Hard Evidence Read Online Free PDF Page A

thinned, though she gave a faint nod.
    Michael dropped his pen on the table and leaned back in his chair, the picture of affable charm. “So, what do you think?” His casual air belied the sharp intensity in his eyes. “Anyone from the past come to mind—any difficult employees?”
    “If they were difficult, they packed their bags. I had no time for boozers or fighters. Not with three girls to raise and a ranch to run.”
    Michael toyed idly with the handle of his coffee cup. “Remember any local troublemakers over the years? Neighbors…trespassers…any suspicious activity in the area?”
    “No.” Claire gathered her cup and saucer and stood. “So are we done here?”
    Michael rose, as well, and nodded. “If there’s anything else, I can always check with you later. In the meantime, Janna can probably answer some of my questions.”
    Claire’s dismissive gaze flicked toward Janna. “She deserted this ranch a long time ago, so I doubt that very much.”
    “What about your other daughters?”
    “Leigh’s doing a vet school residency but she’s moving back in the fall,” Claire snapped. “You can find Tessa working down at the ranch or up in the mountains. I never know where.”
    Michael waited until Claire left the room, then settled back in his chair. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to open any old wounds.”
    “It’s okay. My mother and I have a rather long and difficult history.” Janna hesitated, weighing her mother’s rights to privacy against the added security of having another adult aware of the situation. “Since you’re staying at the lodge, you should probably know that her doctor suspects early Alzheimer’s.”
    “That’s hard for both of you, I’m sure,” he said, his voice warm with sympathy.
    “One reason my daughter and I came back to Wyoming was to help my sisters care for her, but she isn’t very happy about it. She’s a proud and independent woman.” Janna studied the remaining coffee in her cup. “About your questions…my sisters and I were in our early teens during the time frame you mentioned. I don’t recall anything unusual.”
    “No exciting local headlines? Scandals or rumors about missing people?”
    “If there had been, this town would’ve been abuzz with curiosity.” Janna shrugged. “The hottest gossip of the day was the affair between the postmistress and the owner of a tavern in the next town. They carried on for years and probably never realized that the whole town knew.”
    “And your mother’s ranch hands?”
    Janna smiled wryly. “As soon as we girls could ride, we were pretty much it. I was the bookworm and never as good a cowgirl as Tessa and Leigh, but we all racked up a lot of wet saddle blankets over the years. Mom usually had just one, maybe two men working for her. Most came and went pretty fast, though, because she wasn’t easy to work for. I can see about finding their files.”
    “It’s possible the body was simply dumped here—maybe even hauled from a great distance in an effort to hide it well. But I want to check every local angle.” Michael dropped his pen into the pocket of his shirt. “In the meantime, be sure to remind everyone to stay away from the area cordoned off with yellow caution tape. Tomorrow, too.”
    “No problem.” She shivered. “I just want this to be over as soon as possible.”

     
    Ian and Rylie had been ordered to stay inside the lodge, but with each new vehicle that pulled in the next morning, Ian grew more impatient.
    “I wouldn’t be in the way,” he growled as he watched two uniformed women step out of a Wyoming State patrol car. “Only cool thing all summer, and I’m supposed to stay inside like some kindergartner.”
    “It’s a crime scene,” Janna repeated. “I’m sure your dad will tell you all he can later on.”
    Rylie hugged herself, her eyes widening. “What if the murderer is still here?”
    “He probably is,” Ian retorted with obvious relish. “He might even be a serial killer,