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Jenna gaped at him and tried to remember pertinent details of the last two weeks. What did her accident have to do with a missing grandmother? Enquiries on the other man, John Helms, had been superficial at best, and her deputies would be working on his case the following week. Worried there might be a link to the disappearances, she chewed on her bottom lip in an effort to make sense of Kane’s reasoning. A flood of customers drifted out of the restaurant and she spotted Mayor Rockford and his wife coming toward the foyer. She nodded at the couple and the mayor paused to speak to her.
“I gather Duke Walters is keeping the peace over at the dance again this evening?” Mayor Rockford smiled indulgently.
Jenna returned his smile. “Yes, he is. I prefer to keep him out of the cold if possible.”
“Yes, yes, he is forever singing your praises for being considerate.” Rockford pulled his wife’s hand into the crook of his arm and patted her fingers. “Well, I better get my lady out of the cold too. Goodnight, Sheriff.”
“Goodnight.”
Jenna waited for them to leave then pushed away from the wall to move closer to Kane to avoid anyone overhearing her. “I’ve told you everything that happened but I’ll indulge you again. Sarah Woodward came by and made a missing persons’ report about her grandmother. I sent the deputies out to the local guesthouses, banks, and post office to make general enquiries. When we couldn’t locate her, we took her photo around to some of the ranches in the immediate area as well, just in case she’d decided to use an alias.”
“I gather you didn’t all investigate together?” Kane flicked a glance over her shoulder at the parking lot, then moved his attention back to her. “Which ranches did you visit?”
“The ones on my side of town. We did a door-to-door and covered all of them. Many of the ranchers I know personally, including Parker Lom, the Daniels, and old Zack Smith. His place is way out in the hills and he hasn’t had anyone dropping by his place for years.” She had the odd feeling he was interrogating her, and her guard went up. “I had a coffee with Parker, and Zack took me out to show me the new bull he purchased. Everyone I met was friendly and I wasn’t threatened.”
“Daniels as in Pete Daniels’ family? The two guys you mentioned at Aunt Betty’s?”
“That’s right, Pete’s brothers. They own the ranch.” She shrugged. “Pete isn’t into raising cattle or horses and has a place in town but spends the odd weekends helping out at the ranch.”
“So why go out there? Deputy Daniels would have recognized Mrs. Woodward if she’d been working for him.”
“Pete was with me and we dropped by to ask his brothers if Mrs. Woodward had come by looking for work. Like I said, Pete lives in town, he could have easily missed seeing her.” Trying to keep her voice steady, she took a casual stance. “I didn’t see anything unusual when I visited and they acted as laid-back as usual.”
“Okay, Rowley mentioned Rockford caused a problem at the station before you released him. Tell me what happened. Right from the arrest.”
“Rowley got a call around nine from the manager about a fight in the card room. I met Rowley here and we dealt with the problem. Three men under the influence and causing trouble. Those three spend more time in the lock-up than most of the troublemakers in town. I separated them and kept them in custody overnight after Josh Rockford accused Billy Watts of stealing. Rockford tried to throw his weight around, threatened to call his father and have me fired. He does the same song and dance every time I arrest him. He might be a loudmouth but I don’t believe he is a threat. I doubt he has the guts to throw a punch and is more likely to run to daddy to complain.” She sucked in a deep breath and let it out with a sigh. “I’ve run every scenario through my mind and come up blank. I honestly believe I have dealt with everyone fairly; this attempted murder theory you have makes no sense at all.”
“I don’t agree. From what I saw, and the facts from the accident scene, it was a deliberate attempt on your life. I intend to find the culprit and discover the motive.” Kane lifted his square chin toward a group of men heading out of the bar. “Heads up.”
The patrons of the Cattleman’s Bar gave them little trouble. The five or so intoxicated men strolled by, climbed into the cabs, and vanished into the night. They waited for everyone to leave the building or take the elevators upstairs to their rooms before heading out into the crisp, dark night.
Alton turned to Kane. “I’m going inside to use the bathroom then I’ll head out the back door and come back around the front to check for any stragglers.”
“Rowley and Daniels should be covering that area.” Kane’s lips formed a thin line.
She patted him on the arm. “Stop being so overprotective. I’m a big girl and I can pee on my own.”
Sixteen
After using the restroom, she moved through the deserted foyer and headed out the back door. She shivered at the icy chill and followed the gravel pathway winding through ornamental shrubbery, heavy under a blanket of snow. Turning a corner into shadows, she glanced up but the area was so dark she had difficulty making out the posts for the lights usually illuminating the area. She made a mental note to report the problem to the manager and reached for the flashlight on her belt. Finding the space empty, she cursed under her breath. She must have lost the damn thing from her belt in the accident and failed to notice it missing. Never mind. Ahead, the snow-dusted pathway showed which direction to head, and the well-lit carpark would be a few minutes away.
She turned another corner and heard the crunch, crunch, crunch of footsteps behind her. Moving to one side of the path, she waited for the person to emerge from the shadows. “Rowley, is that you?”
The footsteps stopped and no reply came out of the night.
Heart thundering in her chest, she lifted her jacket and rested one hand on the butt of her Glock. Snow fell, hitting her face like butterflies’ wings, but apart from voices in the distance, not a sound came from the pathway. Drawing a deep breath, she edged her way along the path in the direction of the parking lot, and the only noise she heard was her pulse throbbing in her ears. Her footsteps sounded loud in the still night and maybe she had been mistaken. The accident has shaken me up more than I realized.
Keeping her hand firmly on her weapon, she turned and moved along the path. The garden appeared sinister at night and snow-piled bushes stood out dark and menacing like gargoyles waiting to pounce. Darkness greeted her around each bend and the winding trail seemed endless. Fear had her by the throat and the sheer stupidity of being scared of the dark alarmed her.
Convinced she had allowed her imagination to get the best of her, she turned the next corner and marched toward the parking lot. The end of the pathway could not be much further away and both Daniels and Rowley would be close.
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
Terrified, she spun around to face the danger but heard nothing. She turned again and edged her way further along the trail.
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
Sliding the Glock from the holster, she peered into the darkness but only shadows moved in the small breeze. “Is somebody there? This is Sheriff Alton. Come out and show yourself. I’m armed.”
