Page 54 of Exposure of Murder

She walked him to the door.

He pulled on his boots and coat. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Good night,” she replied as he headed out into the twilight. Jane let out the breath she was holding. The conversation went better than she hoped.

As she walked back to the kitchen, her phone rang. She glanced at the screen. Victor.

“Hi.”

“Jane, how’s your evening going?” Victor’s voice was smooth.

“It’s going fine,” she replied. “What’s up?”

“I wanted to tell you that I’ll be out your way next week,” he said. “Can I see you?”

“I’d like that.”

“How about I bring lunch and you can show me around the farm?”

“Sounds great.”

They said goodbye, and Jane hung up. Jane looked out the window. The world outside was enveloped in darkness. The wind was still whipping through the trees. The house felt emptyfor some reason. She tried to shake off the feeling of loneliness and unease.

What was wrong with her tonight? First Ethan, then Bucky, and now Victor. She was happy to hear from Victor, but something about him bothered her. What? She shook her head. Nothing came to mind.

Twenty-Nine

Ethan didn’t have any new information about Thornton’s death. He had called Sean hoping that his brother would have something for him. But they were spinning their wheels. He did learn a sketchy real estate group had moved into a couple of other towns up north and Champlain Security Solutions was on it. However, there was no concrete evidence yet that this group was involved in anything illegal.

It was late in the day, and the station was quiet. A couple of deputies were at their desks, and he noticed Nora packing up to leave.

“Nora, wait up. I’ll walk you out,” he called out. Nora turned to look at him and tilted her head. He rarely left at the same time she did.

They walked out to a darkening sky, heavy with the woodsy scent of snow in the air.

“I hope the snow holds off,” said Nora. “I’m not ready for it.”

Ethan looked up at the sky. “We’ve been lucky so far.”

She stopped by her car. “What is it?”

He cocked his head. “How do you know I want something?”

“Pffft. You hardly ever walk me out, and when you do, you want or need something.”

Ethan chuckled. “You know me well. Uh, you’ve known Maggie Thornton a long time and her father before her. Have you heard any rumors about something of value being hidden at Jane’s farm?”

“No. I do know David was skulking around when Mr. Jenkins lived there. But that’s all I’ve heard.” She tied her scarf more securely around her neck. “Why?”

“Humph.” He blew out a breath, watching it evaporate in the air. “I’m frustrated that we haven’t found his killer or the reason why.”

Nora shrugged. “It meant nothing at the time, just rumors, and quite frankly, I don’t believe it means anything now. David had lots of enemies. He messed with a lot of people’s lives. Maybe you should check on them.”

Ethan rubbed his hands through his hair. He kept his ears and eyes open, and even though he’d lived in Beaver Creek all his life and knew a lot of people, he didn’t hear everything.

“Like who?”

“Why don’t you talk to Judge Kenner? She knows a lot about the town and who sued who.”

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