That struck further disquiet inside her. She and Axel could survive maybe another twenty-four hours. Thirty-six if they really conserved. What if no one rescued them before then? Or would her abductor’s goons materialize again even sooner to finish what they’d started?

If she thought about the possibility of either dehydrating or bleeding to death, she’d only start panicking.

“Can I help?” she asked as he tugged his big body onto the rock and stood to his ridiculous height on top, surveying the area.

Suddenly, he froze, then squinted toward the bright, falling sun. He checked his compass, then seemed to do some mental math, dissecting a problem in his head.

“What is it? Do you see something?” Had they been saved?

“A few buildings. They look rickety, though. Maybe it was once a town.”

A bit of hope filled her. At the very least, maybe the structures would provide reliable shade. If she and Axel were lucky, maybe they would find water, food . . . something to sustain them, maybe more. “The desert is littered with ghost towns. My dad scouted a few for a movie about eight years ago, and I went with him. Some have been renovated for use as sets or for tourist adventures that show what mining in the old west must have been like.”

He whipped his gaze down to her. “You mean, some of these buildings could be habitable or have access to the outside world?”

She shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t know which ghost town this might be, but we’ve at least got a shot.”

Axel jumped down with renewed vigor. “Then let’s go. It’s less than a half mile, just beyond that little rise in front of us.”

The smile he wore was infectious and showed off not only the cleft in his chin but the dimples in both cheeks. He wasn’t slick or polished or pretty, but when happiness lit up his face, he looked completely irresistible.

He ignored her stare and pressed on. “This could be good. We’ll approach cautiously in case your abductor is holed up here, but it looks deserted.”

“The whole ordeal might be over? That would make me so happy.” But I wish I could take you home as a souvenir. “Lead the way.”

As the big ball of the sun dipped toward the horizon and seared their faces, they hoisted their packs on their backs and hauled ass across the desert.

When they reached the outskirts of the little abandoned town, they found a big rock with a bronze plate just off the side of a dirt road. The town, Cerro Gordo, had once been the county’s wealthiest producer of minerals like silver, lead, and zinc. They’d sent water and other supplies by mule train, tram, or boat across the Owens Lake to build the pueblo of Los Angeles.

“Wow,” she murmured. “I’d heard that L.A. owed its roots to some of these old mining towns.”

Despite being hungry, sore, tired, and wrung out, Mystery wanted to see more of the place. If she could remake this nightmare into an adventure, even temporarily, maybe that would help her to cope with all the other stuff she couldn’t deal with yet.

Cautiously, they approached, Axel insisting she stay behind him just in case they encountered anyone out to kill them. With weapon drawn, he walked almost soundlessly, keeping her close behind.

Part of the town appeared at the base of a hill, while a few buildings perched on top. One of the first buildings they approached was a two-story structure made entirely out of wood. A wide porch stretched across the front, leading to a door flanked by two murky windows. A green and white sign proclaimed it the AMERICAN HOTEL. A balcony above boasted three windows and a railing no one should lean on. But overall, the building was in one piece and gave Mystery hope.

They tried the front door and found it locked. But one of the glass panes above the knob had been broken, leaving a gaping hole Axel stuck his hand through. With a turn of his wrist, he reached the lock and turned it.

They ducked inside the building to find it utterly deserted by anything except dust. People had been here, probably within the last few months. Dark hardwood floors, original to the structure, led to a long wooden check-in desk. Someone had painted the ceiling green, but left the exposed beams a cedar color. On one side of the room sat a massive woodstove. What might have once been an ornate copper wall behind it now looked green. Behind the counter, shelves of old-timey, empty bottles stood in a haphazard arrangement.

Around the corner, the theme continued as the room segued into a large bar/saloon area with an adjoining restaurant. The bar had been ravaged by time, then restored to something rustic yet polished. Above it hung a painting of a blonde in a white dress holding something that looked like an apple. A few bottles of modern beer sat on the corner, empty. Shot glasses lay upside down on a nearby tray, gathering dust.

“Do you think anyone is here?” she asked him.

He shook his head. “Maybe someone fixed this up and tried to make a go at drawing in tourists, then gave up recently.”

“Or they closed up for the winter. It snows around here sometimes.”

He nodded. “Let’s keep looking quickly. We’re losing light.”

A glance out one of the windows proved him right. They had maybe twenty minutes before everything went black.

“Any chance your phone works here? That someone installed a cell tower or something nearby?” she asked.

He pulled it from his pack and shook his head. “Nothing. Sorry.”

His reply disappointed her—mostly. Some small part of her rejoiced at the idea they’d get to stay together and alone just a bit longer. Which she knew was stupid.

She shrugged. “It was worth a shot.”

The bar led back to a restaurant. Despite the old cast-iron stove and the cabinets that looked as if they’d been built in the late nineteenth century, the place had a modern refrigerator, a microwave, and a ceiling fan with lights. Pots and pans hung from hooks in the ceiling.

Mystery flipped on a switch beside the doorway, hoping . . . But nothing. The refrigerator wasn’t humming, either. Damn.

Axel checked behind a little curtain set back in one wall. “Hey, I found some canned food here—beans, soup, veggies.”

At least they wouldn’t starve. She opened the refrigerator. A gust of hot air rushed her face, and the smell of plastic almost made her choke. Inside, sat a case of unopened bottled water.

“Axel!” she shrieked.

He rushed over and stopped short, then laughed. “That’s a welcome sight. Hot damn.”

A smile stretched across her face. Despite chapped, sunburned cheeks, blistered feet, and a layer of grime on her skin two inches thick, the sight of Axel happy made her grin. “Right?”

“Gather all that up. I saw some lanterns out in the restaurant. Hunt around for matches. I’m going to hope this hotel has a generator somewhere nearby.

She hadn’t even thought of that. “I’ll also see if, by chance, we have running water.”

“If not, I’ll look for a well or pump out back. Stay alert, just in case we’re not alone. I’ll be back by dark.”

As Axel eased out of the kitchen, she tried to turn on the sink. Nothing, damn it. With a sigh, she gathered up a few cans of food, then rifled through the drawers until she found a manual can opener and spoons. She wrenched one of the bottles of water from the pack and began sucking it down gratefully as she hustled back into the restaurant, grabbed a few lanterns, then searched the bar until she found a book of matches. Lighting a couple of the little lamps, Mystery grabbed one and decided now might be the best time to explore the upstairs.

Each step creaked as she made her way to the second floor. Hot, stagnant air lingered up on the landing, but she could see sunlight eeking through the cracks in the log cabin walls. She had no doubt that as the temperature fell outside, it would do the same in here.

She found five closed doors upstairs. All but one were locked. The one she could open revealed what looked like the suite. It consumed the area at the front of the hotel with a big, old-fashioned wrought-iron bed, homemade-looking quilts, a honey-colored dresser and basin, complete with an old porcelain pitcher and bowl. An old-fashioned plush chair in a fussy beige damask with a skirt covering its squatty legs took up one corner. Outside the window, she glimpsed a sweeping view of the desert they’d just traveled and the mountains beyond.