Page 34 of Dust and Desire (Sagebrush Cowboys #5)

Dustin

M y hands shook as I held the paper. “This doesn’t make sense. Why would he just leave? We told each other we loved each other. We were building something together.” I felt my breath catch in my throat. “I… I was sure he wouldn’t leave.”

Ali came up beside me, gently taking the note from my trembling fingers. She studied it, her well-trained eyes scanning for clues I might have missed.

“Something’s not right,” she said quietly. “This is too abrupt. Too final.” She looked up at me, her expression serious. “This isn’t the note of someone who fell out of love, Dustin. This is the note of someone who feels they have no choice.”

Caroline leaned against the kitchen counter, arms crossed over her chest. “I gotta agree with city girl. I might not’ve known him long, but Alex ain’t the type to run without a damn good reason. And he sure as hell wouldn’t leave you high and dry like this. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

I sank into a kitchen chair, feeling like the floor had disappeared beneath my feet. “But what reason could he possibly have? If he was in trouble, he could have told me. We could have faced it together. ”

“Unless he was trying to protect you,” Ali said softly, setting the note on the table. “Unless whatever he’s running from is dangerous enough that he’d rather leave than risk you getting hurt.”

The words hung in the air, heavy with implication. My mind raced back through every conversation with Alex, searching for clues I might have missed.

“I’ve been feeling like he’s hiding something for a while now,” I answered truthfully, even if it hurt to admit. “But I figured he’d tell me when he was ready. I didn’t want to force his hand.”

“It looks like somebody already has,” Ali said, folding the note and tucking it into her pocket.

“Any idea who it might be?” Caroline asked.

I shook my head. I had no idea. Alex had been hiding something, but it had remained well hidden. I didn’t even know where to start.

“The sheriff,” I said suddenly, standing up so quickly the chair nearly toppled over. “Marcus. He stopped by the night after Alex’s apartment was broken into to check on us. Maybe… Maybe he knows something.”

Caroline nodded grimly. “Good thinkin’. Marcus has been keepin’ an eye on things around here lately. If there’s been trouble brewin’, he’d know about it.”

“He knows about us too,” I added, trying to reassure myself mostly. “If he knows anything, I think he’ll help.”

We locked up Alex’s apartment and piled back into Caroline’s truck, the silence heavy between us as she drove toward the sheriff’s station. The sun had nearly disappeared behind the horizon, leaving the sky a deep purple that matched the dread settling in my chest.

The sheriff’s station was still lit up when we arrived, and I could see Marcus through the window, hunched over paperwork at his desk. He looked up when we walked in, his expression immediately shifting from tired to alert when he saw our faces.

“Caroline,” he said, standing. He glanced over at me. “What’s wrong?”

“Alex is gone,” I said without preamble, my voice cracking slightly. “He left work early today and now he’s nowhere to be found. Just left this behind.” I nodded to Ali, who pulled the note from her pocket and handed it to Marcus.

The sheriff’s face darkened as he read it, his jaw tightening. “Shit,” he muttered, then looked up at me with something that looked like guilt. “I was afraid this might happen.”

“What do you mean?” I demanded, stepping closer to his desk. “What’s going on?”

Marcus ran a hand through his hair, suddenly looking older than his years. “Alex came to see me earlier this week. He was... scared. Said someone from his past had found him, someone possibly dangerous.”

My heart stopped. “Who?”

Marcus paused for a long moment.

“Tell us, Marcus,” Caroline said, her tone leaving no room for argument. “I don’t care about your confidentiality bullshit. The man is clearly in trouble.”

Marcus let out a long sigh. “An ex-boyfriend named Keith Bordeaux. From Louisiana.” Marcus’s voice was grim, making my stomach twist in knots. “Alex said the guy had been stalking him for years, following him from job to job. He thought he’d lost him when he came to Sagebrush, but...”

“But he found him anyway,” Ali finished, her lawyer’s mind already piecing together the implications.

Marcus nodded. “Alex found a dead bird on your porch a few days ago, along with a postcard. It was Keith’s calling card, apparently. His way of saying he was watching.”

The blood drained from my face as I remembered Alex’s strange behavior, how he’d been jumpy and distracted. “Why didn’t he tell me?”

“He was trying to protect you,” Marcus said gently. “Said he couldn’t bear the thought of dragging you into his mess. I told him he should tell you anyway, that keeping you in the dark was more dangerous than the truth. ”

Caroline slammed her palm against the wall. “Goddamn stubborn cowboy. Of course he’d try to handle this alone. Men .”

“There’s more,” Marcus continued, his expression growing darker.

“I did some digging on Keith Bordeaux after Alex came to me. The man comes from old Louisiana money, the kind of family that’s used to getting what they want.

He’s never been formally charged with anything, but there have been complaints.

Harassment, stalking, intimidation. The kind of thing that gets brushed under the rug when you have enough money and influence. ”

My legs felt weak, and I had to grip the edge of Marcus’s desk to stay upright. “So, what are you saying? That Alex left with this psychopath willingly?”

“I’m saying Keith Bordeaux is the kind of man who doesn’t take no for an answer,” Marcus replied grimly. “And if he threatened you or anyone else Alex cares about, Alex would do whatever it took to keep you safe. Even if it meant sacrificing himself.”

The room spun around me. This couldn’t be happening. Not when I’d finally found something real, something worth fighting for. “We have to find him.”

“Dustin—” Marcus started, but I cut him off.

“No. I don’t care how dangerous this Keith person is. Alex is out there somewhere, probably scared out of his mind, thinking he has to face this alone.” My voice cracked with emotion. “I love him. I’m not letting some rich psychopath destroy that.”

Ali stepped forward, placing a steadying hand on my shoulder. “What can we do, Sheriff? There has to be something.”

Marcus was quiet for a moment, clearly weighing his options. “I’ve been trying to track Keith’s movements, but he’s careful. Pays cash for everything, uses fake names. The red truck Alex mentioned seeing has Louisiana plates, but he might be obscuring the plate somehow.”

“What about his family?” Caroline asked. “If he’s from old money, there’s gotta be records, property, somethin’ we can use.”

“The Bordeaux family owns several properties throughout Louisiana and Texas,” Marcus confirmed. “But that’s a lot of ground to cover, and we don’t even know if that’s where he’d take Alex.”

I felt helpless, like I was drowning in my own panic. Somewhere out there, the man I loved was in the hands of someone who’d been tormenting him for years. And I hadn’t even known.

“Wait,” Ali said suddenly, her eyes lighting up with an idea. “Dustin, you said Alex has been acting strange all week, right? Specifically, since our dinner last night?”

I nodded, not sure where she was going with this.

“What if Keith was watching then? What if he saw us together and decided to make his move?” Ali’s voice grew more urgent. “Think about it… Alex kept looking out the window, he was positioning himself between you and the street. He saw something that spooked him.”

Marcus straightened. “She might be onto something. If Keith was bold enough to leave a dead bird on your porch, he might have been watching from close range.”

“There’s a couple of rooms for rent right next to Dolly’s that she owns,” Caroline added. “What are the chances she’s renting one out to this Keith person?”

“He’s not at my motel,” Ali added. “I would’ve noticed a red truck.”

“There’s no other place he could be stayin’,” Marcus nodded, grabbing his gun belt from the desk. “Let’s go ask Dolly.”

The drive back to Dolly’s Diner felt like it took forever, even though it was only a few minutes.

My heart hammered against my ribs as Caroline parked the truck, and I was out the door before she’d even fully stopped.

Through the diner’s windows, I could see Dolly wiping down tables, preparing to close for the night.

The bell jingled as we pushed through the door, and Dolly looked up with a tired smile that quickly faded when she saw our faces.

“Well, this looks serious,” she said, setting down her rag. “What can I do for y’all?”

Marcus stepped forward, his badge catching the light. “Dolly, I need to ask you about your rental rooms. You got anyone staying there right now?”

“Just one,” she nodded, her expression growing curious. “Real polite gentleman from Louisiana. Paid cash for the week, no trouble at all. Why? He do somethin’ wrong?”

My stomach lurched. “What does he look like?”

Dolly’s eyes moved between us, clearly sensing the tension. “Tall, handsome fella. Dark hair, green eyes. Dresses real nice, talks with that smooth Southern accent.” She paused. “Said his name was Kevin Smith.”

“He drive a red truck?” Marcus asked grimly.

“Yeah…” Dolly was looking worried now.

“He lied to you about his name,” Marcus said, his hand going to his gun. “And we have reason to believe he’s kidnapped Alex Reyes.”

Dolly looked at me, her perpetually kind face twisting into something akin to rage. “That bastard…” She turned around, glancing out the back window. “His truck’s still here.”

“Can I have the keys to the room?” Marcus asked, holding out his other hand. “I’m gonna put an end to this.”

Dolly didn’t hesitate, grabbing a set of keys from behind the register and pressing them into Marcus’s palm. “Room two, around back. If that son of a bitch hurt Alex...” She trailed off, but her meaning was clear as her acrylics dug into the counter.

“Y’all stay here,” Marcus ordered, but I was already shaking my head.

“Like hell,” I said, following him toward the back door. “If Alex is in there, I’m not waiting outside.”

“Dustin—” Marcus started.

“He’s my partner,” I interrupted, surprised by the steel in my own voice. “I’m going with you.”

Caroline stepped up beside me. “We all are. Alex is family.”

Ali nodded firmly. “And I didn’t come all the way to Texas to sit on the sidelines while my ex-husband’s boyfriend gets kidnapped by some psychopath. ”

Marcus looked like he wanted to argue, but one glance at our determined faces seemed to convince him otherwise. “Fine. But you stay behind me, and if I tell you to run, you run. Understood?”

We nodded, following him out the back door into the small courtyard behind the diner. The rental rooms were in a separate building, a modest two-story structure that had seen better days. Room two was on the ground floor, and sure enough, the red truck was parked directly in front of it.

My heart pounded so hard I was sure everyone could hear it. Somewhere behind that door was Alex, and I had no idea what condition he might be in. The thought of Keith hurting him made my vision blur with rage.

Marcus motioned for us to stay back as he approached the door, his gun drawn but held low. He pressed his ear to the wood, listening for any sounds from inside. After a moment, he looked back at us and shook his head.

“I can’t hear anything,” he whispered. “Could be empty, could be they’re just being quiet.”

He inserted the key as silently as possible, then looked back at us one more time. “Ready?”

I nodded, my mouth too dry to speak.

Marcus turned the key and pushed the door open in one swift motion, his gun raised. “Sheriff’s department! Nobody move!”

The room was empty.

My heart sank as we filed inside, taking in the sparse motel furniture and the few personal belongings scattered about.

An expensive-looking leather suitcase sat open on the bed, filled with clothes that screamed money.

On the nightstand sat a silver picture frame containing a photo that made my blood run cold.

It was Alex, but not the Alex I knew. This was a younger version, maybe three or four years ago, laughing at something off-camera. He looked carefree in a way I’d never seen him, and he was clearly unaware the photo was being taken.

“Jesus,” Caroline breathed, picking up the frame. “This is sick. ”

Ali was examining the contents of the suitcase with professional detachment. “Everything here is expensive,” she said, gingerly lifting a silk shirt. “Designer labels. And look—” She gestured to a small velvet box sitting among the clothes.

Marcus carefully opened it with a pen, revealing a silver ring set with a black stone. “A wedding ring,” he said grimly.

My stomach turned. This man wasn’t just stalking Alex, he was planning a life with him, a life Alex clearly wanted no part of.

“There’s something else,” Caroline called from the bathroom. We hurried over to find her pointing to a lit cigarette still burning in an ashtray. The window had been thrown wide open, the curtains rustling in the breeze.

“He musta fled the moment he saw us coming?—”

But before he could finish his thought, a gunshot split the air. All of us nearly jumped out of our skins.

“Don’t fuckin’ move!” we heard someone scream outside. “Or I’ll turn you from a bull to a heifer in one shot!”

It was Dolly.