“What’s wrong?” Ryder grabbed her cold hands and chaffed them.
“He pinned me against his body with one arm while he was getting the ether ready, and for one second before the smell of the ether invaded my nose, I smelled…cologne.”
“Did you recognize the cologne?”
Ryder flashed his brother an admiring look. Rafe definitely had the instincts of a cop.
“It smelled familiar, but I can’t place it. I probably just smelled it in a department store or something. Not many men around Silverhill wear cologne.”
“Except Zack Ballard.” Ryder crossed his arms over his chest. “And he’s the one who sent you the message to meet him.”
“That’s crazy. He wouldn’t text me on my cell if he planned to kidnap me.”
“He figured after he abducted you, he’d have your phone anyway.” He was grasping at straws here, but he wanted to pin this on somebody.
“Slow down, bro.” Rafe pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “There’s one way to find out if Zack is the one who left the message for Julia. I have his cell phone number right here.”
Julia dragged her cell out of her pocket and flipped it open. She squinted at the display and read off the number that sent her the text message.
Rafe whistled. “Zack’s dumber than he looks. He sent Julia that message from his own cell phone. I’m going to give him a call back.”
Rafe pressed a few buttons on his cell phone and then shook his head. “Not answering, which doesn’t surprise me.”
“I can’t believe it.” Julia stepped back and stumbled. “I know Zack. He can’t be responsible.”
Ryder reached out and Julia knocked his hand away. First Dr. Brody and now Zack. The thought that her stalker might be someone she knew and trusted bothered her. She’d loved and trusted her father so much and when he died she thought she’d never find a man with those qualities. But Jeremy tricked her into believing she had and now she’d fallen into the same trap with Dr. Brody and Zack…and him?
“Let’s call Sheriff Ballard.” Rafe got on his cell and reached Ballard on his way to the party. He told him about the attack on Julia and how the stalker lured her out of the house. “It looks like Zack might be involved, Sheriff.”
Five minutes later, Ballard’s squad car roared to a stop in front of the McClintocks’ gateway and he barreled out of the car, leaving the door open.
“You okay, honey?” He patted Julia on the shoulder. “Damn, I thought we had our man. Now let me see this message.”
Julia showed him the text message on her phone and Ballard swore.
“I know my boy’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he doesn’t have an aggressive bone in his body. That’s why he pumps all that iron…it’s all about the look.”
“When was the last time you spoke to Zack?” Ryder had to agree with Ballard. Zack presented an imposing figure, but he shied away from using force. But maybe that’s why he attacked women.
“I talked to him on the radio about two hours ago. He was on his way to investigate a report of a transient living in the caves by The Twirling Ballerinas.”
Rafe asked, “Have you tried him on the radio since then?”
“On the way over here after I got your call. He didn’t respond.”
Ballard’s radio crackled from the squad car as if on cue, and all three of them spun around and stared at the car.
“This might be him now.” Ballard trod back to his car, dropped onto the seat and grabbed the radio.
Ryder exchanged a glance with Rafe. Yeah, now that he made his attack on Julia?
The voice of Racine Elder, the dispatcher, hissed and popped over the radio. “Sheriff, we got a call about a squad car parked at the end of Main Street. It’s been there for two hours and it looks like it’s Zack’s car. Over.”
“Ten-four, Racine. I’ll check it out. Over.” Ballard leaned on his car door and winked. “Maybe Zack’s just spending some time with that little gal he’s been seeing, the new girl at Gracie’s B and B.”
Julia let out a long breath. “You see, it couldn’t have been Zack. There’s no way he could’ve come out here on foot, and his car’s been parked on Main for the past two hours.”
“Unless he took another mode of transportation,” murmured Rafe. “Wait up, Sheriff. I’m coming with you.”
“I’m following. It’s time to get this straightened out.” Ryder turned to Julia. “I’ll walk you back up to the house.”
“Oh no, you don’t. If this is a caravan, then I’m tagging along. If Zack did text me, I’m going to find out what the hell he wanted. Just give me a minute to look in on Shelby.”
“She’s with my stepmother. She’ll be fine. Do you have your car keys? I can’t pull my truck out of the drive with all these cars parked here.”
She dangled the keys in front of his nose and he snatched them from her. “I’ll drive.”
Rafe joined Ballard in the squad car, which Ryder followed as it pulled into the road. Julia sat beside him with her hands clasped between her knees. He knew she wanted Zack’s name cleared, but a sense of dread hammered against his brain. If Zack wasn’t her stalker, who was?
Ballard’s car pulled up behind the squad car parked at the foot of the Ballerina Trail. Rafe exited the car, leaving Ballard behind.
“What’s going on?” Ryder jogged up to his brother while Julia scrambled out of the car after him.
“This doesn’t feel right to me, Ryder. I told Ballard to wait in the car. He’s too personally involved.” Rafe drew his gun.
“What’s he going to do, shoot Zack?” Julia scowled.
“You,” Ryder took her arm, “wait by the car with Sheriff Ballard.”
Ryder crept up to Zack’s squad car next to Rafe. Rafe opened the car door and the dome light illuminated the interior. A set of keys dangled in the ignition and the radio crackled with static. No Zack.
While Rafe inspected the car, Ryder grabbed the flashlight Rafe had taken from Ballard and beamed the light across the ground at the foot of the trail. It tripped over an object in the bushes.
Ryder edged forward and shone the light on the object stuck in a bush. Zack’s hat.
Gripping the flashlight, Ryder made his way a few feet up the trail and stopped cold.
Zack Ballard was blocking the trail.
And he was dead.
Chapter Twelve
Julia held Sheriff Ballard’s big, rough hand in hers, as he wiped his arm across his face.
“It’s my fault. The boy wasn’t cut out for police work and I pushed him into it.”
“Shh.” She squeezed his hand. “Zack loved his job and he was good at it. He was perfect as a small-town sheriff. Who knew a killer would come to Silverhill?”
A killer after her.
Sheriff Ballard pushed off the car and hunched his shoulders. “I suppose I have to go home now and tell his mother.”
“Give her my love and let me know if the two of you need anything.” Julia wiped a tear from her face as she watched Sheriff Ballard plod back to his car.
Ryder and Rafe approached her with the sheriff from San Juan County. Ryder said, “Julia, Sheriff Vickers wants to have a look at your cell phone and that message from Zack.”
She pulled out the phone and handed it to Sheriff Vickers. “What about Zack’s phone? Does the message show on his phone, too?”
Ryder blew out a breath. “Zack’s phone is missing along with his gun.”
“So whoever shot Zack took his cell phone and used it to leave me that text message?” Julia hugged herself and ground her teeth together to stop their chattering.
“That’s what it looks like, Ms. Rousseau. I’m going to use that phone message to work out a time line.” Sheriff Vickers peered at the display on her phone and jotted down some notes in his spiral.
“Deputy Sheriff Ballard took a radio call about a transient up at The Twirling Ballerinas at eight twenty-three p.m. Someone sent this text message to your phone at eight forty-one
p.m. So we can pinpoint the time of death in those twenty minutes, unless Deputy Sheriff Ballard sent the message himself while he was still alive.”
“I don’t think that’s probable.” Rafe scratched his chin and jerked his thumb toward the trail. “Are your men investigating this transient? With Zack’s gun missing, it’s likely the shooter used it to kill him.”
Sheriff Vickers snapped his notebook shut. “We’ll know that for sure when ballistics gets that bullet out of Ballard’s head. My men are searching the trail now. So far, nothing.”
“Your men don’t know that trail and they don’t know the caves at the top of the trail. This is your investigation now, but I’m going to search the trail and caves tomorrow.” Rafe planted his legs apart and shoved his hands in his pockets.
“Knock yourself out, but anything you find comes to us.”
As the San Juan County Sheriff and crime scene personnel packed up to leave, Ryder and Rafe watched through identical narrowed eyes.
These McClintocks knew how to take charge.
“What now?” Julia had already called Ryder’s stepmother, and Shelby was sound asleep. Thank God Mrs. Ballard had left the party early because her husband had to work late, sparing Julia any questions. By now Sheriff Ballard had probably delivered the crushing news. Julia’s lip quivered and another tear hung on her lashes.
Ryder drew her close and caught her tear on the end of his thumb. “You’re not going back home. You’re staying with us tonight and every other night until we find this maniac.”
“Do you think he killed Zack because Zack discovered him in the caves or do you think the transient is someone different altogether and Zack just bumbled into the path of the stalker?” Julia couldn’t even voice her other worry, that the killer lured Zack to this spot to kill him and take his phone to text her or to set up Zack.
Just like he set up Dr. Brody.
“Ryder.” She clutched his arm. “Do you think this guy had anything to do with Dr. Brody’s accident? It’s the same pattern. He sets someone up as the stalker and then kills him.”
“I just don’t know, Julia. There are too many questions, but if I ever get my hands on this son of a…” Ryder clenched his fists and banged the roof of her car.
While Ryder and Rafe discussed bullets and guns and trajectories on the way back to the McClintock ranch, Julia sat silently niggling her lower lip.
Her stalker was a murderer, but when he had her in his clutches tonight he didn’t kill her even though he could have. Did he intend to kill her on the trail or just wound her so he could drag her away?
What did he want with her?
JULIA PLAYED with her scrambled eggs as the third McClintock argument of the morning erupted in the kitchen.
“You’re not turning any part of the McClintock ranch into a dude ranch.” Ryder’s father, Ralph, nearly spat out the offensive words.
“I’m not discussing this anymore. I have to go out and make sure that irrigation system gets repaired, so we can feed the cattle, or otherwise, I’m turning the whole damn ranch into a dude ranch.” Rod slammed out the front door.
“Home sweet home.” Ryder ducked behind his newspaper.
Pam joined them at the dining room table and poured herself another cup of coffee. “Your father and Rod have been having this argument for a year. Rod wants to start giving riding lessons to attract the summer crowd and Ralph won’t hear of it.”
“It’s expensive to run a working ranch these days.” Ryder lifted a shoulder. “Does Pop want Rod to stay and manage the ranch or not? If so, he’d better start listening to him.”
“Maybe if there were two of you working on Ralph, he’d come around.” She raised her eyebrows at Ryder, but he burrowed deeper into his newspaper.
“You have a family now, a daughter. How are you going to raise a daughter when you’re off on another assignment somewhere? And Rafe, first week on the job and there’s a cop killer roaming the streets of Silverhill.”
Now Julia felt like burrowing into a newspaper.
Ryder smacked down his paper. “Pam, that’s between Julia and me. It’s none of your business. I thought you had cooking to do for Mrs. Ballard.”
“I do.” Pam sighed as she pushed up from the table. “Terrible tragedy. Do they really think the man who killed Zack is the same man who’s been bothering Julia?”
Now Julia felt like crawling under the table.
“Yeah, we do, and he’s been doing more than bothering Julia. He attacked her two nights ago outside the ranch.”
She wrinkled her brow. “Yes, trouble sure does seem to follow you around, Julia.”
“Pam.”
“I’m just saying.” Pam raised her hands. “Do you think Shelby would like to help me in the kitchen when she wakes up? When does she wake up? It’s getting awfully late.”
Julia shot Ryder a warning look. She couldn’t handle another McClintock argument this morning. She smiled at Pam. “I’m sure she’d like that.”
LATER THAT AFTERNOON after Shelby’s riding lesson, Julia sat on the porch swing while Ryder perched on the top step.
“I’m sorry we got into it at the party, Julia. Is that why you went off to meet Zack by yourself instead of coming to get me?”
“If you’re not going to be around, Shelby and I better not count on you.” She put the swing into motion and folded a leg beneath her.
“You and Shelby can always count on me.”
“Little hard to do when you’re hiding out in a cave somewhere.” She had no intention of begging him to stay. She didn’t do it in Paris and she wouldn’t do it here.
“I don’t know where I’m going yet.”
“How exciting for you.” She gave a typically Parisian lift of the shoulders. “I’m thinking about going to Paris at the end of the summer to visit my mother anyway. Then I’ll decide if I want to continue working toward my psychology degree and whether or not I want to stay in Silverhill.”
His eyebrows shot up. “You’d leave Silverhill?”
“The place creeps me out.” She used to feel safe and protected in Silverhill, ringed in by the Rockies and surrounded by good people. Now nothing was as it seemed, and with her memory back, she no longer felt the need to hide from the rest of the world. She had a place in it and she’d already taken the first step to end the estrangement between her and her mother.
Ryder pushed off the step and collapsed next to her in the swing, rocking it back and forth. His tight jaw and narrowed eyes meant business, but what would he get out of it if she stayed in Silverhill? He wouldn’t be here to boss her around anyway.
Rafe’s squad car emerged from a cloud of dust on the gravel drive, saving Julia from this particular discussion with Ryder. He squealed to a stop on the circular driveway in front of the house and slid from the car, twirling his cowboy hat on his hand. The sun glinted off his shiny badge.
“I’m glad to find the two of you together, not that that’s hard to do these days.” He flashed a dimpled smile. “I have more news from Brody’s preliminary autopsy.”
Julia held her breath. She couldn’t take any more bad news. Despite her earlier resolve to be independent of Ryder’s comfort, she slid her hand onto his thigh.
“Whaddya got?” Ryder curled his fingers around hers, his previous intensity gone.
“The man was drunk as a skunk. His blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit. So even if someone hadn’t given him a little shove down the embankment, he was headed for trouble on that stretch of the road.”
“Someone pushed his car off the road?” Julia knew that stretch of the road too well. She shivered and convulsively clutched Ryder’s hand. First Brody, then Zack.
Nodding, Rafe sank to the top step, stretching out his long legs. “His back bumper was dented, and a car left a blue streak on his paint. Brody went over that cliff nose first. All the damage from the impact occurred on the front of the car.”
“Any leads or witnesses?” Ryder squeezed Julia’s hand right
back.
“The night of the accident, the bartender and a few patrons at the Silver Rim Lounge in Durango reported that Brody was boozing it up at the bar. Another man joined him and kept buying him drinks and they stumbled out of the bar together at closing time.”
A furrow formed between Ryder’s brows. “Was Brody a drinker?”
“He was an alcoholic in recovery. That’s how he got into hypnosis. It helped him stop drinking.” Julia tilted her chin, defying Ryder to comment on the impropriety of a therapist discussing his personal life with a client. She’d been a fool not to have seen Dr. Brody’s growing attraction to her, but she didn’t need Ryder’s judgment.
But condemnation of her relationship with Dr. Brody appeared to be the last thing on Ryder’s mind, as he absently rubbed his thumb along her wrist. “Did any of the witnesses in the bar give you a description of the man?”
“Sure did. Dark, curly hair, sunglasses and covered up.”
“Covered up?” Julia quirked a brow at Rafe. “What does that mean?”
“The guy was overdressed for the weather outside and the temperature in the bar. In addition to jeans, he was wearing a long-sleeve turtleneck and had a knit cap pulled low on his forehead.”
“How did the witnesses notice his hair then?” Ryder asked.
“It was sticking out beneath the edge of the cap.”
“Whoa.” Julia held up her hands. “Back up a minute. The guy was wearing sunglasses indoors?”
Rafe shrugged. “Happens all the time in L.A. Jack Nicholson always wears sunglasses.”
“We’re not in L.A. and I’m sure that wasn’t Jack Nicholson.” Julia clamped a hand over her mouth. Sunglasses at night. The man in the blue car who tried to get her to pull over.
“What’s wrong, babe?”
Julia jumped from the swing and clasped the swing’s chain for support. “I’ve seen that man. Ryder, I told you about him after the break-in at my house.”
Ryder and Rafe both shot to their feet and peppered her with questions. She told Rafe about driving home from her last class of the semester and the man in the dark blue sedan who tried to get her pull over for a flat tire that didn’t exist.
Circumstantial Memories Page 14