Confessing to the Cowboy - By Carla Cassidy Page 0,58

several minutes, but discerned no sound...nothing beyond the door.

Heart suddenly pounding, she placed her hand on the doorknob. It turned easily beneath her hand. So, whoever had hung the curtains hadn’t locked the door. But why the curtains, other than to keep prying eyes out?

What was it that might be inside that somebody wouldn’t want anyone else to see?

Once again she pressed her ear against the door, but heard nothing at all. She drew in a deep breath and opened the door. The room was in darkness and she immediately flipped on the switch that turned on the overhead light...and then let out a gasp.

An old gray sleeping bag was open on the threadbare sofa and a colorful throw rug decorated the beige linoleum floor. A table lamp sat at an odd angle on an upended orange crate, the shade broken. Cans of food were lined up on the counter next to a small microwave, but none of this was what made her heart nearly stop.

It was what was on the wall that made her gasp in horror. Tacked to the beige paint on one of the room’s wall were news clippings about the murders and pictures of all the victims.

Had she found Jason’s secret lair?

Was this where he’d been hiding out? In her very own backyard?

Her heart crashed the beat of horror as she backed up and hit the broad chest of somebody standing just behind her.

She whirled around and horror turned to shock. “Junior,” she exclaimed as she stared at the man she’d trusted as much as she’d trusted her own son.

Junior’s features screwed up as if he were about to cry. “Ah, Mary, now you’ve ruined everything,” he said in dismay.

Chapter 11

After Denver’s interview, Cameron had every intention of bringing in Thomas Manning for a chat, but he’d discovered that Manning was out of town, back in Oklahoma City to attend a conference at the college where he’d once been a professor. He’d sent Ben Temple to follow the good professor and keep an eye on him while he was out of town.

Cameron had grabbed a quick lunch from a fast-food place at his desk, brought in by Larry Brooks, and then had decided to check in on Mary, afraid that if the snow came as predicted he wouldn’t be able to stop by to see her at closing time that night.

It was just after three when he left his office and headed for the café. As he drove, fat snowflakes splatted across his windshield, forcing him to turn on his wipers to see the road clearly.

He met little traffic on the way to the café. Hopefully most of the folks knew to stay at home when the weather turned bad, but he knew from experience that there were always some yahoos who decided snow and ice were the perfect time to test their driving skills.

When he reached the café, the parking lot was nearly empty and despite the fact that he was wishing Mary’s business ill, he hoped the lot stayed empty until the snowstorm passed and some of what had been forecasted had melted away. At least by morning the streets would be plowed by both city vehicles and ranchers with the appropriate tractors.

He parked in front and got out of his car, hurrying toward the door through the snowflakes. As he entered, he automatically hung his hat on a hook and looked toward the counter.

His favorite blonde wasn’t there. In fact, he didn’t see her anywhere in the café. Nobody was seated at any of the tables and he could hear Rusty’s voice as well as several female ones coming from the kitchen area.

He followed the voices to find Rusty and two waitresses chatting. “Hey, Sheriff,” Rusty greeted him.

Cameron nodded in return. “Where’s Mary?” he asked, not seeing her anywhere in the kitchen.

“She just went out back to the cottages to take a quick look around and make sure no vandals or squatters have moved in,” Rusty said. He gazed down at his wristwatch. “She’s only been gone a few minutes.”

“She went by herself?” Cameron asked, a tiny alarm sounding in the back of his head. He didn’t want her going off anywhere all alone.

He didn’t wait for a reply but instead stepped out the back door and sucked in his breath at the frigid snowy air that slapped him in the face. The snow was falling in earnest now, quickly covering the ground and obscuring visibility.

As he drew closer he immediately saw that

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