Brink of Danger

by Christy Barritt

  “I know. I’d expect nothing less.”

  Kit glanced at her, like she had something she wanted to say but wasn’t sure if she should.

  “What is it?” Ansley asked.

  “It’s nothing.” Kit shook her head.

  “Say it. It’s okay.”

  Kit turned toward her. “Have you ever considered that none of this started happening until . . .” Kit shrugged. “I don’t know. Until Ryan came into town.”

  Ansley blinked with uncertainty. “You think Ryan could be behind this?”

  “I was just lying in bed thinking about everything. And I realized that’s really the only thing new here in this town. I know. It sounds crazy. Pretend I never said anything.”

  “No, I appreciate you bringing it up.” Ansley crossed her arms. “But Ryan would never do something like this.”

  “I’m glad you feel confident of that.”

  Ansley grabbed her bowl and a spoon before stepping toward the door. “Listen, I’d chat more, but I’ve got to run. Maybe we can catch up later.”

  “Of course. I’m cooking a roast tonight, if you’re interested.”

  “That sounds great.”

  Kit paused and gave her a questioning look. “What’s the hurry, if you don’t mind me asking?”

  “I’m helping out at the station again today. Deputy Cruise is going to give me a ride.”

  “Sounds like a good plan. Let me know if you need anything.”

  “Will do,” Ansley said. “Thank you.”

  Finding Kit as a roommate was an answer to prayer. Ansley couldn’t ask for a better roommate—or friend. Anyone who could put up with her without complaining was a keeper.

  Thank goodness she wasn’t who she used to be. But she was definitely still a work in progress. The good news was that Ansley wasn’t in denial.

  But Ansley did fear that Kit’s friendship with her might ultimately end up getting her roommate either hurt or killed. What if this killer somehow saw Kit as a threat? Would she become a target?

  Ansley had no idea—but she didn’t like the thought of it.

  Ryan felt his heart skip a beat when he looked up and spotted Ansley standing in his office doorway.

  That was not a good sign. He hadn’t come here to Fog Lake with the intentions of falling for anyone. Especially not Ansley. But he’d be lying if he didn’t admit that the woman fascinated him. Deeply fascinated him.

  Ansley was like a good book that Ryan had only started to read. He was certain once he dug in more deeply, all kinds of new things would be discovered. And that was why he needed to stop reading—now.

  “Good morning, Ansley.” He straightened a stack of papers on his desk as he turned toward her.

  “I can smell the smoke outside.” Ansley’s face was nearly as ashen as the landscape two counties over was becoming.

  She was observant and obviously loyal to this area. He could admire that. “The wind shifted.”

  It hadn’t been the news he wanted to hear. But word was already spreading around town. There was no need to withhold the truth.

  “Is the fire spreading?” she asked.

  “It’s not spreading, but it’s not extinguished either. It’s one determined blaze.”

  “I’d say.” Ansley took a sip of coffee from the cup in her hands. “I hope it’s over soon. I still remember the fire in Gatlinburg a few years ago. It was devastating.”

  “Authorities are monitoring the situation.” Ryan observed her a moment, trying to get a read on her emotional state. She’d been through a lot in a relatively short time period. She always seemed so strong . . . but was she? “How are you this morning?”

  Ansley shrugged, remaining at her place in the doorway. “As well as can be expected.”

  “Nothing else happened yesterday? I hope . . .”

  “No, it was a quiet night.”

  “That’s good news, at least.” Ryan had been afraid he would get a call to her place with another emergency.

  Ansley shifted her weight to her other leg, still seeming more somber than usual. “Any word on Jonathan? I haven’t talked to Luke yet.”

  “Last I heard, Luke was going to head over first thing this morning to check him out. I talked to Chief Johnson last night, and he confirmed Jonathan did apply here at the department. They rejected him because he was arrested for drugs twice when he was a teenager. Jonathan didn’t take the news well.”

  “So you think that’s why he should be a suspect?”

  “Not necessarily. We’re just gathering information to form a complete picture.”

  Ansley released a long breath. “Nothing’s ever easy, is it? To think that this will be solved quickly is a fairy tale.”

  “Sometimes cases are easily solved. But that’s usually not the norm.” No part of Ansley’s life had been a fairy tale, had it? She’d revealed a part of herself yesterday when she’d shown Ryan that stairway Mr. Fitz had built.

  Despite all her poor choices and awful coping mechanisms, there was a part of her that still wanted a happy ending. She wanted a different hand than what life had dealt her. Ryan couldn’t blame her. Ansley deserved a break, deserved happiness.

  Because, thank goodness, God didn’t give us what we deserved. Thank goodness for forgiveness and mercy.

  Ryan had needed both of those in his own life many, many times. Even now he needed it. More than ever, truth be told.

  Ansley glanced across the hall. “I guess I should get started on my filing project.”

  The corner of his lip began to curl. “I guess so. Thanks for your help.”

  “You owe me.”

  Did he? Ryan wasn’t sure he agreed. But another part of him realized he didn’t mind the idea of being in debt to Ansley. In fact, paying it off could be fun.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Boone and Brynlee invited Ansley to lunch at the Hometown Diner.

  Somehow, Ryan ended up with an invitation also. Luke had suggested it was a good idea for Ryan to find out more about the new sky lift that had opened in town, and Ansley supposed that made sense.

  Ansley wanted the fact that Ryan was with her to bother her. In truth, the idea of spending more time with the man actually intrigued her. Ryan’s steadiness brought her an unusual comfort—one that she was beginning to crave.

  How was that even possible? Their two lives had only intersected again a few days ago, and now it somehow felt like Ryan had been around forever. Certainly, it was just the adrenaline of the situation. Once it wore off, Ansley would forget about the man. Life would continue on.

  None of this started until Ryan came into town.

  Kit’s words echoed through her mind, but Ansley shook them away. Kit was wrong. Ryan would never do something like this. The timing was just coincidental.

  They stepped inside, and 1960s nostalgia surrounded them, from the vinyl-topped tables to the jukebox playing “Can’t Buy Me Love.” If someone wanted greasy food and sugary drinks, this was the place to come.

  As soon as Ansley spotted Brynlee, Ansley smiled and gave her a hug.

  “How are you?” Ansley asked.

  “I can’t complain.” Brynlee’s gaze turned toward Ryan. “You must be the guy I’ve heard so much about.”

  “From Luke and Boone,” Ansley quickly added.

  Ryan chuckled, not bothered in the least by her words. “Nice to meet you, Brynlee.”

  The woman was tall, almost willowy, with shoulder-length blonde hair. Though part of the woman seemed cultured, another part embraced this mountain town. The mix of her ripped jeans and flannel shirt with her expensive boots and well-styled hair told the story.

  They all took a seat in a booth and placed their orders.

  “How’s the sky lift going? I hear it was all the talk of the town until . . .” Ryan’s voice trailed.

  Ansley knew what he was going to say. Until Dustin’s murder.

  “It’s been quite the change for some people.” Brynlee shrugged. “We’ve definitely had some oppo
sition, but I’d say that, overall, people are starting to come around. We haven’t had a slow day yet.”

  Boone draped his arm across the back of the booth, looking at ease with Brynlee. Ansley was so happy the two of them had found each other. The only thing that could make her family better right now was if Jaxon would come home.

  “I think it’s a nice draw for the area,” Boone said. “It still preserves the beauty of the mountain, but it will offer a safe adventure for people looking for something different to do.”

  The waitress delivered their food—hamburgers and fries for the men, and chicken sandwiches with fruit for Brynlee and Ansley. Their meal was one of the healthier options here at the diner—and there weren’t many.

  “I’m excited for you all.” Ryan lifted his glass of water, looking at ease and comfortable with himself. “The sky lift sounds great.”

  “We just hope the fire doesn’t spread that way.” Boone lifted a fry but didn’t bring it to his mouth.

  Ansley’s gaze went to Ryan. “The fire is headed toward Dead Man’s Bluff?”

  He let out a long breath. “The way the wind has shifted it could push the blaze that way. We don’t know anything else yet. We’re just keeping an eye on it.”

  “I guess we should pray for rain,” Brynlee said. “It’s been such a dry season.”

  A bad feeling churned in Ansley’s gut. So much was on the line here. So much.

  “Any updates on the zipline?” Boone asked, his voice turning serious. He shifted and picked up a french fry again, this time taking a bite. “Does Luke know who’s behind it yet?”

  Brynlee leaned closer. “And what about Dustin? I couldn’t believe it when I heard the news.”

  Ansley and Ryan exchanged a look.

  Ryan finally spoke. “We haven’t heard any updates, but I know Luke is looking for Jonathan now.”

  Ansley flinched. “Looking for him? He should have come home last night from Gatlinburg, right? I figured Luke talked to him this morning.”

  Ryan shrugged. “I talked to Luke this morning. Jonathan appears to be missing in action. He’s not answering his phone, and he didn’t come back to his apartment last night.”

  “Maybe he stayed in Gatlinburg or something?” Ansley offered.

  “I heard that he’s been spotted back here in town,” Boone added. “Someone saw him running into the post office last night.”

  “If he’s back in town but avoiding Luke . . .” Ansley’s voice trailed off. “That only makes him look guilty.”

  “I agree,” Boone said. “I don’t want to think poorly of him, but . . . if it looks like a dog, walks like a dog, and sounds like a dog . . .”

  “Then it probably is a dog,” Ryan finished.

  “You know him.” Ansley turned toward Boone. “You guys are all into your outdoor sports together. Could you see him doing something like this?”

  Boone rubbed his chin. “It’s complicated. I don’t want to throw out accusations.”

  “Between us. It won’t leave this table.”

  Boone let out a long breath. “He has a temper. He conceals it pretty well, but it’s there. I’ve seen him almost get into fistfights over disagreements before—especially if he’s been drinking. Once, while we were out rock climbing, another guy started to hit on one of the ladies on the trip. Apparently, Jonathan thought he’d already staked a claim on her. I literally had to pull Jonathan off this other guy.”

  Ansley didn’t want to believe Jonathan could be behind this. But she had to be careful. Jonathan had been there when that opossum had run across her feet. He’d practically had a front row seat when the zipline accident occurred. And he was hiding now.

  Ansley didn’t like this. More than anything, she wanted answers.

  Back at the fire station, Ryan heard a knock sound in the distance. As he turned, he saw it wasn’t someone here to see him. No, someone was here to see Ansley.

  He halfway expected to see Murphy there. Instead, it was Luke.

  “You have a minute?” Luke asked her.

  Ansley stood, wiping some dust from her jeans. “Of course.”

  Her gaze met Ryan’s from across the hallway, and she looked back at her brother. “Is it about the case?”

  “It is.”

  She motioned for Ryan to join them. He was grateful. He wanted to know what the updates were. The safety of this town was his concern.

  “I have a couple things I want to share.” Luke paused, stepping around some boxes and files she had on the floor.

  “Is it about Jonathan?” Ansley asked.

  Luke stiffened and his eyes narrowed. “Actually, Jonathan is in the wind. We have all our guys on the lookout for him. We even called the surrounding counties so they can keep their eyes open for him also.”

  “You think he’s running?” Ansley pursed her lips in thought, not liking the picture that formed in her mind.

  Luke shifted his weight to his other foot. “From what we understand, Jonathan had a stash of money that he kept in his safety deposit box.”

  “But if he’s on the run, that makes me think he’s behind all of this.” Ansley frowned.

  “That’s how it looks,” Luke said. “We know he had a beef with Dustin about the zipline messing up the views of the area while whitewater rafting. Maybe he did try to sabotage the cable. Maybe something happened between the two of them after their disagreement, and he confronted Dustin—maybe Dustin confronted him. He could have killed Dustin in the heat of the moment.”

  “Why do I feel like there’s a but in there?” Ryan asked.

  “There are still some things we don’t understand,” Luke said. “Like why was Thickie’s deck compromised?”

  That was an excellent question—but it didn’t mean there wasn’t a great explanation.

  “Maybe as a way of keeping Thickie quiet,” Ryan suggested. “Thickie knew there was trouble between Dustin and Jonathan, right? He was the one who first mentioned it.”

  Luke nodded. “That’s correct. But, even if that’s his motive, what about the opossum in Ansley’s place? How does that fit?”

  Ryan frowned. That didn’t make sense. Why would Jonathan risk being caught just to send a message to Ansley?

  “We got the autopsy results back on Dustin as well,” Luke said. “It appears he took a sleeping pill before he died. Ansley, do you know if he regularly took them?”

  Ansley shrugged. “I have no idea.”

  “That would have made him an easier target,” Ryan said. “He wouldn’t be as alert or able to fight back.”

  “Exactly. There’s one other reason why I wanted to stop by.” Luke pulled out his phone and turned to Ansley. “I was able to retrieve the message Dustin left you on the evening he died.”

  Ryan felt his breath catch as he waited for whatever he was about to hear.

  Luke hit play, and Dustin’s voice sounded over the line. He sounded both breathless and irritated as he muttered something—jibber jabber, most likely.

  Finally, his voice became discernable. “Ansley, it’s me. Look, I just had a conversation with someone, and I think you need to know about it. I know I probably sound paranoid, but—”

  A gruesome sound filled the line. A gurgling almost.

  Then it went silent.

  Ryan lowered his head. He knew what that meant.

  The killer had interrupted him in the middle of the call.

  Dustin had been about to warn Ansley that she was somehow connected to these crimes, that she was somehow in danger. But he’d been stopped before he could.

  The question was, whose name had he been about to call out? That would explain why two of the crimes looked like accidents, but Dustin’s was obviously murder.

  The killer had probably committed the crime in the heat of the moment, had probably felt threatened by Dustin for some reason.

  Who would the killer feel threatened by next?

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  As Ansley continued to sort files at the fire station,
she couldn’t stop thinking about everything that had happened. Couldn’t stop reviewing what she knew.

  It still made no sense to her that she might somehow be tied up in all of this.

  Sure, she had a long list of enemies. But did she actually have enemies who would take things this far?

  And, if it was Jonathan who was behind this, what had she ever done to him? As much as she could remember, things had been pleasantly boring between them.

  A memory fluttered into her mind.

  Once, a few months ago, she’d been in at Hanky’s. He’d been gloating about how great his whitewater rafting business was, even though she knew he treated his employees poorly. She hadn’t been able to stop herself from speaking up and trying to put him in his place.

  It hadn’t been right or wise. But Ansley had done it, especially because she knew the woman he was interviewing for a job. They were seated at the bar together. Ansley had met the woman earlier, and she’d seemed decent. Sweet. Maybe even a little naïve.

  It was a lot of work to put your old ways behind you, and sometimes she failed. This had been one of those days.

  Ansley had set her seltzer water down on the bar and turned to Jonathan.

  “Your business might even be better if you actually stopped paying your workers under the table to work more hours than they’re supposed to,” she’d called.

  Jonathan’s eyes had darkened. “Mind your own business, Ansley. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “And if you didn’t start to date any and all of the available hotties, as you call them, that you hire, maybe you could concentrate on how unhappy some of your employees are. I mean, most of them can only afford to live at the campground.”

  His hands had fisted as he sat at the bar. “Who invited you into this conversation?”

  The woman beside him touched his arm. “Is that true, Jonathan? Do you date all of your employees?”

  Jonathan had cast Ansley one more dirty look, no doubt feeling his appeal slipping. “Don’t listen to her. She’s a troublemaker.”