Keller County Cops Book Seven: Code of Vengeance (7 page)

"Damn. We can really use that witness. I'll ask Tiffany to get CSU back out there."

An icy finger of dread trailed down Keegan's back.
Holy cow. If I dropped that earring anywhere near that building, they'll find it now for sure now.

"She's already on that," the detective assured the sheriff. "She called 'em, but they're tied up with another case. A domestic incident in the boonies that appears to be open and shut."

"Who caught that one?" Blaylock asked with a scowl.

Ransom cleared his throat. "C.J. He was at the station bright and early."

"Ah. Okay. Well, then... I'll give CSU a call once we eat." The sheriff rubbed his brow, and then dropped his hand with a weary sigh. "Come on. Let's go grab a quick burger down at Zeke's. I'd like to sit on more of the trial after lunch."

"Sounds like a good plan, sir." The detective accompanied the sheriff down the hall.

Keegan didn't move even after they marched away, her attention still on her phone although she wasn't actually looking at it. No, she was too busy cataloging her movements from that night, doing her best to pinpoint where she might have lost the earring.

She came up blank, and yet the fear she'd lost it near the crime scene kept niggling at her brain. If CSU found it, Deputy Ransom would pick her up and question her about what she'd been doing there that night.

What can I say if that happens? I have no alibi. No matter what story I give 'em, they'll eventually do the math and discover I'm Jenny Woodward's sister. Once that happens...

The dread that had already chilled Keegan to the bone returned to grab her in its glacial fist. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think. The people marching past her down the hallway became only blurs. She forgot where she was and why she was there. Nothing made sense.

She felt as if she were drowning in apprehension, waiting to be arrested, even though she hadn't actually broken the law that night.

"Keegan?" The male voice startled her.

She jerked around and found herself face to face with Detective Jonah McKee. She'd met him a few months ago and discovered he and his wife and son lived just two houses down. Not knowing quite what to say, she brought a hand to her chest. Her heart raced beneath her palm.

"Hey, are you all right?" He frowned down at her. "You look a little pale."

"Yes, I-I'm fine." Embarrassed to have been caught standing in the hallway like a lost little girl, she lowered her hand. "I'm working the Wicker trial. Just... on my way to lunch."

"Looked more like you were daydreaming. Do you do that a lot?" He grinned.

She shrugged. "Sometimes. I'm an artist, you know. Right brained, and all that." In a hurry to change the subject, she tilted her head. "How are Brooke and Aiden?"

His grin widened. "They're great, actually. Brooke and I just adopted another little boy. Colton Jay. He's two months old. Aiden's excited about being a big brother."

"Wow. That's great news." She matched his smile. "I haven't seen any of you in a while, so I had no idea. Tell Brooke congratulations and give both Aiden and Colton a hug for me."

"I will. Aiden doesn't understand why Colton can't play cars with him just yet."

"Too funny." She chuckled, and then let her smile fade. "Well, um... I need to go. I have a sandwich in the break room, and if I don't move fast I won't have time to enjoy it."

"All right, Keegan. I'll be sure and give Brooke and the boys your congratulations." He slid his hands into his pockets. "Take it easy, okay?"

"I-I will." She waited until he turned and strode off down the hall before whirling and hurrying to the break room. To her relief, the place was empty. She skidded inside and made a beeline for the refrigerator.

What was I thinking when I followed the sheriff and Detective Ransom to listen in on their conversation like some voyeur? I wasn't exactly inconspicuous. If they find that damned earring and connect it to me...

With a bone-deep shudder, she dug her sandwich out of the refrigerator. Only took her a few minutes to gobble both it and the apple. She ate them standing up, then washed them down with an ice-cold bottle of water. Once she was done, she glanced at the clock.

Time to get back to the courtroom and hear more evidence against Wicker. In fact, she was running late. Somehow, she had to forget about the sheriff's conversation and keep her mind on her job. Wouldn't be easy, but she had to do it.

"I need this to be over I can go back to that club before CSU gets there," she whispered to herself as she tossed the bottle into the trash. The success of her new plan hung in the balance.

Sheriff Blaylock was a clever man. If she was ever going to find justice for Jenny, she couldn't allow him or anyone else get in her way.

*****

A few minutes after court reconvened, Rick's cell phone vibrated inside his pocket. He fished it out and checked the display. Another text from Tiffany. He opened it and frowned.

Did Mitch tell you? CSU is tied up out on Hwy. 463.

Rick cursed under his breath.

Still?

Seconds later, the phone vibrated in response.

Yes, and it's raining again. I'll let ya know when they're done.

Frustrated, he sent her another text telling her that would be fine. Then he shoved his phone back into his pocket. All the damned rain over the past twenty-four hours could have already washed away any evidence the witness might have left. Maybe if he checked the surveillance tape himself, he'd notice something Tiffany had missed. He glanced at Mitch, who'd returned to the courtroom after lunch because Abington had said he might call the detective back to the stand later to refute defense testimony. No sense for Rick to hang around, though. Mitch always handled himself like a pro. Might as well take a look at that video.

Rick leaned over and told the detective he was leaving before getting up and slipping from the courtroom. The same woman he'd held the door open for earlier stood just outside, a perplexed frown on her pretty oval face, and he bumped right into her even though he attempted to twist away.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, stumbling back a step and bumping his knee with her satchel. Her sweet lilac scent enveloped him.

He caught her arm to steady her. "Sorry, ma'am. Are you all right?"

"Yes, I-I think so." Her coffee-colored eyes were wide and luminous. She put her hand on the wall to steady herself, shrugged him off, and backed away. "Again, I'm sorry. I seem to keep getting in your way today."

"Believe me, it's not a problem." He tipped up the corners of his mouth. "I never mind running into a beautiful woman."

"Who, me?" Her cheeks flushed crimson. "No, I--"

"Are you here on behalf of the defense or the prosecution?"

"Both, actually." She smiled, then apparently caught herself and let the grin fade. "I'm the court artist, and I really need to get back in there. I'm late."

"Well, in that case, sorry to hold you up. You take care, ma'am."

"Likewise, Sheriff." She jerked her gaze away and gnawed at her lip. Without another word, she shot him one last breathless look, wheeled, and disappeared into the courtroom.

Rick stood in the hallway, drinking in the delicious scent she'd left in her wake until he realized what he was doing and kicked himself into gear.
Are you out of your damned mind? She's way too young for you. Probably already taken, too.

Still berating himself, he opened one of the double doors leading outside and hurried to his duty car, a shiny black Dodge Charger with the KCSO logo emblazoned on the side.

"Think about the case, you moron," he lectured himself as he started the car.  "Now's not the time to get sidetracked by a beautiful woman. Even if you haven't had one in a while."

As he threw the car into gear, he gritted his teeth to offset the yawning hunger the court artist had reawakened within him. He really needed to get out more.

To get his mind back on the Woodward case, he turned on his Bluetooth and called Tiffany on the way to the station to ask where she'd stashed the surveillance video.

"It's on my computer," she said. "Their cameras are brand-new digital models. I'll text you my access code so you won't have to look it up. The file icon is on the desktop."

"Thanks, Deputy," he said, eager to reach her desk so he could get a look at that witness.

Tiffany asked him to hang on. "How'd Mitch do this morning? He wants that guy to fry."

"He did a great job. Abington asked him to hang around for a while in case he needs to recall him, but I doubt the session will run late. He should be done by four or so."

"I appreciate that, Sheriff. Let me know if you see anything I missed on that video."

"Will do." He ended the call and whipped the Charger onto Main Street.

Ten minutes later, he waved at Barbara as he bypassed her office en route to Tiffany's cluttered desk. He sat in her chair to watch the video and wished every business in town had new, upscale cameras like the Kitty Kat Klub did. He figured they'd invested in such nice digital equipment because they'd had trouble there before and feared he'd restart his campaign to shut them down if things got any worse. He grimaced.
If only.

The figure Tiffany had told him about wasn't visible in the first video, but that particular camera had captured the murder. Anticipation thrummed through Rick's veins as he closed the file and opened the video from the second camera. Almost immediately, the murderer dashed across the parking lot and disappeared from the frame. Then a dark shadow across the road moved, back-pedaling away from the corner of the building nearest the parking lot. Back-pedaling fast, as if afraid of being caught.

Back-pedaling with a cell phone pressed to his or her ear.

"Well, I'll be damned. So you
did
make the nine-one-one call," Rick murmured, running the video back and riveting his gaze on the diminutive figure again. Tiffany had been right about the person's size, and yet she hadn't mentioned the phone. "I'll have to speak to her about that."

His talk with the deputy could wait, however. Right now, he had to learn if the outcry witness who'd made the call was male or female. So he picked up the phone and dialed dispatch.

"Sure thing, Sheriff," the man who answered said. "I'll look it up."

While he waited, Rick pressed his thumb to the bridge of his nose in an effort to abort the headache that had taken root there. He didn't have to wait too long.

"Sir?" the guy said when he came back on the line. "Our records show a woman made that call. She told the operator about the attack, but hung up when he asked her to identify herself and didn't answer when he called her back."

"I see." Rick blew out a frustrated breath. "Okay, Tim. That helps. Thanks."

"Yes, sir. Let us know if we can do anything else."

"Will do." Ending the call, he abandoned Tiffany's chair. On his way to his office, he couldn't help musing aloud over what he'd learned. "So we
are
looking for a woman. Interesting."

"Who's looking for a woman?" Jonah McKee strode toward him from the side entrance with a smirk on his face. "You, Sheriff?"

"No, not me." Rick shot him a frustrated look. "Unless you mean the witness who called nine-one-one when that guy stabbed Dirk Woodward."

"A woman? Really?" He lifted a brow. "Mitch told me about that case last night when he came by to see Colton."

"Ah, the new little one. How is he? What are you doin' here when you're supposed to be off on paternity leave?"

"He's just fine, and so is everybody else. I had to testify in the Mott case this morning, and it went well. Just thought I'd stop by and say hello on my way home."

"Nope. You stopped by so you could show off pictures of the baby."

"Okay, you caught me. I've got to show Barbara, too. She'll shoot me if I don't stop by her office." Jonah fished out his phone, pulled up his photos, and held out the device so Rick could see the little boy grinning up at him. "Meet Colton Jay McKee."

"Wow. He's a cute little fellow." Rick chuckled, even though a pang settled in the center of his chest. The kid had fat cheeks and squinty eyes. "Looks just like you."

"Thanks a lot." He laughed. "He's adopted, boss."

"I know. You won't treat him that way, though, will you? He's Aiden's little bubba."

"You're right, sir." Jonah put the phone away. "He's my little boy, through and through. I won't ever let him forget that."

"You're a good man, Detective. A good husband and father." He clapped Jonah on the shoulder. "Speaking of which, you'd better go home before your wife comes looking for you."

"Guess so." He blew out a weary sigh. "I love helping out at home, don't get me wrong, but I already miss the job."

"It's been three days. Forget this damned place, now that you've got court duty out of the way, and take the next two weeks to get to know your little boy and enjoy your family."

"Yes, sir. I'm going." Looking every bit the proud papa, Jonah grinned, shook Rick's hand, and angled for Barbara's desk. Halfway there, he turned around and called out, "I'll stay in touch, boss. Promise."

"You do that," Rick hollered after him, shaking his head at the detective's persistence. If Rick had a new little kid at home, he wouldn't set foot in this place again for as long as he could get away with hiding out at home.

His cell phone bleated just as he lowered himself into the chair behind his desk. He dug out the device and checked the display.
Tiffany.

"Well, hello there, Deputy," he said instead of barking his last name into the phone like usual. "You failed to tell me our witness was the one who called nine-one-one that night."

"That's why I called you just now. I realized I'd forgotten to mention that." She paused. "So... you must've already seen the video."

"I have. I also contacted the call center and learned a
woman
made the call. So I'm guessing the ninja in that video is our outcry witness. You said it might be a woman."