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“No.”
“I fell in love with Tate when we were schoolkids. He was chubby with an overbite and was ruthlessly teased by the other boys, but I saw something special in him. I knew he was destined to become a leader.” There was a self-satisfied expression on her face, as if being the wife of a small-town mayor had been her ultimate goal in life. “We’ve been married twenty-five years, and he’s always been a wonderful husband and father. But he can be ridiculously overprotective.”
“Overprotective of you?”
“Of me. Of Sunny.” She nodded toward the front window, where the morning sunshine was shimmering against the fresh layer of snow. “And this town. He takes his job as mayor very seriously. Sometimes too seriously.”
“I’m not sure I understand.”
Jolene stepped closer, lowering her voice as if sharing a secret. “I heard the rumors that Tate has been attempting to. . . to urge your friend to leave town.”
“You mean Kaden Vaughn?”
“Yes, I believe that’s his name.”
Lia felt a surge of anger. Kaden had not only been kicked out of the motel but his tires were savagely slashed. That wasn’t a harmless urge. It was a blatant threat.
“I’ve heard the same rumor.” Lia allowed the words to come out in a cold voice. “The mayor has been spreading vicious lies about Kaden.”
Jolene parted her lips, pretending to be shocked by the accusation. “Hardly vicious,” she protested. “And it’s only because he’s worried that the discovery of the skeleton will stir up our town’s recent unpleasantness. No one wants a pack of reporters returning to write endless stories about another victim of the Pike serial killer. We all just want to return to our quiet, peaceful existence.”
Ah. So that was how Jolene was going to dismiss any need to investigate the skeleton. No doubt she’d also try to pin the death of the judge and Drew’s accident on the killer if he wasn’t already dead. Again. It seemed unlikely he’d crawl out of his grave a third time.
“Zac was convinced they’d found all the victims,” she reminded the older woman.
Jolene clicked her tongue. “He closed the case so he could leave town to be alone with his wife.”
Lia scowled. “No one can question Zac’s loyalty to his job.”
“That doesn’t mean he can’t make mistakes.”
Lia quashed the urge to continue to defend her friend. Or to point out that the Pike killer hadn’t been in the area at the time Vanna disappeared. Jolene wasn’t there to debate the truth of what happened. She was there to convince Lia to get rid of her temporary houseguest.
“Kaden isn’t in Pike to make a documentary,” Lia said. “So there’s no need to worry.”
Jolene clicked her tongue. “It doesn’t matter why he’s here. His presence is disruptive.”
“To you? To your husband?”
Jolene turned away, her profile tight with frustration. “I don’t watch much television, but according to my daughter, Kaden Vaughn is something of a star. The fact he’s in this small town is certain to attract attention. Especially with those nasty tabloids that are always looking for some scandal. It would be better for all of us if we could avoid publicity. At least for now.”
“Even if Kaden left Pike, that wouldn’t mean we won’t have reporters around. The boys did find a skeleton.”
“Ancient history that is best forgotten. It’s time for healing, not dwelling on our unfortunate past.”
“What if it isn’t connected to the Pike serial killer? Don’t you think we should discover what happened to the poor woman before we dump her bones in an unmarked grave?”
“If it wasn’t the Pike killer, I’m sure it was nothing more than a tragic accident. Or, more likely, a suicide.”
Lia briefly wondered if Jolene was coached by her husband on what to say, or if she’d come up with her own version of dismissing the potential murder of a young woman.
“An accident just like Drew Hurst and Judge Armstrong?”
“Exactly.”
Before Lia could respond, the door was shoved open and Sunny poked her head into the store.
“Mom, are you coming?” Her dark curls were tumbled from the morning breeze and her cheeks were rosy. She was wearing a red designer coat that must have cost a small fortune. “I want to finish up our errands so I can go visit Drew this afternoon.”
