The Salt Maiden by Colleen Thompson Page A

she was only interested in him as the sheriff. Not the man who chose to live in exile, nor the would-be lover who was sure to complicate her life. If he had any sense, he would quit hoping she might change her mind.
    “I’m heading your way, Dana. When you see headlights, flash yours. Then I’ll flash twice to signal for you to pull over.”
    “All right.” She sounded shaky, breathless with the exhaustion that followed hard on adrenaline’s heels.
    “Stay on the line,” he told her as he headed out to his Suburban. “But don’t panic if I lose you. My phone isn’t that reliable, especially in your area.”
    Unlike Dana Vanover, Rimrock County couldn’t afford expensive satellite phone service. And she didn’t have a radio, which was what he and Wallace used to keep in contact.
    “I’ll watch for you,” she said. An easy promise, since there was almost no chance of meeting another vehicle at this hour.
    Almost no chance of meeting anyone except the stranger with his weapon, as he came in pursuit.

Chapter Nine
    Hey, sis,
    The birth mother’s sister has been calling a lot lately, asking after Nikki. Asking after John and me, too. It’s funny the way she acted all stiff and distant the day she came to visit. Guarded, like she didn’t want to get involved. But it turns out she’s the one who’s gone out looking. The one who refuses to give up.
    I even heard that she was bitten by a rattlesnake. But when I asked, she changed the subject. What she really wants to talk about, she can’t bring herself to ask me. But then, only God could answer that one, and I’m afraid I’m not on speaking terms with Him these days.
    So the next time you bow your head, maybe you should ask Him for us. How long do we have left to find a donor? How late is really too late—for my daughter, for my marriage? And while you’re at it, O, almighty Father, how could You do this to a child I prayed for so hard? How could You do something like this to any child at all?
    —E-mail message from Laurie Harrison
    As his Suburban slewed around a long curve, Jay fought off the panic pounding at his temples. He should have met her by now. Where the hell was she?
    The roads out here were shit. Rutted, dusty, unlit. Probably they’d slowed her down more than he’d figured, since she would be far more used to driving freeways.
    The moon, at least, had emerged from its veil of clouds. Emerged to light the carcass of an armored vehicle with dark streamers of smoke rising…
    Goddammit, no. He blinked hard, willed the nightmare image back into the shadows. Scanned the empty stretch of road that took its place.
    “Come on, Dana,” he murmured as he tried the phoneagain. But the signal was no stronger than when he’d dropped out of range ten minutes earlier.
    Might as well forget that and try Wallace on the radio for backup. He grabbed the handset, only to replace it as he finally spotted headlights. When they flashed he gave a whoop and thanked the same God who had let him down in Baghdad.
    Signaling back, he pulled over, then bailed out of his vehicle. With the gravel still crunching underneath her Ford’s tires, he pulled open the SUV’s door.
    “You all right?”
    She killed the engine, then nodded as she slid down from the seat. Max jumped down behind her, looking no worse for the unholy racket he’d been making.
    When Dana threw herself into his arms, Jay stroked her back to soothe her shaking. And hoped she wouldn’t think him weak if she felt his own.
    “It wasn’t my imagination. I really saw somebody out there,” she said. “Scared the snot out of me.”
    “You’re safe now.” He breathed the words into her hair, gave her another squeeze of reassurance. Then he let her go before he reacted in a way that would make her doubt his motives. “You never saw anything else on the road?”
    She shook her head. “Somehow the emptiness made it that much worse, the idea that headlights might come up on me at any second. It’s