by Terri Reed
“Blunt force trauma to the back of the head.”
She frowned. His explanation didn’t prove anything. “How tall was the deceased?”
“Five feet nine inches.”
“Brady’s only five-six. How could he have reached the back of that man’s head and hit him hard enough to kill him?”
Alex rubbed his jaw, his gaze troubled. “Maya, we don’t know enough at this point to hypothesize. We need to talk to Brady. If he is innocent, then he may know more than he realizes.”
She knew her brother was innocent. There was no if. But maybe Alex was right, perhaps Brady had seen something or heard something that would lead them to the real killer.
A thought slammed into her. How had he become separated from his backpack? And why was it hidden beneath the bushes? Something else had happened on the trail. But what? “I’m calling our family lawyer.”
Alex nodded. “I think that is a good idea.”
She turned on her heels and stalked to the reception desk. “Carole, may I use your phone?”
Carole glanced toward Alex, who had followed Maya.
“That’s fine,” Alex told the older woman.
Without comment, Carole turned the landline phone to face Maya.
In the days, weeks and months after her parents’ death, she’d had to call Grayson and Sons law firm so often she had the number ingrained in her brain.
When the firm’s answering machine kicked in, Maya’s stomach sank. Most likely the Graysons’ were at the parade like the rest of the town. The message gave an alternate number to call in case of emergency. Maya declared the situation an emergency. She dialed the number.
A man answered. “Grayson here.”
She recognized the voice as that of the younger Grayson, Donald. He’d been two grades behind her in school. Over the past few years, ever since he’d returned to Bristle Township to practice law in his father’s firm alongside his two siblings, he’d attempted to entice her out on a date. Even going so far as to buy her picnic basket during last July’s rodeo days auction. She gritted her teeth. “I’m trying to reach Oscar Grayson.” She wanted his father to handle Brady’s case.
“My father’s unavailable. How can I help you?” came the clipped reply.
She sighed. There was no help for it. “Donald, this is Maya Gallo.”
“Maya!” His voice warmed. “Have you reconsidered my offer of going to the Harvest Festival dance with me tonight?”
She’d completely forgotten he’d asked her last week. She’d declined with the excuse that she already had plans. She hadn’t explained those plans were to hang out at home with Brady. But now she wouldn’t be doing that. He was sitting in an interrogation room.
“No. I need your help. Brady has been taken into custody. We need a lawyer.”
“What’s happened?” His voice changed from would-be suitor, which she usually heard from him, to a professional lawyer. That gave her hope. She quickly explained the situation, leaving out no details.
“I’ll be right there. Don’t let him talk to anyone,” he said. “Maya, you did the right thing by calling.”
“Thank you, Donald.” Maybe she needed to rethink her feelings for the youngest of the Grayson clan. But right now she wasn’t ready for romance, whether with him or anyone else. Her gaze strayed to Alex standing at his desk with a file in his hand. He wasn’t reading the file, though. His attention was aimed directly at her.
Right now, her priority had to be her brother.
She hung up. “Our lawyer is on his way. Brady isn’t to talk to anyone until Donald arrives.”
“Of course not.” He reached out as if to comfort her but then dropped his hand to his side. “I’m sorry about this. You have to understand, I have to follow protocol. I can’t show any favoritism.”
She gathered every ounce of patience she possessed. Of course, he would want to proceed in a professional manner. But that didn’t mean she had to like the situation even if she appreciated his integrity. She moved to sit on the bench beneath the window and tapped her foot against the hardwood floor. How had life gone from mundane and normal to chaos in such short order?
The masked assailants had been after Brady’s backpack. But how had the thieves known the leather-bound journal was inside? Had the dentist somehow come across Brady’s backpack, hidden his journal inside, then told the assailants before succumbing to his injuries? Maya rubbed her temples in dismay. How could she protect her brother from this?
The door to the sheriff’s office opened and Donald Grayson strode inside wearing pressed khaki pants and a light blue button-down shirt. His blond highlighted hair was perfectly combed and his bright blue eyes filled with concern. Maya wondered why she wasn’t interested in him. He was single, good-looking and successful. But he didn’t make her heart leap or her pulse pound. Not the way Alex did.
She mentally rolled her eyes. Stop it, she commanded herself. Now was not the time to contemplate her attraction to the sheriff’s deputy.
Donald strode to Maya’s side. She slowly rose to her feet, still wishing the elder Grayson had been available. She trusted him. “Thank you for coming, Donald.”
“I’m here now,” he said as he took her hand. “Everything will be okay now that I’m here.”
The platitude abraded her nerves. She swallowed back her annoyance and managed to say with conviction, “I appreciate your confidence.”
Grayson gave Alex a nod of acknowledgment and straightened to his full height of six feet. Not quite as tall as Alex but close. “Deputy, I’d liked to speak to my client.”
Alex’s gaze slid to Maya and back to Grayson. With a tilt of his head, he said, “This way.”
Maya hurried after Grayson and Alex. At the door to the interrogation room, Alex paused before opening the door. “We’d like to ask him some questions.”
“And we will allow it after I have a moment to understand the situation.”
Inclining his head in agreement, Alex opened the door.
Maya rushed inside and straight to her brother’s arms. He clung to her. “Maya, what’s going on? Why am I here?”
The contrition on Alex’s handsome face had Maya looking away. She wanted to be angry with Alex, but he was only doing his job.
Alex withdrew, closing the door behind him.
“Brady, this is Donald. He’s a lawyer and he is going to help us.” Maya sat in the chair next to her brother while Donald took the seat across the table. He took out a notepad and pen.
“Help us do what?” Brady asked.
“Get you home tonight,” Donald said. “How about you tell me what’s going on?”
Maya opened her mouth to reiterate what she’d already explained, but Donald held up a hand. “I need Brady to tell me he understands what is happening.”
Brady frowned, his gaze bouncing from Donald to Maya and back again.
“Brady, do you understand that you’re a suspect in a murder?” Donald asked.
For a long moment, Brady didn’t say anything. He turned to Maya. “I don’t understand.”
Maya gathered his hands in hers. “Brady, remember the man who yelled at you when you were on the hiking trail the other day?”
Brady made a mean face. “I didn’t like being yelled at.”
Donald held up a hand. “Let me stop you right there. I don’t want to hear you say that again.”
Maya’s gaze jerked to Donald. “What?”
“We don’t want anyone to think he had a motive for killing this man. If being yelled at made him angry, a conclusion could be formed that Brady lashed out at the man in anger.”
His words struck a fire within her chest. It infuriated her that anyone would consider her brother capable of this horrendous deed. Keeping her emotions in check, she gently squeezed Brady’s hands. “When the man yelled at you, what did you do?”
Though she knew the answer, he had already told her and Alex about his encounter with Ned Weber, she wanted Donald to hear Brady’s story.
“I turned and ran. I ran and ran as fast as I could go. And then I tripped and then I tumbled and then I landed and my ankle hurt.” He lifted his leg to show Donald his booted foot.
“I see. So you were scared and ran away.” Donald made a note. “Did you see anyone else on the hike before you saw the man who yelled at you?”
Brady shook his head. “Not before.”
“But after?”
Head nodding, Brady said, “These really nice people found me and helped me. They brought Alex.”
Donald made more notes. “We’ll get back to them. Now, think hard. Before you saw the man who yelled at you, did you hear or see anyone else?”
Again, Brady shook his head.
Donald asked, “When the man yelled at you, what did he say to you? What was he angry about?”
Brady pulled at his ear, something he did when he was deeply upset. “He thought I was following him. That I was cheating. But I wasn’t. I’m not a cheater.”
“Brady,” Maya said, reaching for his hand. “It’s okay. You’re not.” Hoping to distract him, she asked, “What happened to your backpack?”
“When I was running, I got caught on some bushes. I dropped the backpack.” He ducked his head. “I’m sorry, Maya. I know I’m not supposed to take it off when I’m hiking.”
“It’s okay, Brady,” she told him. Maybe whoever had killed the dentist found Brady’s backpack and stowed the journal there. But why hadn’t the man or woman left with the notebook? Why hide it in the backpack?
Donald spoke. “What can you tell me about the notebook?”
Brady cocked his head. “I write in my journal every night just as my teacher tells me to.”
Tenderness filled Maya. “Not your school journal, honey.” Referring to the one he kept on his bedside table that he turned in at the end of every month. “We found a black leather-bound notebook in your backpack today.”
Brady frowned. “I didn’t see any black leather notebook.”
Donald tucked his pen into his breast pocket. “That’s okay, Brady. We’ll be sure to tell the sheriff that.”
“What will happen now?” Maya asked.
“Deputy Trevino will come in to ask his questions.”
“Then we can go home?” Her stomach knotted. They would be going to Alex’s ranch. She didn’t know if she could go with him now that he thought Brady was a murderer.
“Best-case scenario, yes, you’ll both be free to leave. Worst-case scenario—the case will have to go before Judge Turpin. If the judge feels that Brady is not a flight risk, he may remand him into your custody. That’s what I’ll ask for. Or he might hold him on bail.”
“Bail? You mean they will charge him?” Maya’s voice rose with her agitation.
“Not if I can help it,” Donald stated. “But we do need to let Deputy Trevino have access to Brady.” He rose and went to the door.
Heartsick, Maya lifted a silent prayer heavenward. Lord, how do I deal with the situation? A man was dead and Brady was a suspect in the crime. I trust You, Jesus. I trust that You will let the truth win out.
Because she couldn’t survive it if her brother were taken away from her.
* * *
Alex stepped into the interrogation room. He hated seeing fear in Maya’s eyes and knowing he’d put it there. But Alex hated even more seeing Donald Grayson sitting beside her, acting protective of both Maya and Brady, as if he had some claim on them.
The burn of jealousy tightened his jaw. He forced his personal feelings aside as he sat down. He trained his gaze on Brady. The kid appeared scared. His fear seemed genuine.
Alex’s mind turned back to what Brady had said about how finding the treasure would allow him to go to a special summer camp.
Was the treasure motive for killing the dentist? Had Brady thought the dentist had found the fortune and wanted it for himself?
The speculations only confused the situation.
Innocent until proven guilty, Alex reminded himself. The notebook found in Brady’s backpack was incriminating. And knowing how much Brady wanted to find the treasure wasn’t something Alex could ignore. He sat down in the chair across from Brady. It didn’t seem right to be sitting there with Brady and Maya in the cold, impersonal room. But Alex had a job to do and he would get to the truth one way or another.
TWELVE
The single bank of fluorescent overhead lights in the small interrogation room glared down on the table and glinted in Brady’s hair, a shade darker than his sister’s.
Maya shifted in her seat, drawing Alex’s gaze. Her long wavy brunette hair fell over her green sweater-clad shoulders. Her eyes were troubled as she watched her brother answer Alex’s questions. So far, Brady had kept to his original story of seeing Ned Weber. After accusing Brady of cheating in the treasure hunt by following him, Mr. Weber had yelled at Brady to go away and not to tell anyone Brady had seen him.
Focusing back on Brady, Alex maintained a gentle tone to keep the kid at ease. “Where exactly did you see Ned Weber? Was he coming down the trail or up?”
Brady tilted his head and seemed to contemplate his answer. “No. He was climbing the side of the mountain.”
“Did you climb up, too?”
Giving a vigorous shake of his head, Brady said, “No. I’m not supposed to go off the trail.”
“Was he alone?”
With a shrug, Brady answered, “I didn’t see anyone else until later, after I hurt my foot.”
“Did you see what the man was doing?”
“He was standing there looking down at me.”
Figuring Brady must have startled Weber, Alex asked, “And he yelled at you and you ran away.”
“He was scared,” Donald interjected.
Glancing at the lawyer, Alex inclined his head. “Yes. He was scared.” Focusing back on Brady, Alex asked, “When you were running up the hill, did the man chase after you?”
Brady shrugged. The pupils in his eyes were huge. “I don’t know.”
“Did you hear any noises?”
Brady’s eyebrows drew together in concentration. He closed his eyes for a moment. “Yes.” His eyelids popped open. “I heard birds.” His eyebrows shot up. “But they stopped talking when I was running. I scared them.”
Or someone else did. “Tell me about the notebook.”
“I never saw a notebook,” Brady replied. “Maya found one in my backpack but I didn’t put it there.” His round face was completely guileless.
“Did you look in your pack at all over the past few days?” Alex asked.
Brady’s nose scrunched up. “No. I didn’t need it. Maya wouldn’t let me go back up the mountain.”
Alex believed him. He’d been around Brady enough to realize the kid was innocent in nature, as well as innocent of this crime. But the fact remained that Brady had been in possession of the deceased man’s property. Alex couldn’t ignore such an incriminating fact. Plus, there was nowhere Brady would be safer than right here, within the walls of the Bristle County Sheriff’s Department headquarters.
“Deputy Trevino,” Donald Grayson interjected. “Unless you’re going to arrest and charge my client, I’d like him released right away.”
Alex met the other man’s gaze. “We have probable cause to keep him overnight.” He tapped his pen once on the table for emphasis. “The notebook.”
“What?”
Maya’s stunned voice tugged at Alex, but he kept his gaze on the lawyer.
“Obtained illegally,” Donald shot back.
“Miss Gallo searched her brother’s backpack and revealed the evidence,” Alex stated. He didn’t like using Maya against her brother, but his duty was to see justice done. And for
now, Brady was their prime suspect. And Alex would do what he needed to in order to keep Brady and Maya safe.
Maya gasped. “I didn’t know. I shouldn’t have...” Her gaze pleaded with Alex. “You can’t put Brady in jail!”
Maya bit her bottom lip as tears gathered in her eyes. Alex clenched his heart. It tore him up inside to see Maya so devastated. He wanted to soothe away her upset. He’d already arranged with the sheriff to keep Brady tucked away in the office. At least until the end of the day. “I’m sorry, Maya. We have to hold Brady for now.”
“Alex.” Maya’s anguished voice scored him to the core.
Unable to stop himself, Alex reached across the table and took Maya’s hand. “I’ll do everything in my power to prove his innocence.”
She nodded, and a tear rolled down her cheek.
Donald stood abruptly. “I’d like to talk to the sheriff.”
Alex released Maya’s hand and rose to his feet. “You’re welcome to.” Turning to Brady, Alex said, “Brady, you’ll need to come with me.”
She wrapped her good arm around her brother. “Can I stay with him?”
Heart hurting, Alex stared at her. “He will be fine, Maya. He’ll be safe here.”
Maya held his gaze for a long moment. “I guess that’s a blessing.” She helped Brady to his feet. “You have to go with Deputy Trevino.”
Brady beamed. “I get to go with Alex? Cool. I like Alex.”
Alex inwardly winced. The kid wouldn’t like him much after today. But there was no help for it. Keeping him here was for the best. Taking Brady by the arm, Alex led him out of the room, but instead of taking him to the cell where he would have been housed with the few rabble-rousers rounded up during the day, Alex took him to the sheriff’s office.
Maya stayed close on their heels.
Donald Grayson made a beeline for the sheriff, who’d joined them. “Sir, I need to speak to you.”
“I’ll walk you out,” the sheriff said but made no move to go.
Maya touched Alex’s sleeve. Confusion clouded her pretty brown eyes. “Alex?”
“There are puzzles he can work on,” Alex told her and was gratified to see the understanding and warmth spreading across her lovely face.