Chapter One

The afternoon sun was on its downward drift toward the western horizon, throwing its bright light across a vast Montana sky ribboned with wispy mare's-tail clouds. Springtime cloaked the wide plains with its fresh green hues and scented the air with the raw vigor of new life, all sharp and clean.

Jessy Calder breathed in its wild fragrance as she stepped out of the pickup's passenger side. Emblazoned on the truck's door panel was an enlarged version of the Triple C brand. Below it, block letters spelled out the name Calder Cattle Company.

There was little about Jessy Calder that would suggest to an outsider that she was the current head of a ranch that numbered over a million acres within its boundary fences. As usual, the widow of Chase Calder's only son was dressed in cowboy boots, blue jeans, and a brown Stetson hat. A smoothly tailored white blouse was the only exception to typical working attire.

A feathering of lines around her eyes and mouth revealed that she had passed the fifty mark a few years ago, but she had yet to lose her lean, boyish figure. And the silvering of gray in her hair had only the effect of lightening its once dark-honey color.

Without a doubt, Jessy Calder was a handsome woman, indelibly stamped with an aura of calm competence. Much more subtle was the air of authority that emanated from her as well.

Turning, Jessy reached into the truck's cab and collected the western-cut suede jacket lying on the front seat, then closed the passenger door. The freewheeling whine of a semi on the interstate drew her eye to the divided highway. Almost automatically her glan

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