Pushing those disturbing thoughts away, she looked down at her wine glass. “I’m only sipping at it.”
Logan held up a beer bottle for her inspection. “There’s nothing wrong with having a drink on a day like today.” He looked around the room. “I fucking hate funerals.”
“I don’t know anyone that likes them.”
“When I die, just cremate me and spread my ashes up in the mountains somewhere. No services with people pretending to be sad. No emotional blackmail for my friends. Just peace.”
She nodded to Wade, Aaron, Lyle, and George huddled together in a corner talking. “Do you think they’re pretending to be sad? Isn’t Wade your best friend?”
Logan’s eyes narrowed at her question. “He is a good friend. As for pretending, the answer is no. The family seems genuinely distraught at Bill’s death.”
“So they’re not suspects?”
“You know better than that. Everyone is a suspect until we can remove them.” He leaned closer. “Even you, good girl.”
He smelled really good, and she had to swallow hard to speak. “I had opportunity, but I think you’ll find I lacked motive.”
“That would make it the perfect crime. No motive.” He smiled but kept looking around the room speculatively. “But I doubt you’d use a gun if you were going to kill someone. Nope. You’d want to kill them up close and personal. Maybe a knife or a blunt object.”
“Professor Plum in the library with the candlestick,” she said sarcastically. She didn’t like the fact that Logan was so perceptive. It was what probably made him such a good lawmen but it was damn annoying too.
Logan chuckled. “I always liked that game when I was a kid.” His smile fell. “Wade and I used to play it with his brothers.”
She quickly changed the subject. “Mary’s not happy with me. She found out I was the one who gave you the guest list.”
“Then she guessed it. I didn’t say where I received it, but it probably wasn’t hard to figure out.”
Ava peered around Logan to where her sister was talking to George Bryson. Their heads were bent close and the conversation appeared to be intense.
“She was upset because it made George look like a liar.”
“He was a liar,” Logan countered. “The question now is why did he lie? Why is he obstructing my investigation at every turn?”
“What else has he done?” George was looking back and forth between Logan and his nephews.
“He raised holy hell yesterday and this morning about releasing the crime scene. He also refused to turn over financial records for Bryson Development.”
“Can he do that?” Ava watched George stride out of the living room and disappear into the back of the house.
“No, he can’t. Wade agreed to open the records. Looks like you and I will be busy tonight and tomorrow.”
She dragged her gaze away from the place George exited and back to Logan. “You mean it? You’re going to let me continue to help?”
Logan’s lips twisted. “Damned if I know why, but yes. I kind of like the way you think actually. You’re logical and unbiased. You also don’t shirk from boring, mind-numbing investigative work. You’re detail-oriented and there is no way I would have plowed through those statements that fast without you. I’d be working on them for days.”
His praise made her feel warm inside and it had nothing to do with the wine she was sipping.
“I do a lot of boring research for my books. I’m used to it.”
“They’re delivering boxes of paperwork for us to look through.”
“So much for the digital age. Haven’t they ever heard of computers?”
“For all I know they printed them from the computer. The good news is we’ll be able to study them in the comfort and quiet of my home. Pick up a pizza on the way, will you?”
“Yes, my Lord. Anything you say, my Lord.” Ava rolled her eyes. “That oath of office you had me take was cruel. You made me promise to obey you at all times.”
“That was for your protection. If someone had a gun pointed at you, and I said duck, I need you to duck. I don’t want you questioning me.”
“Who on God’s green earth is going to point a gun at me? All I do is look at files.”
“That’s also for your protection. Your parents probably wouldn’t be too happy if I got you killed.”
Ava chewed her lower lip, a shiver of something running up her spine. “Do you honestly think there’s danger here?”
Logan looked at her straight on, a serious expression on his face. “Somebody got shot in the head, Ava. We don’t know why, but we do know they aren’t turning themselves into the police. So we know they don’t want to go to prison. People will do desperate things to keep their deepest, darkest secrets hidden. I don’t want you in the line of fire if they get a mind to do something rash.”
“That doesn’t explain the pizza.”
“That’s just because I’m going to be hungry. I’ll meet you at my house at seven.”
Logan turned and walked toward Wade, leaving Ava alone. She refused to let herself think about any sort of danger involved. She’d talked to policemen in her research and they’d told her the low rate of violence for most of them. Some went their entire careers and never discharged a weapon.
Nothing was going to happen to her. Or anyone for that matter. Whoever killed Bill Bryson had done it for a reason. A reason that probably didn’t include killing anyone else. Corville didn’t have a serial murderer running around it.
That would only happen in one of her books.
* * * *
“You’re making Uncle George nervous. Can’t you lay off of him? He lost his brother for chrissake.” Wade rubbed the back of his neck. “He didn’t kill Dad.”
Logan really wanted to believe that but George Bryson’s behavior post-murder wasn’t helping him in the least. He was putting up roadblocks at every turn, and Logan was already tired of the game.
“Then tell him to stop acting like an asshole and start cooperating. He’s being evasive and difficult.”
Wade winced at Logan’s plain speech. “He’s just upset. There’s no way he would have hurt Dad.”
“So far he’s the last person to talk to your father. Do you know what they were talking about?”
Wade looked away. “No, but it was probably business. You know how Dad was.”
Logan didn’t like the shifty-eyed look his friend had just given him. What was it with the Bryson family? They’d circled the wagons and no outsider was going to be allowed to threaten them.
“I know how Bill was. Business first always.” Logan tossed his beer into a nearby trash can. “Just tell George to start cooperating. No one wants to eliminate him as a suspect more than I do.”
Logan spied Drake out of the corner of his eye and murmured some excuse to Wade, making a beeline for his best deputy.
“Any news on ballistics?”
Drake pulled his hat off and shook his head. “State lab said it’s going to be Wednesday before they have anything to tell us. They’re backed up but trying to make this a priority.”
The state never made a small town’s problem a priority. Drake was his best deputy but hadn’t yet had to deal with the bureaucracy outside of Corville.
“First lesson in dealing with the state lab? Never take your foot off their neck.” Logan grinned. “They’ll feed you all sorts of bullshit and then put your stuff to the back of the line.”
Drake’s mouth turned up at the corners. “I’ll make sure I call tomorrow at least twice.”
Logan slapped Drake on the back. “Put Jillie on it. She’s got contacts she can squeeze. Any good news?”
“I was able to get the last three statements from the guest list. All of them left the wedding early and weren’t anywhere near the Bryson’s when it went down.”
“Corroborating witnesses?” Logan watched as Mary Bryson, Lyle’s new wife, headed straight for Ava who was nursing what appeared to be the same glass of wine she’d
had earlier. Mary had a determined look on her face. Ava’s posture stiffened, her lips pressed together, clearly not happy to deal with her sister.
“They had a few drinks at Tommy’s bar and there were several witnesses including Tommy himself,” Drake replied, his gaze following Logan’s. “Ava Hayworth is a nice girl. I went to school with her although she was a year behind me. She’s smart too. She was president of the Drama Club.”
Logan couldn’t think of a woman less prone to drama than Ava. He liked her calm demeanor even when looking at a dead body. Mary was currently shaking her finger in Ava’s face and a wave of protectiveness came over Logan unexpectedly. Ava rolled her eyes at her sister and looked to be handling things just fine, but he still didn’t like it one bit. Nodding his head at Drake, he headed toward the two women in the corner of the room.
“We just want to know what Sheriff Wright is doing,” Mary was saying. “Just keep us in the loop.”
Ava’s eyes went wide when she looked over Mary’s shoulder and saw Logan. Mary must have seen the change in expression as well and whirled around, her expression going slack.
“Sheriff, how nice to see you. Thank you for paying your respects. The family appreciates it.” Mary swallowed, her face flushed.
Logan took his time answering. “Bill Bryson was a good man. As for whether the family appreciates it, that’s not a factor as to why I’m here.”
“Of course,” Mary nodded in agreement. “Well, I need to check in the kitchen.”
She was gone in a flurry of movement, leaving Logan with Ava.
“I assume you heard that,” Ava stated.
“Enough. She wants you to be sure to feed them information on the investigation?”
Ava sipped her wine. “Yes. Can you believe it?”
If she’d asked that question a few days ago Logan would have said no.
“She was talking to George earlier. I’m guessing he put her up to it.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you planning to do it?”
“No,” she said, clearly offended. “Part of your draconian oath was that I keep my mouth shut about the investigation. But I wouldn’t have said anything anyway.”
Logan chuckled. “Always the good girl. Your sister isn’t going to be too happy with you.”
Ava sighed. “That’s nothing new. She thinks I don’t have any common sense.”
“Do you?” he challenged.
Ava chewed on her bottom lip. “I admit I live in a fantasy world, but I do manage to pay my bills so the power isn’t cut off. I miss a few meals when I’m working on a book. I know not to use the toaster in the bathtub and not to mess with a bull.”
“All important things.”
“Mary thinks I was crazy to become an author. After all, you don’t get holidays, vacation, or health insurance.”
Logan couldn’t stop himself from teasing her. “You don’t have health insurance? Hell, even I get insurance.”
“I have health insurance,” she protested. “I just have to buy it myself. It’s good coverage.”
“I bet it is.” Logan held up a hand and smiled. “Listen, I need to get out of here. We’ll start combing through the statements tonight. Don’t forget the pizza, and don’t be late. I get cranky when I’m hungry.”
Ava groaned. “Yes, oh Great One. I wouldn’t dare be late.”
“And don’t forget about tomorrow night. You’re my cover, remember?”
Logan looked over his shoulder as he moved toward the front door. Ava was shaking her head and he had to laugh at her long-suffering expression. She didn’t want to go out to the road house but he had her cornered. She’d go and help him with Christina. She’d also get out of her fantasy world a little bit which wouldn’t be a bad thing.
He’d show her a good time tomorrow night. Make sure she had fun and meet some new people. She just needed to loosen up a little bit, and Logan had an idea of how to do it. Hopefully, the weather would hold.
No one could stay uptight on the back of a Harley.
Chapter Six
Ava straightened the frilly cuff on her red blouse with a sigh and picked her cell up from the bed, depositing it on the dresser.
“I feel ridiculous,” she said. She was on the phone with her good friend Kaylee who was not only a friend but also a fellow author. Ava had needed the fashion advice prior to tonight’s non-date with Logan. They’d settled on black jeans, a red blouse with wide sleeves, and a pair of cowboy boots from her college days that she’d found in the back of her closet. It was a far cry from her usual uniform of pajama pants and a T-shirt.
“Red always looks good on you. You’ll wow this guy.”
“I’m not trying to wow Logan,” Ava corrected. “All I am tonight is a smokescreen so he can let this other girl down easy.”
“That doesn’t mean you need to look like a vagrant,” argued Kaylee. “I love you to death but you could spend a little more time on your wardrobe. I’ve never met anyone who has as many pairs of pajamas as you do.”
Ava liked to write in her pajamas but Kaylee liked to write in yoga pants, which wasn’t much better.
“They’re comfortable,” Ava said defensively. “Besides I don’t need to dress fancy for the UPS man. He doesn’t care how I look.” Ava laughed and applied some lip gloss.
“Isn’t he married with three kids? He’s probably seen a woman in jammies before.” Kaylee was munching on potato chips in the background. “So what’s this Logan guy like?”
“He’s nice. Kind of a player though.”
Ava dropped her keys, her lip gloss, and a wad of money into the small purse that already held a tiny wallet with her driver’s license and one credit card.
“Good looking?”
“Way past good looking,” Ava retorted. “Tousled blond hair, steely blue eyes, built like a Greek god. Better actually.”
Kaylee whistled. “Why can’t I find a man like that? He sounds yummy.”
“It’s not a date,” Ava repeated.
“Why not? It could be. You’re not ugly. He’s a man. You’re a woman. Go for it. Have some fun. For both of us.”
“I wish I was staying home tonight and working on my book. That’s what you’ll be doing, isn’t it?”
“It is. I’d rather be you. I don’t remember the last time I went out on a date with a nice, handsome guy.”
“Dale was pretty nice,” Ava commented.
“He was okay.” Kaylee sighed. “But he wasn’t Greek god material. That would really be something. Do you think you could get a picture of him on your phone and send it to me?”
Ava laughed. “How would I do that? Sneak it while he’s not looking?”
“Where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you get a chance, do it.”
“I’ll keep my phone at the ready. Seriously, what are you doing tonight?”
“You guessed it the first time. Writing. My hero is chatty today so I’m going to take advantage of it.”
“Lucky you. Melissa and Michael aren’t talking to me lately.” Ava pressed the speaker button and lifted the phone to her ear. “I’m worried about them. They’ve never been this quiet.”
“They’ll talk when they’re good and ready. Usually when it’s most inconvenient. Listen, just relax tonight. Have some fun, maybe talk to a few men. You remember them, don’t you? They’re usually taller and rougher than we are, with deeper voices. They have penises.”
“I remember,” Ava answered sweetly. “The last one I dated was a faithless bastard who screwed every nude female model he hired.”
Dustin had been an art teacher and he blamed his wandering eye and genitals on the fact that he was an artist. Ava had showed him the door and slammed it firmly behind him.
“When was the last time you got laid?” Kaylee paused for a second. “Time’s up. If you have to think about it, it’s been too long. Get yourself some tonight. You said the sheriff was eye candy.”
“You didn’t give me a chance to answer. It was six months ago, right b
efore I started writing Murder on Breaking Street. As for Logan, he is hot, but not my type.”
Nor was she his.
“Who cares? You’re not planning to marry him, girl. Just use him for your own pleasure and walk away. Not every sexual encounter has to involve your heart, you know.”
She’d never had casual sex in her life. She’d bet Kaylee hadn’t either.
“Thank God I took you off speaker. If my parents heard that they’d have a stroke. I think they believe I’m still a virgin.”
Kaylee snorted. “A thirty-year old virgin? Right. Get your freak on. Have some fun. Take a chance. For both of us. You’ve been brainwashed by that family of yours that your head is in the clouds. Personally I think it’s up your ass. Stop living your life by how they see you and see yourself for what you truly are.”
“And what is that?” Ava held her breath.
“A best-selling author who is financially stable. A good person, a good friend, and most of all a grown woman who is capable of making her own decisions.”
Exhaling slowly, Ava fell back onto the bed. “They think I’m an airhead.”
“So? Everyone has their blonde moments in life. Everyone. So you get involved with your work and forget to return their calls. Big fucking deal. It’s not like you walk out into traffic and get hit by cars. Stop letting them lay this on you. This is their baggage. Not yours.”
Ava’s family did have their own issues. Plenty of them. “If I promise to try and have fun will you cut me a little slack?”
“Of course. Call me and tell everything tomorrow, okay? Maybe I’ll put it in a book.”
“Very funny. I’ll call tomorrow. I doubt there will be much to tell. We’ll have a few beers, dance, then come home.”
“I still want to hear all about it. Just try to do one thing tonight you normally wouldn’t do. One thing. Would that be so hard?”
Ava groaned. “Geez, you’re a nag. Fine. I’ll do one thing. One. Now I need to get going. I want to be waiting out front when Logan gets here. I’m not going to let my dad anywhere near him.”
Cowboy Truth: Cowboy Justice Association #3 Page 5
