Settling an Old Score - Delores Fossen Page 0,26

the idea of leaving her baby, but she would hate it even more if Cora was with them during another attack. And Eli was right. If there were other gunmen, her house would be a prime target.

“I’ll call Gus now,” Eli said, taking out his phone.

With her breath held, she watched as Eli located Gus Seaver’s number, and after he put his phone on speaker, he tried the call. No answer. When it went to voice mail, Eli left a message for the man to contact him. Eli had barely finished it when Gunnar stepped through the door.

“Remy’s lawyer is here,” Gunnar said, “and so is a guy named Oscar Cronin. He wants to see you. He says he’s a friend of Leon Taggart.”

Eli and she exchanged surprised glances. She definitely hadn’t expected Oscar to come to them, though she was certain Eli would have gotten around to getting in touch with the man.

“Check Oscar for weapons,” Eli instructed, causing her heart rate to spike. She hadn’t considered that he’d come here to attack them, but she should have. She should be thinking worst-case scenario right now so she could make sure Cora stayed safe.

“Move over here,” Eli told her after Gunnar had left, and he motioned for her to come behind the desk. Once she’d done that, he positioned himself in front of her, and he put his hand on the gun in his holster.

Maybe it was Eli’s stance, but it caused the wiry, gray-haired man to come to a stop in the doorway. She’d never met Oscar, but as Ashlyn studied him, she realized she’d seen him in court when Leon had entered his plea before the judge. Oscar was about the same age as Leon, late forties, but he was a good foot shorter than Leon. She’d always thought Leon looked like a criminal. Oscar certainly didn’t, and his pale complexion and the cough that rattled in his chest made her think that he might not be in the best of health.

“Sergeant Slater. Miss Darrow,” he greeted, and it wasn’t a question. Obviously, he recognized them, too. “I heard about the trouble y’all had last night and figured you’d want to talk to me.”

Eli just stared at him, and even though Ashlyn couldn’t see Eli’s face, she was betting one of his eyebrows was raised. “Why, did you have something to do with that?”

Oscar gave a dry smile, shook his head. “Dominick called me early this morning and said he intended to mention me in an interview. I thought I’d save you the trouble by coming here and letting you know I didn’t try to kill either one of you.”

Normally, Ashlyn would have liked his direct approach, but she wasn’t about to trust this man. “How do you know Dominick?” she asked.

“That’s just it—I don’t. He called me out of the blue, claimed he was looking into your background, and he wanted to know if I could tell him anything.”

“Anything?” Eli snapped. “What specifically?”

“Didn’t say, and I didn’t ask. That’s because I told him I didn’t know Miss Darrow. Or you,” he added to Eli. “Because he asked about you, too.”

Ashlyn wanted to groan. Dominick was digging for dirt, probably so he could find something to use against her in a custody fight, and he would have gone to Oscar because of his connection to Marta and Leon.

“I figure this Dominick might be trying to set me up for something,” Oscar went on. He coughed again. “I mean, why else would he call me and say he was going to mention me in an interview with a cop and Texas Ranger?”

“Good question,” Eli said. “Why do you think Dominick would do that?”

Oscar lifted his shoulder. “I’m an easy target. I’m dying,” Oscar added without any change in his tone. “Lung cancer. I’m home alone a lot with no alibis. Maybe someone like Dominick wants to do something bad—like go after the two of you—and then blame me for it. Whatever he’s up to, I’m thinking it’s no good.”

Ashlyn thought the same thing. However, she could see this from a different angle. Leon and Oscar were friends, and maybe with Oscar dying, he wouldn’t mind doing his old friend a favor by getting back at the two people who helped put him behind bars.

“I heard the deputy say that Remy’s lawyer was here,” Oscar went on. “I guess it doesn’t surprise me that Remy would be a suspect in this, too.”

“You know Remy?” Eli asked.

“Of course. And Marta,”