Page 29 of The Hunted Wife

“We’ll find her,” said Christopher. “And we’ll make him pay, Brother. He won’t escape our wrath.”

Adam put a hand on Christopher’s shoulder and squeezed. “I want you to check out all the rental car companies. I want to know where he rented his car from. That’s where they will be going before they get on a plane.”

“I can do that. Give me a few minutes. This won’t take long.” Christopher stood and left the room.

“I’m going to check the cabin. Whether they are there or not, I’ll be returning here.”

“Call and let us know what you find,” said Benjamin.

“Will do.” Adam took the route to Dmitry’s cabin. Once he reached the cabin, he was immediately disappointed. No vehicle. No one was there. He checked inside, and the place was a disaster. They’d obviously spent all the time they’d been missing in the cabin. Someone must have warned him that they were coming. The only person it could have been was Dmitry. Adam would deal with him later.

Adam raced outside and called Benjamin. “They aren’t here. I’ll be back shortly then we will all head to Denver.”

He raced back to the ranch. All his brothers were gathered in his father’s office.

“I checked the rental car companies. He used Hertz. He’s driving a black Ford Expedition,” said Christopher.

Letting out a breath, Adam clapped Christopher on the back. “You’re a pretty smart man when you want to be. Let’s go.”

“Wait,” said Christopher. “We might not have to go to Denver. I checked the traffic cams while I was waiting for the rental car search. I saw what I’m sure was that vehicle go into Steamboat and head out toward the ski areas. I think going to Denver would be a wild goose chase.”

Adam stared at his younger brother. “What do you propose?

“I think we find out where Dmitry has another property in that area. That is where we’re likely to find Ricard.”

“What about him heading to Denver?” asked Benjamin.

“If Christopher thinks we should check out the private lodges, then I agree we should. It seems to be the more tangible lead,” said Everett. “And if it turns out to be a wild goose chase, we’ll still have time to track him to Hertz in Denver.”

“Let’s hurry. I want to catch him before he reaches his destination,” said Adam.

“We will. It will take him longer to get to Steamboat than it will take us,” said Daniel.

“That’s right,” said Gabriel. “We should be able to cut him off or at the very least, get behind him.”

“Let’s go.” Adam walked out the door to his truck.

Ricard managed to beat them to Steamboat. His driver, Viktor, must have floored it all the way to have that happen.

Adam managed to catch up with him.

When the Expedition reached town, the vehicle headed straight west into the mountains. Any cabins up there would be hard to find without a map unless a person was familiar with the area. How would Ricard know about them?

Adam followed him but at a distance, keeping two to three cars between them. That wouldn’t work on the dirt and gravel roads in the forests but it would as long as he stayed in town.

Ricard headed toward the ski areas.

Adam’s stomach tightened more the farther west Ricard’s vehicle drove. The roads narrowed quickly to just barely the width for two cars, and then only if one of the cars drove in the ditch next to the road. The road twisted higher into the mountains toward a smattering of expensive vacation homes and private ski chalets hidden among the pines.

Snow still clung to the shadows beneath the trees. Even though spring had reached the valley below it still had a ways to go before reaching where they were..

Ricard seemed to know exactly where he was going. That meant he had help or perhaps another safe house waiting. Neither possibility sat well with Adam. He gripped the steering wheel harder as the Expedition ahead disappeared briefly around another sharp curve. Every second Millie remained with that man was another second too long.

Ahead, Ricard turned suddenly onto a private gravel driveway marked with an old, battered sign that read NO TRESPASSING. Adam drove past the road without slowing, his pulse pounding. He counted slowly under his breath before continuing another quarter mile up the road. Then he made a U-turn and pulled into the shade beneath a stand of aspens and grabbed his phone. “I found him,” he told Benjamin. “Private road west of the ski resort. Texting coordinates now.”

“Wait for us,” Benjamin ordered.

Adam stared through the windshield toward the hidden road. “I’ll try.”