Chapter 10
Feeling lighter, Duke left Heather with Suzy and headed back into town. He needed to check in with The Tumbleweed. See if they had any surveillance to confirm that Chrissy had been where she said that she was the night before.
Not like that would extinguish all his suspicions. There’d be no way to know if she’d been in her room all night like she claimed.
Climbing the steps of the little Bed and Breakfast, he walked inside and spotted Ms. Sally sitting in a rocking chair in the living room.
An old walnut desk in the entryway was the only indication the house was actually an inn.
The rest of the space looked like it’d been ripped out of his grandmother’s home and transported to Hillmore—right down to the floral pattern on the dainty furniture.
Ms. Sally offered him a warm smile but stayed seated. Her long gray hair fell past her shoulders and she knitted what looked like a blanket, the needles in her hands moving faster than he’d think possible for a woman of her age.
Sweeping off his hat, he made his way to her and dipped his chin. “Morning, Ms. Sally. How are you?”
“Oh, I’m just fine,” she said, keeping her focus fixed on her knitting. “My knee’s been bothering me, but that always happens this time of year. Tells me I need to get my holiday decorations out soon.”
The holidays always snuck up on him, but if he was being honest with himself, he seldom had a reason to celebrate.
Most years he was on the road, cooped up in a tiny trailer or traveling to the next rodeo.
At one point, life on the road had thrilled him.
But now the idea of having a place to put down roots, a home of his own to actually decorate, sounded enticing.
“I hope you have someone around to give you a hand with that,” he said. Ms. Sally ran the local bed and breakfast on her own. She loved catering to her visitors but no way the older woman should be gathering boxes from God only knew where.
She chuckled. “I manage to find help when needed, but if you’re offering to lend a hand, I’ll never say no to a cowboy.”
He snorted out a laugh. He’d walked right into that and had no one else to blame but himself. “Sure. I can stop by and get whatever you need another time, but right now I had a couple of questions if you don’t mind.”
“Don’t mind at all. Would you like a cup of tea? Maybe a homemade muffin? I baked some blueberry ones earlier. Might even still be warm from the oven.”
“As good as that sounds, I’ll pass for now.” He settled onto the sofa and set his hat beside him. A gray ball of fluff jumped into his lap and kneaded his thigh with sharp claws. He winced, but the fat cat curled into a ball on his lap before he shooed it away.
“Sorry about that. She thinks everyone’s here for her.”
“It’s her home, not mine.” Duke ran his hands over her silky fur. “I wondered if you could tell me anything about a young woman who stayed here last night.”
Ms. Sally frowned. “I can’t disclose personal information about my guests. I’m surprised you of all people would think I would.”
“I’d never dream of asking you to violate anyone’s privacy. But I think one of your guests came to town to start trouble, and I’m afraid she might be responsible for some vandalism at my house last night.”
“Oh, my,” Ms. Sally said, setting her knitting down and scowling. “It’s hard to believe anyone who’s staying here would do something like that. And honestly, I’m not sure how much I can really help you without giving away information that isn’t mine to share.”
He settled against the lumpy cushion, rethinking his strategy. He’d hoped the owner would just tell him what he wanted to know, but that clearly wouldn’t happen. And without a warrant or even interest from the sheriff’s department, he doubted she’d say anything.
“How about this,” he said, scratching the bottom of his chin. “Can you verify a woman named Chrissy Evans rented a room last night?”
Ms. Sally pressed together her thin lips but gave a subtle nod.
“Was she in her room last night around 10:00 pm?”
Another little nod.
“Did she stay there all night?”
“I don’t think it’s up to me to tell a man about the comings and goings of a young woman, no matter how handsome or sweet he is.”
He bit back a sigh and leaned forward, forcing the cat to the floor. “Trust me, all I care about is whether she was in her room last night when someone set fire to my mailbox.”
“Oh, my,” she repeated, this time with a little quiver in her voice.
“If she’s not the person who destroyed my property, then I need to look somewhere else,” he pressed. “When I spoke with her earlier, she told me she was here all night. If you can verify that, then I can cross her off the suspect list and aim my attention where it’s needed.”
“Well, I can’t say with a hundred percent certainty, but I’m pretty sure she was in her room all night.”
“How do you know?” he asked. “Do you have video surveillance to verify it?”
“I don’t have any of that fancy equipment here.” She waved her hand through the air as if the idea of outfitting her home with a security system was distasteful. “Never needed it before, don’t see a reason to change that now.”
“Then how can you be sure she was here all night?”
“I was awake when that pretty little thing went up to her room. She was exhausted and wanted to head right to sleep.”
He bit back his irritation. He didn’t doubt Chrissy had been to her room, the question was whether or not she’d stayed there all night. “And how do you know she didn’t wake up at some point and leave?”
Ms. Sally lifted her slender shoulders. “She was parked in. Unless she wandered around town, she couldn’t get far.”
Deflated, he slumped back on the couch.
“You look disappointed.”
“I guess I am. I would have put money on her being responsible for the arson, but the chances are slim she’d make it out to my place on foot. I might have to talk to her again, try to get some more details about her stay.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’s possible.”
“Why not?”
“Because she checked out about thirty minutes ago. Poor thing was a tearful mess. I hope she drove safe. She had a long way to go to get home.”
Pressure mounted in his head, and he squeezed the bridge of his nose. His number one suspect had an alibi for the night before and now had ducked out of town. Either she’d taken his message to heart and left before the truth about what she did was uncovered, or she wasn’t the one he needed to find.
Suzy fished a file Lane needed from the cabinet and tossed it on her desk. Scanning the information, she got the number he he’d asked for and sent him a quick text.
“Whatcha doing?” Heather asked. She sat in an oversized chair by the fireplace with her feet tucked beneath her and a book in her hands.
“Working.” A pang of sympathy nagged at her gut.
Heather had come all this way to spend time with her brother only to be left behind, watching Suzy complete her mundane daily duties.
She might enjoy her new job, but that didn’t mean it was exciting for someone else to sit and witness. “What are you reading? Anything good?”
“Who knows.” Heather closed the book then tossed it on the little side table. “I can’t focus. It’s a beautiful day and I want to be out exploring this place. Can’t we leave for a little while? I’m sure if we’re together we’ll be safe.”
Heather was only a year or two younger than Suzy, but the slight whine in her voice made her seem so much younger.
But she couldn’t blame her irritation. Heck, she felt confined in these four walls even though sitting at her desk is exactly what she would have been doing anyway.
Something about being told to stay put made sitting inside, waiting for Duke and Lane to make heads or tails of what was happening, maddening.
“Do you ride?”
Heather’s eyes flew wide. “Bulls?”
Suzy couldn’t help but laugh. “Hell no. I never understood why Lane wanted to get on one of those things. I meant horses.”
“Oh, that makes more sense,” Heather said. “I can keep on a trail, if that’s what you mean.”
Grinning, Suzy cleared off her desk. “Wasn’t planning on challenging you to barrel racing, but Lane just bought a few nice mares. We could go out for a little walk with them. I can show you some of the property and we can get some fresh air. What do you think?”
“Do you have extra gloves?” Heather asked. “My coat’s heavy enough but the rest of me might freeze if we’re out there too long.”
“I’ve got you covered. Let’s go.”
Suzy rummaged around the hall closet until she found what they both needed to stay warm. Once they were fully outfitted, she made sure her phone was in her jacket pocket then led way to the barn.
“Can you tack up a horse?” Suzy asked.
“Been a while, but I think I can manage.”
She showed her the tack room before heading down the wide aisle to Lane’s newest crew members. “You can ride Ginger. She’s super sweet. Lane picked her out for Parker.”
Heather snorted. “If Parker can handle her, I think I’m good.”
Suzy chuckled at the idea of her barely-one-year-old nephew riding such a large animal. But if he was anything like his father, he’d be on the pretty horse sooner rather than later. “Let me know if you need help.”
Grabbing what she needed, she ducked into Daphne’s stall. “Hey there, girl. How are you?” She lifted a hand for the animal to sniff before running a palm over her smooth back. “Haven’t seen you in a few days. How do you feel about a little exercise?”
As if understanding the question, Daphne neighed and bobbed her head up and down.
“Perfect. Let’s get you ready.” She lost herself in the familiar task of brushing the horse then placing the saddle pad and blanket on her back. Once the saddle and bit were in place, she led the horse outside and walked her in a circle a few times before tightening the girth.
Heather walked Ginger out and repeated the same process before climbing on the beast’s back. “Lead the way.”
Suzy hopped up and swung her leg over the saddle. “Let’s go behind the house. There’s a stunning view of the mountains.”
“Umm, we’re not riding there, are we? I’m down for fresh air but my skills need a nice, even trail or something.”
“No, it’d be way too cold. I figured we’d loop around the meadow then head back. Not too far.”
“Perfect.”
Suzy took the lead, filling her lungs with the crisp mountain air. It’d been too long since she’d taken a few moments to just enjoy the land, the place she once called home.
A jab of pain nestled in her stomach lining.
Most of the memories of this place were filled with harsh words and mind games.
Growing up with a father who took pleasure inflicting pain had been a mine field, especially without a mother to love her.
Lane stepped in as much as possible to take the heat when their dad was angry, but he couldn’t shield her from everything.
Especially once Lane took off, leaving her alone with a monster.
“Tell me, why are you single?” Heather asked, breaking into her thoughts.
Suzy followed the bend in the narrow trail and stared into the far-reaching pasture beyond.
Light frost dusted the long blades of grass and coated the cattails clustered in a shallow ditch.
As tempted as she was to respond with some generic response about not finding the right guy, something urged her to say more—to dig deeper.
Maybe it was knowing as much as she did about Heather’s ex, or maybe she just wanted to claw out of the mountain of depression that was her dating life.
Either way, she didn’t want to toss out some bullshit that didn’t matter.
“Well, that’s a good question. I’ve had a few relationships, but I always pick the wrong guy.”
Heather snorted out a laugh. “I understand that.”
Suzy glanced over her shoulder and screwed her lips to the side. “Most women usually do.”
“What’s wrong with the ones you’ve gone after?”
“They always leave. No matter how good things are going, there’s something better they run after. A job, a dream, another woman. I’m never enough to keep them around.” The admission weighed on her shoulders. She always thought she’d marry one day, have a family.
But that fantasy slipped further away every day.
“Sounds like you’re finding men who are searching for more, and chances are they’ll never be happy until they settle the demons within themselves.
Find peace first, a relationship second.
At least that’s what I think. I know it sounds hokey, but that’s why I left Mason.
No matter what I did, it wasn’t enough to make him happy.
I woke up and realized I’d wasted years of my life trying to change a man who didn’t want to change himself. ”
“That doesn’t sound hokey at all, but how do you find a man who’s ready to settle down? Isn’t that the age-old question? I mean, honestly, I could make a fortune if I knew that secret. I’m seeing a whole series of best-selling self-help books.”
Heather grinned. “I’d buy one. But what I realized is it’s not about searching for the man who already has his life in order, it’s about getting my own life in order.
Putting together the pieces of my own dreams and being fulfilled with what I choose to have around me.
Whatever happens from there will only bring more happiness, and if that’s a man who makes things better, great.
And if that man walks away, I’ll be fine.
Because I’m still living the life I built for myself. ”
The words hit a soft spot in Suzy’s heart. She’d spent so long thinking she was the problem—the reason why the men in her life either didn’t show up the way they should or didn’t show up at all. Maybe if she shifted her perspective, it’d help her to see herself differently.
Help her build the life she wanted now, no matter who else was in it.
No matter if Duke was in it.
She opened her mouth to respond when a loud pop sounded in the weeds at Heather’s side milliseconds before a blast sent dirt and rocks flying into the air.
Daphne neighed and danced along the path.
Suzy tightened the reins, leaning forward to swipe a reassuring hand over her muscled neck. She calmed her horse just in time to see Ginger raise her front hooves, sending Heather crashing to the hard, cold ground.