Chapter 3

In the morning Carol went into town and John started working around the ranch. Carol went to a local RV dealer and inquired about rentals. The dealer had a small camper that was more of a conversion van than a camper and arraigned to rent it for two weeks. She felt that if they had to do any surveillance that they could use the windows in the back of the van, as the windows had Venetian blinds over them and they were dark tinted. She had the dealer give her the keys so that she could pick it up early Friday morning. The dealer agreed to allow her to leave her pickup on his lot for the two weeks. Carol bought a baseball cap for John and a pair of sunglasses with the darkest tint she could find. She almost got a mirrored pair but was afraid that it would call attention to him. She wanted him to be anonymous as possible while they were in Denver. She stopped in the camera store and bought a 35mm SLR camera with a telephoto lens and got high-speed film. Carol took care of the animals for the rancher and the farmer, gave them the required inoculations and started for her ranch. She stopped off at the ranch next to hers and talked to the boy who had agreed to care for her animals and she gave him last minute instructions and paid him what they had agreed on.

When Carol pulled up to the cabin she saw John walked around inside the barn. She took her medical bag out of the car and made sure there was nothing in the pickup that could invite a thief while the pickup was on the dealer's lot. Carol walked to the barn. "I found some tools and nails so I started fixing some of the things that I saw needed repair," he said. Carol saw that the repairs were done in a professional manner and realized that she had been letting the place slide for quite a while. "You're getting to be quite a rancher," she smiled. "I feel at home here," he said. Carol felt a tug at her heart and went to him and hugged him. They walked into the cabin and Carol told John about the van and camera and disguise. They fixed dinner and washed dishes together. They agreed that they should go to bed early so that they could pick up the van before anyone was at the RV dealer. They made love again as passionately as they had the night before.

Carol and John fed the animals and left the ranch at 5 o'clock in the morning. They drove to town and Carol insisted that John wear his hat and that he put on his sunglasses as soon as it got light. The van was where she and the RV dealer had agreed and they loaded the clothes, camera and other items that they thought that they would need for their investigation. John parked the pickup as Carol pulled to the entrance of the RV lot. The trip to Denver was uneventful and Carol did all of the driving as John had no identification or driver's license. They reached Denver in the early afternoon and searched for a motel. They located a small independent motel on the outskirts of town and they unpacked the van. Carol got the camera ready and John took the phone books and copied the phone numbers that he thought that they might need on a piece of the motel stationary. Carol went to a fast food place and brought the food to the motel, as they did not want to take a chance on John being seen and recognized.

After they had eaten, Carol and John drove to the home of the secretary that John felt he could trust. They parked the van in front of the house. "Her car is not here, so I guess she isn't home from work yet," he told Carol. At about 5:45 in the afternoon a car pulled into the driveway and into the carport. John and Carol got out of the van and walked toward the woman getting out of the car. As John approached the car he said, "Greta?" The woman looked at John as he took off the dark glasses and said, "Oh my God," and started to faint. John rushed to her and caught her just before she hit the concrete floor of the carport. Carol grabbed her pocketbook and found the keys for Greta's house. Carol unlocked the door and John carried Greta into the house and laid her on the sofa. Carol got a glass of water from the kitchen and walked back to the living room. Greta started to open her eyes. She reached up and touched John's face, "You're dead, You're not dead?" "No, I'm not dead," John told her as he held her hand. It was several minutes before Greta could say anything accept, "You're not dead?" John sat her up in the sofa and he and Carol sat next to her.