Chapter Twelve
Part of Lana just wanted to stay shut inside the ranch house with Cameron and Slater. She wanted to hold on to this peace that settled over her whenever she was with the two of them. But the peace was merely a facade, and she didn’t stand a chance of it being real until she had all the answers about her sister’s murder.
And Slater’s father’s.
One look at Slater, and Lana could see there’d be no peace for him, either. For nearly a year he’d been driven to find the person who’d ended his father’s life, and now he might finally know.
Might .
“My mother could be wrong,” Lana spelled out. Not for the first time, either. She’d been saying variations of that for the past hour since her mother’s bombshell call.
Slater finished reading through the latest text he’d gotten from Duncan and nodded. Yes, he was well aware that anything to do with her mother could end up being a wild-goose chase, but now that the allegation had been made, it needed to be investigated. They had to know if Leonard was truly the person behind Sheriff McCullough’s, Stephanie’s and maybe even Alicia’s murders.
Of course, they couldn’t just go charging in and demanding answers from her father. Nor could they simply send in the cops, because Leonard would just stonewall with his lawyers. No, this had to be done with some finesse, and Lana had known from the moment she’d ended the call with her mother that as Leonard’s daughter, she was their best bet at learning the truth.
Slater hadn’t immediately agreed to that, of course. He wanted her safe, but safe wasn’t going to get them those answers.
“Your mother just arrived at the secure location,” Slater relayed after firing off a text response to Duncan. “It’s Ruston’s apartment in San Antonio, and he’s the one who escorted Pamela there. He doesn’t actually live there anymore now that he’s married and has a baby. He commutes from Saddle Ridge, but he kept the place in case he had to pull some all-nighters on an investigation.”
“Good,” Lana said. “Thank you for arranging that.”
The accommodations probably wouldn’t be up to her mother’s usual high standards, but Ruston was a cop at SAPD, and that meant his apartment would have decent security. Not that Lana expected her mother to be in actual danger and in need of such measures, but still, precautions needed to be taken in case everything Pamela had said was true. If her husband was indeed a killer, then he might also go after a wife who’d revealed what could be his deadly secrets.
“The next step is for us to decide, well, the next step,” Slater continued a moment later.
Yes, they’d discussed this, too, but Slater hadn’t yet approved the plan that Lana had suggested.
“There’s no proof of my father doing anything, nothing to arrest him on,” she reminded him. “And there’s the part about him stonewalling any and all cops who could question him about what my mother claims. But I believe he will talk to me, especially if I frame it as a visit to tell him about some concerns about my conversation with Mom. He’ll want to know what I have to say.”
She hoped. But her father could be unpredictable, and he might very well try to shut down any and all conversations.
“I could just call him and ask for a meeting,” Lana went on, knowing she hadn’t yet convinced Slater this was the way to approach this. “Of course, you’d go with me. Maybe Sonya, too, though it’d probably be best if she waited outside as backup.”
Backup that Lana prayed wouldn’t be needed. She didn’t believe she and Slater would be walking into an actual ambush. She couldn’t imagine her father arranging something like that at his home.
The muscles in Slater’s jaw seemed to be at war with each other. “You really think your father is a killer?” he came out and asked.
It was something she’d been rolling around in her mind, and Lana still didn’t know. “I’m not sure. I think he could be capable of murder,” she admitted.
Slater’s sound of agreement let her know that he felt the same way.
“As you know, he’s ruthless, and I could maybe see him killing to cover up a crime.” She had to try to ease the lump in her throat to get out the rest. “But for Stephanie, that feels different. It would have been premeditated. And for what? Because she’d defied him by getting pregnant with Buck’s baby? That just doesn’t make sense.”
He made another sound of agreement. “Maybe your father had another motive for wanting her dead. For instance, maybe Stephanie was planning on blackmailing him about something. Or she could have been planning some bad publicity campaign to smear him.”
Slater stopped, shook his head. “That doesn’t seem like a strong enough motive, either,” he amended. “Your father seems the sort to fight fire with fire. If Stephanie had threatened him in some way, he could have run his own smear campaign against her. He certainly would have had plenty of ammunition for that.”
“True,” Lana muttered. “And that brings us back to Buck. He had motive to kill Stephanie, and maybe my father isn’t his accomplice. Taylor could be. Now, she’s someone with motive to want Stephanie dead.”
Of course, if Taylor was the accomplice, then that meant Leonard could be innocent. Well, of this particular crime, anyway. That didn’t mean he hadn’t had some part in killing Slater’s father.
She took out her phone, lifting it for Slater to see. “Should I call him and arrange a meeting?” she asked.
Slater sighed. Then nodded.
Lana didn’t waste any time in case Slater changed his mind. She pressed her father’s number and was somewhat surprised when he answered on the first ring.
“Where’s your mother?” her father demanded.
“I’m not sure,” Lana lied. No way did she want to spill over the phone anything her mother had said. She wanted to see her father’s face, to try to gauge if he was lying or withholding something. “What happened?”
Her father cursed. “I have no idea, but she’s not here at the estate. I came home because one of the housekeepers called me and said your mother left with a packed bag about an hour ago.”
That would have been when her mother had driven to meet Ruston, and it didn’t surprise Lana that one of the “housekeepers” had alerted her father. Leonard no doubt had many employees to keep an eye on things.
“Mom called me,” Lana informed him, “and I want to talk to you about some of the things she said.”
“What did she say?” he demanded.
“I’ll tell you when I see you,” Lana insisted right back. “You said you were at the estate?”
“I am, but I want to know what your mother told you,” he snapped.
“Slater and I’ll be there in about thirty minutes,” Lana said, and she ended the call, but not before hearing her father snarl out Slater’s name.
Of course, Leonard tried to call her right back, but Lana declined the call as she went to the crib to kiss Cameron. The baby was asleep, and the moment she and Slater stepped out of the room, the nanny came out from the nursery across the hall and took the baby monitor that Lana handed her. They’d already talked to Joelle, Duncan and the nanny about this possible plan so everything was in place for them to leave immediately for the estate.
Including Sonya.
The deputy saw them coming down the stairs and stood to go with them outside to the cruiser. Slater, Sonya and Lana were already armed, all three wearing shoulder holsters. Lana had put a jacket over hers, but Sonya and Slater had kept theirs visible. She also knew the deputies were carrying backup weapons.
Slater had a quick word with Joelle and Luca, who’d be doing guard duty while they were gone. Which hopefully wouldn’t be long. In an ideal scenario, her father would confess to, well, everything, and Slater could have him arrested. The threat to Cameron could be over and done within an hour.
Lana doubted, though, this would be an ideal scenario.
Her father likely wouldn’t admit to anything, but in his shock over hearing what his wife had said, he might spill something they could use to build a case against him. And if he was innocent, then it would be time to take a harder look at Taylor. Or even Marsh for that matter, since it was possible that he’d been so jealous and outraged about Stephanie being pregnant that he’d snapped and had her killed.
As they’d done on previous trips both here in Saddle Ridge and in Austin, they kept watch, looking for any threats. Unlike those other trips, Sonya was driving in the cruiser with them so she could provide immediate backup if they were attacked along the route. But there were no signs of anyone suspicious, just the usual late-afternoon rancher and farmer type of traffic that would normally be on the road that led to the interstate.
Lana couldn’t shut off her thoughts, and as each mile took them closer to the estate, she realized it’d been over five years since she’d been to her parents’ home. For a good reason. They’d both made it obvious they hadn’t approved of her lifestyle despite her military service giving her father some good press for a daughter “serving her country.” Maybe that had been the difference between Stephanie and her. They’d both rebelled, but her rebellion had been tolerable compared to her sister’s.
“You can still change your mind about this,” Slater said, reaching across the seat to give her hand a gentle squeeze.
She looked at him, and for some reason the skin-to-skin contact made her think of that scalding kiss they’d shared. A kiss that probably would have led to a big where is this going? discussion if her mother hadn’t called. At the time, Lana hadn’t been happy about the interruption, but in hindsight, it was a good thing. The personal discussions would have to wait. As would more kisses.
And she hoped her body understood that.
At the moment, it only seemed to want to spur her to dole out another kiss.
“I won’t change my mind,” Lana answered. “We need to do this.”
Slater didn’t dispute that, but she figured he’d rather be doing this chat alone with her father. Or maybe with Sonya as backup and with Lana tucked away safely at his family’s ranch. It was tempting for her to want the same thing, but there was no way she would let Slater face down her father without her.
As expected, the drive took only a half hour since it was on the outskirts of San Antonio and not directly in the city. Sonya followed the GPS to the massive wrought iron gates that fronted the twenty-acre estate. Every acre and every building on the grounds had been designed to impress. That included the sprawling three-story house that sat at the end of a tree-lined private road.
The gates were already open, letting Lana know that despite her not returning her father’s call, he wasn’t going to deny them entry. Then again, it was possible he kept them open these days since this wasn’t a high-crime area.
Sonya pulled to a stop behind a shiny silver Jag that was already parked in the circular drive, and after taking a couple of deep breaths, Lana looked at Slater, and when he gave her a go-ahead nod, they got out. Like the rest of the house, the porch was massive and spanned all the way across the front of the house. Again, it was meant to impress with the nearly dozen steps leading up to it.
They went to the double doors to ring the bell. The doors opened, though, before she could do that, and she met her father’s steely, narrowed gaze head-on. Yeah, he was not happy.
Her father was dressed in one of his pricey suits, a pale gray one that was nearly the same color as the expertly placed threads of “salt” in his salt-and-pepper hair. She doubted he’d groomed himself for their visit, either. This was his norm.
“This visit wasn’t necessary,” he grumbled. “You could have told me this over the phone.”
Lana opened her mouth to argue that, but then she spotted the woman standing in the foyer behind her father. Taylor.
“What’s she doing here?” Lana asked.
“I came to warn him about Marsh,” Taylor spoke up before Leonard could answer.
Her father huffed, and while he didn’t roll his eyes, it was a close enough gesture to let Lana know he wasn’t happy about Taylor’s visit. Or maybe he was objecting to her accusations. As far as Lana knew, Marsh was still the golden boy.
“Marsh is up to something,” Taylor went on. “I just know it.”
They stepped into the foyer, and Taylor came closer, moving to her father’s side. Really close to his side. So that their arms were touching. It was a little thing, but it seemed...big. And Lana immediately wondered if something was going on with these two.
Were they having an affair?
But she rethought that. Until Marsh had ended things with Taylor only the day before, Taylor had seemed completely obsessed with the man. Still, that didn’t mean Taylor hadn’t had a relationship on the side.
Her father turned to Taylor, and again, it seemed to Lana that something passed between them. Something too intimate for this to be a visit for Taylor to gripe about Marsh.
“Taylor, I need to speak to Lana and Slater,” Leonard said, clearly not inviting Taylor to be part of that conversation. No surprise there, since it would be a chat about things his wife had claimed.
“But I haven’t finished telling you my suspicions about Marsh,” Taylor protested, sounding like a pouty brat. “You need to hear them, Leonard. You need to understand that Marsh could be a dangerous man.”
“I want to hear what you have to say,” he assured her, “but I have to talk to Lana and Slater first.”
Her father’s words didn’t match his expression. Leonard seemed to be ready to get rid of Taylor. However, he didn’t spew out one of his usual tirades that he likely would have to most people. That could be yet more proof they were having an affair.
“I’ll wait for you then,” Taylor insisted, not heading for the door but into the formal living room that was just to their right. The moment the woman flounced in, a housekeeper came in to offer her a drink.
Sighing, her father gave Taylor one last glance and then motioned for Lana and Slater to follow him. He headed in the direction of his office, and along the way, Lana saw a man in a suit who was no doubt one of Leonard’s assistants or lawyers. Maybe even a PI. She didn’t know his name and was thankful when her father didn’t invite him into the massive office with them.
“Where’s your mother?” Leonard demanded the moment they were behind closed doors.
“Someplace safe,” Lana settled for saying.
Her father cursed. “Did you convince her that she wouldn’t be safe here, right here in her own home?”
“No,” Slater and Lana said in unison. It was Lana who continued. “Mom said she was afraid and she wanted to go where she wouldn’t be at risk.”
Leonard stared at her as if she’d just told him the most unbelievable lie he’d ever heard. “What exactly did she say?” he demanded, and now he wasn’t just glaring, he’d also clenched his teeth so tight that Lana was surprised he could even speak.
Lana glanced at Slater, and while they’d already discussed what to say, she wanted to make sure he hadn’t changed his mind about being so direct. His nod indicated he hadn’t.
“Mom believes you might have had some part in Stephanie’s murder—”
“What?” her father howled before Lana got a chance to finish.
“Were you Buck’s accomplice?” Slater came out and asked.
If looks could kill, her father would have ended Slater’s life right then, right there. “No,” he said, his voice a low, dangerous growl. “Of course not. I wouldn’t kill my own daughter.”
“Not even if she was about to cause you a publicity nightmare?” Lana pushed.
Leonard turned that icy look on her. “No,” he repeated. “Not even then, and I sure as hell wouldn’t have worked with a hothead like Buck. I think the only reason Stephanie got involved with him was because she was trying to get back at me for pushing her to marry Marsh.”
That was exactly what Lana had thought he would say. She certainly hadn’t expected him to accept any blame. So that’s why she went ahead and hit him with the next accusation.
“Mom also thought you might have had something to do with Alicia Monroe’s death,” Lana said. “And before you deny knowing who that is, I personally saw a photo of Alicia and you at a party.”
Her father had already opened his mouth, no doubt to interrupt her again with verbal fire, but that caused him to go silent for a couple of moments. “What the hell are you talking about?” But he didn’t give her a chance to respond. “You think because I was at a party with some woman who ended up dead, that I could have killed her?”
Lana shrugged. “Mom seems to think that’s possible.”
He tried to speak, but apparently the muscles in his throat didn’t immediately cooperate. He gutted out some profanity, groaned and went to his desk to drop down in his chair.
“Your mother actually believes that?” he questioned with his face now buried in his hands. “She truly thinks I could have murdered Stephanie and that woman.”
“My father, too,” Slater added.
Lana expected that to ignite a fresh flash of temper in her father. It didn’t. He groaned again and kept his hand on his face for what seemed an eternity. When he finally looked at them again, it wasn’t anger she saw. But rather hurt.
Hurt that he could be faking, she reminded herself.
“Well, it’s obvious someone has brainwashed your mother,” he finally muttered. “I’m guessing you’re not going to own up to it being you? Or you?” he asked, shifting his gaze to Slater.
“It was neither Lana nor me,” Slater said, and now he was the one who paused. Maybe because he didn’t intend to point the finger at Taylor. “Pamela called Lana out of the blue and asked for protection because she was afraid of your involvement in these murders.” Slater stopped again. “Did you kill them?”
“No.” He squeezed his eyes shut a moment and repeated it. “I had nothing to do with murdering my daughter, Alicia or your father.”
“Then why would your wife think that?” Slater pressed.
“I have no idea,” Leonard was quick to say. “Maybe she’s trying to get back at me for something she thinks I did.”
“It must be a pretty bad something for her to accuse you of murder,” Lana pointed out. “An affair, maybe? Or maybe lying to her about knowing exactly where Stephanie was when she was so worried about her?”
Her father didn’t deny either of those things, and judging from the way his jaw set again, Lana thought he might order her and Slater out of his office. He didn’t get a chance to do that, though, because two other things happened.
Slater’s phone dinged with a text. When he showed Lana the screen, she saw that the message was from Sonya, and the deputy was giving them a heads-up that Marsh had just arrived and gone into the house. Moments later, she heard Taylor shout something.
Leonard gave a weary sigh when Taylor’s shouting got even louder, and he stood and went to the door. He’d barely had time to open it when Taylor barged in.
“You aren’t going to believe why Marsh is here,” Taylor blurted.
“I asked her if she was responsible for Stephanie being murdered,” Marsh quickly volunteered. “Because someone left this on my car.”
Marsh held up a grainy picture of what appeared to be Taylor and Buck. If Lana wasn’t mistaken, they seemed to be at the same coffee shop where Taylor had met with her and Slater.
“It’s a fake,” Taylor insisted. “I wouldn’t kill your precious Stephanie,” she snarled with Oh, so much venom in her voice.
Marsh looked at her, and it didn’t take long for his stare to become a glare. “I don’t believe you,” he stated. “You disgust me.”
Taylor whirled toward Leonard as if she expected him to defend her. He didn’t. That only fueled the woman’s anger, and she aimed all of it at Marsh.
“You disgust me,” Taylor fired right back at him. “And I’ll make you pay, Marsh. Just wait and see. You’ll pay for what you just said.”
And with that, the woman stormed out.