Judgment Call Read Online Free PDF

Jenny replied indignantly. “I woke up early and decided to take Kiddo out for a ride before breakfast. I found Ms. Highsmith here, beside the road.”
    â€œThat’s a relief,” Joanna said. “Is she all right?”
    â€œShe’s not all right!” Jenny declared. “She’s dead. I think someone shot her.”
    By the time Jenny finished that last sentence, Joanna was out of bed and scrambling into her clothes.
    â€œYou’re sure it’s her?” Joanna demanded.
    â€œShe’s still wearing her name badge. I can read, you know.”
    â€œWhere are you?” Joanna asked urgently, switching her phone to speaker. “Tell me exactly.”
    â€œWhen Kiddo and I go out for an early-morning gallop, we always head up High Lonesome. We’re just this side of the third wash north of our house.”
    High Lonesome Road runs north and south along the base of the Mule Mountains. On those rare occasions when it rains, rushing water comes flooding down out of the mountains to drain into the Sulphur Springs Valley. Wash beds that are only a few feet apart up on the mountainsides spread out like the spokes of a wheel at lower elevations. During those periodic deluges the gullies run wall to wall with roiling water, sometimes ten to fifteen feet deep. Once the floods are over and the water drains away, the sandy beds are often left littered with man-size boulders.
    Faced with budget cuts, the county had finally quit blading the rocks out of the way, which left High Lonesome Road north of the High Lonesome Ranch impassable for through traffic. The washouts may have been hazardous to most vehicular traffic, but Joanna realized they presented no barrier for someone traveling on a speeding quarter horse.
    â€œI’m getting dressed,” Joanna said. “I’ll be there as soon as I can. You’re sure she’s dead?”
    â€œYes, Mom,” Jenny said. “I’m sure.”
    â€œDon’t touch anything,” Joanna cautioned. “Especially don’t touch the body.”
    Jenny’s earlier panic morphed into indignation. “Mom,” she said, “do you think I’m stupid or something? Besides, why would I touch it? It’s gross. There are flies and bugs. It smells awful.”
    â€œAll right,” Joanna said. “How’s the road?”
    â€œPretty bad. Her car is stuck in the first wash. At least I’m pretty sure it’s Ms. Highsmith’s car, and it’s blocking the road.”
    â€œDon’t worry,” Joanna said. “I have four-wheel drive. That shouldn’t be a problem, but if it is and I can’t make it to where you are in the Yukon, I may have to walk. That could take a while.”
    By then Joanna was on her way through the kitchen where Butch was overseeing Dennis’s breakfast.
    â€œWhat’s up?” Butch asked as Joanna hurried past him.
    â€œJenny and Kiddo went out for a ride and found a body,” Joanna said. “I’ve got to go.”
    â€œA body? Whose? Where?”
    â€œShe says it looks like Debra Highsmith. They’re up the road,” Joanna said. “Up High Lonesome.”
    â€œDo you want me to come with you?”
    â€œNo,” Joanna said. “You stay with Dennis. I’ll get some deputies out here. We’ll be fine.”
    In the garage, Joanna put the Yukon in gear, backed out, and sped away up the driveway. At first she intended to get on the radio and call out the troops. Ultimately she changed her mind. She wanted to be on the scene in person and see the lay of the land before she ran up the flag for help. With Jenny involved, she wanted to have a clear idea of the challenges her people and the medical examiner’s crew would encounter in trying to reach the body.
    As she approached the first wash, the road narrowed from two lanes to one. As she crested the hill, the Passat was completely hidden from view until she started down