Winds of Change

"Out," John shouted.

Rudy stopped his attacks and sat glowering at the two men. John stood there pointing his Colt at them.

"Very slowly, sit up," John told them.

Both men moaned and groaned as they struggled to a sitting position.

"Guns," John said.

Rudy trotted over by the men, picked up a pistol and brought it to John. Dropping it at his feet, he went back and picked up another returning it to John.

"Any more weapons I should know about gentlemen?"

Both shook their heads. John bent picking up the pistols and shoved them in his belt one at a time.

"Up, slowly," John told the two men. "Rudy watch."

As the men climbed to their feet, Rudy circled behind them watching their every move.

"All right let's go, up to the house," John told the pair.

The four of them walked to the house. When they got there, John had the men kneel down on the porch hands on their heads, legs crossed with foreheads against the wall in front of them.

"Rudy, watch," John told his dog as he went inside, turned on the porch light and the lights inside the house.

He emerged minutes later, with two pair of handcuffs. Now that he could see the faces of the men, he saw they were strangers. After cuffing them both, he had them sit, backs against the wall as he called the Deputy on duty. Fifteen minutes later three Sheriff's cars arrived, Jimmy, Bobbie, and Calvin the duty Deputy. Harvey Muller arrived almost at the same time.

"Just climb back in your car and leave," Jimmy told Harvey.

"I'm... " A shot rang out, tearing a hole through the flashing lights on the top of Harvey's squad.

"What the fuck!" Harvey screamed ducking behind his door.

"You are trespassing, you have no jurisdiction here, now leave," Jimmy said softly.

"You assaulted a police officer... "

"You are just a private citizen here. Your police powers end at the city limits. Now leave before I arrest you for obstruction and criminal trespass."

Harvey rose, his hand on his sidearm.

"Go for it," Jimmy said softly, his voice steady and calm.

Suddenly there was a gun pressed against Harvey's neck from behind.

"Leave, before you get hurt," John whispered cocking his Colt.

Harvey scrambled into his car and was gone, over the hill headed for the city.

Chapter 29

Three hours later John and Jimmy were still in the office finishing up reports after booking the two men. Doc Bajek had come over and patched up their wounds giving each a tetanus shot. Bobbie and Calvin had stayed at John's in case Harvey came back. They had orders to shoot him if he set on foot on John's property. John had also sent Cy Driscole over to Michelle's, just in case.

"Jimmy, come in here," John called out.

"What do you need, boss?" Jimmy asked as he stepped into John's office.

"Have a seat. It's time I brought you up to speed on what's going on."

"There's something going on?" Jimmy asked a smirk on his face as he sat in the chair across from John.

"Yes," John answered seriously. Pulling the envelope from his pocket, John let the disk slide out onto his desk. "This was found in the first murder victim's purse by Doc Bajek and me."

"What is it?"

"It's part of a device, which is in my safe at the ranch that allows a person to travel through time."

"I see," said Jimmy calmly, a concerned look on his face, left eyebrow raised.

"I'm not nuts."

"Of course not," Jimmy replied seriously.

"Doctor Wilfinger has seen it work. I have used it twice now. The first time I only went back in time a few seconds. The second I just turned it on to study, both times someone showed up fifteen minutes later with intent to do bodily injury."

"Those two we have in lockup?"

"Yes the other time two of Harvey's finest showed up, but we weren't in the lab. They looked for us but didn't find us. We were hiding in a broom closet."

"Oh. Then Harvey showing up soon after isn't a coincidence?"

"No, he's involved somehow. His cops showing up prove that."

"Does Bobbie know?"

"Yes and no. I will tell her when I get back to the ranch, which I should probably do now," John said scooping up the disk, placing it in the envelope and shoving it in his pocket.

"That's fine John, I've called Jennings in to look after our guests. I'll stick around until he gets here."

"Good. Tell him if Harvey shows up to shoot him."

"Will do," laughed Jimmy as John grabbed his coat and left.

When John returned to his ranch, he told Calvin to go home, as the day shift would be on duty in a scant few minutes. Once Calvin had left, John sat with Bobbie at the kitchen table. Each of them cradled a fresh cup of coffee in their hands. Clearing his throat, John got up and went to his safe in the living room. It was a huge stand-alone steel box weighing well over two tons and squatted in the far corner serving as his gun safe and a secure place to store his personal papers. Inserting the key he unlocked it, he then pulled open the heavy steel door, grabbing the device off the shelf inside. John had no doubts if whoever wanted this device knew it was in his safe, they could crack it or move it, if the need arose, without a problem. Turning back to face Bobbie, John saw the quizzical look on her face as he approached.

"I thought it time I brought you up to speed," he told her as he sat, setting the device on the table in front of him.

"I see."

"Yes. Well," John started, "the night Mary Fletcher was found, Doc Bajek found this." John fished the envelope from his shirt pocket, dumping the disk out on the table. "You can't see it with the naked eye, but both sides are covered in mathematical symbols, you saw those in the print outs you did for me. Subsequently, we, Doctor Wilfinger and I, found that the disk activated this device," John finished pointing at the device in front of him.

"I see."

"Probably not, but, they do. The device allows the person holding it to travel, time travel."

Bobbie's eyes were wide with surprise. John could tell she had not expected this revelation.

"I see. No, I don't. Are you mad?"

John laughed as he watched his deputy. "No, I'm not mad. I have used this device twice, once with Doctor Wilfinger as a witness and again just last night, hence the visit by the two in lockup. It would seem its use can be detected, by whom I don't know, then located and people dispatched to investigate."

"I see."

"I believe, as does Doctor Bajek, that the disk has something to do with the two murders, along with the attempts on Doctor Wilfinger's life and mine."

"I see."

John sat looking at Bobbie as she waited. Nodding, John picked up the disk, shook his head, placed the disk back on the table and picked up the notepad he always kept there. Pulling his pen from his pocket, he wrote, "Surprise, surprise, how did this get here?" He showed it to Bobbie. She nodded. John folded the paper and put it in his shirt pocket, then picked up the disk and set it on the device. Both of them watched as the disk slipped forward and disappeared into the slot that opened.

"Now I press this button and it is ready," John matched his actions with his words.

Rising he took three steps back turned so the device's rear was in front and walked around to where Bobbie sat looking at him sitting at the table. Taking the slip of paper from his shirt pocket, John slipped it into Bobbie's vest pocket. Then turning the device right side forward he walked back to his place at the table and sat. Pressing the stud, he turned the device off.

"Look in your vest pocket, left side, top," John said.

Bobbie looked at him strangely but checked her pocket. She gasped in surprise as she pulled the paper from the pocket. As she opened it, her eyes widen even more than they were.

"As simple as that?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Can we expect visitors?" she asked holding the paper as if it would burn her fingers.

"I don't know. I guess we'll see in fifteen minutes," John said softly pulling his colt from its holster on his hip and placing it on the tabletop.

Pressing the stud on the bottom, John ejected the disk, slipped it back into the envelope and shoved it in his shirt pocket. Getting up he went to his safe and placed the device back on the shelf, closed the door with some effort, turned the handle and removed the key locking it.

After twenty minutes, Bobbie looked quizzically at John. "I guess they're not coming."

"Either they know that we'll be waiting for them or maybe they ran out of people to send and Harvey was afraid to come himself."

"Or they are here, sneaking up on us?" Bobbie whispered chuckling.

"Rudy would have alerted us if they were," John replied, looking over at Rudy lying calmly in the corner on his blanket.

Chapter 30

After an hour, John sent Bobbie back out on patrol. Having been up all night, John was beat and planned on a little nap before he went back to the office. He told Bobbie about Cy being at Michelle's and to make sure someone relieved him when his shift was over. He knew she would work things out with Carol and Jimmy at the office. Having locked up the house, John went to his bedroom stripped and climbed into bed. Rudy came trotting in and lay in his bed under the window. John was promptly asleep.

John was falling. He kept falling into the blackness that surrounded him. Then a sharp pain in his left arm brought him out of the blackness of sleep. He found himself on the floor next to the bed Rudy's teeth holding onto his arm tightly. Rudy was growling deep in his chest, a sound so low as to almost be inaudible to the human ear. Once Rudy saw that John's eyes were open, he let go and darted out of the room. John was just pulling the Glock he kept in the nightstand out when he heard the screams of someone in severe pain and Rudy growling louder.

A gunshot echoed in the house. John rushed to the sound and found Rudy with his mouth tightly holding the arm of a man. In the man's hand was a pistol, a revolver. John saw a hole in the wall of his living room. The wall made up of fieldstones was a part of the house John dearly loved. The cannon in the man's hand had knocked out a chunk of the wall about a foot wide. Rudy kept up the pressure until the man's hand opened and the pistol dropped to the floor. Only then, did John step forward, retrieve the gun and nod to Rudy. Once his arm was free, the man jumped to his feet. Looking at John, then Rudy and lastly the door, his shoulders sagged as he realized he had no escape route.

"Hands on your head," John spoke softly, "get down on your knees."

"Your dog broke my arm," the man said.

"I guess Harvey forgot to tell you about the dog?"

"Who?"

"Good answer. Down on your knees, left hand on your head. Rudy watch."

John went to the phone, picked it up. There was no dial tone.

"You cut the phone line? When everyone has cell phones?" Walking to the kitchen counter, John picked up his cell and dialed the Sheriff's office. "Carol, get Jimmy and Bobbie out to my ranch. I have another prisoner for them."

John closed the phone, set it down on the counter and suddenly realized he was hungry. Looking at the guy on the floor, he shrugged and put his Glock down on the counter. Pulling the cannon the guy had used over to him, John looked it over. It was a .50 caliber S&W.

"Did you see the fucking hole you punched in my wall with this thing?" John said looking at the wall behind the intruder. "When I find out where you live, I'm going to go over there and punch a hole in your wall. We'll see how you like it."

John put the pistol down on the counter. Turning he opened the fridge and pulled out the makings for a sandwich. The guy on his knees raised his eyebrows.

"I get hungry when I'm about to execute an intruder," John said, a steely tone to his voice. When the guy didn't respond, John smiled. "What do you think happened to Mister Carpenter?"

The guy's eyes widened. Carpenter was the guy Michelle had killed in self-defense as yet his death wasn't public knowledge.

"A lot of empty land here abouts," John smiled inwardly at the distress the man plainly showed.

John then made himself a sandwich. Once made, he took it to the small table between the living room and kitchen. As he sat eating and sipping a beer, two squad cars pulled up in the front yard. John picked up his Glock watching the front door. Jimmy was the first one through, followed closely by Bobbie.

"Jesus, not another one?" cried Jimmy as he got a look at the guy kneeling by the fireplace.

"We just finished arraigning the first two from last night."

"And... " John prompted.

"Oh, Judge Tyler remanded both to county custody," Bobbie replied.

"Well take this one. Take him by the hospital first, his arm is broken."

"Rudy?" asked Jimmy.

"Yep," John answered. "I'll be in shortly."

"You'd think they would run out of guys like this. What's the count now?" Jimmy asked with a smile on his lips.

"Well, let's see. Those two assholes that work for Harvey, then the guy right here at the ranch. He's still in lockup, no that's right he cut a deal and got the walk. Then the one we had to... ah... , those two from last night and now this idiot. We should just take the lot out and shoot them."

John winked at Jimmy and Bobbie. Both nodded their heads solemnly.

"So, do you want to save your skin and tell us who sent you?" John asked the current intruder.

The guy didn't utter a peep. "All right get his ass out of here," John said to Jimmy and Bobbie.

Jimmy and Bobbie pulled the guy to his feet and walked him out the door to a squad. John followed them to the door.

"Hey, when you find out who he is and where he lives let me know. I have an appointment with his wall."

Jimmy and Bobbie looked at John as if he had gone over the edge.

Chapter 31

When John arrived at the office, he found a man waiting. Carol said he was there to see him. Shrugging, John went to his office, closed the door and sat down, ignoring the man in the outer office. Carol knocked softly on his door before entering. She placed a cup of coffee on his desk and sat in the chair facing him.

"I'm glad to see you're okay."

"Who is he?"

Carol handed John a business card. Taking the card, John read the name there, Acton Carlton-Smythe, Esquire, a bit pretentious, the man looked like a weasel. No other printing was on the card, no phone number, no address, no firm name, nothing.

"What does he want?"

"He wouldn't say, just that he needed to see you," Carol said.

"Okay, send him in."

Carol rose, went to the door and nodded to Carlton-Smythe. Acton stood, he was tall, a good six feet, and entered John's office. He turned toward Carol and gave her a look of disdain. Carol ignored him, for now, and returned to her desk.

"Close the door Mister Smythe," John told him.

Mister Smythe's head swiveled toward John, his eye ablaze with hate, quickly cooled.

"That won't be necessary... "

"Close the door, Mister Smythe," John told him.

The two men stared at each other. Smythe was determined not to do as John told him. In the end, John won and Smythe closed the door and moved to sit in the chair across from John.

"Don't, you won't be staying that long. What do you want?"

Smythe, caught halfway into the chair, shot John a look of hatred. He jerked to his full height and stood glaring at John, who was leaning back in his chair casually.

"I represent... ah... the gentleman you have in lock up. I want him released into my custody... "

"No."

"I demand... "

"You do. Go fuck yourself, Mister Smythe. I guess you're not a real lawyer after all."

"I certainly am," Smythe said indignantly.

"Then you should know that I don't have the authority to release the accused, only the Judge can do that. And as Mister... ah... your client has been arraigned and remanded to County custody... well, you're a day late and a dollar short."

"I'm sure some arrangement could be worked out... "

"Such as?" asked John.

"I happen to have a large sum... "

"Stop right there, Mister Smythe. It just so happens that I have enough prisoners in lockup right now. I don't need to add another for attempted bribery."

"I... "

"Good day, Mister Smythe," John told him. "And you may want to go back to law school. You seemed to have forgotten how the law works. I don't want to see you in Barnes County again. Is that clear?"

Smythe swallowed hard. Nodded and turned to leave.

"And you will apologize to my dispatcher for your rude behavior, and be sincere."

Smythe stiffened as he reached for the doorknob.

"If you don't, I would stay off any of the reservations in the entire state, if I were you. Maybe, even in the entire country," John chuckled. "Leave the door open as you leave."

Smythe opened the door and strode stiff-legged out to Carol's desk. Carol looked up at him, a bland look on her face. As Smythe spoke, a sly grin pulled the corners of her mouth up for an instant. Standing, Carol extended her hand, which Smythe took reluctantly. Smythe resisted the urge to wipe his hand on his trouser leg as he turned and walked out of the office. Once he was out of the office, Carol started to laugh. Looking at John, she gave him the thumbs up sign.

John sat wondering where they, whoever they were, got guys like Carlton-Smythe.

Chapter 32

On Friday evening, John picked Michelle up from work and told the deputy assigned to her to go home.

"I thought you might want to go riding again unless you have other plans," John said as he walked her out of the science building.

"No, no other plans. It will be good to get out into the fresh air and sunshine," Michelle said smiling.

"I bet," quipped John.

Relaxing into the corner formed by the front seat and the door, Michelle sighed as she closed her eyes. All week she had been on high alert even though there was a deputy with her, sometimes visible, sometimes not. She must have drifted off somewhere between the University and John's ranch, for the next thing she knew John was gently shaking her shoulder.

"We're here Chelle," John's soft voice penetrated the haze of sleep.

"I'm awake, I'm awake," Michelle said, her eyes opening wide looking around a bit startled.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you," John told her, squeezing her shoulder.

Getting out of his squad, John walked around to the passenger side opened the door, helped Michelle out of the car and up to the house. Inside, Rudy was waiting for them. John ruffled his ears and told him he was a good dog. Michelle gave his head a good scratch and led him to the back door to go out. Then Michelle and John both went to the kitchen, John to start dinner and Michelle to make herself a drink.

"I really need this," she said smiling as she poured the scotch into the glass on the counter. "Would you like one?"

"No, no, I'll just stick with a beer, if you don't mind," John replied, as he seasoned the steaks he was going to grill.

Michelle smiled and got him a beer out of the fridge. Setting it on the counter she stood sipping her scotch as she watched John prepare the steaks.

Out on the porch with the steaks in hand, Michelle and John sat watching the sunset. The smoke from the grill gently wafted into the air filling it with the fragrance of cooked meat and herbs.

"It's so beautiful here," Michelle commented.

"It is," John replied taking a sip from his ice-cold beer.

"And I... I feel so relaxed when I'm here. And I really hate to admit this, I have since that very first night and I don't know why," Michelle said softly as she watched the smoke from the grill rise into the night sky.

John placed his arm around her shoulders. She let her head rest on his arm as she wrapped her arm around his waist. They both watched the smoke rise into the air. When the steaks were finished, medium rare for both of them, Michelle and John went back inside to eat. Dinner consisted of the steaks and a salad. Dinner conversation was light. Both were busy enjoying the taste of the char on the outside of the juicy beefsteak, the crisp snap of the lettuce and the sweetness of the tomato.