am. Unlike some men, Ron understands how to keep his hands to himself.”
“Some men? Do you mean a specific man?”
“Nash Cordon, for one,” she snapped.
Kir was caught off guard by the woman’s unexpected words. “Nash Cordon is a member of this church?”
A sour expression hardened the older woman’s face. “Only because his mother insists he bring her every Sunday. I expect the place to be hit by lightning each time he walks through the door.”
Kir tilted his head, studying the sudden anger that darkened her eyes. “Not a fan?”
Her lips pinched, her body vibrating with emotion. “He dated my daughter Sonja a few years ago. After they broke up, they found Sonja in a cabin near the lake. The sheriff said it was an overdose, but I know in my heart she killed herself.”
The bleak confession hit Kir with unexpected force. He had a vague memory of a tiny, blond-haired girl who was always running around the store. She’d been several years younger than him, so he hadn’t really known her, but the thought that she was dead was oddly disturbing.
“I’m so sorry.”
She sucked in a slow deep breath before she spoke. “It was Ron who offered me a job as his secretary. He understood I needed a purpose in my life.”
Kir was starting to understand her unwavering loyalty to the pastor. That didn’t, however, mean he wasn’t a killer.
“Do you know where he was before he came to Pike?”
“Minneapolis,” the woman said before she frowned. “Or maybe it was Chicago.” She shrugged. “It was a big city. Too big for Ron. He prefers being in a small town. He says he likes knowing his congregation as more than faces in the pews.” The choir came to a halt and Ms. Lockhart squared her shoulders. “The service is ending. I need to open the doors. Have a safe trip back to Boston.”
“Thank you.”
He followed behind her as if he intended to leave through the nave, but instead halted in the shadows to watch the congregation shuffle out of the pews. His gaze easily located Nash, who was looking bored out of his mind as an older woman next to him was chatting with a gaggle of fellow parishioners. That must be his mother.
About to turn away, Kir stiffened in surprise when a younger woman dashed through the doors that Ms. Lockhart had just opened and made a beeline for Nash.
Chelsea Gallen. Lynne’s receptionist.
Kir pressed against the wall, watching as Chelsea stepped between the pews to directly confront Nash. The man looked more annoyed than surprised by the appearance of the younger woman, reaching out to grab her arm and tug her away from his mother and her cronies.
They huddled together, Nash leaning down to speak directly in her ear. From a distance it appeared to Kir that Chelsea was pleading for something and Nash was refusing to give her what she wanted. Then, with a shake of his head, the man was turning to stomp out of the church, leaving his mother and a tearful Chelsea behind.
Kir frowned. The receptionist had assured Lynne that sex with Nash had been a terrible mistake. A brief madness.
Now it appeared she’d been lying. It was obvious she was still obsessed with the arrogant jerk. What would she do to please him? He studied her shattered expression. He was betting the answer was that she’d do anything.
Remaining in the shadows, Kir waited for the congregation to filter out the open doors where the pastor was standing in his heavy robes to shake hands. He briefly considered waiting to confront Bradshaw. The man had lied to him. Then silently he turned and hurried out the back of the church.
He would keep a watch on the man for a day or two. It was possible he would reveal whether he had any interest in a woman besides Randi Decker. And if his interest was deadly.
* * *
Desperate to keep herself busy, Lynne drove to the sanctuary and focused her attention on the variety of wounds and infections that needed her treatment. She gave a medicated bath to the poor beagle who had been dropped off with a skin infection and swabbed the infected eyes of a litter of kittens before replacing them beneath the heat lamp. Next she checked the two boxers who had lost a battle with a porcupine to make sure their injuries were healing.
Once she was done, she grabbed the hose and power-cleaned the kennels while Monica took each of the animals to