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Van’s head came up, his expression brightening. “My anger issues actually made us money.”
“Well, they certainly made it easier to track you.” Anna sat back, seemingly more comfortable with this part of the story. “So I figured out you were close to Mr. Dean when I searched arrest records in the Midwest and your name came up three times as the man who bailed him out. I was actually looking to see if you had been arrested, but some of those places keep excellent records and even had your driver’s license on file. So I knew you were alive and that all I had to do was find Mr. Dean and you would likely be there. I’m going to admit. I kind of thought you were a couple.”
“They kind of are,” the sheriff said with a lopsided smile. “I mean here in Bliss they are.”
Anna’s eyes went wide. “Is this what they were whispering about up at that lodge? I can’t tell if they’re talking about threesomes or aliens because sometimes I’m certain they’re talking about aliens. A man wouldn’t let me ski through part of the cross-country course because of mating rituals.”
“It’s the Neluts,” Elisa said like it was a perfectly normal thing to say. “It’s their wintertime mating. You do not want to interrupt that. It’s messy. My dad saved you some serious dry-cleaning bills.”
Oh, she was going to fit right in here. “Relationships are different in Bliss. Van and I have been best friends for years, and now we share this gorgeous woman. That’s all. How did you track us to Bliss?”
“I asked the sheriff in Oklahoma if he had any idea where you’d gone and he told me the last he’d heard you were in a town called Bliss, Colorado,” Anna replied. “Apparently Sheriff Wright called him to make sure you weren’t some hardened criminal.”
Nate had the grace to flush. “I had to ask.”
“I knew you had my records. I didn’t realize you called around,” Van said with a frown.
“Bliss is a delicate place,” Nate admitted. “I had to make sure you wouldn’t throw off that balance. And you didn’t. If it helps, I vetted your brother, too. And Ian Taggart, and if he hadn’t turned out to be a tolerant man who doesn’t mind donating to local charities, I would have found a way to keep him out. You’ll be happy about that the next time some asshole shows up thinking he can change us for the better.”
He probably would. “So you decided to come to Bliss yourself.”
“Well, no one would talk to me.” Anna’s brown ponytail shook. “I found employment records for the Elk Creek Lodge, but you’d moved on. I didn’t think you had gotten far though. Van started working full time at Trio, so I knew you would be somewhere close. And I love to ski, so I packed up my husband and the kiddo and we checked into the lodge. I spent a day asking around Bliss and getting nowhere. I was going to come back one last time before we head home, but then the sheriff found me and here I am.”
“What do we have to do to get the money?” Van asked. “Do you need some DNA? I can pull some hair out for you.”
“Van.” Elisa made Van’s name sound like the fiery wrath of hell could come down on him.
“Sorry, baby.” Van sat back.
But he had a point. “How do I prove I’m an heir? I know I should be above taking money from the man who abandoned me, but we could use it. I think John will be using his part for lawyers.”
Nate chuckled at that thought. “He’ll need a good one since apparently the whole thing was caught by your brother’s security camera. They have an excellent tape of that idiot trying to kill you. And it won’t take long to prove he murdered the PI. He’s looking at life.”
“Good,” Van said. “Because I don’t think he would leave us alone.”
“I doubt he’ll be out any time soon. Once he’s arraigned here, Denver will probably be ready for him.” Nate pushed back from the table and stood. “He won’t be bothering anyone for a long time.”
“But we’ll keep tabs on him.” Gemma joined him, closing her notepad. “I don’t usually have to do this. Elisa, you should have shot his ass. It would have gotten you an invite into the club and saved me a whole lot of follow-ups. See, that’s why we shoot sons of bitches here.”
He thought Elisa had handled things perfectly. He turned her way, kissing her cheek. “You were great, baby. You keep right on not killing people you don’t have to.”
“Good work, Leal.” Nate gave her a salute. “Now get to work. It’s your shift.”
“I didn’t even have breakfast,” she groused.
He could fix that. “Van and I will run over to Stella’s and get you some breakfast.”
