Page 22 of The Mountain Man's Determined Bride

“I could try to locate the head nurse for you. She’s here for a few hours yet.” Without waiting for his response, she picked up the phone and sent a page out over the loud speaker. While he waited, he paced down to her empty room and back to the nurses station a couple times.

“Ok sir, I’m so sorry about this. My supervisor told me that a woman claiming to be Miss Masters’ sister was taking her home, not more than ten minutes ago. The doctor had already released her so there was no reason to detain her.”

“Miss Masters doesn’t have a sister. Damn it.” He walked away from the desk and dialed his cell.

“Tyler, we have a serious problem. Your sister is gone and the people here say she left with a woman.”

“You’re kidding? Do you really think Margie would be that stupid? I really can’t see my sister leaving with her.”

“Not willingly no but I wouldn’t trust Margie further than I could throw her. I’m calling the police, you call Bill.”

“Hold up, I’m already at the farm. Come by here and get me, we’ll go looking for her. I know where that stupid woman lives.”

Luke made it out of the hospital in two seconds and was speeding down the highway toward the Masters farm. “What in the hell is going on?”

He hit 911 on his phone’s key pad and waited for dispatch to pick up. He explained everything in short order and demanded they get an officer on it right away. But what would they chase? Wait…less than ten minutes, it had to be that pick up speeding out of the lot. “No wonder that looked like Morgan.” He explained to the officer the truck he’d seen but could only remember a couple of the letters on the license plate.

“Not a problem sir, any information will help.”

Then they explained to sit tight and let the officers do their job and stay by the phone in case they needed anything.I don’t think so.He couldn’t sit by and do nothing and he knew Tyler wouldn’t like that either. When he pulled up to Bill’s house, Tyler flew off the front porch and jumped in the truck as Luke came to a stop.

“Well here we are again, chasing after my sister. How does she get herself into these messes?”

“I feel like this one actually is my fault. If it really was Margie that took her, she’s out for revenge. She was pretty mad when I told her I didn’t have time for her.”

“Where did this infatuation come from? I didn’t think you two ever even talked.”

“We haven’t really.” Luke stopped long enough to back out of the drive and head back into Holly. “The only time we spendany kind of time together was six years ago when I was planning this big weekend at the cabin for Morgan. I was going to ask her to marry me. It all went wrong that day.”

“And I bet you money she had something to do with that too. I tell ya I do not trust her.”

“You said you know where she lives?” Luke slowed as he came into town.

“Yeah, take a left at Midtown Circle and go west a couple miles out of town. Her family owns a run-down farm out there. And no, please don’t ask me how I know.” Tyler shook his has as if he were ashamed that he did know.

Chapter Eighteen

“Margie you need to stop all this nonsense. I promise I’ll forget all about it, just let me know and we can go about our lives as usual.”

“Yeah you say that now but my life hasn’t ever been normal, not since I met you.”

“We were in grade school together, what could I have possibly done to you then?”

Margie was nervous, looking out the barn window every couple minutes. Morgan recognized the massive structure from their childhood. They spent a lot of hours playing in every nook and cranny, chasing barn cats and jumping from the hay mow.

“Can’t you just shut up? I’ll tape your mouth shut if I have to.”

“It’s too quiet in this barn. I was just trying to make conversation. I’m confused about all of this. Mainly why you have such a grudge against me. We grew up together playing in this place, don’t you remember?”

Morgan could tell what she was saying was getting to Margie. She was shaking an awful lot, jiggling the gun in her hand.

“That was a lot of years ago. I never liked you, even then. You know what they say, keep your friends close but your enemies closer. And an enemy you were. Every chance you got you tried to show me up with prettier hair or new clothes that your uncle bought you. You rubbed in that this boy or that boy liked you and stared at you during lunch or asked you to a movie. You didn’t care that every time I had genuine feelings for a boy, they never noticed me, only you. Even now, the one man that I’m in love with only seems to have eyes for you and I’m sick to death of it. If you just go away for good, he’ll be mine.”

Holy shit! Is she going to shoot me? No one even knows we’re here. I need to convince her I’m not a threat or I’ll never get out of this alive.

“You know, I think you and Luke would make a good couple.” It was a long shot and it made her sick to her stomach to even say it but she needed to make Margie believe it.

“You must think I’m stupid. I told you he only has eyes for you.”