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it. Especially now that Boone was clued in. She wondered if she should tell Clark the truth. Probably
she should, but she was wary of Boone s temper if he found out. She felt stifled.
 Don t look so worried, he said gently.  Everything will work out. Really it will.
 Did you know that Misty s father had a private detective agency in San Antonio? she asked abruptly,
and then could have bitten her tongue for the slip.
 Some agency, Clark muttered.  I had them check out a cowboy for us when we were hiring on a
new horse wrangler. He had a rap sheet and their brilliant staff didn t find a thing.
She stared at him.  How did you find that out if they didn t tell you?
 Boone found it out, he said.  He was suspicious of something the man did, so he asked Hayes to
look into the man s background. He had a prior for burglary. A conviction, no less, and he d served
time. Boone fired him the same day.
 I thought even a bad detective could find out something like that, she replied.
He frowned.  That s what I thought. I mentioned it to Boone, too. He said that they hired a man with
false credentials, but found it out only after they assigned him our background check. They thanked us
for flushing him out.
She was curious about that. It seemed a little easily explained. But they were already pulling up in
front of her house, and there was no more time for questions.
When Clark pulled up at the porch, Ella was standing just outside the screen door in just her slip with
a full glass of whiskey.
 So there you are! she raged as Keely opened her door.  Where have you been?
 Why don t you come back home with me? Clark suggested quickly, leaning over the passenger seat
to look out at her.
Even her mother in that shape was preferable to being in the same house with Boone after their
awkward conversation. She needed time to think over what he d said. Not to mention her disquiet at
having to listen to another long recital of Nellie s assets, which had lasted all the way home. She
forced a smile.  I can handle her, she told him gently.  It s okay.
 If you say so. He sounded dubious.  You never did say what happened in Boone s office the last
time you were at the house. We heard him close the door.
 He was just warning me off you, she prevaricated, and smiled again.  It didn t work.
He laughed, relieved.  Thank God. I couldn t handle having all my plans go south before we even get
started good, and this is just the beginning for me and Nellie! You re positive you want to stay? He
gestured toward her mother.
She nodded.  Thanks for the ride. I ll see you soon.
 Sure. Take care. Keely closed the passenger door. He waved to her mother, who ignored him,
almost dancing in her impatience to talk to her daughter. He drove away with a wave.
 What s wrong? Keely asked when she got onto the porch, because this wasn t a simple case of a few
drinks too many. Her mother s face was stark-white and she was visibly frightened.
Ella bit her lip.  Your father called again.
 Again? Where is he? she asked.  Is he coming here?
 I don t know. She took a big sip of her drink.
 What did he want? Keely persisted.
She turned and looked at her daughter with wide, frightened eyes. The hand holding the drink was
shaking.  He& he didn t say.
 Why did he call, then?
Ella looked around nervously.  Let s go inside.
They did, and Ella locked the door. She was rattled, all right. She couldn t even find the right light
switch to turn off the porch light.
 I ll get it, Keely volunteered.
Ella stood watching her, biting her lower lip. She was so pale that her skin looked like milk.
Keely stood quietly, waiting for the older woman to speak.
Chapter Seven
 I don t know where to start, Ella said hesitantly.  I know your father didn t tell you anything about
what happened here before he left with you.
 Nobody ever tells me anything, Keely replied bitterly.  I know that Dad s mixed up in something,
that the police are interested in him for whatever it is and that Jock is involved somehow. She
straightened.  And I know that you re broke and Dad is threatening you for money.
Ella bit her lower lip hard enough to draw blood.  You couldn t know that. Who told you that? she
demanded.
 Is it true? Keely prevaricated.
Ella looked around wildly and brushed her untidy hair back from her thin face.
Keely moved forward a step.  Is it true? she repeated softly.
Ella took a deep breath. For once, she really looked her age.  Yes, she said.  I thought the money
would never run out. There was so much of it. Your grandparents invested in land when it was cheap.
As the town grew, more people needed land, so they started renting it out for businesses. When they
died, I continued the practice, raising the rents as the land prices increased.
 What happened? Keely prodded.
Ella laughed hollowly.  I got greedy. My parents would never buy me designer clothes or even a
good car. They made me pay my own way, from the day I started working. They wanted me to go to
college, but I thought I was smart enough. Your father thought I d get all that money the minute I
married, so he married me. But it didn t work out that way. She drew in a long breath, her eyes with a
faraway look.  All I had was an allowance. Brent and I bought expensive cars and diamonds and ate in
the best restaurants and took long trips overseas. We ran up a fortune in bills. My parents paid it, then
they stopped my checks. She laughed again as she glanced at her daughter.  Brent got used to living
high. He couldn t go back to wages. He found a way to make a lot of money quick. Her face tautened.
 You were far too young to understand what was going on. My parents died in a plane crash and we
inherited the estate, but there wasn t much left. Mostly just the land we d spent the rest. I wanted him
out of my life. He wanted that game park, so I made a deal with him. I sold land and gave him the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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