“Fifty-fifty,” Willow said, her fingers flying across the keyboard. “Particularly if your grandmother is being more obscure than usual.”
“You really should hire Willow as a consultant, Thayne.” Norma flipped through a few pages at the end of the Agatha Christie novel. “She’s our expert on hacking—” She slapped her hand over her mouth, but her eyes still twinkled as she spoke through her fingertips. “I mean searching databases.”
Riley attracted Thayne’s attention by pressing her hand to his back. She lowered her voice. “The photo of Kim and Chloe.”
He gave her a quick nod and closed in on the ladies.
“Willow, could you do a search on the down low for us?”
The older woman stopped typing and looked up in surprise. “What do you have in mind?”
Riley opened her bag and pulled out the old photo. “Kristin and her daughter, Ashley. No last name. Known to all of us as Kim and Chloe Jordan. She hid in Singing River in plain sight for the last seven years, but we can’t let anyone know we’re looking. Chloe could still be at risk. Depending on what her past holds.”
“That’s all you have?” Willow clutched the photo in her hand. “Can you narrow it down to a region of the country at least?”
Thayne peered over the older woman’s shoulder at the picture. “I’m sorry. We don’t have any other leads. The Jordans didn’t confide in anyone that Quinn’s been able to identify. We’re flying blind. Kristin obviously changed their hair color. Other than that, we’ve got nothing.”
Thayne’s grandmother cleared her throat. “May I see it, Willow?”
Willow handed Helen the photo. She clasped it and touched the edge. “Something . . .” Her voice faded and then a moment later her gaze cleared. “Of course. Poor dear.” Helen stood and gripped Thayne’s arm. “This is my secret, Lincoln. You have to stay out of it. You’ll ruin everything.” Helen pressed the photo to her blouse. “This is very, very bad.” She paced back and forth, stopping next to Thayne occasionally. “No more questions, dear. Promise me, Lincoln.”
Thayne winced, but Riley knew he’d play along. He took her hands in his. “I’m only trying to help.”
“Sometimes help from law enforcement only causes more pain. Sometimes it takes just people helping each other to get justice.” Helen slipped the photo into the pocket of her dress and patted it. “That’s all I have to say about that.”
When she crossed behind Willow, her friend nipped the photo and hid it from Helen’s view. Riley leaned down. “Search for them. Cautiously.”
“Helen seems to know something,” Willow said. “Maybe Thayne can figure it out.” She disappeared from the room.
Thayne spent the next fifteen minutes attempting to pull Helen into revealing information about the photo, but whatever had slipped into her mind was gone.
Riley wished she knew if Helen really did remember something or if she was mixing up this photo with another from days long gone.
There was no way to know.
A knock sounded at the door. Thayne answered, and his grandfather walked in. “Thanks for the text,” Lincoln Blackwood said. He strode over to Helen, his movements slow and deliberate. “Hello, my love.”
He took her hand in his and kissed her palm. She giggled. “Oh, go on with you, Lincoln. Not in front of our friends.”
“I was thinking about taking a spin to the old swimming hole. Maybe dance under the moonlight. Care to join me?”
Helen bit her lip and stared down at the books on the table. “We’re having a meeting.”
“Oh no you don’t,” Fannie scolded. “You can’t say no to a date with the biggest catch in Singing River. Wait here and I’ll pack you a snack.”
As Helen collected her things, Riley opened her bag and pulled out a second copy of the photo. She slipped it to Lincoln. “Helen seems to recognize this picture. Can you help us?”
“I’ll try.” Lincoln sighed. “I can’t guarantee it, though.”
Thayne touched his grandfather on the shoulder. “We know. Do your best.”
Fannie reentered the room with a small basket. “Here you two go. Now be off with you.”
Lincoln held out his elbow, and Helen slipped her arm into his. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked up at Lincoln as if he were the only man in the world. “You make me feel safe,” she said. “Even though I’m not as good as I used to be.”
“You’re just right for me.”
Lincoln led her away. When the door closed behind the couple, Willow wiped her eyes. “My poor Helen. We lose a bit more every single day.”
“It’s not fair,” Norma said. “Not fair at all.”
Fannie plopped into her chair. “Well, we can’t do anything about it, so we should make the best of it. Like Lincoln says, we’ve got to be thankful for what we still have.”
“No matter how frustrating,” Willow groused. “I saw that look in her eye. She knows something about this woman and her daughter. I’m sure of it.”
“Then we’ve got to be her memory,” Fannie said, pulling out her notebook. “Seven years ago. Does the time frame ring a bell?”
Norma squirmed in her chair. “Twenty years ago she started disappearing on those trips. Every so often she’d just take off. She stopped a few years ago, though.”
Thayne stilled. “Where’d she go?”
“She wouldn’t tell. Said it would be better for everyone if no one else knew. She didn’t even tell Lincoln. Said he was a lawman first, and she refused to compromise him.”
Riley shook her head. If Helen had kept that type of secret from her husband, she had to have been involved in something less than legal.
Before she could wrap her mind around the most obvious possibilities, Thayne’s phone rang.
He glanced at the screen and frowned. “Blackwood?”
A loud voice sounded through the receiver. Riley didn’t even have to strain to hear.
“I can’t do it,” Olivia said. “My father can’t live with us. You have to find him a place to stay.”
Thayne closed the door to Riley’s room, blocking out the continued chatter among his grandmother’s three best friends. Finally. A little bit of silence.
What a day.
Riley threw her bag into the chair by the murder board and faced him. “It was kind of Fannie to agree to take in Dan temporarily.”
“She’ll watch out for him.” Thayne flopped back on the bed. “At least until Cheyenne can convince Olivia that Dan should have the medical workup.”
He rolled to his side and propped himself up on his elbow. “This isn’t how I planned tonight.”
Riley didn’t answer. She froze, studying the small table near the room’s window heating and cooling unit.
“What’s wrong?” Thayne asked.
“The papers.” Riley realigned a stack in the center of the table. “It’s probably nothing. I guess I knocked them when I came back to change my clothes.”
“Or Madison could have.”
Riley rubbed her eyes. Thayne could see her shoulders slumping with fatigue. He patted the bed beside him. “How about we sleep? It’s been a long day.”
She smiled and joined him on the bed, snuggling into his arms. He wrapped her in his warmth and settled her back against his chest, spooning her close.
For a brief moment, the world felt right.
“Want me to close the heating vent?” he asked. “It’s not an icebox in here like usual.”
“Fannie keeps readjusting it. Just leave it. I’ll crack the window later. Besides, I don’t want to move.” She pressed his arms against the front of her body. “I’m too comfortable like this.”
He closed his eyes briefly, relishing the feel of her body close to his, but his mind wouldn’t still. “You think Gram really knows about the Jordans?”
Riley’s body tensed. She said nothing for a moment, but she didn’t relax, either. There was his answer.
“I do, too,” he said with a frown.
“What if you
r grandmother visited the cabin? What if that’s why she was so angry when your father ended up on that land? What if her secret is out there?”
“And what’s her tie to Chloe?” Thayne inhaled the scent of Riley’s shampoo. “Damn this disease. I want Gram to talk to me. Tell me what she was doing that she couldn’t tell Pops. She’s the key to finding out about Chloe. I feel it in my gut.”
She turned in his arms and faced him. She cupped his cheek and kissed him. “I’m sorry. I know it’s hard, but maybe Lincoln can get some information out of her.”
“I wish I could trust what she says, but we can’t.”
“One truth out of a string of lies could point us in the right direction. She’s come through before.”
Riley suddenly chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“We’ve had two big cases in Singing River over the last month, and your grandmother has been eyebrow deep in both of them, and she could very well be the worst witness ever.”
Thayne let out a bark of laughter. “It shouldn’t be funny, but damned if it isn’t.”
She hugged him close. Every day he worked hard to focus on the present, to be thankful they still had Gram, that she still showed flashes of her former self. Even if every day fewer and fewer moments of clarity shone in her eyes.
He let his eyes close. Riley’s breathing grew soft and steady, and his mind fogged in fatigue. Thayne’s muscles relaxed. He’d let himself sleep for a while. Tomorrow, he’d hope they’d catch a break.
He focused on the hoot of the owl that planted itself near the window, and the trill of the crickets. Perhaps nature’s melody would soothe his mind.
A sharp ring shattered the peace.
With a groan, he leaned back and plucked his phone from the bedside table. “Blackwood,” he whispered.
“Sheriff. It’s Quinn. I just received a phone call and follow-up email from a man who says he’s looking for his daughter. The picture is an old photo of Chloe Jordan.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
This early in the morning, the hospital was mostly deserted. Riley stood outside the guarded room where Chloe still lay unconscious.
What a night. Morning had taken a long time coming. Her mind lingered through the wee hours on the girl in the hospital bed, wondering about the man who claimed to be her father. She eased open the door and peered inside. The closed window curtains kept the room dim, but a sly glint of sunlight hit the girl’s blonde hair. Her eyelids moved slightly.
Was she dreaming? Or having a nightmare?
A few feet away, Thayne spoke into his phone, his Stetson obscuring his face but not his irritated tone. “I need your help, Willow. He says his name is Philip Andrews. Wife was Kristin. He says he’s coming here. I need verification of his relationship to Chloe and a photo to confirm his identity, so get me whatever you can. He said he’d explain why Ashley—who we know as Chloe—was using an assumed name, but I want independent verification. I have my deputies requesting official information, but the guy said he used to be a mayor in Iowa, which means he had influence over the police. I have to be sure. For Chloe’s sake.”
Riley caught the determined expression on Thayne’s face. Strangely enough, both of them were willing to go a little outside the lines on this one, because she wasn’t going to argue that Willow might use less than legal means to find out the truth.
He disconnected the call and crumbled up the morning paper in his fists. “Somehow a reporter got hold of the picture of the Jordans at the market and ran with it.” He scowled. “You’d think I could control information with only five people in the whole sheriff’s office. When I find out—”
Riley took his hands. “If there’s one thing I learned while working with local law enforcement, you can’t control the narrative for long. Too many people go in and out of your office. It didn’t necessarily come from your office. It’s not hard to believe that the local paper would pressure people in town for a photo of the family.”
“I don’t like surprises, and speaking of one, Philip Andrews should be here sometime this afternoon.” Thayne tucked his phone in his pocket. “Someone tipped him off by sending him the article which revealed that his daughter was here and his wife was dead.” He frowned and joined her just outside Chloe’s room. “I’m not letting him near Chloe until I’m sure she’ll be safe.”
A rustle sounded from behind the door, and Riley cracked it open a bit farther. Her gaze wandered the room and landed on Chloe. The girl’s hand slid from her chest to her stomach.
“Chloe moved,” Riley whispered. “Call Cheyenne. Let her know.”
While Thayne dialed his sister, Riley walked inside and sat in a chair next to the bed. She scooted the chair closer, the scrape across the floor making her wince.
“Can you hear me, Chloe?” Riley placed her hand in the girl’s and rubbed her arm with her other hand. She studied the girl’s face. Unlike the first time they’d visited, her features were no longer slack. She seemed to have a frown on her face. “Ashley? Can you wake up for me?”
The girl’s hand spasmed. A tear slid down her cheek, but she didn’t open her eyes.
“You’re safe, Chloe. I promise. We won’t let anyone hurt you.”
Riley watched as the girl’s body relaxed. She rose and met Thayne at the door.
“Cheyenne will be here soon. She has to drive from the Riverton Ranch.”
“She stayed with her husband last night? Does that mean they’re back together permanently?” Riley asked.
He shrugged. “I stay out of it for the most part. They’ll figure it out.” Thayne glanced at Chloe. “What do you think?”
“I believe she’s awake,” Riley whispered. “But for now she’s pretending to be asleep.”
“She can’t keep that up forever.”
Riley tugged him away from the hospital room door and out of Chloe’s earshot. “I can think of several reasons. One, she set the fire, either accidentally or on purpose, and doesn’t want to admit it. Two, she doesn’t want to acknowledge that her parents are dead. Or maybe she’s afraid because she knows who killed them.”
Thayne let out a low whistle and rubbed the back of his neck. “And out of the blue, her supposed father comes to find her. Doesn’t smell or feel right.”
Riley pursed her lips. “Do you trust me?”
“Of course.”
“Play along with me.”
They entered Chloe’s room, and Thayne arched his brow at Riley. She took a small breath. “If Andrews can prove Chloe is his daughter and he wants to see her or take her, there’s not a lot we can do to stop him. Not unless Chloe can give us a reason why.”
The small body in the bed stiffened. This time they both noted the reaction. They walked out of the room and met Cheyenne at the door.
“She can hear us,” Thayne said to his sister.
Cheyenne narrowed her gaze at him. “What did you do?”
“It was me,” Riley said softly and told Thayne’s sister what she’d said. “We’re out of time. Her father will be here soon, and we have to know the truth.”
“You took a big risk thinking that she would recognize her name and her father’s name.” Cheyenne crossed her arms. “What if she doesn’t know anything?”
“We needed answers,” Thayne inserted. “She could still be in danger. For all I know, this man killed Aaron and Kim Jordan so he could get Chloe back.”
Even though Thayne’s words rang true, Riley closed her eyes to the worst possibility. “You really believe Chloe doesn’t remember anything? She was at least five when they left Iowa.”
Cheyenne faced them, hands on her hips. “I’m not a psychiatrist, but there are some studies that indicate after age seven, many earlier childhood memories vanish. It’s a form of amnesia.”
“Even if those events were traumatic?”
“If they want to forget them, yes, being unable to retrieve memories is a form of self-preservation. And if her mother tried to replace the old memories with new, I c
ould easily see her not knowing.” Cheyenne pulled her stethoscope from the pocket of her white coat and adjusted the diamond on her ring finger. A wedding ring Riley had only seen a few times. “I’ll check on Chloe and be back when I know something.”
She disappeared inside the room, and Riley let out a low curse. “What if I just messed—”
“You were trying to keep her safe.” Thayne stroked her back. “Don’t beat yourself up. The case is finally moving forward.”
Riley leaned against the wall. The back of her neck pulsed. She glanced at Thayne. “Yeah, but this guy who claims to be Chloe’s father sees her picture and sends an email? I don’t like it . . . it’s too—”
“Convenient?”
Riley pinched her nose. “Maybe I’m used to everything being hard. Maybe sometimes it just isn’t as complicated as I think it could be.”
Thayne sidled up to her. He caged her in his arms. “I trust your gut over anyone I’ve ever met.” He kissed her lips. “What are you thinking?”
“The moment I saw the Jordans’ home, something felt wrong. They were on the wrong sides of the bed. Their hands weren’t clenched. I could even see their wedding rings . . .”
A faint memory of Aaron and Kim at the farmers’ market tugged her brain. She followed the memory, seeing Kim’s smile, Aaron hovering lovingly—or was it protectively?—behind his wife, the produce Kim carried. “Wait a minute. The rings.” She opened the satchel she always carried and pulled out the newspaper photo. “There, on Kim’s hand. It’s a diamond wedding band. And her husband isn’t wearing a ring at all.”
“So?”
Riley’s heart quickened. She grabbed the autopsy photos. “They’re both wearing plain bands.” Her mind whirled. She stuffed the photographs back into her bag and kissed him quickly. “I’m going back to my room. I need to check something out on my board.” Inspiration lit within her. “I think we may be on the wrong track.”
Thayne doubted Riley heard his advice to be safe as she disappeared down the hallway. He recognized that look on her face, though. She loved her job. She was in her element, and he shouldn’t want to take that from her. The door to Chloe’s room opened, refocusing Thayne’s attention as Cheyenne joined him outside the room.
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