. Let’s plan on Sedona and Wendall for another day. I’d like to snag Uncle Ray again first.”

She glanced at her watch and groaned. “It’s almost time for lunch. I feel like we just finished breakfast. Let me fix my makeup, and then we can stroll around. We might run into Juanita again. The maid knows something about Jesse, if we could convince her to talk.”

“Okay.” Dalton rummaged through one of the built-in drawers. “Have you seen my blue shirt? I thought I’d put it in here.”

She pointed to a set of cabinet doors. “Check the closet. I might have hung it up.”

“Nope, not there either. Maybe it’s still in my bag. I didn’t unpack everything.” He’d stashed his suitcase under the bed. Crouching, he tugged his luggage into view and unzipped it.

Marla heard the rattle at the same time as Dalton’s muttered expletive.

She spun around, her jaw dropping. A snake sat atop his clothes coiled and ready to strike.

“Omigod, don’t move!” Marla cried. “What should we do?”

Dalton froze in place, staring at the snake tensed in his suitcase. “Look for a stick. Is there a broom around? Or you could get my .38 and shoot it.” He’d brought his weapon and locked it in the room safe.

“Are you crazy? I’m likely to shoot you instead.”

“Will you stand still? You’re liable to spook the thing.”

Marla shifted feet, too nervous to remain immobile. “He’s probably scared and angry after being trapped in there. I’m surprised it didn’t strike right away. Can you back off very slowly?”

Revulsion clogged her throat as she surveyed the snake’s brown body, the diamond pattern along its back, and the triangular-shaped head raised and ready to attack. Its forked tongue darted out, tasting the air for its prey.

“He’d get me first. What if you sneak around and shut the lid?”

She swallowed past her fear. “I can try.”

Keeping her eye on the snake, she sidestepped to her right. When nothing scary happened, she took another step and then another.

The rattling sound halted her in her tracks.

Dalton dove to his side as the snake leapt forward. Marla screamed as he hit the ground. The snake slithered across the floor toward the foyer.

“Did it bite you? Are you hurt?”

He examined his boot. “It got the leather, but I’m okay.” He stuck his hand inside to make sure his skin hadn’t been pierced. “I was lucky.” Scrambling to his feet, he pointed to her cell phone lying on the nightstand. “We have to call for someone to get that thing out of here.”

“Wait, I want to take pictures first. We need proof that this happened. Then we should see if Wayne is in his office. He’ll know who can handle the snake.”

Marla retrieved her cell phone and zoomed in on the creature to take a couple of shots. Then she and Dalton left the room through the glass patio doors.

“Someone deliberately put that snake in your luggage,” she said on their way down the winding path toward the lobby building.

“I agree. However, I don’t think they necessarily meant to kill me. Snake bites can be fatal, but we’re close to help. Unless that species is particularly toxic, likely I’d have pulled through from a strike.”

“Maybe. Or you’d have died instantly. I don’t know enough about snakes to identify this one. Either way, you’d have been out of commission for a while, if not for good.”

Still shaky, she watched her footing. A line of ants trailed across a crack in their path toward a tall ocotillo. Its slender branches brought to mind grasping fingers. A shudder racked her. What next? A scorpion under their bed sheets?

She scanned the shaded walkway, thinking how appearances could be deceiving. The dude ranch appeared to be a tranquil resort where you could chase your worries away with a horseback ride or a campfire cookout. But beneath the surface, tensions seethed and bubbled.

They reported the incident to Wayne, at work inside his private office. Wayne’s face registered surprise mixed with anger as Dalton related his tale.

“Damn, we have to catch the person responsible for these incidents. I’ll send Zeke from Maintenance over along with Bob Washburn. They’ll know how to capture the snake and release it in the wild.” He narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure the bite didn’t penetrate your skin?”

Dalton showed him the indentations in his boot. “It didn’t go through, thank heaven.”

“How’s Carol?” Marla asked while Wayne waited for a response from his staff members. Her knees wobbly, she sank into a chair. Images of the snake invaded her mind, and a shiver of horror shook her. She wouldn’t feel safe in their room again until she’d checked every corner.

“Carol is much better, thanks. I dropped the kids off at school this morning before bringing her home from the hospital. Annie will get the children later this afternoon. I told my impatient wife she has to rest today. She can come back to work tomorrow if she’s up to it.”

“I could have kept her company to make sure she doesn’t overexert herself.”

“That’s kind of you, but it’s not necessary. She has a neighbor on call if needed.”

“Carol is fortunate she wasn’t hurt worse. So is Dalton. Why target us?”

Wayne closed his office door before responding. “You guys belong to our family. Indirectly, a hit at you is an attack on my father. I know of one person who would be so underhanded as to strike at us that way.”

“Don’t tell me you’re obsessing about Hugh Donovan?” Dalton scoffed. “You’re sounding more like your father every day. You won’t concede the culprit might be someone close by whom you’ve trusted.”

“Why do you think I asked you to examine our employee records? I’m not so stubborn that I won’t consider all the possibilities.”

Good point, Marla thought. But then again, Donovan could have hired people to do his dirty work. Or his younger son might have done the same, aiming to get back at Hugh for a past grievance. He’d know about the angst between the two families.

“I’m doubtful the Donovans are guilty,” Dalton said. “It’s too easy to cast blame their way. Somebody else knows about this family feud. We should have a talk with Hugh Donovan in person to clear the air.”

Wayne gave an adamant shake of his head. “You steer clear of him. You’ll only incite the man further.”

“When is the last time you spoke to the guy?”

“We don’t speak. Dad forbade us when we were growing up.”

“What about Ben, his older son?”

Wayne’s lips compressed. “Ben seems all right. We knew each other in school. But generally, we kept out of each other’s path.”

“This can’t be left alone. The incidents are escalating. Some of Uncle Ray’s workers were killed in that explosion at Craggy Peak. Things are getting out of hand, and aside from what’s happened to me and Carol, they seem less related to a personal feud between two men than to something more. I can’t shake the feeling that we’re missing the bigger picture.”

“Nonetheless, I’m worried about you.” Wayne’s brow furrowed as he regarded his cousin. “I didn’t mean to put your lives on the line when I asked you to investigate for me.”

Dalton walked over and clapped his hand on Wayne’s shoulder. “As long as I’m here, I won’t let you face things alone. Meanwhile, Marla and I will pay another visit to Uncle Ray at his ghost town. I’d like to learn where the funding originated for his project.”

Wayne’s complexion darkened. “Good luck getting him to share his secrets.”

“He might be persuaded to talk, considering how much we know at this stage.”

Wayne’s radio crackled, cutting their conversation short.

“We’ve got the snake,” Bob’s gravelly voice said on the other end. “It’s a western diamondback. Their species isn’t as deadly as some other snakes, but its venom can cause considerable damage.”

“Would it have killed Dalton if he’d been bitten?” Marla raised her voice to be heard.

“Not necessarily. This type of snake is known for not backing off from a confrontation, but it will rattle to warn its victim. It bites hundreds of people a year, more than any other venomous snake in the country.”

“Wonderful,” Marla muttered.

“The diamondback is a pit viper, meaning it has heat-sensing facial pits to track its prey. Pit vipers differ from coral snakes, whose neurotoxic venom paralyzes the diaphragm so you can’t breathe. Instead, a pit viper’s venom is hemotoxic, meaning it affects blood vessels. The venom works as an anticoagulant so you bleed to death.”

Marla’s heart thudded in her chest at her husband’s near-fatal miss. “How fast can that happen?”

“It depends. A rapid heart rate will spread the toxin faster.”

Oh, like I could be calm if I’m bitten by a poisonous snake.

“So getting help right away is the crucial factor?”

“Absolutely. Bites by western diamondbacks can be fatal. The victim needs immediate medical treatment, including anti-venom.”

“If I’d been bitten but got to the hospital right away, what would happen?” Dalton said. From his somber expression, Marla surmised he was imagining the dire prospects.

“You’d receive IV fluids to combat low blood pressure. After twenty-four hours, the main concern would be tissue death, plus infection from bacteria in the rattlesnake’s mouth. Besides the anti-venom, you’d get antibiotics, a Tetanus shot, and antihistamines.”

“How long might I have been out of commission?”

“Up to two weeks, if you responded well.”

Dalton’s jaw clenched, while Marla glanced at him in alarm. Two weeks? That would have been their whole vacation! She supposed it was better than dying, though.

After Wayne said a few more words and hung up, Dalton addressed him. “Marla and I will get lunch, and then we plan to visit Uncle Ray. Is he even at Craggy Peak?”

“Yes, the sheriff allowed him to resume operations. Watch your back, cuz.” Wayne walked them to the door. “I’m not sure who to trust anymore.”

“And you watch yours. Regardless of who’s ultimately responsible, you have a mole on this ranch.”

“Who do you suspect?” Marla asked her husband later on their way up the mountain.

Magnificent vistas opened on either side of them as they veered around curves and climbed at a steady pace. Clamping her hands together in her lap, Marla tried to relax but recent events kept her tense. So did the steep drops on either side of the road. While the scenery was breathtaking, she preferred the flatness of Florida. You couldn’t drive off a cliff there, only into a canal.

“It couldn’t be another guest,” Dalton replied. “It has to be someone who’s been around a while. Many of these folks have worked on the ranch for years, and they’d know Carol’s riding habits. Any one of them could have been compromised.”

“Like, they’re being blackmailed into working for the person behind these threats, rather than seeking revenge directly on their own? Raymond believes Donovan is after his land.”

“The prospective buyer could be someone else entirely.”

“It that’s true, then who’s paying the saboteur?”

Dalton detoured around a dead animal in the road. “If the offers to buy Uncle Ray’s property came through a real estate agent, his assumption that Hugh is behind them might be incorrect. We should speak to the agent.”

Marla folded her brow. “I’d still like to interview Jesse. That man has something to hide. Remember how he reacted when he heard about Garrett’s death?”

“I’m not discounting him, but he might have secrets for other reasons. Anyway, let’s see what Uncle Ray says about his funding. He has to fess up. For all we know, he borrowed the money from a loan shark and lapsed on his payments.”

Unfortunately, Raymond wasn’t available when they checked in with his foreman.

“Sorry,
señor,
but the boss went into town for a meeting,” the fellow said, raising a hand to shade his face from the sun. They’d found him supervising a crew set to demolish a concrete wall, the only evidence left of a former building.

“Do you know when he’ll return?” Marla asked, unwilling to depart without gaining an iota of new information.

“Not really. You can wait around but not here. It’s too dangerous.”

“Any word on the guy who went missing?” Dalton put a foot forward to brace himself on the sloped sidewalk.

“Eduardo is long gone. He was not lured by a ghost like these ignorant peasants believe. Maybe he got a better job elsewhere.”

“So you think he ran away of his own volition?”

Gomez glanced between them. “What I think does not matter. It is these
hombres
who need to focus on their work and not on their superstitions.”

“I imagine the same could be said of the miners who used to live here,” Marla said. “They must have had plenty of accidents and disappearances.”

“The risk was part of their job.” Gomez waved to a laborer who’d signaled him. “I have to go. If you intend to stay, keep to the side streets, out of the way of harm.”

Standing among the weathered structures, Marla let a sense of history pervade her. Years of hard labor, passion, drinking, and gunfights weighted the crisp morning air. She admired Raymond, if not for his materialistic expectations, then for his preservationist fervor. It wasn’t hard to picture the street restored to its former glory. Filled with cafés and boutiques, Craggy Peak would be a picturesque tourist attraction as well as a tribute to the mining camp.