Chapter 28
Paradise stood fifteen feet away from the group of officers and paramedics on the scene and hugged herself as the wind-driven
sand stung her legs. Abby stood silently beside her with her auburn hair whipping around her face. The sound of the ocean
should have soothed Paradise, but she was too uncomfortable here in the wind and the dark.
She craned her head to stare for a moment at the brilliant stars, then inhaled the salty tang of the wind and tried to calm
her racing heart. Even though it felt like everything had spiraled out of control today, God felt close in this moment. He
was in control.
Everything had happened so fast. Paradise had been right behind Blake, but they were both helpless to stop the terrible tragedy.
The scene played out in her head over and over. Warren’s wide, panic-stricken eyes, his mouth moving with words she couldn’t
hear, then that final terrible moment when the wind buffeted him and tore him from the railing.
Blake separated from the group and walked toward her. “You okay?”
She nodded. “He’s dead?”
He put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. “Yeah. Broke his neck in the fall.” His voice vibrated with tension. “He was really scared of someone.”
She nestled against his warmth and listened to the steady thump of his heart under her ear. “I couldn’t hear what he said
to you.”
“He said, ‘Look into Ben’s history. The truth is there.’”
“And we have no idea what that means.”
“If he’s right, someone connected to Ben is at the heart of the murders. We have to dig into everyone’s connections. It’s
a big job, but we have direction. Here comes Drew.”
She moved away from the comfort of Blake’s embrace and turned to face her brother. His grim expression tugged at her emotions.
How did he handle being faced with death every time he turned around?
He shot a glance at Abby. “Sorry you had to witness all this. The police want to question each of us separately. It’s standard
policy. They’d like to talk to you first, Blake. You were the tip of the spear, so to speak, the one closest to Warren when
he fell.” Drew pointed out an officer with an unruly mane of black hair. “Go see him. I’ll stay with the girls.”
Blake nodded and headed that way. Would the police think any of them had killed Warren? But no, there were four witnesses
to the accident. The stories would all line up to the truth.
Drew took Abby’s hand. “You look cold.”
“Just tired of the wind.” She bit her lip and moved closer to him. “Do you think they suspect any of us pushed Warren off
the balcony?”
“No, I think the scene is clear enough. They seemed to accept the recounting of events. I was right behind Paradise and saw it all. I gave them Rod’s phone number so they could verify we were pursuing leads in a cold case.
They’ll probably come to the refuge and ask a few questions as well.
People can verify that Warren left work suddenly.
I also told them about his girlfriend who can verify he’d left town. ”
The tension eased out of Paradise’s shoulders. Hopefully this wouldn’t take long and they could get out of this wind and head
for home. “Did you hear what Warren said to Blake?”
“I was too far away, and the wind was blowing through the open patio door. I saw his mouth move, but that’s all.”
She told him what Blake had said. “So it sounds like we need to find out everything we can about your father’s family.”
“It’s a large one with a lot of tentacles in every direction. They’re so involved with politics, it’s going to be a huge pool
of suspects. If we can figure out why Ben and his wife were targeted and your parents, it would help us narrow in on the killer. It’s a puzzle.”
“What do we do next?”
The breeze lifted his light brown hair, and he tried to palm it down. “I think another visit with my father’s family is in
order. I want to meet the other siblings and see what they know. Victoria’s birthday party is Friday. We’ll all go down.”
“I’m not so sure about that. Maybe you should go by yourself.”
“I want you with me. Blake too. We can wander around and see what we find out. It sounds like it will be a big party. I’ll
verify with Duke whether it’s okay to bring you, but I’m sure it will be. I’m also interested in finding out more about Pamela.
Even her own daughter says she was manipulative. Some connection to her could have led to the murders.”
What a tangle of threads to try to unravel.
“The governor is coming on Sunday. It might be worth talking to her about it. Even though she’s the Alabama governor, the Collins family is a powerhouse even in national politics.
And though Warren said to look at Ben’s family, we can’t ignore the other avenues of investigation.
They might know something about Ben’s family. ”
“True enough.”
Blake came back her way. “The detective wants to talk to you.” His warm hand pressed hers. “Just tell him what you saw and
what we were doing. It won’t take long, and we can get out of this wind.”
She headed for the unsmiling detective to get this over with.
Blake let his brothers run ahead of him to the corral at the Dillard Ranch while he walked beside Paradise. The distinct odor
of horse mingled with the scent of newly mown hay from the field to their left. “They were so excited I don’t think they slept
last night. I see Savannah and Simon.” He pointed them out by the barn, where they stood talking to Abby and Quinn.
“Abby’s looking for Drew,” Paradise said. “She must not know he went to talk to Rod at the Bon Secour sheriff’s station.”
The boys reached the corral and stopped to stare at the horses. “They’re bigger than I thought they’d be.” Levi took Blake’s
hand.
“I want to ride that guy.” Isaac pointed out the biggest one, a black gelding. As if the animal understood, the horse clopped
over to bump the boy’s hand with his mane.
Smiling, Abby’s daughter, Quinn, walked toward them and met them at the gate. Her long red hair hung down her back in a braid.
“Come on in and meet the horses. Some people like to start with ponies, but our horses are so gentle. Ponies can be mischievous.”
She opened the gate to let them in, then fastened it behind them.
“Glad you could make it,” Savannah said. “This is Simon’s fourth lesson, and he loves it so much.” She touched Isaac’s hair. “You ready to learn to ride?”
“I’ve wanted to do this since I was a baby.”
That wasn’t far wrong. Isaac had watched horse shows on TV since he was a toddler. Levi hung back, clinging to Blake’s hand.
Though at seven he was the oldest, he wasn’t as daring as his five-year-old brother.
Paradise leaned over and whispered to Blake, “I should have come prepared to ride myself, but I didn’t want to make more work
for Abby and Quinn. I remember my first lesson in this very spot.”
“Next time,” he told her.
Though Quinn was only ten, she was tall with an assertive manner. Blake knew she’d been riding since she was two, and it showed
in her practiced movements bridling and saddling the horses. When all five horses were ready to go, she demonstrated how to
mount and swing their legs up into the saddle. “You’ll all need mounting blocks at first. It’s hard to mount when you’re way
shorter than the horse.” She patted the black horse’s nose. “This is Onyx. He was born at the ranch, and he’s super sweet.”
“I want to try!” Isaac approached the black horse and climbed on the mounting block. He mounted like Quinn had shown them
in one smooth movement. He held hold of the pommel. “Look at me!”
“I see you,” Blake said. “Listen to everything Quinn and Miss Abby tell you.”
“I will.”
Blake kept hold of Levi’s hand and walked with him to a bay mare. “She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” He stroked her nose, and Levi
let go of his hand and did the same.
“Her name is Cinnamon,” Abby said. “She’s a good girl.” She fed the mare a sugar cube, and the horse nickered.
“Ready?” Blake asked Levi, who nodded and approached the block with confidence. He made a false start once, then got his seat
in the saddle. His huge grin warmed Blake.
Simon, Abby, and Quinn got mounted, and Savannah moved outside the corral to watch. The kids began to relax, and Blake wished
his mom could have come to watch. Next time he’d stay home and work so she could watch the boys.
Savannah put one foot on the bottom rail of the fence. “Hez told me what happened a couple of nights ago. That had to have
been traumatic.”
Paradise shuddered. “I keep seeing it in my head.”
“I understand. Hez had a thought this morning. Maybe Warren did business at the local bank where Abby works. She might take
a peek at the records and see if any unusual deposits landed in his account in the past few months. She can’t really give
you any personal information, but she could suggest the police get a subpoena to see the activity. I doubt the police will
probe too much since his death was an accident, but if there’s a hint they could find clues to a cold case, they might do
it.”
Paradise settled on the grass and curled her legs under her. “I thought about that too, and when Abby gets back, I’ll ask
about it. Honestly, she might have already checked. It was a traumatic night for her too.”
Savannah joined her on the ground. “We might as well get comfy. They’ll be riding at least half an hour. You know Abby well.
How’s she dealing with her dad’s death and his involvement in murdering Mary Steerforth?”
“We haven’t talked about it much. She moved in here though.”
“I heard her ex is getting remarried.”
“It hit her hard.”
Blake tuned out the discussion when movement at the barn caught his attention. Someone was inside the structure. A worker,
or something more? He left the women chatting and slipped through the gate. The horses were on the other side of the corral,
and he hurried to the barn before the riders came his way.
Sunlight streaming through the windows lit up the dust motes in the air. He walked through the space, stopping at the horse
stalls along the way, until he got to the office in the back. He and Roger had chatted many times back here, and he’d never
seen the door closed. He twisted the doorknob and a sound came from inside. He eased it open and stared at Lloyd Adams.
Before Blake could react, Lloyd barreled into him and knocked him to the ground. The older man rushed past him, and Blake
jumped up to chase him. He caught a glimpse of the man’s blue jeans as Adams exited the back door. Blake charged after him
and got there in time to see him leap onto a dirt bike and drive off across the open field behind the paddock.
When had Adams gotten out of jail, and why hadn’t they been informed of his release?