02 Madoc Read Online Free Page A

able to leave her here.”
    Madoc frowned. “Why not?”
    “Son, have you looked outside?” the older man said, gesturing toward the window. “There’s a big snow storm coming. Me and my deputies will be pulling cars out of ditches and saving livestock for the next couple of days.
    Ain’t gonna be no one around to watch your prisoner. I was just getting ready to close down the jail when you came in.”
    Madoc’s frown deepened. How the hell could the sheriff just shut down the jail? “You’re kidding me, right?”
    The other man shrugged. “No, son. I can’t have her here if there’s no one to watch her.”
    Madoc shook his head in disbelief. That had to be one of the most stupid things he’d ever heard. “That’s why they put locks on the cell doors,” he pointed out dryly. “So you don’t have to watch the prisoners all the time.”
    The sheriff drew himself up to look Madoc squarely in the eye. “I’m not locking no one up without someone here to watch them, especially someone like this poor, little lady here,” he said. “With the snow they’re predicting, it could be days before one of my deputies or I can get back here to check on her.”
    Madoc wanted to point out to the man that Shayna Matthews wasn’t a “poor, little lady,” but a wanted fugitive, and then figured it would only be a waste of time. “If you won’t lock her up, then what the hell am I supposed to do with her?” he said instead.
    The sheriff shrugged. “Well, you can get a room at the motel, I suppose,” he said. “Or you could just take her back to the boarding house. It’s not like she’s going anywhere in this snow.”
    Madoc stared at the other man, dumbfounded. What the hell kind of Podunk town was Flint Creek anyway? He shook his head. “Well, if you won’t hold her, then I’ll take her to the U.S. Marshals office in Billings.”
    The sheriff’s eyes went wide. “Billings is almost two hundred miles from here,” he said. “There’s no way you’ll make it that far in this snow. You’d be better off staying here.”
    Right, Madoc thought in disgust. “I’ll take my chances with the snow,” he told the other man. Tightening his grip on Shayna Matthews’ arm, he turned toward the door. “Come on,” he growled.
    Outside, the snow had started to come down heavier, and Madoc swore under his breath as he led his prisoner to his SUV. Damn, he wished he’d never stopped at that diner!
    “The sheriff’s right,” Shayna grumbled beside him. “It’s crazy to try and drive all the way to Billings in this weather. We’ll never make it.”
    Madoc gave her a hard look as they came to a halt beside his SUV. “I don’t remember asking for your opinion,” he said coldly as he brushed snow from the door handle.
    “Well, I’m giving it to you anyway!” she shot back. “You might be willing to risk your life, but I don’t want you risking mine!”
    Madoc glared at her. “Like I said, you don’t get a vote.” He yanked open the passenger door. “Get in.”
    Shayna hesitated for so long that Madoc thought he would have to forcibly put her in the vehicle, but with a baleful look, she climbed into the SUV. With her hands cuffed behind her back, the whole thing was a little awkward, but she managed, and once she was inside, Madoc slammed the door, and then walked around to the other side and got in.
    “You’re making a huge mistake,” Shayna said as he started the engine and put the truck in gear. “I’m innocent of those crimes.”
    He snorted. “That’s what they all say.”
    “If I had done it, don’t you think I would have run?” she asked.
    Madoc gave her a sidelong glance. “You did run,” he reminded her as he merged onto the snowy highway.
    Shayna sighed in exasperation. “I meant before I got arrested,” she said. “If I had really stolen all that money, do you think I would have run off to Flint Rock, Montana?”
    He shrugged. “Maybe you figured that no one would look for you