out. Either way, if you want to come back to this spot, you can. I’ll make sure of it.”
“You may have a lot of guns, but they won’t be around when I’m out there alone.”
That elicited a laugh from him. “True, but I don’t think Buddy runs to violence. A little nutty maybe, but I never heard of him hurting anybody. But if you like, I know some other vantages as good as that one I can show you. Well away from Buddy.”
“I may take you up on that.” Although the idea of ceding ground to a crank annoyed her no end. She knew perfectly well that she could deal with that guy. He hadn’t even been armed that she could see. She just didn’t want the conflict. This was supposed to be a break.
“Feel free. Just leave a message for me with Lucy at the station. She’ll radio me.”
“Thanks. So you’re a biologist, too?”
“Focused on wildlife mostly.”
“What kind?”
“If it walks, crawls or flies, I’m probably on it. Our mission is to protect everything in these forests for future generations. It’s not always easy. We humans seem to have some problems getting along with nature.”
“No kidding! So I bet you know the names of all the wildflowers?”
“Sure. You want to know what they are?”
“Actually no,” she admitted. “I see them a different way, categorize them by colors and shapes. Names might change what I see.”
“An artist’s eye?”
“Maybe so.”
“Then why did you ask?”
She gave him a sidelong glance. “Because you’re the first person I’ve ever met who might actually know the official names of everything in the woods.”
He flashed another truly attractive smile as they reached the service road and her battered sedan came into view. He helped her load her car, then closed her door after she climbed in. She rolled down the window and started the engine.
“Drive slow. We’ve got some logging trucks driving a little crazy up here.”
She looked up at him, drinking in again his good looks. “I didn’t see any.”
“We’re doing some thinning to prevent disease and clearing some deadfalls. If you stay around awhile, you’ll see them. Drive safe.” He gave the top of her car a friendly rap, then stepped back, remounted and watched her drive away.
Glancing in her rearview mirror, she saw him. Dang, that man looked good enough to eat.
As soon as there was nothing left but a cloud of dust, Craig pulled the radio off his belt to call his boss. “Hey, Lucy.”
“What’s up, Craig?”
“Buddy. He’s done it again. I’m going to have to go talk to him, probably in the morning. Night’s drawing near.”
“Want me to send someone to meet you?”
“I doubt that’s necessary. I’m just going to remind him that the public has a right to be on public land.”
“What’s going on with him?”
“Damned if I know, but maybe I can find out. I told a lady artist to let you know if she wants me to find her somewhere else to paint.”
“He bothered her? Craig, I don’t like it. I can see him getting mad at a bunch of rowdy campers, but a woman alone who’s just painting?”
“And taking photos.” Craig paused. “It’s the photos that might have been the problem, and that’s what worries me. Why would that bother him?”
“Are you sure you don’t want some backup?”
“I never had a problem with Buddy before.”
“Nobody had a problem with him before. But don’t forget that dead hiker we found at the beginning of the summer.”
“I seriously doubt Buddy was involved in that. Misadventure.”
“Misadventure my butt,” Lucy said bluntly. “I’d feel a whole lot better if the medical examiner could ascertain cause of death. I know it probably wasn’t Buddy, but you take care. The guy’s getting weird.”
Craig tucked the radio away and looked at the sky. The day was waning; it would take him a while to get to Buddy Jackson’s place, which meant there wouldn’t be much light when he got there. Definitely best to wait for morning, especially if he wanted to be able to see anything.
And seeing what was going on at Buddy’s place suddenly seemed like it might be important.
* * *
Sky drove carefully down the service road, avoiding some ruts and keeping an eye out for logging trucks. The sightlines were short along this narrow, winding road, and she could see why Craig had warned her to be on the lookout. A truck could be on her almost before she saw it.
Her meeting with him had gone a long way to easing her anger, though. So this guy Buddy was apparently a harmless nut. Okay, she could deal with that. And she wanted to go back to that spot, because it had evoked images in her mind that she wanted to get on canvas. The colors had been gorgeous, the valley steep and full of character, the shadows almost haunting. While her paintings were more impressionistic than realistic, she knew she wouldn’t capture what that spot evoked in her if she relied mostly on memory and even photographs. There was a feeling she had while sitting there that didn’t follow her when she left.
Buddy had sure blown that up this afternoon.
On the other hand, she’d met Craig Stone. He was handsome, yes, but what appealed to her was his quietude. She sensed serenity around him, an ease with himself and his place in the world that she could only envy. Did spending a lot of time in the woods do that?
She almost laughed out loud, however, when she thought about that calm and peace that seemed to suffuse him and compared it to the fact that he was packing both a rifle and a pistol. She had wanted to ask him about that. What dangers was he prepared for? Bears? Wolves? People? All of the above?
She’d heard over the years that occasionally rangers got killed on the job, but she didn’t think it was very common. Well, if she saw him again she would ask him.
In the meantime, if that peace she had felt in him came from being in the woods, she wanted some of it for herself. She’d gotten an inkling of it during her few days on that hill painting, but she just wished it would stay with her. Instead, by the time she got back to town, it seemed to have vanished.
When her thoughts started to run on Craig Stone and whether she’d see him again, she sharply reined herself in. Hadn’t she come here to escape all that? Hadn’t she just about decided men weren’t worth that kind of effort? She was supposed to be nursing a bruised heart, not seeking another one.
Man, she definitely needed some Zen and tranquility. Just for a while. Time to gain
