The Graves of Plague Canyon (The Downwinders Book 3) by Michael Richan Page A

second shift comes on,
from one to ten. I’d rather work mornings.”
    “And then there’s a shift from ten to five?” Deem asked. “A
graveyard shift?”
    “Nah, Hinton doesn’t keep people out there at night. I think
he figures no one would want to be out in the desert at that time anyway.”
    “Oh, so no one’s there at night,” Deem said out loud,
immediately regretting how it sounded.
    “You thinking about going back?” Warren asked. “Now that you
got that out of me?”
    “Well, no, I don’t know,” Deem replied, knowing she needed to
cover herself. “Who would want to see the canyon at night, anyway?”
    “Exactly,” Warren replied. “Not to mention how dangerous it
is. Probably ten times worse at night.” He studied her face for a moment; she
seemed lost in thought.
    “You really do want to go there, don’t you?” he asked.
    Deem snapped from her drifting. “What makes you say that?”
    “You look like you want to. I can tell.”
    “You can’t tell.”
    “I can. It’s all over your face. You’re trying to figure out
how to sneak back in there at night.”
    Shit , she thought. I didn’t play that very well. “Alright, you caught
me. Yes, I’m intrigued by that canyon. I suppose being told I can’t see it
makes it all the more intriguing.”
    “Just like you were in high school!” Warren said, smiling.
“You know, there’s a much easier way for you to get back there, easier than
sneaking in at night.”
    “What?” she asked.
    “Just ride in there with me, on horseback.”
    “Really?”
    “You’re not a trespasser if you’re with me, along for the
ride.”
    “You won’t get in trouble?”
    “The other guys who work the ranch have visitors all the
time. I think Hinton likes to have them, as long as they’re on his side of
things, and not on the government’s side. It’s a strength-in-numbers thing to
him.”
    “So, you’re saying you’d take me in with you?”
    “I’ll ride with you to the mouth of it, at least,” Warren
replied. “I’ve ridden that far myself, despite the warnings. But that’s as far
as I’ll take you, and it’s as far as you should go. If you’d heard the stories
I have about the place, you wouldn’t want to go any farther, either.”
    “You work tomorrow?” Deem asked.
    “You wanna go tomorrow?” Warren smiled at her. She looked for
a moment at his smile, which was a little crooked, but one hundred percent
genuine. He’s pleased I want to spend more time with him, she thought. But
he’s not sure if that’s the reason I’m asking.
    “Yeah, tomorrow!” she replied with just enough enthusiasm to
mask her intentions.
    “OK,” Warren said. “Meet me where your friend parked his Jeep
at 9 tomorrow morning. We’ll go from there.”
    The waitress came by and dropped the check at the table. Deem
reached out and grabbed it before Warren could get to it.
    “You’re not paying for this,” Warren said.
    “Oh, yes I am,” Deem replied, reaching for her credit card.
“If you’re going to give me a tour of the canyon tomorrow, the least I can do
is take care of lunch.”
    “Well,” Warren said, leaning back in his chair, “never had a
woman pick up the check before. And it feels very quid pro quo.”
    “That’s because you’ve never met someone like me before,” Deem
replied. “Does it bother you?”
    “That’s the second time you’ve asked me that,” Warren
replied.
    “And what’s your answer this time?”
    “Same as the first,” he said, his smile reappearing. With him
pressed back in his chair, Deem could see his upper body even better than when
he’d been on the horse, and she noticed how his t-shirt hugged his torso,
outlining muscles on his chest. Impressive, she thought, but don’t
let your face show it! Something was different about Warren than she’d
expected, and she was trying to put her finger on it. Was it his better than
average response to her feminist edge? The way he’d kept the conversation