Troy didn’t attempt to talk her out of it. He knew by the sharp glitter in her eyes, the determined thrust of her chin, that short of bondage there was no way that he was going to keep her from seeing Heather.
She didn’t speak again until they were in the car. “It was Heather who didn’t want to get the police involved,” she exclaimed. “Even when you told her you thought the authorities should be contacted, she’s the one who went hysterical and said no.”
“But it could just be that she was afraid and wanted to follow the kidnapper’s instructions to keep your father alive,” he replied, playing devil’s advocate.
She shook her head. “It’s got to be her, Troy. She has to be the one behind all this.”
Troy wasn’t sure what to believe, but one thing was certain: Heather’s involvement made as much sense as anything else they’d come up with. He knew that divorce cases often turned deadly, especially when there was a fortune involved.
If Brandon’s will had Brianna getting half of his fortune, it was possible that Heather wasn’t satisfied with the remaining half. Why take a share of the money if you could have it all?
“She’s probably been cheating on Dad,” Brianna continued. “She probably has some young boyfriend who’s helping her in all this. You read about these kinds of things all the time in the newspaper.”
Troy could almost smell the angry steam wafting from her. “You need to calm down,” he said. “Besides, the police are now watching the house. If Heather’s guilty, they’ll figure it out.”
“I know.” She leaned her head back and drew in several deep breaths. “If she’s guilty, then Dad is gone. She wouldn’t have him kidnapped and kept alive.” Her voice caught on a sob.
“Don’t jump to conclusions, Brianna. We don’t even know that she’s responsible. Until we know something for sure, there’s still hope.” He’d do anything, say anything, to get the anguish out of her voice, off her face.
She flashed him a grateful smile, as if he’d said exactly what she’d needed to hear. She drew another deep breath. “I just want this to be over. I want my dad home, and I want my life back.”
“Can’t wait to get back to California?”
She surprised him by shaking her head in the negative. “That was never my life. Oh, I’ll probably have to go back once more to pack my things, but I’d already decided that it was time for me to get on with my real life, the one I’ve dreamed about since I was a child.”
“And what’s that?”
“Living here in Kansas City and running Precious Pets. I was going to tell my father about my decision to come back here, but I never got the chance.”
His heart again ached with the pain that laced her voice, but he was also shocked by her words. He’d just assumed she’d go back to California when this was all over. He couldn’t imagine her being satisfied here in Kansas City, taking care of a bunch of animals.
She might think that’s what she wanted, but he had a feeling it wouldn’t take long for Kansas City and her pet project to bore her silly.
“And speaking of Precious Pets, I do intend to be there tomorrow for adoption day,” she said.
He cast her a sharp glance, saw that determined thrust of her chin and knew there would be no arguing with her.
“Okay, we’ll figure something out.”
She sat up straight in the seat as if she hadn’t heard him. “I’ve spent the last six months busting my butt to get donations. I’ve spent hundreds of dollars on publicity for tomorrow’s event. There’s no way I’m going to let some creep keep me from being there.” She glared at him as if she hadn’t heard what he’d just said.
He smiled. “Bree, honey, I said okay. We’ll figure it out so you can be there.”
She sank back against the seat. “Thank you. Maybe when I confront Heather, she’ll confess to everything and then we won’t have to worry about me going to the adoption day tomorrow. The guilty will be behind bars, and this will all be truly over.”
Troy nodded but he was fairly sure that Heather wasn’t going to roll over and confess. He didn’t even know if she was the guilty party.
His mind whirled trying to figure out how in the heck he was going to keep Brianna safe at a place where a ton of people might show up to adopt her special pets and one of those people just might be a killer.
AS TROY PULLED UP THE street to the Waverly mansion, Brianna sat up straighter in the seat, a renewed burst of anger coursing through her as she thought of her stepmother.
Was it truly possible that Heather could be that evil? That she could have her husband kidnapped and killed, that she could want Brianna dead for money?
There had always been a small part of Brianna that had wondered if Heather had married her father for his money in the first place. She’d wed a man twice her age, and it was only natural to wonder if more than love had motivated her.
“I thought you said the police were watching the house,” she said as he pulled into the driveway.
“Trust me, they are.” He pointed to a water department van parked down the street. “I’d bet that van isn’t filled with pipes and wrenches, but rather with cameras and cops.”
He parked the car and grabbed her arm before she could unfasten her seat belt. “I don’t suppose it would do any good to tell you to keep your cool in there.”
“Probably not,” she exclaimed. “I don’t intend to leave here without some answers, and I’m just about in the mood to slap them out of her.” She pulled her arm away from his grip, unfastened her seat belt and got out of the car.
She used her key to unlock the door, aware of Troy just behind her, hovering as if he might need to stop her from committing a crime she would regret later.
She felt as if there was an imminent explosion inside her. She wanted to release a primal scream, slap somebody silly, stop being a victim reacting instead of acting.
“Heather!” She walked to the bottom of the staircase, and nodded to Troy’s partner Lucas, who had come into the entry. “Heather, come down here right now.”
“Sounds like a girl fight on the horizon,” Lucas said softly to Troy.
Heather appeared at the top of the stairs. Clad in a long purple duster that set off the red of her hair, her face was wan. “Bree, is there news? Has something happened?”
She hurried down the stairs and reached out for Brianna’s hands. Brianna quickly stuck her hands in her pockets, at the same time trying to harden her heart against the woman she’d once wanted to please, a woman she’d thought was a friend.
Heather dropped her hands and moved her gaze from Brianna to Troy. “Mr. Sinclair…is something wrong?”
“Dad was divorcing you,” Brianna exclaimed.
She wouldn’t have thought it was possible for Heather’s face to pale any more, but it did. “Let’s go sit down.” She motioned them into the living room. “Your father wasn’t divorcing me, we were divorcing each other,” she said once they were all settled.
A surge of emotion pressed hard in Brianna’s chest. When Heather and her father had gotten married she’d been happy, had hoped that her dad had found a lifelong mate, a woman who would spend the rest of her life with him.
“Did you do something to my father?” Brianna kept her voice low. Anger combined with fear and simmered inside her. “Were you afraid he wouldn’t be fair with you in the divorce? Have you hired somebody to get rid of me, too?”
The gasp Heather released seemed genuine. “Brianna, how can you think such a thing? Your father and I were going to sit down with you and explain about the divorce. We still love each other, it’s just changed into a different kind of love. I would never do anything to hurt your father or you.”
“But you refused to get the police involved,” Brianna exclaimed.
“The kidnapper said he’d kill Brandon if I brought in the authorities. Maybe I made a mistake, but I was terrified of doing something that might get your father killed.”
“Are you seeing somebody else? Do you
have a boyfriend?” Brianna asked.
“Absolutely not,” Heather said firmly. “Our divorce wasn’t about another man or another woman. We’ve just grown apart. We love each other but we aren’t in love with each other.”
The steam that had worked Brianna up seeped away as she realized nothing would be served by her continuing to badger Heather for answers. If she wasn’t guilty then she couldn’t help. If she was guilty she wasn’t about to announce it to Brianna.
Rushing over here to confront her had been foolish. Brianna stood. “If you didn’t have anything to do with this, then I’m sorry. But if you did, then I’ll make sure you spend the rest of your life in prison,” she exclaimed.
She turned on her heels and headed for the door, half-blinded by a veil of tears. As always Troy was right behind her and as she slid into the passenger side, he got into the driver’s seat.
“You okay?” he asked and reached for her hand.
She welcomed the warmth of his hand around hers as she blinked and tears splashed on her cheeks. “I don’t know what I expected. Maybe I was looking for a Perry Mason moment, you know where the guilty party breaks down and confesses everything.”
“That doesn’t happen often in real life.” He squeezed her hand, then released it and started the car.
“I want you to talk to your friend Chief Kincaid and tell him that Heather is our most likely suspect,” she said.
“I will, but I imagine she’s already a likely suspect as far as the police are concerned. Anytime a kidnapping or death occurs, the first person who comes under scrutiny is the spouse.”
“As far as I’m concerned her being guilty makes the most sense. No matter how I twist things in my head it’s the only thing that makes sense.”
“My only concern is keeping you safe. The police will hopefully find out who’s responsible for everything, but in the meantime, when we get to the house I’ve got to figure out how we’re going to take care of you being at Precious Pets tomorrow.”
She reached out and placed her palm on his thigh. “I realize what an extra burden I’m causing you by insisting I be there tomorrow,” she said.
“It’s all right. We’ll figure something out,” he replied.
“I’m glad I’m not going through all this alone, Troy.” A new emotion rose up inside her and she realized she was precariously close to falling in love with him.
She yanked her hand away from him, aware that allowing herself to fall for him would be the stupidest thing she’d ever done, and over the past couple of years, she’d done plenty of stupid things.
She should have moved back to Kansas City years ago. She should have been here spending time with her dad and building a life of substance. “You were right about me,” she said.
He offered her a quick glance. “Right about what?”
“About me having a lot of opportunities and wasting them doing the party scene in Hollywood. For the past couple of years I kept telling myself that it was time to come home, time to start my real life, but there was a part of me that enjoyed the parties and clubs, the glitz and glamour.”
He smiled, the gesture softening his features. “So what you’re confessing to is that you’re human?”
“I’ve been stupid,” she replied. “I could have been here spending time with my dad and taking care of my business. I’m twenty-nine years old, and I don’t even have a boyfriend. I didn’t realize until just now how much my life has been on hold.”
“It’s not too late for you,” he replied with a touch of humor. “You aren’t exactly over-the-hill. There’s still plenty of time for you to find a boyfriend, take care of your business and build a life for yourself.”
“I know. It’s just that without my father, it will never be the same.” Once again tears burned at her eyes and she swallowed hard against them, refusing to give in to the fear, the uncharacteristic vulnerability that tried to take hold of her. “I haven’t even been out to Precious Pets to see Big Sam.”
“Big Sam?”
“He’s a golden retriever who thinks he’s in charge of Precious Pets and owns a large chunk of my heart.” She warmed at thoughts of the dog. “Two years ago I rescued him from a man who was going to put him in the pound because he could no longer take care of him. Big Sam and I bonded instantly. I try to get back here four or five times a year and spend time with him. Eventually, when I find a place with a big fenced yard, he’s going to live with me.”
“I’ve heard that goldens make terrific pets.”
She nodded. “Almost every dog has the potential to be a terrific pet. The nice thing about animals is that they don’t judge. They don’t care where you’ve been or what you’ve done. As long as you feed and water them and love them, they love you back. It’s the most uncomplicated relationship anyone can have.”
“Uncomplicated, that’s what I want in my relationships,” he replied.
His words served to remind her that she would never be, could never be, the woman he wanted for a long-term relationship.
The wave of despair that had threatened to engulf her moments before now descended upon her like a black cloud, stealing any hint of sunshine.
Chapter Ten
It was just after nine when Troy pulled into the lane that led to the Precious Pets establishment. Although the public party planned for today wasn’t set to begin until one that afternoon, he figured the easiest way to assure Brianna’s safety was to get there early and look things over.
He’d made sure they hadn’t been followed from the safe house and he saw no potential threat when he parked his car.
“Mike’s already here,” Brianna said and pointed to the pickup truck parked on the side of the building. “He’s probably doing last-minute health checks on all the animals.”
Together they got out of Brianna’s SUV and as they began to walk toward the long one-story building Brianna released a musical whistle.
The dog appeared in the distance next to Mike’s truck. He was a beautiful golden retriever and when he saw Brianna he came bounding toward them.
“Big Sam,” she called with a laugh of sheer pleasure. As the dog reached her, he jumped and she landed on her back in the grass, girlish giggles escaping her as Big Sam greeted her with frantic tail wags and lavish kisses.
This was the picture of her that would remain with Troy for a very long time to come. A beautiful woman whose laughter rode the breeze as she hugged the big dog in unabandoned delight.
She got to her feet, a hand on top of the dog’s head. “Big Sam, sit,” she instructed. The dog complied. “Say hello to Troy.” Big Sam barked and held out a paw for a shake.
Troy laughed and shook the dog’s paw. “Hello, Big Sam.” He grinned at Brianna. “He’s a beauty.”
She nodded. “And smart as a whip.”
“Let’s get you inside,” he said, not wanting to linger in the openness of the yard. No sense in tempting fate. Although he sensed no threat, he hadn’t forgotten that on the day that somebody had shot at them at the job site, he hadn’t sensed a threat, either.
Precious Pets was divided into two areas. The first was a large reception room with a counter behind which a receptionist worked. The second and largest area was in the back room. There were three wide aisles of cages and kennels.
“How many animals do you have?” he asked Mike Kidwell, who showed him around the back.
“Right now we have sixty. We like to keep it around fifty or under.” The nice-looking veterinarian smiled, his brown eyes friendly. “I’m hoping we can find a good home for at least ten or fifteen dogs and cats today.”
“Brianna seems passionate about all this.”
“She is. She’s great. I think it’s awesome that she’s poured so much of her money into this place. She’s also been successful in getting us plenty of donations to keep us up and running.”
“She’s in a bit of trouble,” Troy said. “You know somebody took a shot at her the other day, then somebody tried to run her over with a car.�
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Mike’s eyes widened. “Why? What’s going on?”
“We don’t know, but I thought I’d give you a heads-up that I’ve got half a dozen undercover cops showing up today for extra security.” Thank God Wendall Kincaid had agreed to send men for the afternoon. “There won’t be a minute today that Brianna isn’t covered by either a cop or me.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Mike asked.
Troy smiled. “Yeah, get twenty of these mutts adopted out.”
Mike grinned. “Before I can do that, I’ve got to get them all outside and into pens where people can view them.”
“I’ll just get out of your way so you can get back to it.” Troy left Mike and returned to the front area where Brianna was seated at the receptionist desk and talking on the phone.
“I want you set up no later than twelve-thirty,” she said to whoever was on the other end of the line. “And I’d rather have too many hot dogs than not enough. And plenty of relish. I love relish on my hot dogs. Okay, we’ll see you then.” She hung up and smiled at Troy. “That was Bart of Bart’s Hot Dogs and Fun. We’re going to have hot dogs and cotton candy and popcorn during the afternoon.”
“You’ve gone to a lot of trouble for this,” he said as he sat in a chair near the desk.
“I’ve advertised it as a day of family fun. Come see the animals, enjoy the food and music.”
“Music?”
“I didn’t mention the deejay, did I? He’s supposed to be here around noon to set up.”
“I had no idea this was going to be such a big extravaganza,” Troy said.
She leaned back in the chair and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “I’ve been working on this for months. It’s not just about adopting animals, it’s also to let people know we’re here, that we’re a viable option instead of the pound. We have no death sentence here. No animals are put down unless it’s absolutely necessary because of health issues. We have a drop-off pen outside where people can leave animals with no questions asked.” She frowned. “I just wish…” She let her voice trail off.
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