Something between shame and embarrassment.
“It wasn’t right.” Marissa looked to the side. “Ruben told him all that. And Nico didn’t even know that shit, but Ruben just told him because he was loyal. And then Whit decided to cut him out.”
Nico walked over. “Fairfield was gonna get the creek land and then cut Ruben out?”
“Yeah. So I told Ruben. And Ruben…” Marissa’s mouth turned up at the corner. “He’s smart. He’s smarter than Whit. He just doesn’t have the money.”
“What did you and Ruben plan?” Toni kept a firm hand on Marissa.
“He told me to get the land from Nico. Use the divorce. Then we could set the price and sell to Whit. Ruben would convince Whit that he couldn’t get a better price for it; then I’d give him half and I’d keep half. Whit really fucking wanted those caves. It was all he talked about for weeks.”
Toni let go of Marissa’s hand and turned to Nico. “So Ruben needed Fairfield to buy that land. Why would he kill him? It makes no sense.”
Marissa was coming back to consciousness. “What the fuck just happened? Toni, what did you do to me?”
Nico had taken out his phone and was dialing. “Change of plans, Marissa. Jackie is gonna take you up to your folks’.”
“What?”
“Jackie or your brother.” He looked at her. “Your choice.”
Marissa slumped in her seat and glared at him. “Jackie.”
“That’s what I thought.” Nico looked at Toni. “Tell Drew that I’m not going up to Santa Cruz and send the cruiser with Jackie and Marissa.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m gonna fucking talk to Ruben Montenegro,” Nico said. “Then we’re gonna find those fucking caves.”
The only problem with Nico’s plan?
“Where the hell is this guy?” Nico stomped back to the truck, opened the door, got inside, and slammed it shut.
Drew strolled back to his car from Ruben’s front porch. Toni was waiting on the sidewalk.
“So he’s not happy,” Toni said. “And you don’t look much better.”
“No one’s answering, and I can’t get a search warrant until Monday because of the judge. I put an alert out for Ruben Montenegro. At this point, while we’re waiting for the shirt to come back from testing, he’s only wanted for questioning. Hopefully we can avoid any more violence.”
Toni was about ready to collapse. “It’s Saturday night. This was very far from how I thought my weekend was going to go, and right now I just want to go home.”
“Nico gonna take you?”
Toni nodded. “Henry just texted me. He and his big dog are staying at my house tonight, so I won’t be alone.”
“Good. I don’t think Ruben would go after you—he doesn’t have a reason to—but I’d rather you weren’t all alone out there.”
“I won’t be. Nico is just up the hill too.”
Drew hooked his thumbs in his front jeans pockets. “You all going out to try to find those caves tomorrow?”
“It’ll probably depend on Baxter and Katherine. They’re the ones most likely to be able to find it with the plans and stuff.”
“Got it. That area have cell reception at all?”
“Nothing. That’s a complete dead zone.”
“Right.”
She patted his shoulder. “But it’s not far from my house. We’ll call you from there if we find anything.”
“All right.” Drew still looked unsure. “I just have a feeling that you need to be careful.”
“What are you, psychic?” Toni couldn’t stop the smile.
“That’s funny.” Drew pointed at her. “I see you, Dusi. Very funny.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I bet you don’t.” He opened his car door. “Drive safe.”
Toni walked back to Nico’s truck and climbed in, every cell of her body aching. “Take me home or I will pull my weird psychic shit on you too.”
Nico started the truck. “Are you gonna tell me what that is or what?”
“Or what.” She leaned against the door and closed her eyes. “You don’t want to know.”
“Is this why you always win at horseshoes?”
She snorted. “It doesn’t work that way.”
“Are you sure?”
“Nico, just drive.”
She was half-asleep when Nico drove up to the house. Henry was at the truck, arms out when it came to a stop.
“I can walk.”
Earl woofed and Henry helped her out of the car. “If you say so.”
“I’m just tired. When did you and Megan get back?”
“She dropped me at my house after you and the detective stormed out of the station and didn’t tell us where you were going.”
Toni blinked. “Oh. Oops.”
“We both figured you’d gotten a lead on something, but we couldn’t get through to your phone.”
She pulled it out of