Hearts On Fire

by Childs, Penny

  “I saw a strange vehicle leaving Katy’s place this morning.”

  JD shrugged a shoulder and dug into his stack of pancakes with zeal. He’d helped his brother with the morning feedings before dawn and had worked up an appetite. God it felt good. Maybe, he thought, he’d stick around for a while longer. He could afford the time away right now. Everything needing to be done could be done remotely. “What’s the big deal?” he asked his brother when he saw he was still over there stewing. “You know how she is. I’d be more surprised if there weren’t strange cars going in and out.”

  Josh nodded his head, knowing his brother was right. Katy got up to some things sometimes, that was for sure. And she wasn’t lonely when she didn’t want to be. That he knew from personal experience.

  “So what are you worried about?” The coffee was damn good this morning too. Freshly brewed and hot. He eyed his brother a little suspiciously over the rim of the cup. He’d often wondered if Josh had fallen for Katy Waring’s charms. He sure in the hell hoped not. That trap was sticky at best.

  What was he worried about? If he were truthful with himself he’d admit he wasn’t worried so much as… He stabbed a sausage with his fork and swore to himself. He had no business being jealous. Katy wasn’t his. Katy didn’t belong to anyone but herself. She’d made that clear from the git-go. And he liked it just fine that way, didn’t he? Yes he did. No strings. No commitments. Could a man ask for a better deal? “I’m not worried, just curious.”

  “Well don’t be,” JD told him with a frown. “That girl is nothing but trouble. She’s either going to wind up in prison or dead someday, you mark my words.”

  JD was right. Of course he was right. Josh didn’t know what all Katy got up to and he didn’t want to. He just knew she was fun on a cold winter’s night. Or a hot summer’s night for that matter. An image of her slipping into the stream at the back of his property came to mind. The full moon casting a glow on pale, silky skin. Her devilish grin as she dared him to follow her. Yeah. She was fun. And that’s all it could ever amount to.

  JD looked to the empty seat at the table. Julie had yet to come down. Their mother was up in her room now trying to get a rise out of her. JD had to admit he was worried about Julie. She was taking Ken’s death very badly. But it wasn’t just that and he knew it. Something else, something deeper, was eating at his sister. It was time to start digging a little. “Julie ever talk to you?”

  Josh blinked at him. “About what?”

  “I don’t know. She just seems…” He tried to conjure up a word and the best he could come up with was, “Jumpy.”

  Josh considered while he spread blackberry jam on a piece of toast. “Yeah, I guess she has been lately. Even before Ken’s accident.” He sighed and wondered how much, if any, he should tell his brother.

  “Out with it,” JD pressed, knowing his brother well enough to know he was holding something back.

  “Damnit, I hate it when you do that. Use your lawyer super powers of observation on me,” he grumbled.

  “You wear shit on your sleeve, little brother. Sorry. You’d make a piss-poor criminal. Now what is it you so desperately don’t want to tell me about our little sister?”

  “Well, a few weeks ago I saw her coming out of the Moniker Hotel in Freeport.”

  “Maybe her and Ken—”

  “Ken was on business in Denver. As it was I was just in Freeport on an emergency, so no one would have expected to see me there.”

  “What did she have to say about it?”

  Josh jerked his head up. “I didn’t confront her about it!” he whispered loudly, shaking his head. “I was curious though. I walked into the hotel and asked if she was still registered. They didn’t look like they wanted to tell me so I explained I was her brother and wanted to surprise her with dinner later. They told me she’d checked out.”

  JD shrugged. “Maybe since Ken was away on business she decided to treat herself. That hotel has a nice spa, you know. Mom used to go there all the time. Matter of fact, it’s where she sent Jules to be pampered before the wedding.”

  “Maybe,” he agreed. Then, warming up to the idea which had not occurred to him he nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah. You’re probably right!” Christ, and he’d been thinking his little sister had been having an affair. Crazy. That was just plain crazy.

  Chapter 6

  Things were finally settling down. A couple missing cows, a shoplifting and a guy bitching about his speeding ticket and threatening to take the police department to court. It sure beat the hell out of people missing in the snow and one car wreck after another. Matt thought maybe he could actually catch his breath now. He even decided to take a break. A cup of coffee and a fishing magazine. But of course, the gods had different ideas. He no sooner laid the glossy magazine out on his now cleared desk when a knock came to his door. “Go away,” he hollered, only half joking.

  The door cracked open and a head of frizzy mouse-blonde hair poked in. Blinking eyes which had way too much shadow and mascara, Constance trilled laughter at what she considered to be the sheriff’s silly sense of humor. “No can do, sheriff. I have a lady out here who insists she see you. Pronto.”

  Constance was still new to the job, so he reminded himself to be patient with her. He sighed. What now?

  “Says her sister’s gone missing and she wants someone to look into it.”

  “Then take her down to Missing Persons, Connie.”

  “I would, except for the 24 hour thing. When I explained to the lady that we couldn’t issue a missing persons report on a twenty-six year old woman who is only proved to have been missing overnight she got a little upset. Insisted on seeing you.”

  He thought about telling Connie to make the woman wait a while. Long enough that she’d give up and go away.

  He was about to when Connie popped her gum and said, “Claims she knows you from way back. Name’s Elizabeth Waring. Dr. Elizabeth Waring.”

  “Waring?” he asked, truly startled.

  “Yeah. Sister is—”

  “Katy. Kathleen Waring.” Perplexed, he leaned back in his squeaking leather chair. “Lizzie is here?” God, he hadn’t seen her in what? Thirteen years? Last he’d heard she’d run off with Brian Castellano and had a kid. When he’d asked Katy about her once he’d been told Lizzie would never, ever, set foot in White Pigeon, Colorado again. Period. She had her reasons.

  Connie popped her gum again and frowned at her boss. He’d been working too hard the last week or so. “Boss? You want me to shoo her off or what?”

  “No!” He stood too quickly, nearly knocking his coffee cup over. As it was some of it sloshed out of the cup and onto his fishing magazine. “Send her on back.”

  Now Connie smiled a little devilishly. “I’m not from here so I don’t know but one of the guys told me that you and this Elizabeth used to—”

  “Just send her on back, Connie. For the love of God.” Great. Just what he needed. Someone had recognized her name. Someone with a memory. Had to have been Robbie Danvers, one of his detectives. He’d been a grade below in high school.

  He’d finally been calm but now his heart raced and his palms sweated. He couldn’t decide whether he should sit or stand. Lizzie. Little Lizzie Waring. God but he’d had it bad for her back in the day. He was still trying to decide on sitting or standing when she walked in his door. When she met his gaze with those big blue eyes of hers and she smiled almost shyly he forgot to be nervous. “God, Lizzie, you haven’t changed a bit.”

  She chuckled. “You have,” she told him, reaching out to shake his hand. “You’ve filled out even more.” Gone was the lanky baseball player. Now he resembled a football player. A very fit football player.

  He smiled crookedly. “Okay, so you’ve changed too.” He looked at her hair, which had once been long chestnut curls. Now it hung just below her shoulders without a curl in sight. But still that fiery chestnut color. And she’d filled out too, he noted. In all the right places. He remembered her as a coltish gir
l. A tomboy who raced to keep up with the boys. And, he found, those eyes of hers still captivated him. Indicating a chair across his desk he said, “Have a seat, Lizzie. We’ll talk.”

  She placed her coat on a rack and sat down. “I wish I was here on a social call, Matt, but I’m not.”

  “Connie told me you think Katy is missing.”

  Lizzie could tell just by the look on Matt’s face and the tone of his voice he wasn’t worried about Katy and didn’t understand why she would be.

  “What makes you think she’s gone missing?”

  “She was supposed to be at my place yesterday, very early morning. She never showed up.”

  Matt’s smile was patient. “Well now, Lizzie, you know your sister. She was never very… reliable. Could be she got distracted and ran off for a weekend getaway.”

  Just what Brian had told her. “I don’t think so, Matt. Not this time.”

  His eyes narrowed. “What makes you say that?”

  Shifting uncomfortably in her chair, Lizzie turned the paper cup containing her now lukewarm coffee in her hands. She hated talking about Katy. Especially with the police. And though Matt was a one-time friend of hers he was still the police. “She, ah, called me the night before. Thursday night. She told me she wanted to come visit.”

  Seeing her discomfort and knowing there was a reason for it, Matt pressed the issue. “Did she happen to mention why she wanted to visit?”

  “She’s my sister,” Lizzie told him impatiently, as though that explained it all.

  “Yes. But you mentioned she’d be getting to your place very early in the morning. You mean after midnight?”

  She sighed. “Yes. It’s an eight hour drive to my place. She should have gotten in around 3am.”

  “The weather wasn’t all that great,” Matt pointed out.

  “Exactly. Which is why I’m so worried. What if her car went off the road? What if she’s stranded somewhere and needs help?” What if whoever she ripped off got pissed and got even with her?

  Now it was Matt who shifted in his chair. Meeting her gaze directly he said, “Lizzie, I don’t know how much you know about your sister’s… um… her lifestyle.”

  She bit her lip. “You mean the trouble with the law. The conning.”

  “Among other things, yeah.”

  “I know enough. I’ve bailed her out of jail and paid for lawyers.” She shook her head. “Which has nothing at all to do with why I’m here. My sister was supposed to show up at my house two days ago. I can’t get a hold of her. At all. No matter what else, that’s not like her.” Her voice was rising and she forced herself to calm down. “Your officer told me I couldn’t file a missing persons report until she’d been confirmed gone over 24 hours.”

  “That’s right. But there’s the fact your sister is an adult, Lizzie. An adult with a history of just running off whenever the breeze was from the right direction.”

  “So you’re telling me you’re not going to do anything?” She stood, clutching her purse to her chest.

  “Lizzie, c’mon. Sit down a minute.” When she didn’t, when she just stood there staring at him he asked, “What do you want me to do? Send out a search party?”

  “I want you to do your damn job, Matt. And I want you to act like you care.”

  That stung and he flinched. Shoving his fingers through his hair he said, “I do care. It’s just…”

  “It’s just that it’s Katy,” she supplied through clenched teeth. “Fine. I’ll look for her myself.”

  Now Matt stood. “Lizzie, don’t go doing that.” He sighed heavily. “Let’s go on down to Missing Persons and fill out that report, okay?”

  “And then?”

  “And I’ll issue a BOLO.”

  She gave him a blank stare. “What’s that?”

  “Be on the lookout.” Before she could protest he said, “Look, Lizzie, I can’t go putting together a search party just yet. I’ll have the deputies and state boys keeping an eye out for her car. For her. I’ll have Lance Kinsford do a little fly time and check the roadsides in the mountains as best he can. He owes me a favor anyway. Okay?”

  She relaxed. Marginally. She supposed it was the best she was going to get for now. Which meant in the meantime she was going to have to do a little leg work on her own. “Okay. How long does this remain you thinking she ran off and turn into something foul may have happened?”

  “Let’s give it another twenty-four hours.”

  She didn’t like it but would have to deal with it. For now. “And you’ll let me know if you find out anything? Anything at all?”

  “Of course.” He gave her a smile. “You’ll be staying at the hotel?”

  She shook her head. “No. I’m going to stay at her place. At least for a few days if need be.”

  “You’re staying at her place?” He sounded surprised.

  “I might as well. If she’s fine she’ll come back there eventually.” Her smile was tight. “And I’ll be there waiting for her.”

  “I don’t like the idea of you up there all alone.”

  Snorting, she shook her head at him. “You forgetting I grew up there? Besides, Katy lives up there all alone.”

  “Katy’s…” he frowned and didn’t finish what he was going to say.

  “What? Tougher than me?”

  “Something like that.”

  “She had to be.”

  No one could dispute that. “Will you at least come out to dinner with me tonight?” he asked abruptly.

  “Matt, I… I don’t know.” They’d dated a few times in high school. She’d made out with him in the front seat of his daddy’s old Chevy. And then she’d fallen for JD. It had surprised her as much as it had surprised anyone. What had surprised her even more had been when she’d thought he’d fallen for her too. But, as she’d found out the hard way, boys like JD only wanted one thing from girls like her.

  “Oh, come on, Lizzie. For old time’s sake. I’ll show you around town. We can eat at The Cottage.” He saw a brow lift and damned if he wasn’t reminded of that inquisitive girl from the mountain he’d known so long ago. He chuckled. “It’s a new place. You’ll love it, trust me.”

  Still she hesitated. She was here to find her sister. And she didn’t want to be running around town. Running into…

  “If you’re worried about running into JD he won’t show up there.”

  She had been worried about running into him, but she didn’t want to admit it to him. “No. No worries.”

  “We can ask around about Katy while we’re out. And we can catch up. I want to know what you’ve been up to, besides becoming a doctor.”

  Staying on Matt’s good side could be imperative to finding her sister. He’d push harder for a friend. Besides, he was right, it would be good to relax and catch up. “All right, Matt, you’ve talked me into it.”

  Chapter 7

  The thought of running into JD sent her into a near panic. The thought of losing her sister put her over the edge. So it was the threat of losing Katy because she was a chicken which propelled her down the long driveway to Josh’s house. She’d decided to start with him first, hoping two things. One that JD would not be there and two that Arlene would not be there. She was not afraid of Arlene. She despised her.

  This long, winding driveway surrounded by pastures was as unfamiliar to her as the surface of the moon would be. Though she and JD had dated in high school she had never come down this driveway to see him. Theirs had been a forbidden relationship. And they’d hidden it well. Or so they’d thought.

  But she had come down this driveway once, on a cold rainy fall day, shortly after she’d started her freshman year of college in Washington. The thought of that trip and what had transpired at the house at the end of the driveway so many years ago nearly made her turn around. Nearly. But, she reminded herself, Arlene wouldn’t be there. She wouldn’t invite her in and offer her tea and cookies. Wouldn’t act like she understood or cared, only to shove a knife through her heart before throwing he
r out on her ass.

  “Stop it,” she growled as the house came into view. Arlene didn’t live in this house anymore. She’d had a mansion built for herself on the other side of the property and she’d given the old house to Josh. Katy had kept her informed on some of the goings-on whether she’d wanted to know or not. Just like she’d told her about JD’s divorce from Darla Jenkins. Just like she’d made sure to tell her JD had never sired any children with Darla, either. “Who cares,” she muttered, stopping her SUV at the bottom of the drive and looking up at the house.

  At least the wind had stopped and the snow had abated. For now. She knew they were in for another big storm within the next forty-eight hours or so though.

  The modest little ranch house was wood sided and had plenty of windows. Smoke curled from the chimney. It looked cozy and inviting. Perhaps because she knew the cold bitch had moved out. Perhaps because being here, on this mountain again, was making her completely daft.

  Without further thought she jumped out of the SUV and walked for the front door, her steps brisk, lest she chicken out. Too late for that now anyway, she thought to herself as she saw the living room curtains flutter. A face appeared briefly but she couldn’t make out who it had been before they were closed again.

  The door opened just before she got to the landing and her heart beat so wildly she thought she might pass out. What if it was JD? What then?

  “Lizzie Waring?”

  She looked into blue eyes. But not JD’s. Thank God. Not JD’s. “Julie?” she asked, sure it was her. There was no mistaking the family resemblance. She looked so much like Arlene it was almost uncanny. She had the same honey blonde hair, the same big blue eyes and the same thin face with high cheekbones and sharp nose. She was not an earthy beauty, but a classic, goddess type beauty.

  “It is you,” Julie said, her voice quiet but musical. “My gosh, what are you doing here?” And then her eyes lit up. “JD isn’t—”

  “I’m not here to see him at all,” she corrected before Julie could finish her sentence. “I came here to see my sister.”