by B. J Daniels
He noticed that she hadn’t looked at her niece as she’d said it. Clearly, she didn’t like the fact that he wasn’t leaving town. Finishing off his lemonade, he put down his glass and rose.
“I would appreciate you letting me know when you hear from Stacy. It will save me from tracking her down. And I should probably warn you—I don’t give up easily.” He sighed. “Actually, I never give up. It’s a personality flaw.” He picked up his Stetson and turned the brim in his fingers for a moment. “We’ll be talking again soon.” Dana started to get to her feet. “Please, don’t get up. I can show myself out.”
He gave them each a nod and strode from the room, knowing he wouldn’t be hearing from either of them. He was going to have to find Stacy Cardwell on his own.
* * *
Ella looked at her aunt as she listened to the detective drive away. She hadn’t moved from her spot at the table. She’d hardly breathed.
“It probably isn’t as bad as it sounds,” Dana said, but Ella had noticed the way her aunt had dropped back into her chair as if relieved to have the man gone as much as she was.
“My mother really never told you anything about Marvin Hanover?” she asked her aunt.
Dana shook her head. “Stacy and I were hardly speaking at the time, other than to argue about the ranch. She’d already been married at least one time by then...”
“I don’t know what to do,” Ella admitted. “It’s bad enough that my mother took off the moment she heard that a detective wanted to talk to her about the man’s death.” She could see that even Dana was having a hard time coming up with something positive to say. With a sigh, Ella pushed herself up from the table. “The longer she stays away, the worse it will look. I have to find her before he does.”
“Why don’t we talk to Hud first?”
“Are you sure you want to involve him in this?” She could tell that her aunt didn’t want to involve him any more than Ella did. Otherwise, wouldn’t she have mentioned that a cold-case homicide detective had called looking for Stacy?
“He’ll be upset if he finds out we kept this from him,” Dana said. “The detective will probably go to him anyway. But maybe not for a while.”
Ella smiled at her. “That will give me some time to find Mom and get her back here, if possible. Anyway, there’s nothing Uncle Hud can do,” she said. “Unless he knows where my mother’s gone.” She studied her aunt for a moment. “Unless you do.” She watched Dana swallow, eyes lowered.
“There might be one place,” her aunt said as she lifted her gaze. “There’s a woman Stacy knew in high school. I think they’ve kept in touch. The woman called her a few months ago. She lives in Gardiner. Her name is Nora Cline. I don’t have any more information than that, I’m afraid. You could call her.”
She shook her head. “If my mother is there, I don’t want her knowing I’m on my way.”
“You’re assuming Stacy’s running from the law.”
Ella let out a bark of a laugh. “That’s exactly what she’s doing, and I think we can both guess why.”
Her aunt shook her head adamantly. “Stacy has had her problems with men over the years, but she wouldn’t...” Dana’s gaze met hers. “You can’t really think that she’s capable of murder.”
Ella figured Dana knew her sister as well as anyone. Look how Stacy had reacted to the phone call. She’d acted impulsively. It used to be her go-to reaction—especially when she was in trouble, from what Ella had heard. She gave her aunt a hug. “I’ll call when I know something.”
* * *
Waco drove down the road to a pull-off where he could see anyone coming out of Cardwell Ranch. He was no fool. He’d known that Dana had been trying to get rid of him by sending him to a motel miles from the ranch.
He didn’t have to wait long before a pickup came roaring out and turned north toward Bozeman. He saw a flash of blond plaited hair and grinned. Just as he’d been betting with himself, it was Ella Cardwell.
He started his truck. Unless he missed his guess, she was going after her mother.
Waco had learned early on in his career to follow his instincts. It had gotten him far. Right now, his instincts told him that the daughter would go after Stacy Cardwell. Either Ella had an idea where she might be, or, like him, she was looking for her.
He was about to find out. His cell phone rang. It was Hitch. He picked up as he started down 191, going after the pickup that had come from the ranch.
“Just checking in with you. I’m going to notify the family.”
He smiled. “Great.”
“I thought I’d stop by,” Hitch said, making his smile grow even wider. She couldn’t resist an interesting case.
“Good idea. Let me know how it goes since I’m in the process of following the suspect’s daughter, hoping she’ll lead me to Stacy.”
“Stacy is...gone?”
“On the run, I’m betting.”
Hitch sighed. “Okay. After I notify the next of kin, I’ll probably step back from this case. Unless you need my help for anything.” Clearly, this case had gotten under her skin, too.
He chuckled as he disconnected, keeping the pickup in sight as Ella continued down the canyon to where it opened into the Gallatin Valley. He found himself thinking about the young ranch woman in the vehicle ahead of him. He’d always been a pretty good judge of character. He’d seen intelligence in her eyes, strength and determination—all things that would make her keep whatever she learned from him. If she could, Ella would try to save her mother.
But did Stacy need saving? That was the question. Given the time frame of the Cardwell Ranch remains found in the well and Stacy’s missing husband ending up in one, it looked suspicious. Add to that the fact that Stacy had taken off after his call—a telling sign. The woman had something to hide. He just had to find out if it was murder.
Chapter 6
When Mercedes “Mercy” Hanover Davis heard the news, she let out a bloodcurdling scream that set all the dogs in the neighborhood barking.
Hitch was used to dealing with a wide range of emotions when faced with delivering bad news. As coroner when she’d started, and now medical examiner, she was often the one who notified the next of kin that a loved one had died. She’d caught fainters before they hit the floor, administered to those in shock and consoled the heartbroken who’d dissolved into tears.
But Mercy’s scream, followed by a string of oaths, was a new one for her. The woman beat the wall with her fists for a moment before she turned to Hitch and demanded, “What about his money? What about my father’s money?”
For a moment, Hitch could only stare at her openmouthed as she tried not to judge. She’d offered to let the family know about Marvin’s remains being found since Waco’s number one suspect was a runner he needed to track down. At least, that was her excuse. Everything about this case was interesting and getting more so by the moment.
Now, standing in the doorway of the youngest daughter’s apartment, Hitch reminded herself that everyone handled grief differently. “Your father’s money?” That was definitely not the question she’d been expecting.
“Yes,” Mercy snapped before going off again on another tirade. She was a buxom woman in her mid-to late-fifties with a tangle of brown hair and small, color-matched eyes. Right now, her mouth appeared too large for her face.
Since the door had opened, all Hitch had been able to inform Mercy of was that her father’s remains had been found. Nothing else. Now she asked, “Are you interested in knowing where he was found or how long—?”
“You said remains. You didn’t say body. So I assume he’s been dead for a long time. Let me make a wild guess. More than thirty years. Duh. That’s when he disappeared. That’s when that woman killed him. We all knew she’d only married him for his money. She’d said he’d abandoned her. Ha!”
Hitch knew the woman was referring to Stacy Cardwe
ll. She’d been disappointed to hear from Waco that Stacy had taken off after his call. She hadn’t spoken to Ford yet today. She suspected not all of the family knew what was going on.
After she notified the rest of the Hanover family, she had to let this case go. It wouldn’t be easy, though. Jewelry? Money? “I will be informing your brother and sister after I leave here,” Hitch said.
Mercy made an impatient gesture. “Don’t bother. I’ll tell them. But this won’t come as a surprise. What I want to know is if you found the money with his remains, or if that woman got away with not only murder—but also the rest of my father’s fortune and my mother’s jewelry.”
* * *
Waco followed Ella into Bozeman. She sped through the bustling city and got on the interstate heading east. He followed at a distance far enough that he didn’t think she would spot a tail and wondered where they were headed. His hope was that she would take him straight to Stacy. It would certainly save him a lot of time, and yet he didn’t mind the chase. Just as long as it ended with him solving the crime and bringing justice to the dead man in the well.
His phone rang. He quickly accepted the call on the hands-free Bluetooth. “Hey, Hitch.”
“Thought you’d want to hear what happened when I let Mercy Hanover Davis know.”
He laughed as she told him, not surprised. “From what I’ve found out about the deceased, Marvin Hanover had been a loathsome, though wealthy, bastard. Someone probably would have killed him eventually anyway. But the money and jewelry issue is interesting.”
Marvin had been considerably older than Stacy and wasn’t known for his good looks. Waco made a mental note to find out what had happened to his estate. With Stacy annulling the marriage, he doubted she’d gotten much, if anything.
He was looking forward to talking to her, curious why anyone would settle for anything less than love. Did money really make the difference? Or had it been about security? Either way, it was a bad deal. Not that true love—if it even existed—was easy to find. He knew that firsthand.
“I’m going to notify the rest of the next of kin,” Hitch said. “Can’t wait to see what kind of reaction I get from them.”
As he disconnected, Waco smiled. He and Ella had left the lush valley surrounded by pine-studded mountains to cross the Bozeman Pass. The highway had been cut through the mountains along a creek. As he topped out and dropped off the pass, he saw the blink of the right-hand signal on the pickup far ahead of him.
Ella was exiting the interstate at Livingston. As he followed her, he wondered if this town was where she would lead him to Stacy. But she turned right again, this time heading south through Paradise Valley toward Gardiner and Yellowstone Park.
He felt his pulse quicken at the thought of finally coming face-to-face with Stacy Cardwell. If anyone knew exactly how her husband had ended up at the bottom of that abandoned well, he had a feeling it would be her.
But then he thought of Ella. How well did she know her mother? What would it do to her if she found out that her mother was a killer? Was she ready to have her heart broken?
He couldn’t help but wonder where this case was going to take not just him but Ella, as well. Not that it mattered. He was buckled in for the ride. He hoped Ella was, too, because if the prickling at the back of his neck was any indication, things were going to get ugly and soon.
* * *
Mercy stood at the window, watching the medical examiner leave. She hugged herself, suddenly aware that she was shaking all over. Her father was dead. His remains had been found. And maybe the money and jewels would be found.
She felt a surge of anger and righteousness. Now Stacy Cardwell would be arrested and go to prison for her crimes.
That thought gave her little comfort. What about the money? Had Stacy taken it, spent it all? Was it gone? Or was it still wherever her father had hidden it? Was there still hope?
She pulled out her phone and called her brother.
“Lionel,” she said before he could hang up. “The old man’s remains have been found.” For a moment, she thought she hadn’t spoken quickly enough. It was unusual for her brother to even take her call, given the animosity between them. Even stranger that he seemed to still be on the line.
“Who told you that?”
“The medical examiner was just here. I’m sure she’s on the way over to tell you and Angeline. Maybe you should prepare her. I wouldn’t want this to kill her.”
Lionel made a dismissive sound. “We’ve all suspected that he was dead for years. I really doubt Angeline is going to keel over at the news. Maybe it would be a blessing if she did.”
Mercy cringed even though she’d never been close to her older sister. “That’s pretty cold even for you, Lionel.”
“You aren’t taking care of her and watching her slowly die each day,” he snapped.
“What happens now?” Mercy asked, cutting to the real purpose of her call.
“I have no idea. I have to go.” With that, he hung up.
She stared at her phone before angrily calling her boyfriend. He answered on the third ring.
“He’s really dead,” she said into the phone without preamble.
“Who’s dead?” Trevor didn’t sound all that interested.
“My father. They found his remains. Now they will finally arrest Stacy Cardwell and we’ll find out about the money before it’s too late. I’m sure it’s too late to find my mother’s jewels.”
“I thought you said Stacy Cardwell didn’t have the money or the jewels.”
“She hasn’t lived like she has it, but maybe she’s been sitting on it all this time in her cabin at the ranch.” Even as she said that, Mercy knew it didn’t make much sense. Who would sit on a fortune all these years?
“So have the police arrested her yet?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. It should be in the news soon, I would imagine.”
“How are things at the house with your brother and sister?” Trevor asked.
“Do you even have to ask? Lionel won’t do anything, and Angeline is too sick to do anything. Someone in this family needs to find that money.”
“I have to go,” Trevor said. “Talk to you later.” And, like Lionel, he, too, was gone.
Mercy felt a sense of desperation as she put her phone away. But what could they do other than wait to see what the police did about this?
She told herself that there was hope for the first time in a long time. Their father’s inheritance had run out. There wasn’t much to sell off anymore except the house—in spite of the fear their father’s fortune was hidden somewhere inside it.
Mercy scoffed at that. They’d all searched the house, even opened some of the walls. The money hadn’t been there.
She tried to hold out hope that Stacy would reveal everything she knew to save herself.
Mercy grabbed her purse, no longer worried about running up more credit-card debt. Her father had taken his secret and his money to his grave. Until now. She had a good feeling that being broke was behind her. It made her want to go shopping.
* * *
Ella parked in front of the small stone house just off the main highway into Gardiner. She’d found the address online. What had struck her was the fact that she’d never heard her mother ever mention Nora Cline. As far as she’d been able to tell, her mother had no close friends—at least, none that Ella had ever met. Stacy had seemed content on the ranch with her sister and daughter.
Now it made her wonder if her mother had a secret life—one she’d lived in the wee hours of the night. Or maybe on those mysterious days when she’d disappeared.
Ella feared that her mother’s secrets were about to come out. How devastating would they be for not just her but the entire family?
Sitting in front of the small house in Gardiner, she watched the windows for a moment, waiting for the front curtain to move.
It didn’t. The ranch pickup her mother had taken was nowhere to be seen. But maybe it was hiding in the old garage behind the house—just as her mother was hiding inside this house.
The curtains still hadn’t moved. As she got out, she could hear the sound of traffic and the squawk of a crow in a nearby pine tree. The crow watched her with glittering dark eyes as she walked up to the front door and knocked.
From inside the house, she heard movement. A moment later, the door opened. The woman standing in the doorway looked vaguely familiar, as if they had crossed paths before. About the same age as her mother, Nora Cline looked to be in her midsixties, with laugh lines around her warm brown eyes and her mouth. Her gray hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She wore a bright-colored caftan that floated around her bare feet. She looked like a person who was comfortable with the woman she’d become. Ella had to wonder if her mother would ever be.
She glanced past Nora into the small house. It was decorated in bright colors, much like the woman, from the paintings and posters on the walls to the furnishings. “Is Stacy here?”
Nora blinked. “Stacy Cardwell?”
“My mother,” she said, meeting Nora’s gaze.
“Ella! Of course. I should have recognized you. But I haven’t seen you since you were a child. Come in.” She stepped aside to let her enter, but Ella stayed where she was.
“I need to speak to my mother.”
“I’m sorry. She isn’t here.” Nora was frowning, squinting into the bright summer day outside. A steady stream of tourists could be heard from one street over since the entrance to Yellowstone was just across the Gardner River. “Did she tell you she would be here?”
Ella studied the woman, wondering why it had been so many years since she’d seen her mother’s friend. She couldn’t remember her mother ever bringing anyone to the ranch. When Stacy disappeared for days at a time, was that when she visited her friend? Did she have other friends she kept even more secret than Nora? “When was the last time you saw her?”
