Page 66 of Exposure of Murder

He’d thought long and hard about where to dump the traitor’s body, and he had the perfect spot. Driving out of town on darkened roads, he headed toward Jane’s farm. Parking nearthe pond, he dragged the body out, reached for the cold chain and wrapped it tightly around the limp body before securing it with a padlock, then dragged it to the water’s edge. Damn, David was heavy.

With a final push, he’d sent the body into the murky water. Victor stood there, relishing the moment of a job well done, as the water swallowed David into its dark depths.

Now it was crunch time. He turned the car and headed toward town. Jane had given him the tour of the barn, so he just needed to come up with a plan to find that damn ledger or scare Jane enough so she’d sell the property. That bastard Thornton thought he was so smart, hiding it in the barn, then threatening him with it.

It was rumored that Thornton worked there when he was a teenager, so he would know all the hidey-holes. But would he have buried it? Victor didn’t think so—well, he hoped not. He’d hate to dig up the whole barn floor and not find it. The greenhouse was new, so it wasn’t there.

It could be somewhere in the hayloft, although that made little sense since people were up there all the time.

The only logical spot was the storage room where the feed bin was located. Maybe it had a secret compartment. The other thing he noticed was the wall behind it was fairly new compared with the rest of the barn. New being a misnomer. The wall was at least forty years old.

Time was of the essence. His backers were getting impatient. He needed to find the ledger and cash Thornton stole. Or the next one to die would be him.

Tonight would be a perfect night for a fire.

First, though, he pulled out his phone and dialed the number he knew by heart. It rang three times.

“Hello.”

“Hi, sweetheart. Turns out I’m free for the rest of the afternoon. Are you available?”

She was. She always was.

He nodded and hung up the phone. After this, it was time to put Plan B into effect.

Thirty-Four

Bucky called Jane to inform her he was running late but would definitely make it to the farm late afternoon. Despite her claim that she could handle feeding the animals, he insisted. She couldn’t help but admire his strong work ethic.

Ethan invited Jane to his place around six o’clock. Leah was making her famous butternut squash lasagna with homemade sausage. Tanner was making a salad. And she promised to make … something.

Jane frantically searched the fridge and cupboards, hoping to find something to bring. She didn’t feel like making a trek into town.

Luckily, she had two artisan cheeses wrapped in the fridge: a cheddar and a fresh goat cheese that she had recently purchased and hadn’t touched. The cupboard contained grissini, fig jam and olives that she could include. She knew Leah was bringing bread that they could slice up.

Oh, there was a box of Ritz Crackers. Jane pulled that out, along with a package of ranch dip. She had butter and Parmesan in the fridge, which was all she needed to make zesty RitzCrackers. It was an easy recipe she wanted to try, and now was the perfect time.

And she could also bring a loaf of cranberry orange sweet bread that she had in the freezer and… That was enough. Ethan said he was handling dessert.

She took a shower and looked in her closet. This was supposed to be a casual dinner. Jane pulled out a pair of skinny jeans, a mock turtleneck, a long-sleeved sweater, and a pair of brown lace-up ankle boots. After dressing and admiring her casual self in the mirror, she pulled her hair into a ponytail and nodded to herself. Sexy but modest.

She walked downstairs. Her heart raced in anticipation of seeing Ethan again. She was also nervous. Jane didn’t know where this budding relationship with Ethan was going. But getting to know Tanner better also would be nice. She and Leah met regularly, and she thoroughly enjoyed their friendship.

The crackers were cool and ready to be placed on a tray. She arranged the cheese and grissini on another small tray and filled small wooden bowls with the jam and olives. Jane found a couple of small artificial pumpkins and voilà. It didn’t look too shabby.

After searching for a small box to place everything in, she was ready. Walking out to her car, she noticed the lights were on in the barn. Good. Bucky was there.

The sky was a deep indigo dotted with several twinkling stars. She took a deep breath as the crisp evening air filled her lungs, carrying the distant aroma of wood smoke. The drive to Ethan’s house took less than a minute.

She pulled into the driveway and parked beside Leah’s car. Jane could hear bursts of laughter coming from inside.

It promised to be a fun evening. She knocked on the door, and Ethan answered, staring at her for a moment. “You look beautiful tonight.”

“Thank you.” Could he see her blush? Jane hoped not.

“Come on in.” He reached for the box. “I’m glad you were available on such short notice.”

Jane stepped into the living room. The space was large and comfortable, with a spacious leather sectional in front of a roaring fire and a large TV mounted above the mantle. Two leather chairs flanked a square wooden coffee table that was already laden with drinks.

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