High-Stakes Inheritance

by Susan Sleeman

  At the barn, he hopped out and approached Russ who leaned over the hood of his car and filled out a form attached to a clipboard.

  “You ID the owner yet?”

  Russ looked up in surprise. “If you’re down here that must mean Mia came out of her hiding hole. She doing okay?”

  Ryan’s turn to be surprised at his brother’s concerned tone.

  “Fine.” The answer came out too curt not to clue Russ into his frustration.

  Russ ripped off the top page on the pad and glared at Ryan. “I won’t ask what put you in that mood.”

  Ryan looked away from the intense stare and watched the tow-truck driver secure the chains. “You never said if you found out who owns the truck.”

  “Not yet. Whoever boosted it was smart enough to remove VIN numbers. Likely a pro.”

  “And that makes him a pro? The average Joe knows enough to take that little tag off the dashboard.”

  “Yeah, but what the average Joe doesn’t know is the number is etched on various parts of the vehicle.” He tipped his head at the tow-truck driver securing chains on the truck. “Bobby here just told me the arsonist filed off all of them.”

  Ryan looked at Bobby and the destroyed truck. He swung his head back toward Russ and caught sight of the package Mia received sitting on the front seat of Russ’s patrol car. If the man was a professional at stealing trucks, had no qualms about torching the barn and sent a message like the one in that box, what was he capable of doing to Mia if she didn’t comply with his demands?

  EIGHT

  Mia closed Eddie’s folder and laid it on the table next to the sofa. The teen’s story dredged up memories of her own painful past and steeled her resolve to help him. Even if it meant spending every day with Ryan. No cost was too great to keep Eddie from ruining his life more than he had already. He’d been a model student until his parents died in a car crash. He’d bounced from foster home to foster home for the last three years and had a rap sheet filled with misdemeanor offenses.

  She could certainly identify. She’d never been arrested and wasn’t an orphan, but the way her dad treated her, she often felt as if she was all alone in the world. And if her father was behind the threats, she might as well be an orphan.

  She would head to the rec center for the orientation on Wilderness Ways procedures Ryan suggested then check in with Verna Swann, Pinetree’s manager, about filing an insurance claim and get her take on the fire.

  “Here, boy,” Mia rose and called Bandit.

  He hopped up from the fuzzy bed in the corner by the fireplace and charged across the room.

  “I’m so glad to have you.” She snuggled him tight and laid her cheek against his soft head. “I need a friend who doesn’t try to control my every move.”

  She walked past the counter where the box had last sat and was now replaced by her purse. In preparation for her trip to the resort office, she’d retrieved Uncle Wally’s will and shoved it next to the warning letter from yesterday.

  Today’s warning along with a vision of the severed hand pierced her mind. A quick shiver rippled over her.

  The stakes had been raised. Ryan was right. She had to give the first letter to Russ, but she didn’t have to tell him she suspected her father. When she got to the office, she’d make a copy in case she needed it after she handed the original over to Russ.

  “You can also be my watchdog.” She gave Bandit one last hug and settled him into his crate. “Keep me safe.”

  Outside, she jogged down the steps and followed the path toward the garage. Fall days could start out chilly like today had, but the late afternoon sun broke through puffy clouds warming her back. Taking back her life and taking charge again felt good.

  She entered the garage through the side door. The green John Deere utility vehicle sat in the only clean spot of the garage, keys dangling from the ignition. Leave it to Wally not to lock the door and leave keys in vehicles. He was so trusting.

  “Duh!” She slapped a palm against her head. “That’s it.”

  Wally didn’t lock anything. So why was the barn locked yesterday? Not with a simple little padlock but a massive chain. She never thought to ask Ryan if the south end was chained, too, but if it was, how did the arsonist get in? Did he have a key, or cut the chain? Maybe Verna could shed light on this, too.

  Mia’s excitement grew as she cranked the engine. After a few false starts, the cart sputtered out of the garage and putt-putted down the twisting drive. At the rec center, she pulled open the door. She heard conversation so she tiptoed in and lingered behind the bleachers to see what was going on.

  Ryan sat at the head of a long table filled with his staff members who discussed the upcoming arrival of the students. She’d taken too long to get ready and now he was busy. She wouldn’t interrupt but would come back after checking in with Verna.

  She turned to go, but something pulled her back. She studied Ryan and the devotion for these students displayed in his tone and on his face. His students were fortunate to have him as their advocate. A feeling she knew from when he was her protector. Since Wally died, she had no one by her side. Maybe she should let go of her hurt and let Ryan fill that role again.

  She shook her head and walked to the door. That was just crazy thinking. She’d rather be on her own than risk losing control and trusting him again.

  Ryan checked the cage-covered clock from his seat at the head of a long table surrounded by his staff. Through two hours of status updates, he’d had to force himself to keep his mind off Mia and on his hard-working staff members.

  For the first hour, he’d actually hoped she’d stop in for orientation on her duties as a counselor, but when the clock neared the second hour, he gave up. Maybe after their conversation she’d decided she couldn’t work with him. When Ian finished his report, the staff meeting would end and Ryan would be free to check in with her.

  “Did you hear me, Ryan?” Ian asked, a bit of irritation in his tone.

  “Sorry, what did you say?”

  “I asked if you think the fire and that bizarre incident at the lodge this morning will have any impact on our program.”

  Ryan wasn’t surprised at the question. Gossip spread fast in a small town and his staff members weren’t immune. “We always keep the students in eyesight anyway, so I wouldn’t worry about them any more than we usually do.”

  His phone chimed. He looked at caller ID—Russ.

  “Sorry,” he said to his staff. “I’ve got to get this. Let’s take a quick break.”

  “Hey, bro.” Ryan kept his tone purposefully light to make up for their terse words earlier.

  “Do you remember Mia ever having a charm bracelet?” He snapped out each word forcefully like bullets shooting into the phone.

  A charm bracelet? “That’s the oddest question you’ve ever asked me. Why do you want to know about a bracelet?”

  “Just answer the question.”

  Ryan had about enough of Russ’s attitude, but a decisiveness in his tone said he was on to something important. Something that might not be in Mia’s favor. She couldn’t handle another tragedy right now.

  He ran through the hours they’d spent together. The only time he remembered her out of torn jeans or cut-offs and T-shirts was when they went to prom. And the only thing on her wrist that night was the orchid corsage from him. “I remember crazy earrings but no bracelets.”

  “I’m talking about the kind of bracelet she might not wear but keep in her jewelry box. Girls collect charms from special events and put them on a chain.” His tone said he had no understanding of why girls might do this.

  “Sorry, bro, don’t remember anything like that.”

  “When’s her birthday?”

  “October 15th. Why?”

  “I took the rubber hand back to the office for processing. The tech found a bracelet stuck in the tissue paper. Looks like whoever sent the package tried to strap the bracelet on the wrist, but it dropped into the tissue. It has a birthday cake charm with Oct
ober 15 engraved on it. It also has several charms from the Atlanta area Mia might have collected. All were dated before her mom died.”

  An uneasy feeling settled into Ryan’s stomach. If she owned such a special memory of her mom, Ryan would have seen it. “This can’t be Mia’s bracelet. I would’ve known if she had one.”

  “Maybe you don’t know as much about her as you think.”

  Ryan might be on her short list of people to avoid right now, but he knew her as well as anyone could. At least he used to, but now he couldn’t be sure. “I don’t think it’s hers.”

  “Well, we’ll soon find out. I’m leaving my office right now to confirm it with her.”

  Then she’d need Ryan by her side whether she thought so or not. “I’ll meet you at the lodge.”

  “This is official business. You need to keep out of it.”

  Ryan disconnected before Russ made him promise not to come. He would be with Mia when Russ asked her about the bracelet. Even with her recent rejection, no way he’d let her go through another interrogation by Russ all alone.

  In the John Deere, Mia crested a hill leading down to the lake. She let the vehicle coast to the bottom and swung into the space next to a small gold Honda parked out front of the office. Good, this must be Verna’s car.

  Once inside, Mia looked for Verna.

  “Mia…Mia…is that really you?” A high and flighty voice, not at all like Verna’s gruff smoker’s tone, called from behind the door.

  Mia pressed the door all the way open.

  A young woman jogged around a small secretary’s desk. She’d topped khaki pants with a white blouse and finished off the conservative outfit with a pair of leather boots Mia would kill to own. She knew Mia, but her identity was a mystery.

  “Oh, my goodness, it is you,” she said when she reached Mia. “I heard you were back but I refused to believe it until I laid eyes on you.”

  Mia returned the perky blonde’s infectious smile. “Do I know you?”

  “Sydney…Sydney Tucker.”

  Tucker? Mia knew the name, but the Tuckers in Logan Lake multiplied faster than bunnies. She could belong to one of any number of families.

  “Clueless, huh?” She giggled like a devious child. “I’m Adam’s cousin from Portland.”

  Mia’s eyes flew open at the name of her high school friend. “But you’re so…so …”

  “Normal-looking?” She tossed back her head and laughed. “Gave up the piercings after high school. The shock value no longer got what I wanted.”

  “I would never in a million years have guessed your identity.”

  Sydney mocked a runway pose. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  “And now you work here?”

  She nodded. “I suppose you’re here to see Verna.”

  “I am. Is she around?”

  “Nah. Lucky for you the warden is taking a long lunch again today.”

  A warden? Not the Verna that Mia recalled. Maybe things changed around here more than she had first thought. “I remember her as being so sweet.”

  “I wish.” Sydney perched on the corner of her cluttered desk. “Things were cool around here until Wally died. Now every little thing sends her ballistic.”

  Mia’s radar beeped at full alert. Why would Verna’s attitude change when Wally died? Mia had always thought Verna was close to Uncle Wally, but her outlook didn’t sound like grief over his passing. So what then?

  The door flew open with a crash against the wall. Mia spun around.

  Verna, carrying a large bag of office supplies in one hand and a travel mug in the other trudged into the office. She eyed Sydney with a stern reprimand. “Come get this shredder. If you have time to sit around and gossip you have time to help me clean up this place.”

  Sydney passed Mia, giving her an I-told-you-so look on the way.

  Mia followed Sydney. “Hi, Verna. It’s good to see you.”

  Verna let her purse slide down her arm and plop on to the desk. “About time you decided to stop in, Mia.” Ohh, she was testy. That wouldn’t deter Mia from asking about the barn, but she’d ease into it.

  Mia pulled the will from her purse and held it up. “I was wondering if I could make a copy of this.”

  Verna jabbed a finger at the far wall. “Over there in the corner.”

  “Thanks,” Mia said as she crossed the room and started copying. “So, Verna,” Mia said keeping her tone casual and her gaze neutral, “I was wondering when you started locking the barn?”

  Verna’s penciled-in eyebrows arched. “We never lock the barn.”

  “The doors were chained on the day of the fire.”

  “That’s news to me.” She slowly laced her fingers together and stared at them in fascination.

  “So, any idea of who might have locked it?”

  Her gaze darted around the room then lighted on a pack of Lucky Strikes that had fallen from her purse. She tapped out a cigarette and dangled it from the corner of her mouth. “Nothing in there worth locking up.” She dropped onto a sagging chair. “Now if you don’t mind, I have work to do.”

  That was the best non-answer Mia had ever heard. Verna might be hiding something, but her face turned hard and closed, telling Mia pushing harder for answers would only spook the woman. She’d have to come back later and better ease into the topic.

  Mia put the will and copy into her purse. “One more thing before I go. Did Uncle Wally handle the insurance on the property or did you?”

  Verna dug in her purse and extracted a blue lighter. “Wally didn’t handle much of anything.”

  “So have you filed a claim for the barn, then?”

  “The fire was just yesterday. I ain’t no miracle worker.” The cigarette bobbed with each word.

  “Do you think you can get to it today?” Mia replaced the will with the letter, making sure to hide the large letters from Verna and Sydney’s view.

  “Like I said, I ain’t a miracle worker.”

  “I can file the claim,” Sydney said, her voice lighting with joy over irritating Verna.

  “No. You’ve got things to do already. I’ll make time for it.”

  “I’ll check back tomorrow to see if there’s anything you need from me.” Mia smiled at Verna and turned to the door. She mouthed thank you to Sydney and waved.

  Mia climbed into the John Deere and stared at the office. This was an interesting development. Verna wouldn’t inherit Pinetree under any circumstance, but she was acting weird enough to earn a place on Mia’s suspect list.

  NINE

  The steep incline on the drive from the rec center had forced Ryan to keep his speed down. He was just making the last curve when he spotted Russ’s squad car parked near the garage. Ryan had hoped to arrive at the lodge before Russ, but at least the trip had given him time to pray for a positive outcome and prepare for the inevitable confrontation with his brother.

  Ryan pressed the accelerator, sending throat-clogging dust into the air. In an effort to cut off Russ, who’d climbed from his car and was heading toward the lodge, Ryan slid into a parking spot allowing him to reach Mia first. Truck still rocking from the sudden stop, Ryan hopped out and hurried toward the walkway.

  “Thought I told you to stay away from here,” Russ said as he reached Ryan.

  Ryan shrugged. “This is a free country. I just stopped in to see Mia.”

  “I could haul you in for interfering in the investigation.”

  “Try it. I outweigh you.” Ryan fixed his gaze on Russ.

  Russ clamped his hand on his gun. “Need I say more?”

  “Go ahead. Shoot me.” Ryan challenged Russ in a tone he might not be able to back down from, but at least Russ would be busy arresting him instead of interrogating Mia.

  “Fine… I’ll let you stay. But not a word. Even if you think I’m picking on Mia. Got it?”

  Ryan nodded, though if Russ got too difficult Ryan fully intended to step in.

  Russ took off, climbed the lodge stairs and then pounded o
n the door. Ryan followed.

  Fierce barking sounded from the lodge.

  “You think something’s wrong?” Ryan asked. “Don’t overreact.”

  Russ pounded again. Nothing but barking.

  He twisted the knob before pushing the door open. “Mia,” he called out.

  No response. Bandit’s barking turned frantic.

  Russ withdrew his gun from the holster on his belt. “Stay here.”

  Stay here?

  Not hardly. Ryan had not reacted strongly enough with Cara and she’d ended up dead. He would not make the same mistake with Mia.

  Please let us be in time to help Mia.

  He followed Russ who’d already moved down the hallway toward the bedrooms. Bandit had stopped barking and was whimpering and scratching at the door of his crate.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Mia’s voice shot out from the doorway.

  Ryan spun around and let out a long breath. “We came to see you but when Bandit started barking and you didn’t answer, we thought something might be wrong.”

  “We?”

  “Russ is down the hall.” He cupped his hands around his mouth. “Hey, Russ. Mia’s out here. She’s fine.”

  Despite his residual concern, he had enough presence of mind to enjoy the sight of a freshly showered Mia. Dressed in a green jogging suit in that soft fuzzy kind of fabric he didn’t know the name of, she crossed the room to Bandit and opened his crate.

  When she caught sight of the little dog, she smiled like an innocent child. A wide dazzling smile that stole Ryan’s breath. She looked downright sensational, and he had to tamp down the urge to greet her with a fierce hug.

  “Hey, little fella.” She bent over and cupped Bandit’s head. He ran his pink tongue over her palm, and she scooped him up. “What’s this I hear about you barking?”

  Her tone was so gentle and loving, a pang of jealousy coursed through Ryan. It had been three years since a woman had talked to him with such tenderness and he missed the companionship. Maybe he’d been too hasty when he’d sworn off forging a relationship with a woman again. Maybe he could love again and not experience a loss as he had with Cara.