The Perfect Couple (32 page)

"I don't think you should bother Zoe," he said. "I think you should go home and stay out of this."

"I'm not plannin' to cause trouble. That's why I called you. I just...I need you both to know that I'm here and I'm willing to do whatever it takes.

If you want me to spend the next two weeks digging through paperwork or tramping through the woods, that's fine. Or I could pass out flyers or knock on doors. Shit, I don't know. Something. I mean, I'd even be willing to pay your bill if Zoe needs me to."

Jonathan wasn't under the impression that Franky had much money.

"I'm afraid Zoe's financial obligations would be more than you could afford, but...I'll tell her." What else could he say? Franky sounded so damn sincere....

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"How much does she need?" he asked.

Jonathan held up the flyer. It certainly couldn't hurt to offer some added incentive. "Ideally?"

"I guess we could start there."

"Ten thousand dollars."

Franky whistled. "That's a lot."

"Yes, it is."

"That's the amount of your bill?"

"No, I'm not charging. We want to put up a reward for information leading to Sam's whereabouts."

"A reward would be a great idea. I shoulda thought of that."

"It's worked in the past."

There was a moment of silence. "Okay."

"Okay what?" Jonathan said in surprise.

"If...if I can come up with the money, how will I get it to you?"

After a glance at his watch, Jonathan started his car. He had an appointment with a woman who worked at the property-management company that rented out quite a few of the cabins near Placerville. Because she'd agreed to come in on a Saturday just to help him, he couldn't be late. "I don't want you out robbing a bank because I said we need ten thousand dollars, Franky."

"I won't break the law. No way. I've changed."

"You have other means of getting the money?"

"Just one. But it should work."

Jonathan was tempted to doubt him, but the conviction in his voice suggested he had every intention of following through. "Fine, if you're that determined, give me a call when you have it and we'll meet up."

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T he cabin was so remote it didn't have running water or electricity.

Tiffany had already made one trip to the outhouse and needed to go again, but she kept putting it off. The smell was almost overwhelming, and so were the flies. But that wasn't the main problem. The cramped, dark space, and the eerie creak of the door when she opened it, made her feel as if she was stepping inside an upright coffin. And, in a way, she was. This was where Colin had dumped the pet he'd had before Rover, the one they'd taken from Nevada when they'd gone to Vegas to celebrate Colin's graduation from law school. Colin said the lime and the septic tablets his father used to improve the smell would speed decomposition. Whenever she went in there, she couldn't help wondering what was left of the girl--and if her ghost was wandering around the forest, waiting for them to return. She would've gone in the woods, but she had to go to the outhouse to get the toilet paper anyway.

With a shiver, she tossed her magazine aside. No matter how many times she read that article on star hookups she was too nervous to comprehend it. She kept thinking of Sam out in the shed.

Forget it. She deserves it.

Getting to her feet, she meandered around the cabin, eventually winding up in the kitchen. She liked this room best, but she didn't stay there because everything reminded her of Paddy, from his favorite seat at the table to the beef jerky in the glass jar on the counter. He'd been with his second wife longer than Tiffany and Colin had been married, but Sheryl refused to rough it. She said she saw no purpose in giving up the comforts of home and never came up here, probably didn't even know exactly where it was.

This was every bit Paddy's domain. But he hadn't visited in over a year. As he got older, he seemed more and more content to simply hang out with Sheryl and let Colin use the cabin.

Maybe Paddy hadn't been here in months, but Tiffany could still smell him. The damp wool of his hunting shirt, combined with cigar smoke, made for a unique scent that lingered forever.

"I hate losing you," she muttered, wringing her hands.

Where was Colin? She needed him to reassure her that all was well.

They'd been out of touch ever since very early this morning, when he'd forced some sleeping pills down Samantha and shoved the girl into his huge 210

suitcase. He'd been about to load her into Tiffany's trunk, but after what'd happened with Rover, Tiffany had insisted he put her in the backseat. At least if Sam woke up and started calling for help, she'd be where Tiffany could reach her.

But Sam never woke up. She didn't make a peep the entire trip. Even after they'd arrived at the cabin and Tiffany jerked the heavy suitcase out of the car and rolled it over the bumpy ground to the shed, she didn't come to.

With a sigh, Tiffany went out to check on her again. The hunting shed that had become her temporary home stank almost as badly as the outhouse.

But Tiffany wasn't about to allow Samantha inside the cabin, not after what she'd done last night. It was her fault Paddy was dead. If she hadn't started screaming, Colin might've been able to convince Paddy that his concerns were unfounded. Colin had said so himself.

"Sam?" Tiffany pulled open the door and poked her head inside. She'd unzipped the suitcase so she could hammer the end of Sam's collar into the ground with a stake as Colin had told her to, but Sam remained curled up inside the bag. She didn't answer; she didn't even open her eyes. Colin had doped her up good this time.

"You think you're pretty smart barfing up that shake, don't you?" she said to the girl's inert form. "Well, I hope you like sleeping outside. It gets pretty darn cold up here. You were too out of it to notice anything last night, but you'll get a taste of it tonight." The mosquitoes wouldn't be fun, either.

With a taunting smile, she let the door slam shut and finally forced herself to use the outhouse. That was when she heard the approach of Colin's vehicle. Finishing quickly, she ran to greet him.

"There you are!" She threw herself into his arms as soon as he climbed out of the car. "I've been so worried about you."

"I'm fine." He kissed her temple as he released her and that small gesture made her inordinately happy--despite everything.

"What happened?" she asked. "Have you heard from Sheryl?"

"She called me while we were searching for Samantha."

Tiffany could feel that moment of acute pleasure slipping away from her. "What'd she say?"

"She said my father never came home last night and asked if I'd seen him."

"So she didn't know he was coming over?"

"No."

"That's a relief." Trying to judge his expression, she shaded her eyes from the dappled sunlight that filtered through the pine trees.

"It sure makes things easier."

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"What about the search for Sam? How'd that go?"

"Like clockwork." He grinned. "No one found anything. I even ordered pizza and invited everyone back to the house for lunch. I thought that was a nice touch."

She gasped. "What about the blood? Are you sure we got it all?"

"We got it all. I was very careful about that. And the more people who stomped through the house, the better. If the police ever do search our place for evidence, it'll be that much harder to find."

"Oh. Good."

"I told you I've got it all under control."

Tiffany kicked a pinecone to one side. "Is Sheryl very worried?"

The white lines around his mouth and eyes told her how exhausted he was. "She's getting that way."

This news made Tiffany's spirits plummet. She liked Sheryl almost as much as she'd liked Paddy and didn't want her to suffer. "How'd you leave it with her?"

"I told her I'd go out and look for him." He pulled his cell phone from his pocket, even though they both knew there wasn't any service up here.

"So you can't be out of contact for too long."

"No. It'll seem strange if I am."

Tiffany didn't want to spend another night here alone. "What about Mother's Day?"

"What about it?"

"We had plans."

"Yeah, well, our plans have changed. I'd better go. I just came to make sure you were okay."

Tiffany wanted to take that as further proof of his love, but then he added, "I couldn't risk you letting Sam get away like Rover."

He started to get back into his car, but she hurried over to catch him before he could close the door.

"Wait! I should go back with you. I can't be gone if Paddy's missing.

That's a family crisis. It'll seem weird if we're not together, and doing whatever we can."

His sudden scowl told her he was about to refuse her, but then he seemed to reconsider. "You've got a point." He glanced toward the shed. "I guess there's no reason you have to stay up here."

"No. Sam's got her collar on. She's not going anywhere." Tiffany preferred to be able to mourn Paddy with Sheryl, to offer as much comfort as possible. It was the least she could do.

"Then we'll leave her some food and a blanket in case it gets really 212

cold and come back when we can."

"Okay." She no longer cared about punishing Sam; she just wanted to go home with Colin. "I'll get her ready," she said and started back, but Colin caught her elbow.

"Wait. Are you sure you got that stake in the ground nice and tight?"

"Positive."

"I'd better check myself. Get in the car." He got a big quilt, some granola bars and a jug of water from the cabin, then stalked off to the shed.

When he came back, he gave her an affirmative nod. "A man twice my size couldn't pull that stake out of the ground, but I drove another one in, just to be sure. Get in."

Tiffany silently wondered if they'd find Sam dead when they returned, but she refused to let that stop her from leaving. Sam had to die sometime.

She'd known that from the beginning.

The way Kino, who'd been sleeping at Jonathan's feet, came to attention alerted Jonathan when Zoe entered the kitchen.

"Do you really think your psychic friend will be able to help us?" she asked.

Wondering if he'd made a mistake by telling her, he glanced up from his computer, where he'd been cross-referencing the electronic files a second property manager had sent him that morning against the list he'd compiled of anyone who'd ever had contact with Sam.

"We'll see. I sent her Sam's sweater, along with the teddy bear she won at Disneyland a few years ago. I hate to give you false hope, especially when today's search proved such a disappointment, but Jasmine's done some amazing things in the past."

"She's that good?"

Realizing he had the opportunity to make a new friend, Kino lumbered over to her. Obliging him with a thorough scratch behind the ears and a warm smile, Zoe perched on the arm of a nearby kitchen chair. She was wearing his sweatpants, her own T-shirt and no shoes. He'd brought her home from the hospital only an hour ago and had carried in her luggage, but most of her stuff was still in her car, in those black bags. Understandably, when she'd left Lucassi's she hadn't taken time to pack with any kind of organization, which was why she'd needed to borrow his sweats. She'd gotten out of the shower to discover she had a shirt in her suitcase but no casual bottoms.

"She's that good," he said. "But her particular gifts don't solve every case. That's the problem."

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She pulled her hair into a ponytail and secured it with a rubber band.

She wasn't wearing any makeup, but she didn't need it. She had beautiful skin, eyes he could drown in.

Having her so close, smelling like heaven, reminded him of last night and the sight of her without most of her clothes. The resulting charge of testosterone shot his concentration all to hell. "How're you feeling?" he asked.

"Better." She met his gaze with a directness that surprised him, that let him know she wouldn't refuse a sexual advance. Since he'd already revealed his interest, she was probably expecting one. But he also knew he'd be foolish to get involved with her in that way. Zoe was a survivor for a reason.

She'd barely blinked at her breakup with Lucassi. She wouldn't invest in a relationship emotionally, and he wasn't sure he wanted to be on the losing end of another affair.

"I'm glad."

She angled her head toward the computer. "Any luck with the rental records?"

"Not yet. But I still have a lot of names to go through, and this is just one of two companies. I've been in touch with others who manage properties in the area."

"But these two are the ones that manage the cabins closest to where Toby was found. Didn't you say that earlier?"

"That's right. He was so badly injured he couldn't have traveled very far, so these are the best places to start."

She moved behind him, put her hands on his shoulders and began to knead away the tension. "I think it's time you got some rest," she said.

He closed his eyes as her fingers worked to soothe his sore muscles.

"Do I look that beat?"

"Like the walking dead."

"That's not too flattering," he said with a laugh.

"You look sexy. But then, you always look sexy."

Unless he'd misinterpreted the hunger behind that statement, it was an invitation, not just a compliment. He twisted around to see her expression.

"You don't have to offer me an incentive to stay focused on the case, Zoe.

I'm going to stick it out."

Her hands stilled. "I'm not trying to manipulate you. This isn't about trading favors."

He guided her around in front of him. "Then what is it about?"

She blushed and glanced away, and he got the impression that she wasn't often so direct. "An escape, I guess. A few moments of 214

forgetfulness."

With him. He could easily give her that. She was worried about Sam, in need of a reprieve, if only a short one. But where would it lead? Despite what he'd told Sheridan, he was ready to settle down, get married. Sex simply for the sake of getting off wasn't enough for him anymore. He wanted a family, with the right woman. And he was beginning to realize that finding the right woman was going to take some restraint.