Convictions (27 page)

"You're welcome to stay," the lawman said to her father.

"I'm afraid I have to make a phone call," he replied with a weary shake of his head.

"The warden?"

Her father nodded. "He's not going to be happy he was kept out of the loop."

Olivia jumped to his defense. "It's not like any of what's happened is your fault, Dad."

"I know that, Liv, but Bob's going to want to know why I didn't contact him right after Ms. Holcomb's body was found." He smiled crookedly and patted her shoulder. "I've known Bob a lot of years. After he gets the mad out of his system, he'll listen to reason. Don't worry."

Her gaze followed him as he shuffled out of the dining hall.

"Has he been feeling all right?" Jordan asked.

Startled by his concern, Olivia shrugged. "Other than being a little tired and having some heartburn, he said he's fine."

Jordan rubbed his brow. "These murders have been hard on everybody, but especially your father."

She didn't bother to agree, since it was obvious. "Do you mind if I sit in on the questioning?"

"That might not be a good—"

"I didn't lie about what I saw last night, Sheriff." She took a deep breath and admitted, "But I can't honestly say it was Rollie either." Something clicked in her memory. "Did you ever verify Rollie's alibi for yesterday morning when those bales came down on Hank?"

Jordan shook his head. "I haven't had time. I can ask Slim when I question him about his whereabouts last night."

She tipped her head to the side as something tickled her memory. "Slim?"

The sheriff tugged the notebook from his pocket and flipped through it until he found what he was looking for. "Roland Pepper said he was cleaning the barn with Slim at the time of the incident."

Olivia's tickle graduated to realization. "Who were you questioning when Hank came in here to report the murder attempt?"

Jordan scowled, probably not liking her assumption it
was
a murder attempt. He glanced at his notebook again and his eyes widened perceptibly. "Son of a bitch. It was Slim."

Adrenaline pumped through Olivia, giving her a heady feeling she hadn't experienced in a long time. "Which means Rollie doesn't have an alibi when those bales were pushed down on Hank."

The sheriff's features hardened as he nodded. "You can sit in on the questioning, Ms. Kincaid, but you let me do the asking."

"Fair enough," she said, her euphoria making her agreeable to most anything.

Five minutes later, Rollie swaggered into the dining room. When he spotted Olivia sitting beside the sheriff, he frowned. "What's she doing here?"

"I'm taking advantage of her experience in interrogating witnesses," Jordan replied with a cool smile. "Does her presence bother you?"

Rollie glanced at her, then shrugged. "Nah." He dropped into the chair across the table from Olivia and Jordan. "I didn't kill Mantle."

"Where were you at approximately two a.m., Mr. Pepper?" Jordan asked.

Rollie crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair. "Sleeping in my bunk."

"Are you certain of that?"

Rollie scowled. "Unless I was sleepwalking."

"You were seen by the barn at that time," Jordan bluffed.

"What?" The big man's shock seemed genuine.

"You heard me. Someone saw you last night by the barn where Mantle was found. Do you want to change your story?"

Rollie leaned forward and planted his fisted hands on the table. "I wasn't anywhere near the barn last night."

Jordan mirrored the hired man's aggressive lean so he was only inches from Rollie's face. "Just like you weren't anywhere near the shed when those bales came down on Hank Elliott?"

Something flickered in the hired man's eyes. "I told you I was cleaning the barn with Slim."

The sheriff stared at him a long moment, and a cold smile spread across his face. "Slim was here with me when you were supposedly working with him."

Olivia held her breath as her heart hammered against her breast. Rollie had pushed those bales down on Hank. It was possible he'd killed Mantle. But what about the two women?

Rollie's heavy breathing was the only sound in the expectant hush. Suddenly Rollie struck the table with his fists, and Olivia jerked back in shocked fear.

Rollie exploded. "You're damned right I tried to get Elliott. He killed Melinda."

Olivia's head swam. "Did you see him do it?"

Rollie swung his wild-eyed gaze to her, and she shrank away from him before she could stop herself. "No, but everyone's saying he killed both Melinda and that other woman."

"That hasn't been proven," Jordan said firmly.

"I couldn't let him get away with it," the hired man muttered. He shrank into his chair, and his face crumpled. "I loved her."

Olivia shot Sheriff Jordan a puzzled look, but he seemed as bewildered as her.

"You loved Melinda Holcomb?" Jordan asked Rollie.

The big man's eyes glimmered with moisture, and his earnest expression reminded Olivia of a puppy. "It was only a matter of time before she noticed me."

"So you tried to kill Elliott?"

"The bastard wasn't even hurt."

"What about Mantle? Did you kill him?"

A tear rolled down Rollie's cheek, and he appeared genuinely confused. "Why would I want to kill him? He didn't hurt Melinda."

Olivia slumped in her chair. She believed Rollie. His grief and anger seemed too real. He hadn't murdered anyone, and his assault on Hank was caused by the oldest motive in history: love.

Which meant the murderer was still at large.

Chapter Nineteen

Hank watched Olivia enter the dining hall with the judge and Sheriff Jordan. Had she discovered any evidence in the barn? As much as he would have liked to permanently wipe the smirk from Mantle's face, he hadn't killed him. If Olivia told the sheriff what happened between him and Mantle last night, Hank had no illusions that he'd be the prime suspect. Again.

Dammit. He couldn't buy a break.

A horse whinnied, and he noticed Ted having some trouble with a mare. Hank slipped between two corral poles and approached the farrier.

"Need some help?" Hank asked.

Ted glanced up, and his broad, gleaming face split with a smile. "Sure could."

Hank spoke softly to the mare while Ted ran his ham-sized but gentle hands over the horse's flanks and belly.

"Something wrong with her?" Hank asked, keeping his voice low so he didn't startle the mare.

"Whoever used her yesterday didn't loosen the cinch all day. She's got some sores from the strap."

"Who'd be stupid enough to do that?"

"Got me. But if I find out, I'm going to give him a piece of my mind." The farrier's mouth twisted into an angry scowl.

"Get in line," Hank muttered.

While Ted rubbed ointment on the raw spots, Hank scratched the mare's forehead and kept her calm. He glanced up to see Rollie go into the dining hall.

"I heard someone was killed in the barn," Ted commented. "Who was it?"

Hank brought his attention back to the farrier. "Mantle. He was one of the prisoners."

"The one that looks like a big rat?"

Hank couldn't help but grin crookedly. "Yep, that's him."

Ted grunted. "If I was Sheriff Jordan, I wouldn't put in much effort finding his killer."

"Yeah, well, Jordan takes his job seriously."

"I guess someone has to do the dirty work." Ted straightened and capped the ointment tube. "That should take care of her, but I'll tell Buck to let her have a few days off." He patted the mare's neck. "You been thinking about what I said about me taking you on as an apprentice?"

A bitter taste filled Hank's mouth, and he turned his gaze to the mountain peaks. "I've thought about it, but things aren't looking too good right now."

"How's that?"

"You heard about the murdered woman?"

Ted grimaced. "Kind of hard not to."

Hank stroked the soft hair under the mare's jaw. "The sheriff thinks I killed her and another woman eight years ago. Now Mantle's dead, and it's no secret he and I weren't buddies."

Ted laid a meaty hand on Hank's shoulder. "I think I'm a pretty good judge of people, and I can't see you killing anyone."

Although he was grateful for the farrier's faith in him, it didn't ease the coil of desperation in Hank's gut. "Thanks, Ted. I appreciate that."

Ted squeezed his shoulder and nodded.

Hank glanced up to see Sheriff Jordan escorting Rollie onto the porch, and the hired man's hands were handcuffed behind his back. Olivia stood framed in the doorway watching them.

Had Rollie killed Mantle? And the women?

"Looks like you might be off the hook," Ted commented.

Hank didn't reply but ducked out of the corral and strode across the yard. The sheriff led Rollie to the county patrol car and settled him in the backseat.

"What's going on?" Hank asked Jordan.

The lawman cast him an annoyed look. "Mr. Pepper is being charged with assault."

Hank tipped his head to the side, trying to figure out who Rollie had attacked.

"He pushed the bales down on you," Olivia said as she approached.

Startled, Hank's gaze flew to the hired man, who stared out the side window. He could see damp streaks down Rollie's cheeks. "Why?"

"Revenge for killing Ms. Holcomb," Jordan replied stiffly.

"But I didn't—"

"He thought you did," Olivia said. Her expression turned pitying. "He loved Melinda."

Hank's mind raced, trying to assimilate the startling information. "So he didn't kill anyone?"

"We don't believe so," Jordan answered. "Which means the murderer is still around here." His hooded gaze leveled on Hank, his meaning clear.

So Hank wasn't off the hook; in fact, that hook just dug in a little deeper.

Sheriff Jordan called one of his three deputies over and spoke in low tones to him.

"So he just confessed?" Hank asked Olivia, unable to curb his skepticism.

"After some incentive from Sheriff Jordan." A small smile tugged at her lips.

Although taken aback by the lawman's effort to find his assailant, Hank was more concerned about the recent murder. "How do you know he didn't kill Mantle?"

She darted a glance at Jordan, then moved closer to Hank. "Let's just say that Mantle's murderer is probably the same person who killed the two women. Rollie has an airtight alibi for the first victim, plus there's no motive for him to have killed any of them."

She'd obviously seen something that made her link the killings... like maybe
how
Mantle was murdered. "He was strangled, too, wasn't he?"

After a moment of surprised hesitation, she nodded.

Dark foreboding pressed down on him. "Did you tell Jordan that we ran into Mantle last night?"

"I told Dad, and
he
told the sheriff," she admitted. "But that's hardly enough to charge you. How did Mantle get along with the other prisoners?"

Frustration clawed at him. "How do you think?"

Her lips thinned in irritation. "Could one of them have killed him?"

"Maybe. But then he'd have to have murdered the women, too."

Olivia shook her head. "Not if he copied the killer's method to throw suspicion off himself."

He knew she was trying to help, but her theory only further muddied the waters. The urge to escape the whole mess nearly overwhelmed him. But he couldn't do that. Besides making him look guilty, running went against the principles he stubbornly clung to. And Judge Kincaid trusted him. Hank didn't want to disappoint him or Olivia. It'd been a long time since he cared what other people thought of him. Since others believed in him.

Sheriff Jordan rejoined them as the patrol car with Rollie in custody pulled out of the yard. "Your father should be told about Pepper," he said to Olivia. "Do you want me to tell him, or would you prefer to do it?"

Olivia sighed. "I'll do it."

Jordan gave a short nod, then turned to Hank, and his expression lost its hint of compassion. "Since you're here..." He motioned toward the dining hall door.

Sooner or later, Hank knew he'd be in the hot seat. Better to get it over and done with than prolong the agony of waiting.

"Hank."

Olivia's voice stilled him, and he glanced at her, his pulse leaping at the concern in her eyes.

"Remember, you don't have to say anything," she said quietly.

Sheriff Jordan's tight-lipped mouth told Hank he didn't appreciate Olivia's advice.
Tough.

Hank garnered a reassuring smile. "It'll be okay," he said to Olivia.

She didn't seem all that reassured but gamely nodded and headed to the house. Pride washed through Hank as she walked with her shoulders erect and her head high despite her limp. She was no longer the frightened woman he'd met when he'd arrived at the ranch. Somehow, even amid the murders, she'd regained a strength of purpose.

"Come on, Elliott," Jordan said, and Hank almost believed the lawman's voice held a note of understanding.

A movement inside the dining hall caught Hank's attention, and he spotted Dawn ducking into the kitchen. She obviously didn't want anything to do with him. Clamping down on his disappointment, Hank dropped into the chair Jordan indicated.

The lawman took a seat across the table from him.

"What's going to happen to Rollie?" Hank asked, stalling the inevitable questions.

"He'll be charged with assault. Again."

"Again?"

Jordan nodded. "Eight years ago he was in a Montana prison for beating up someone in a bar."

That Rollie had a prison record didn't surprise Hank. "So he'll get hard time?"

"Probably. Pepper thinks you killed Ms. Holcomb, the woman he loved but who didn't give him the time of day." Jordan rolled his eyes heavenward. "His lawyer could try for diminished capacity."

It might have been funny, except Hank could almost sympathize with Rollie.

Jordan picked up his pen and leaned forward. "I heard Ms. Kincaid tell you that I know about the..." He paused and deliberately eyed Hank. "... argument between you and Mantle last night."

Hank held the sheriff's gaze, allowing the silence to lengthen. "Is there a question in there?" he finally asked in annoyance.