Rachel Lee - Undercover In Conard County

“Yeah,” said one of the other men, his voice gravelly from cigarettes, his face weathered until it looked like a map. “He dies. Just make it look like an accident.”

The ponytailed man nodded and never mentioned that they had a second target: that nuisance of a warden, Desi Jenks. One favor for another. If they guessed that they’d probably all turn into frightened grannies.

Then they went back to playing cards, unaware of all the past times when just such murderous plans had been laid here.

Chapter 1

Senior Game Warden Desiree Jenks, or Desi as she preferred to be known, arrived at the ranch belonging to Jake Madison, just in the foothills of Thunder Mountain in Conard County, Wyoming. She knew what she was going to see. By the sound of things, Jake, who was also the Conard City police chief, was mad enough to shoot someone.

She couldn’t blame him, and yet, it was her job to stay calm and maintain a good relationship with the local people, most especially the ranchers. She relied on them probably more than they guessed. Like this. Only because of Jake would she have ever known about it.

She parked her official truck near the front of the house and climbed out. The early October air had a chilly bite so she pulled on her dark green insulated vest over the long-sleeved red shirt that was part of her uniform—and the reason Wyoming wardens were called “redshirts.”

She retrieved her shotgun out of the rack in the back and loaded a few shells, turning in time to see Jake coming out of the house. A tall, well-built man, he was dressed in his own insulated vest and jeans, and carrying an orange hunting vest.

“Damn it, Desi,” he said as he strode up to her. “This has got to stop. My land is posted. Nobody asked for permission.”

She nodded. “I get it, Jake. And it’s getting worse by the year.” She laid the shotgun down on the seat after making sure the safety was on, and reached for her other equipment.

“No kidding. I suggest we ride if you don’t mind. It’s a distance and pretty bumpy.”

“Fine by me.” She pulled out her orange hunting cap and crammed it on, then hung the strap of her camera around her neck. Next, she tugged out a pack carrying her evidence collection kit and slipped it onto her back. Jake had donned his orange vest. The man ought not to have to worry about such things on his own land, Desi thought. Posting it should have been enough to keep people away, not that it always was. And he had a small child to worry about, even worse. After pulling on her gloves, she followed him across the dry, hard ground of the yard.

Jake had already saddled two horses that waited patiently in the barn. Desi shoved her shotgun into the saddle holster, then mounted the big pinto easily. The ranch hand just outside waved as they passed by, clearly about to climb into a battered pickup.

Riding side by side, they moved quickly. “Did you find it?” she called to Jake.

“Larry did. He came riding back to tell me, so I went out and...well, the air turned kinda blue. Crap, I hate poachers, but my cattle are out there, too. The hunters must have chased that bighorn down the mountain.”

“Maybe.” It was still a little too early for the bighorn to be migrating to much lower altitudes. Later in the month or early next month, as the weather got colder and mating season drove them, they’d come down lower, seeking a safe valley for rutting. But that didn’t fit this place or this time. Yeah, some hunters with dogs might have driven him down. Or maybe he was sick. She’d have to find out.

Twenty minutes later they approached the site of the kill. She could smell it. Must be two days old. Rain the last two nights. No footprints of any kind to help her investigation.

But there was no question about what she saw in the tall yellowed grass. “Damn,” she swore.

“Yeah,” said Jake. “And double damn.”

The remains of a large ram’s body lay headless in the trampled grass. Trophy hunting. God, it sickened Desi. The meat left to rot, which was a crime unto itself, the animal expertly skinned for its pelt...and the carrion eaters had already started their job.

The horses didn’t like the smell, and began to sidle and nicker. Hanging onto her reins, Desi swung down and passed them to Jake. “You take the horses back a way. I need photos and samples.”

The wolves had already been here, along with the hawks and vultures and ravens. Not good about the wolves. Desi hated to see any of them get killed, but if they menaced Jake’s herd, he was going to do exactly that.

Half an hour later, she’d retrieved all the evidence she thought she’d find, including a single bullet. Straightening, she walked over to Jake. “We gotta get it out of here. Wolves found it only recently. Maybe they didn’t catch the scent right off because of the rain. Anyway, they haven’t finished feeding yet, maybe scared off by Larry, but they’re probably watching right now, waiting for a chance to finish it.”

Jake nodded as he passed the reins back to her. “Larry’s bringing the truck out. I guess I can’t take the carcass up the mountains? And it’s no good for anyone to eat now.”

Desi stared at a mess she felt bordered on some kind of desecration. Leaving it here would attract the wolves. Moving the remains...depending on where it was dumped there could be some legal issues. Mess though it was, it was still evidence.

She sighed. “You know you can’t dump the meat, Jake. It’s probably useless at this point, especially since I have tissue samples, but I should take it in for evidence anyway. Nor would burying it keep the wolves away.”

“Got my herd to worry about.”

“I know. Help me get it into the back of my truck. I’ll cart it to an evidence freezer, not that I expect we’ll locate whoever did this. But we can’t leave it here.”

“Guess we’re going to be keeping a sharp eye out the next few days.”

Desi just shook her head, her stomach roiling with anger. “It stinks, Jake. I can’t tell you how mad this poaching makes me. Bad enough in the mountains, but worse on private property. So I guess I need to go back for my truck.”

“Larry’s coming. He’s taking the longer way around. I knew I was going to have to do something about this one way or another. I don’t want any wolves eyeing my herd.”

“No, you don’t,” she agreed. Then she offered some casual conversation, seeking a way to avoid erupting. “How’s Nora?” His wife.

“The doc says she still has a month to six weeks, but if you ask me, that woman is about to pop.”

Desi managed a laugh. “She must be miserable.”

“She’s getting there. The nursery’s all ready, James seems to understand he’s about to have a baby sister, and Nora...well, she’s at the point where I have to stop her from moving the furniture. Nesting, one of her friends calls it, but would you believe I caught her trying to move a sofa bed? Must weigh damn near two hundred pounds.”

“Um...wow.”

Jake chuckled, though he didn’t appear at all happy at the moment. “Yeah. An understated version of my reaction.”

Fifteen minutes later, she heard the unmistakable approach of a truck. Turning, she saw Larry in the battered red pickup jolting his way over uneven ground. Between the three of them, it didn’t take long to get the remains wrapped in the plastic Larry had brought along, and soon Jake was dousing the bloody ground with gallons of vinegar from the back of Larry’s truck.

She rode the pinto back to her truck, taking her time because she’d have to wait for Larry. Jake stayed behind because he was concerned about where his fence had been broken, allowing this ram to get through.

No point calling anyone, she thought as she rode. Even if this hunter had a valid permit, he’d have to keep at least the horns attached to the skullcap to prove what he’d killed. No, this guy wasn’t going to tell anyone around here about the kill, especially when he’d wasted the meat. Permit or no, the sheep had been killed on posted land, making it poaching. No truly legit hunter would do that. Legally, however, the hunter had fifteen days to report the kill. Two down and counting. She wasn’t holding her breath.