“Looks like we’re too late. It’s news—” he switched channels, “—or news, and that’s not happening.” He turned the TV off, tossing the remote on the coffee table. Leaning back, he stared up at the ceiling without really seeing it. Instead he replayed finding Nelly’s body and the aftermath.
“Think of something else,” Garry said quietly.
“Mind reading?” Wylie asked with a brief smile.
“Face reading and yours was troubled so I figured whatever was going through your mind wasn’t good.”
“It wasn’t. I wish I could go back a week and get to Nelly’s place right before that bastard did so I could have stopped him.”
“Or he’d have seen you and waited until you were gone.”
“Yeah, probably.”
“Stop thinking about it,” Garry said, sliding over beside him. “Try something nice, instead.”
“Raindrops on roses?” Wylie replied, one eyebrow arched.
“Yep, and mittens on kittens.” Garry grinned.
“I think it’s ‘warm woolen mittens’. Not sure about the kitten part other than it’s in there too.”
“How many times have you watched it?”
“A few, when it’s the only thing on TV around Christmas that isn’t a cartoon. The same with the Wizard of Oz at Easter.” Wylie chortled. “You can tell I’ve led a very exciting life…not.”
“Somehow I don’t believe it’s been that dull given what you did for a living.”
“Let’s put it this way. There were only a few times when things were a bit hairy on the job. Like when I was trying to prove someone was scamming an insurance company, or I needed to stop a thief in the act. People don’t like being caught doing things they shouldn’t. But the worst that happened was a fractured rib or two, or a sore jaw. That’s about it, though. Like I told Carl, I was no Sam Spade or anything close.”
Garry looked at him if obviously feigned dismay. “You didn’t carry a big gun tucked in a shoulder holster?”
“Sorry to disappoint, but no. We went after the small fry, or sat on our asses doing background checks.”
“There go my illusions about you being able to protect me against the rabid females who are after me for my hot body.”
“Good Lord, Garry.” Wylie doubled over in laughter. When he finally stopped, he said, “Thanks, I needed that, I think.”
“I know you did.” Garry pulled him into a loose embrace.
“You’re always helping me, one way or another,” Wylie said. “I’ll never be able to repay you.”
“Have I asked you to? Okay, you still owe me a home-cooked meal, but that was your suggestion. Other than that…Hell, when you care for someone you help without asking for anything in return. That’s how it works. You’ll do the same for me when I need it.”
“I will!” Wylie replied emphatically. “Not that you ever seem to need help, at least so far.”
“Pardon my English, but that a crock of shit. Without you I don’t think I could have dealt with Nelly’s abduction and now her murder. She was a wonderful young woman and a good friend. Losing her hurts. You’ve given me the strength to handle everything, whether you know it or not, as well as hope that we will find out who’s responsible.”
Wylie deflected the embarrassment he felt at Garry’s words by replying, “You bet we will. I’m not sure how, but damn it, it’ll happen, with or without Kingman’s interference.”
Garry chuckled. “And you’d prefer without.”
“No kidding, since he seems to have me in his sights as the killer.”
“He’s desperate,” Garry said. “So is the killer. It makes me wonder if he’s dropped a hint to Kingman that he should search your house.”
With that, the personal feeling they’d expressed for each other took a backseat to the idea that the sheriff might, even at that moment, be heading toward Wylie’s home.
“He can’t do it without a warrant,” Wylie stated emphatically.
“True, but it would be better if you don’t argue if he does show up. Given the hour, I doubt it’ll happen until tomorrow.”
“We need to know who,” Wylie said, worrying his lip between his teeth.
Garry hugged him before moving away, replying, “I think that’s what we’re trying to find out. How? That’s anyone’s guess. If Kingman shows up, it’s for damned sure he’s not going to tell you who tipped him off.”
“It would probably have been done anonymously, anyway.”
“I’m sure.” Garry stood, grumbling with a smile, “I’d better go let Ziggy out. He’s probably prancing at the back door with his legs crossed.”
“He can do both?” Wylie asked, standing as well.
“He’s a smart pup.”
When they got to the front door, Wylie said softly, “Thank you.”
“Thank you,” Garry replied. He traced one finger over Wylie’s lips, following it with a kiss that he ended before Wylie could return it. “I’ll call you in the morning.”
“All right.” After a moment’s hesitation, Wylie kissed him quickly. “Not before eight.”
Garry grinned. “I’ll go for nine to be safe.”
With a laugh, Wylie opened the door and then watched as he walked to his car, waving when Garry turned to look at him. He got a wave in return before Garry got into the car to drive the brief distance to his own house, parking in the driveway.
If—No, when we get through this, without my ending up in jail, I’m going to make damned good and certain that we move on to something permanent because I’m sure it’s what we both want. I know I do. He’s the man I’ve been looking for all my life. God help me if he doesn’t feel the same.
Chapter 11
The doorbell, followed by loud knocking, woke Wylie from a restless sleep Monday morning. He quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt before hurrying downstairs to answer the door.
Sheriff Kingman stood there with one of his deputies. Unbelievably, he seemed almost defensive when he said, “I received a tip that we should search your house.”
“From who?” Wylie asked, keeping one hand on the door to block the sheriff from entering.
“It was anonymous,” Kingman replied reluctantly. “A note stuck in the mailbox at the station.”
“But you still need to follow up on it. Okay. I have nothing to hide.” Wylie stepped aside to let them in. “Did the tipster say where you should be searching?”
“From what the note said, they were walking down the alley late in the evening, and saw you carrying something fairly large into the house.”
“Oh, really. I park in the driveway, which is out front. So I’m supposed to have lugged whatever it was around the house to the back door?”
Kingman puffed out a breath. “Look, you know I don’t like your involvement in any of this, but you have a point. They didn’t suggest your car was in the alley, just that you were hauling something into the house. They said it was too dark to tell what it was.”
“I’m sure they did,” Wylie replied scathingly. He waved his arm. “Feel free to look around. I have nothing to hide.” Given how thoroughly he and Garry had gone through the house the previous evening, and the fact that whatever the person claimed to have seen him carrying must have been large, he was certain that was the case. Of course, if the tipster was the person who came in here yesterday while I was gone, he did his best to make it seem as if I had hidden one or both of the girls under the workbench at one point or another. “When did they supposedly see this happen?”
“Two nights ago,” Kingman replied before telling his deputy to start with the ground floor while he checked the basement.
Wylie casually walked to the sofa as if he didn’t have a care in the world, sat, and kicked his feet up onto the coffee table, crossing his ankles. It was far from the truth, but he was damned if he was going to let them know how angry he was. Not at them per se, after all, they were only doing their jobs, but at the person who was trying to frame him.
When I find you the first thing I’m going to do is ask ‘Why me?’ Is it because, as a newcomer, I’m the perfect patsy for your insane games? Or is there something more behind it? Something to do with my friendship with Garry, maybe? He had no idea, but he intended to find out.
“You’re using most of the basement for storage,” Kingman stated as he returned to the main room.
“Isn’t that what it’s for?” Wylie replied. “Gramps stuck stuff down there, other than old furniture which ended up in the storage shed. I just followed suit with the empty boxes from my move, plus his bed and dresser because I brought my own with me.”
“I didn’t find anything down here,” the deputy said. “Want me to check the second floor?”
“Yes,” Kingman replied. “And the attic.”
Wylie resisted grinning as he told the deputy where the trapdoor was to get to the attic.
As the deputy headed upstairs, Kingman perched on the edge of the armchair, studying Wylie. “I meant what I said before, Mr. Lewis. I do not want you playing detective. Is that understood?” When Wylie nodded, the sheriff continued. “I can understand the temptation since it appears as if someone wants to put the blame for the women’s disappearances, and now Nelly’s murder, on your doorstep.”
“So it would seem,” Wylie replied dryly.
“I don’t think the deputy’s going to find anything upstairs, any more than I did in the basement or the garage, or in your grandfather’s truck.”
“You were thorough.”
“It’s my job.” Kingman stared down at his hands, clasped between his knees, before returning his attention to Wylie. “We got off on the wrong foot, which is my fault,” he said. “This is my town, being the sheriff is my job, and I do my best to earn the trust the people have placed in me. It means I can’t, won’t let down my guard. That’s earned me a reputation for being, to put it mildly, an asshole.” He shrugged. “I am that, a good deal of the time. Defense mechanism, from what my wife tells me.”
“You’re married?” Wylie said in surprise. “Sorry, I suppose there’s no reason why you wouldn’t be.”
“Apology accepted, if that’s what it was. Anyway, back to what I was saying. You interfering in my investigation could screw it up. You might want to tell you friends that, too, next time you see them.”
“Garry and Carl.”
“Yes. The fact the three of you formed your own search party says you’ve pulled them into this. To put it succinctly, back off and let me do my job.”
“If I said I’ll take that under advisement?”
Kingman’s mouth tightened before his lips turned up in a brief grin. “I’ll do as I threatened a while ago and arrest you for sticking your nose in where it doesn’t belong.”
“I’m not sure that’s the legal description, but it works,” Wylie replied with a smile.
“Good.” Kingman closed his eyes momentarily and then said, “If it hadn’t been for the three of you, who knows how long she’d have lain there. If I’d done my job and widened the search, maybe we’d have found her before he killed her.” Self-recrimination colored his words.
“My guess is, she was dead when he put her in the cave. From what little I saw, there wasn’t any blood around her body.”
“The coroner agrees, based on the lividity. You know what that is, I hope.”
Wylie nodded. “I’ve never been around a dead body, but way back when I was in college I took a forensics course. It’s when the blood settles at the lowest point after death. Unless the killer is very clever, the coroner can tell if the body was moved afterward because the discoloration is not where it should be in re how the body was eventually laid out.”
Kingman chuckled. “You must have a good memory. The coroner says she died anywhere from twenty to twenty-four hours before she was found, based on rigor, body temperature, and hell, a whole list of other indicators.”
“Undoubtedly all with very technical names,” Wylie said with a dry smile, getting an eye roll in reply.
The deputy returned at that moment. “There’s nothing upstairs that says he kept either of them prisoner up there,” he told Kingman before glaring at Wylie. “You could have warned me there’s a foot of dust in the attic.”
Wylie bit back a laugh. “Now where would the fun have been in that?”
It was apparent that Kingman found the exchange amusing from the glint of humor in his gaze as he stood. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience we caused you, Mr. Lewis.”
“No problem. I know it was unavoidable, all things considered.” Wylie was tempted to tell him to ignore any more tips that pointed him in his direction but refrained because he knew it wouldn’t do any good. He started toward the door to let them out, and then had a thought. “Could you give me a minute to get something?” he asked, getting a nod in return.
Hurrying up to his office, he got the map that Garry had created, and quickly made a copy which he brought downstairs to hand to Kingman.
“You’ve probably done this already,” Wylie said, “but if not, it shows where all the single women live. Ones that the killer might try to abduct next.”
Kingman took a fast look before saying, “I’m impressed. I’ve got a list of names, of course, and I know most of them to one extent or another. However, I haven’t mapped their addresses. This definitely gives me a feel for which ones might be the most vulnerable. You just saved me a lot of work. Thank you.”
“No problem,” he replied as he followed Kingman and the deputy onto the porch, sighing in relief when they drove away moments later.
Then he called Garry.
* * * *
“Are you serious?” Garry said when Wylie started to tell him about Kingman and his deputy searching the house.
“Dead serious, but…Are you doing anything right now?”
“Watching Ziggy scarf up his food, so why don’t you come over and give me the grisly details in person.”
“I was hoping you’d say that. I’ll be there in a couple.”
It took a bit longer than that because, as Wylie got to the sidewalk, he ran into Frank Ingram, the man who owned the hardware store and was one of Kingman’s volunteer deputies.
“I saw the sheriff leaving your place,” Frank said. “Did you have a break-in or something?”
Wylie decided the real reason was none of Frank’s business, so without any hesitation he replied, “No. He had a couple of questions because Garry and I were the ones who found Nelly’s body.”
“Yeah, I heard. You two and Carl. Kingman wasn’t too happy about that. He doesn’t like anyone one-upping him. How you managed it…” He shook his head.
“Dumb luck,” Wylie said.
“Must have been. The cave’s pretty well hidden. At least that’s what someone told me. If you’d have let me know I’d have helped you look.”
“It started as hike, because it was a nice day. We weren’t really looking for her, or Emma, until we began seeing the caves.” Wylie wasn’t certain why he was fudging the truth other than the fact that Frank seemed a little too nosy. “Like I said, it was luck and nothing more that we decided to check that one out.”
“Good thing there were three of you or Kingman might have thought you dumped her there and then wanted her found. I’m kidding, honest,” Frank quickly added when Wylie scowled.
Smoothing his expression into something more cordial, Wylie replied, “Since he doesn’t seem to like me, he probably would have. I hope to hell he finds out who murdered her and abducted Emma, before her body shows up somewhere, too.”
“In another cave?”
“Maybe, who knows? Look, it’s been nice talking with you, but I have to get moving. Garry’s expecting me for breakfast and the sheriff’s visit has already made me late.”
“No problem. Enjoy,” Frank replied. “I’m sure we’ll run into each other again.”
“Probably,” Wylie agreed as he stepped around him and walked short distance to Garry’s house. When he entered the yard he looked bac
k and saw Frank frowning as he watched him. The man turned away seconds later, continuing on to wherever he’d been going before they’d met.
“This had been a truly strange morning,” Wylie said as soon as Garry opened to door to let him in.
“How so? Ziggy, no!” The latter comment was followed by Garry grabbing the dog’s collar before he could make the great escape. “You know better than that,” he chastised. Ziggy hung his head momentarily before dashing out of the room. “Now…strange how?” he asked Wylie, immediately followed by, “Coffee?”
Wylie chuckled. “You’re as scattered as Ziggy. Yes on the coffee.” He trailed after Garry to the kitchen, leaning against the counter while his friend made a fresh pot. “Like I said when I called, Kingman paid me a visit, which we sort of expected might happen. Strangely enough, he was pretty mellow all things considered.” He related what had occurred including his conversation with the sheriff.
“Sounds like he suspects someone’s trying to frame you,” Garry said when Wylie finished.
“Yep. Not that he’ll ignore any more anonymous tips. He has to do his job. He also warned us to back off. Us, not just me. He thinks I dragged you and Carl into the search.”
Garry grinned. “Kicking and screaming all the way…not.”
“No kidding. Oh, I gave him a copy of the map you put together.”
“Earning brownie points?”
“He thanked me, so maybe. He said he’d put together the same list of names, but hadn’t gotten any further than that. Damn, I should have asked if he was going to have his deputies do drive-bys to check on them.”
“Despite his usually caustic attitude, he’s a decent sheriff, so he probably will.”
By then, the coffee had brewed. Garry filled two cups, handing one to Wylie, and suggested they sit in the back yard since it was a nice morning. The second he opened the back door, Ziggy made a mad dash into the yard, turned and gave them a look that said, “I’m staying out here, like it or not.” Then he went to a hole between the roots of the large tree in the corner of the yard and set to work on what Garry kidded was “His ongoing project to dig to China.”
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