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“Five should be enough.”
She nods, and I shut the door and take the chips to Penny. She tips the cup to her lips and takes a chip, and it clicks off her teeth as she shuts her eyes.
“God, that tastes good. Water is amazing, isn’t it?” Her eyes tear up as she opens them. “I spilled the canteen in the cave. Ifumbled and it spilled, but I told myself not to panic because Bruno would come back. I had no idea what happened, but he’d come back. Then he didn’t and…”
I take her hand and grip it while tears roll down her face.
“Now he’s dead,” she says. “Part of me wants to leap on that as an excuse. Down there, in that pit, not remembering what happened, with everything fuzzy, I don’t think I actually realized that he attacked me. I’m not sure what I thought. It was such a muddled mess. Somehow, we must have come into this cave, and then I fell, and he’d gone for help. Now, knowing he died, I keep thinking oh, good, he didn’t abandon me. There was a reason. Then I remember he’s the one who put me there and…”
She starts to shake, eyes shining with rage as her fingers tighten around mine. Her voice lowers and she whispers, “I’m glad he’s dead.” Then her eyes widen. “No, I don’t mean that.”
“He did a horrible thing to you, even if he intended to go back.”
She’s quiet for a moment before she says, “Did he know he was dying?”
I realize what she’s asking. I could lie. I don’t. “Yes.”
“And he still didn’t tell you about me.” It’s a statement, not a question.
“No.”
She leans back, closing her eyes and releasing my hand. “All right. I do mean it. I’m glad he’s dead.”
“I don’t blame you.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The case seems as if it should end here. We know who attacked Penny and who put her in that cave and left her to die. Bruno. Who is dead. Except, if I were talking to a crown attorney, they’d tell me—correctly—that I only have enough evidence for part two and three of that solution.
Based on Penny’s testimony, we know Bruno left her in the cave. The crown would want proof, but I’m sure I can lift prints from the water canteen and wrappers and even the cave walls if I need to. We also know Bruno didn’t save her when he had the chance—he knew he was dying and the only thing he told me was that he’d been pushed off a cliff.
That leaves an unresolved question of who hit Penny. I think it was Bruno. Penny thinks it was, too. It makes sense. He finds her at the camp. They talk, and he comes up with an excuse for why he’s there. She relaxes and turns away, and he hits her.
That is logical. But without any proof, even her testimony, a defense lawyer could easily argue that a third party hit her. A random third party? That’d be a tough sell. But it wouldn’t be random, would it? Because we already know that someonepushed Bruno off that cliff. Someone that he met with again the night before he died: his partner in stealing Mark’s claim.
Bruno’s partner is here in town. They were conspiring with Bruno to steal that claim. Then everything went to hell. First, Mark’s wife showed up. Was that before Penny? Isthatwhy Penny was attacked? Not because Penny saw the mining operation—she still doesn’t even know what it is—but because Bruno or his partner had just killed Denise, and Penny was about to see her dead body?
Someone hits her over the head. They argue about what to do with her. Bruno puts her in a virtual prison while they figure it out. Then the partner realizes Bruno is a liability—stealing a claim is one thing; murdering one woman and confining another is a whole different level. Partner pushes Bruno off the cliff, only he survives, so they meet up outside Haven’s Rock to negotiate. We appear and the partner runs back to town, where we lose them. Bruno dies, and the secret is safe… until Penny is rescued.
Penny needs a full-time guard, and I’m not trusting anyone other than myself, Dalton, and Anders for that.
Anders handles guard scheduling. That was part of his job in Rockton, where he was in charge of the militia, which will continue here.
We move Pierre to the prison cell in the town hall, where we can post a guard at the front door and lock Pierre inside.
Once that’s done, I have two more things to tackle. A clue I’ve overlooked, plus a tip from something Penny said.
I zoom back to the clinic.
“Hey,” Dalton says, looking up from his book.
“I need to ask Penny something,” I say. “I know April wants her resting, but it’ll only take a moment.”
“Since I’m not April, I’m not going to stop you.”
I slip past him with a squeeze on his shoulder. When I open the door, Penny is lying flat in bed with her eyes closed. I hesitate in the doorway.
Her eyes open. “I’m not sleeping. I did quite enough of that. Come on in.”
