Page 35 of K-9 in Pursuit

“HELLO? CHLOE ANDERSON? This is Cameron Douglas.”

Chloe had answered the unfamiliar number Friday morning fully expecting to fend off a scammer. Instead, his call left her momentarily speechless. “Hello?” he repeated.

“One moment, Mr. Douglas.” She signaled to Nadia that she needed to step away from the front desk and ducked into her office. “Thank you for returning my call,” she said.

“I’ve already spoken with the police,” he said. “I can’t tell you anything more about your sister. It’s not a topic I want to discuss.”

“I understand that,” she said. “I’m sorry to bother you, but in going through my sister’s belongings, I found some photographs of you and your family.”

Silence. For a moment, she thought he had hung up on her. “Mr. Douglas?”

“Photos of me and my family? What kind of photos?”

“They were taken with one of those cameras where the picture develops before your eyes. Polaroids? They show you and a woman and two small children, in front of a ranch-style home.”

He swore. “She must have been spying on us. Were these taken before or after the restraining order?”

“I don’t know. You’ve never seen these photographs before?”

“Never. If I had I would have told the police. They were more evidence of the way she harassed me and my family. Why would she have kept them?”

“I was hoping you’d know.”

“I don’t.”

“She didn’t…well, she didn’t try to blackmail you, did she?”

“No. That’s one thing she didn’t do.”

“She told a friend the two of you were still in touch. Was that true?”

“Absolutely not. I’m sorry, Ms. Anderson, but I believe your sister was a disturbed young woman. I never returned her advances. I am a happily married man and she was a child. One of my students. When she tried to force me into some kind of relationship it almost ruined my life.”

“I’m sorry. That must have been difficult for you.”

“It was a nightmare. My wife…she was even more upset than I was. She took the children and moved in with her sister for a few months. We’re just now getting to where things are less tense between us. She wants to believe I was never unfaithful—and I wasn’t. But your sister didn’t make it easy. When she hears about these photos it’s going to upset her all over again.”

“Then don’t tell her.”

“I promised I would tell her everything. I had to, in order to regain her trust.”

“The sheriff already explained to me about your alibi for the night Sharee was killed, so I’m not accusing you of anything. But do you know anyone who would have wanted Sharee dead? Anyone who threatened her?”

“No. I can’t help you. And please, don’t contact me again.”

He ended the call, leaving her holding a silent phone. She sank into her desk chair, shaken by the conversation. Though her parents had shared a general outline of the reasons Sharee had been exiled to Colorado, hearing the details from Cameron Douglas alarmed her. Chloe accepted that Sharee had been self-centered and irresponsible. She was immature and impatient to always have her own way. But to think of her stalking a grown man and fixating on him to this degree—Chloe struggled to reconcile that kind of behavior with the girl she thought she had known for eighteen years.

BRIAN SPENT THE remainder of Friday trying to focus on work. None of the team asked why he had reported to work late, though he was sure they knew, since Connor knew about the meeting with his lawyer and the sheriff’s deputies, and the patrol captain had brought Daisy to the resort in Brian’s absence. Brian spotted Leann and Krista waiting in a lift line and steered clear of them, too. He resisted the urge to call Chloe, but that didn’t stop him from thinking about her. He spent way too much time trying to compose a text to explain why he couldn’t see her for a while, but ended up never sending it. Instead, he headed to the most remote areas of the resort and skied hard. If he ended the day exhausted, maybe he’d be able to sleep.

At the end of a long day, he trudged toward his truck, head down, Daisy trailing along behind. Then Daisy began to bark and raced ahead. He looked up to find Chloe walking toward him. His heart leaped, and he automatically smiled in response to her smile. Then the happy expression faded. “Chloe, what are you doing here?” he asked. “Is something wrong?”

“I was worried something was wrong with you. I’ve been texting all day and you haven’t answered.”

“Sorry. I was really busy.” He had seen her texts, but hadn’t known how to reply. He had promised Ms. Barnes he wouldn’t see Chloe again, but brushing her off in a text was such a jerk move.

“I heard from Cameron Douglas,” she said.

“He answered your email?”