Free Dark Moon Crossing by Sylvia Nobel

horizon,
    bringing to a close seven straight weeks of pristine blue skies. But the
    rising wind was presenting a problem. Tawny dust devils, having siphoned up
    sand, leaves and other debris from the bone-dry desert floor, performed a
    dizzying ballet in traffic, splattering their gritty contents in all
    directions. If it kept up, we might be in for a full-blown dust storm, which
    would make driving even more hazardous, I thought as three eighteen-wheelers,
    apparently in a race to see who could reach the border first, rumbled past. I
    was relieved to see the sign announcing that only twenty miles remained until
    our exit. Good. Armed with the additional information provided by Walter, I
    was anxious to get started on my sleuthing. For Lupe’s sake, I prayed that the
    little boy at the mission would be able to shed some light on the puzzling
    disappearance of her relatives. Knowing just the little I did about this
    intriguing case galvanized my senses. Was Tally right?‌ Was I an adrenaline
    junkie?‌ If so, how was I going to change that?‌ Did I even want to?‌
    Thinking of him spawned a twinge of disappointment. Obviously Ruth had
    never told him I’d phoned, but why hadn’t he taken the initiative to call me?‌
    No doubt he was still annoyed about my decision to help Lupe. Couldn’t he see
    past his own pigheadedness?‌ Couldn’t he grasp that I’d had no option but to
    pursue this situation as best I could?‌ My thoughts roamed back to Ginger’s
    evasive behavior last night. It galled me to no end to know she was sitting on
    inside information concerning Tally and some other woman. What was behind her
    roundabout references that I took him for granted?‌ The tiniest ember of doubt
    flickered inside me. Now that I really thought about it, there had been times
    these past few weeks when he’d been distant and rather withdrawn. I had
    attributed it to ongoing problems at the ranch, but I’d been so immersed in
    putting out fires at the office that I hadn’t really pressed him for details.
    I vowed right then that I would give him one hundred percent of my attention
    next week and amply demonstrate the depths of my feelings for him. I grinned
    to myself. The new skimpy two-piece bathing suit should set the stage nicely.
    At Arivaca Junction, I pulled over and signaled for Lupe to take the
    lead again. Other than the Cow Palace Saloon and the Long Horn Grill that
    sported a gigantic steer’s head complete with long white horns, there wasn’t
    much to the place, just a few scattered businesses and some ramshackle houses.
    The streets seemed mostly deserted.
    We waved goodbye to a smiling young Mexican girl sitting in the bed of
    a pickup truck selling bunches of dried red chili peppers, and drove onto a
    well-maintained road flanked by palo verde trees, prickly-pear cactus and thick
    clusters of mesquite and ironwood. Secured inside miles of range fence, herds
    of cattle grazed peacefully on the soft contours of golden grasslands sweeping
    westward towards the eye-catching Baboquivari Mountains. I thought the jagged
    peak piercing the now mostly cloudy skyline looked a little like an enormous
    brown shark’s tooth.
    The road gradually deteriorated into a series of sharp turns and sudden
    dips that had my stomach doing cartwheels. As the car rattled over yet another
    cattle guard, I decided that this particular route would be inadvisable for
    anyone prone to carsickness. There was very little traffic other than an
    occasional pickup or SUV. After a few miles of breathing the blue curtain of
    oil-laden smoke from Lupe’s car, I dropped back behind her. Why risk an asthma
    attack?‌
    I have to admit that what happened next was totally my fault. Yes, I
    was gawking out the window at the breathtaking scenery. Yes, I was thinking
    about a hundred different things and I was most certainly driving too fast. As
    I rounded a sharp curve and descended into a wash, it took a second for the
    dark image ahead to