An Ounce of Prevention

Alex spoke again. "Why did you bother? We wouldn't have known what we saw down there in the valley if you hadn't captured us. We thought you were after the wild horses they told us about in Tucson" He glanced at Carmen. "That was the exact valley Mrs. Anderson at the Chamber of Commerce told us about, wasn't it?"

Carmen nodded and then realizing he probably wanted his father to know she was with him, she spoke. "I think so. She said take Milford road out to the first dirt road on the right and follow it for four miles." She glanced around the weathered shack. "This old shack doesn't look like a house. I wonder what it's doing out here in the middle of nowhere." She looked at the guard. "Why did you force us to walk here if you planned to leave us in the desert?"

He frowned at her. "You will be taken far from here when the others arrive. For now you will be quiet."

When the guard turned back to the window, Alex returned the phone to his pocket. Hopefully his father could hear the conversation. He always seemed to know how to get things done. The guard's words had alerted him that some people in authority could not be trusted. Granted, Señor Medena was in Texas, hundreds of miles away, but distance and even snow storms had not stopped him from coming to their rescue in Arkansas when Destiny was sick. Hopefully he had enough information to do so now.

Alex shifted and the phone fell out of his pocket onto the floor with a thump. Instantly the guard turned to investigate. There was nothing Alex could do. If he tried to put it back in his pocket, the guard would discover his hands were no longer tied.

"What is that?" the guard asked as he stepped over to Alex. He pushed the gun against Alex's neck and leaned over to pick up the phone. He grinned as he turned away and walked back to the window punching buttons.

It was doubtful he could get on the internet from this remote area, but if he could it might keep him too busy to notice when and where the last call had been made.

Carmen placed her arms on her knees and rested her head on them. If they were going to be left in the desert, it would be smart to rest while they could. Of course, it was impossible to sleep, and eventually her eyes popped open. The first thing she saw was Alex's boots.

He had worn the same style since she met him - brown stirrup boots with square toes. Did the boots have a masculine look or did they only seem so because she associated them with Alex? The indigo jeans hugged his lean frame and the tan western shirt contrasted attractively with his bronzed skin. He was still as handsome as the day she met him. Some people took a long time aging. His father was that way. Alex's dark brows were perched over a chocolate gaze in a perplexed expression.