Big Sky

by Stacey Coverstone

  “So you can check him off your suspect list. I suppose you’re going to talk to the other woman?”

  “I’m not checking him off my list yet, but of course I’m going to speak to her, if I can find her. Brett, you referred to the sheriff as Rick just now. Do you know him personally?”

  “Yeah. I shoot pool with him once in a while.”

  “Oh.” She didn’t see any reason to inform him that Tavares had asked her out. Being acquainted with the sheriff was something else Brett hadn’t revealed yesterday when she’d mentioned coming to see him today. Why? “I just left the art gallery and the owner confirmed that Jamie was looking forward to her first exhibit,” she told him. She paused. “You didn’t tell me she’d taken photos of you.”

  “I guess I forgot,” Brett said after a moment’s hesitation.

  “But we talked about Jamie and her photos yesterday. You could have mentioned you’d been one of her models.”

  He visibly sighed. “That information didn’t seem important at the time.”

  Taylor tried to tamp down the annoyance that was building. She spied a pay phone on the corner and walked toward it. She wanted to look in the phone book to see if Patty Hanson was listed. “If you and Jamie had a fling, you can tell me. I don’t care what she—or you—did together.” Inwardly, Taylor cursed herself because she knew her wavering voice betrayed the way she really felt.

  After a brief pause, wherein Taylor began thumbing through the phone book looking for the name Hanson, Brett said, “I should have told you about the photos. Once I knew what she and your ex had done to you, I thought it better not to mention that Jamie and I were acquainted. But I swear that’s all it was. From the little she told me about her personal life, she and Adam Echo Hawk were getting pretty serious. Anyway, she took photos of all of us on the ranch, not just me.”

  “I know that,” Taylor confessed, feeling her pulse still thrumming.

  “I was trying to protect you.”

  “I don’t need protection.”

  There was a pause and then he said, “I apologize for not being upfront with you. I promise I won’t goof up again. I want you to trust me, Taylor. In case you couldn’t tell, I like you.”

  Her finger had been trailing down the names starting with “H” in the white pages. It stopped on the name Patty Hanson. She smiled at his admission, realizing she’d jumped to conclusions. “I like you, too, Brett.”

  “Good. That’s a relief. I was hoping this wasn’t one-sided.”

  She scribbled Patty’s number and address in her notepad and started striding back to where her car was parked. “It’s not one-sided,” she assured and could almost feel his smile through her cell phone. “I just found Adam Echo Hawk’s former girlfriend’s address in the phone book. I’m going there now.”

  “Okay. Be careful. She might not take too kindly to a visit from Jamie’s sister.”

  “I’ll watch myself.”

  “See you back at the ranch later. You can tell me how it went.”

  “All right. Bye, Brett.”

  “Oh, by the way,” he said, before disconnecting. “For the record, I never invited Jamie, or any other woman, back to my room.”

  At that confession, electric volts of pleasure practically short-circuited her system.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Patty Hanson lived on Pine Street in a small house painted Pepto-Bismol pink. The front yard was cluttered with hundreds of lawn ornaments, gazing balls, and small statues of gnomes, angels, and animals. Taylor could barely decipher the sidewalk to get to the front door.

  After she rapped four times, she heard some movement inside and the door creaked open. A petite redhead with her hair in curlers stared at her through large green cat eyes. Except for her height, Taylor was thrown off by how much she resembled Jamie—at least the Jamie who had dyed her hair red. Unlike Jamie, who hadn’t smoked, however, a cigarette dangled precariously from this woman’s fingers. A television was blaring from somewhere inside so Taylor lifted her voice above the noise.

  “Ms. Hanson, I’m sorry to bother you, but my name is Taylor Young and I’d like to talk to you about Adam Echo Hawk.”

  “Young?” She tossed a glance over her shoulder and yelled, “Shut that TV off so I can hear myself think!” The volume of the television immediately decreased to a dull roar and she squinted and said, “What’d you say your name was?”

  “Taylor Young. My sister was Jamie Young. I’ve come to speak to you about Adam Echo Hawk.”

  Patty raised her hands as if she were a traffic cop stopping Taylor from going any further. “I’ve got nothing to say to anyone related to that bitch.” As she moved to close the door, Taylor stuck her foot inside and leaned against the door.

  “Please, Ms. Hanson. Hear me out. I hadn’t been in contact with my sister for six years before she died, and I didn’t even come home for her funeral, so that tells you something about the kind of relationship we had. I completely understand why you’d refer to her the way you did. Believe it or not, I’m not offended, because I’ve been on the receiving end of that bitchiness. But whatever she did to you or whatever you might think of her, my sister didn’t deserve to be murdered in cold blood.”

  The redhead’s eyes popped open wider. “Murdered? What are you talking about? Jamie Young offed herself.”

  “No, she didn’t. Someone killed her, and I want to know who it was. I thought you might be able to help me.”

  Patty seemed momentarily confused. Then she shoved Taylor’s foot out of the door, stepped onto the stoop and shut the door behind her. “Big ears in there,” she said, cocking her head. “What do you think I can do to help you?”

  “Tell me where Adam Echo Hawk is. I want to talk to him.”

  She shrugged. “I don’t have a clue. I haven’t seen him since the day after they found that…your sister.”

  “I understand he had been living with Jamie at my family’s ranch.”

  “Apparently.”

  “How did Adam find out Jamie had died?”

  “The police tracked him here and told him. They scared the shit out of him, too, with all their questions. They wanted to know when he’d last seen her. Had they fought that day? Had he ever hit her? Shit like that. Adam never hit women. Then they finally let him know your sister had committed suicide. Even though I was secretly glad she was out of his life, I thought that was pretty mean of the cops to blurt it out that way.”

  “Ms. Hanson, I understand you were Adam Echo Hawk’s girlfriend before Jamie.”

  “Yes,” she spat. “We’d been together two years when she stole him away from me.”

  “With all due respect, I hardly think she could have stolen him away from you unless he wanted to go. Am I right?” Her own statement struck her as ironic, since Jamie had done the same thing with Clint. “If you don’t mind me saying so, you seem pretty bitter.”

  “You’d be bitter, too, if some rich bitch took your man. Oh, wait.” Patty smiled slyly, suddenly looking pleased. “That’s right. She did take your man, didn’t she? I remember now.”

  Taylor swallowed a gasp. Had Jamie admitted to Adam Echo Hawk her affair with Clint and then he’d told this woman? More than likely, Patty Hanson had heard the rumors at the time the actual scandal took place. Unwilling to lose her cool, Taylor ignored the jab and said, “Why did Mr. Echo Hawk come here that day? Was he cheating on Jamie with you?”

  “No!” she exclaimed. “I guess he had nowhere else to go after they had their big argument. I hadn’t even talked to him in months before that afternoon. Apparently he was in love with your sister.”

  “But you were more than willing to let him stay with you that night, weren’t you?” Taylor accused.

  “Yeah, I let him stay here. But we didn’t sleep together, if that’s what you’re insinuating. Adam slept on the couch.”

  “Uh-huh.” Taylor wasn’t sure she could believe the woman. “What did Adam tell you about his argument with Jamie?”

  “He would
n’t say much; except that he was afraid Jamie was in over her head over some business deal. When I pressed him about it, he said, the less I knew, the better, so I let it drop. What did I care anyway?”

  Business deal? What business deal would Jamie have been involved in? The only thing she knew of was the art show, but an art exhibit normally wouldn’t be considered a business deal.

  “So, let me make sure I have this straight. Adam fought with Jamie, left her at the cabin, and showed up here at your home?”

  “Right.”

  “Ms. Hanson, was there any time that evening that the two of you were not together?”

  “Do you mean did I run out for cigarettes, or something?”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what I mean.”

  “As a matter of fact, I did go out for cigarettes. So what? I told the cops and they checked it out.” Again, Patty appeared puzzled. Then her mouth opened into a snarl and she said, “Look, I don’t know what you’re getting at, but if you think I had anything to do with your sister’s death, the cops cleared me, lock, stock and barrel. They cleared Adam, too.”

  “Then where is he? Why did he disappear so suddenly?”

  Patty gritted her teeth. “He’s scared, I guess. He thought the cops might come back and ask him more questions. He told me he was going to lay low for a while. That was two months ago and I haven’t heard anything from him.”

  “Do you think Adam had doubts that Jamie had committed suicide?”

  Patty nodded. “Yeah, I believe he did, now that I think about it. He was real upset that she’d died, of course. But I could see in his eyes when the cops told him—he didn’t believe she’d killed herself.” She flicked her cigarette in the grass. “I gotta go inside now. There’s nothing more I can tell you. I suggest you talk to your sister’s drug dealer. Maybe he’s the one the cops should have focused on. Not Adam.” Patty swung around and gave Taylor her back, dismissing her.

  “Wait! Drug dealer?”

  Patty looked over her shoulder. “Yeah. Mike Weaver. That’s the guy your sister bought her dope from.”

  “Does this guy live in Prosperity?” Taylor asked, but Patty slammed the door in her face without answering and thus ended the conversation.

  Taylor strode to the car with her head spinning. Had Jamie gone back to using, as Will had thought? The facts stated in the coroner’s report certainly pointed in that direction. But why did Mama swear Jamie had been clean and sober for six months prior to her death if she hadn’t been? Taylor started the car and let it idle while she took out Rick Tavares’s business card and her cell phone and punched in his number. When she got his voice mail, she left a message telling him she’d just spoken to Patty Hanson and the name Mike Weaver came up.

  “Please call me and tell me anything about him you’re willing to share. Also, can you let me know if you were aware of a business deal my sister was involved in? This is my cell phone I’m calling from. Thanks.”

  Although she was afraid of what she might dig up on Jamie if she found this Weaver character, Taylor recognized he could be an important piece of the puzzle she was trying to solve. She drove back to the ranch realizing the list of people who might have wanted Jamie dead was growing. She was eager to inspect her sister’s cabin in case the local yokel cops missed some important clue that would give substance to her mother’s intuition.

  As she drove past the corral on the way to the house, Taylor saw Brett’s pickup parked at the barn, but there was no sign of the man. Charlie, however, walked out of the barn just then with his spurs jingling. She rolled to a stop in the driveway.

  “Hey, Charlie.” She stuck her arm out the window and waved him over so they would be out of earshot of anyone who might have been inside the barn doors.

  “Hi, Miss Taylor. Been to town?”

  When she saw no one behind him or within hearing distance, she quietly said, “Yes. I’m going to take a ride out to the back forty shortly and I’ll need a horse. Would you have time to get one saddled for me?”

  “Sure thing. How long before you’ll be ready to go?”

  “I’ll be just long enough to put on my boots and get the key to Jamie’s cabin from my stepdad.”

  Charlie’s eyebrows shot up and his voice lowered. “You’re going to Miss Jamie’s cabin?”

  Knowing and trusting the man all her life, she nodded. “Mama and I don’t think Jamie committed suicide. We believe she was murdered, and I’m on a mission to prove it and seek justice for her.”

  He rubbed a hand over his chin in contemplation. “I didn’t think Miss Jamie would harm herself, but what makes you think she was murdered, Miss Taylor? This is awful news.”

  “Things don’t add up, Charlie. Jamie was apparently straightening out her life and had a lot to be happy about. I’m going to her cabin to see if I can find any clues that the police might have missed.”

  “Good luck,” he said, rapping his knuckles on the side of the car. “I sure hate to imagine someone wanting poor Miss Jamie dead, but it’s been laying heavy on my mind the thought of her…you know…”

  “I know, Charlie.” Taylor smiled, thinking he must be close to the same age as Will and had worked this ranch for over thirty years. The wrinkles cutting into his leathery skin attested to the years of long, hard labor throughout all the seasons of Montana weather. “Isn’t it about time you retired, Charlie?” she asked with sincerity.

  His shy grin warmed her heart. “If I quit working, I wouldn’t have anything to do or anywhere else to go, Miss Taylor. I’ve got nothing to call my own. This ranch is my home.”

  She nodded her understanding, and he said he’d get a horse ready for her.

  At the house, Taylor hollered Will’s name as she strode through the rooms, just the way she’d done as a girl calling out for her daddy.

  “Your stepfather isn’t in at the moment,” Nancy said, surprising her. She was standing next to the tall windows in the great room.

  Taylor sidled next to her and followed her gaze to the view beyond the windows. “Good morning, Mama. It’s good to see you downstairs again.”

  “I made it with a little help from Chelsea.”

  It didn’t sound like a dig, but Taylor felt bad all the same. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here to assist you,” she said. She was used to being on her own and not in the habit of thinking about others, but that would have to change while she was here. “I left the house early, but I realize now I should have checked on you before I left.”

  Nancy smiled and kissed her cheek when Taylor gave her a hug. “There’s no need for you to baby me. That’s what I have Chelsea for.”

  “Still, I apologize. Let me catch you up on what I’ve been doing this morning. I went to town and spoke to Sheriff Tavares. I also talked to a lady by the name of Patty Hanson. She was Adam Echo Hawk’s girlfriend before Jamie, and let me tell you, she has some anger issues toward Jamie for stealing Adam away. Apparently the cops questioned her and Echo Hawk and they cleared them both of any wrongdoing, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t some mistakes made in their investigation, or clues missed.”

  Nancy’s eyes grew wide with interest. “Even though Jim Reynolds’ report stated she had drugs in her system, you don’t believe Jamie was using drugs again, do you?”

  Taylor saw no reason to bring up the name of Mike Weaver and a possible drug connection. “I have a theory about that, which I’ll explain later. Right now I want to tell you about my visit to the American West art gallery. I spoke to Sage, the woman who owns the place. She told me Jamie couldn’t wait for the exhibit to open. I also got to see Jamie’s photos.” Taylor stopped, still amazed that Jamie had created such beautiful works of art.

  “Mama, Jamie had real talent. And Sage is still interested in showing her work in a one-woman exhibit. She’d like you and Will’s permission to go ahead with it. What do you think?”

  Mist collected behind Nancy’s eyes. “That’s a kind offer. I’m all for it, if you think it’s a good idea.”

 
; “I do. Do you want to speak to Will about it?”

  Nancy shook her head. “Jamie was my daughter. I want people to know there was more to her than causing trouble. She was finally coming into her own. No one had the right to murder her. Whatever she’d done in her life, she didn’t deserve that.”

  Taylor hugged her mother. “I know, Mama, which is why I’m going to do everything I can to get to the truth of what happened to her. I want to go to her cabin. Do you have the key?”

  “No. Will has it. He probably keeps it in his desk.”

  Taylor remembered seeing Will lock up, not only the drawers of his desk but also the office door. “Where is he? I’m anxious to ride out there.”

  “I think he’s out checking cattle or something. I can’t keep track of your stepfather. Sit and have some coffee with me until he returns.”

  “I’ve noticed he keeps the office door locked. I don’t remember it ever being locked when I lived here. He also locks the desk drawers. What’s so important that he has to keep everything under lock and key?”

  Before her mother could answer, a baritone said, “Personal business.”

  Taylor swung around at hearing Will’s deep voice. He was standing next to the fireplace in his boots and chaps, removing work gloves. Her nerves started jumping when his sharp gaze fused with hers.

  Chapter Sixteen

  It was obvious Will had overheard Taylor questioning her mother about his suspicious habit. She decided to gloss over the discomfort by cracking a joke. “I was just telling Mama your office is as impenetrable as a Brink’s armored truck.”

  His mouth curved into a slow smile and he walked across the room with his chaps flapping against his legs. “Is there something you need from my office?”

  “Yes. The key to Jamie’s cabin.” Noting the mixture of pain and confusion that crossed his face, she said, “You don’t mind if I look inside it, do you? It’s because of your insistence that I’m here and that Mama and I have made peace. It’s too late for Jamie and me to make amends. But maybe I can feel closer to her if I spend some time in her cabin.” She didn’t want to betray Mama’s confidence by telling Will she was looking for clues that would prove Jamie had not overdosed on purpose. The two of them already had problems, as far as she could tell.