Page 10 of River Justice

“What is that?” Stuart asked, his gaze going to what Duffy had in his hand—a leather work glove folded over what appeared to be a plain white envelope, which he thrust at the sheriff.

“Where did you get this?” Stuart demanded as he pulled on his latex gloves and took the envelope.

“I saw our mailbox door was hanging open, so I stopped,” Duffy said. “I thought it might be from the kidnapper. I tried not to touch it any more than I had to.”

Stuart gritted his teeth, telling himself this wasn’t the time to get into it with Duffy, especially when he saw at once that the envelope looked much like the ransom one. But it also meant that his deputy hadn’t gotten out here to keep a watch on the mailbox yet. If he had, he might have seen the alleged kidnapper.

He carefully sliced open the envelope and pulled out the folded sheet of paper. It resembled the first note, the words cut from a glossy magazine.

What was different was the message.

Tell the Truth.

Or the Girl Pays.

For your Lies.

All the color drained from the rancher’s face as Stuart showed him the kidnapper’s demand. There was no doubt now. This was about Holden. He watched the big man lower himself into a chair and drop his face into his hands.

Just as Stuart had feared, the kidnapper had something on the rancher, and Holly Jo was now being used as a pawn. He turned to Elaine. “Did Holly Jo by any chance keep a diary?”

“I don’t know,” she said, her gaze on Holden. She looked as shocked and upset as he did.

“I searched her room, but would you mind looking?” Stuart said, needing to get both Elaine and Duffy out of the way. “Also, I’m going to need her computer brought down. If you don’t know what her password is, please try to find it in her room.” He turned to Duffy. “I need you to go into the dining room and write down everything about your confrontation with Gus Gardner. And please close the door behind you.”

Duffy saw through the pretense but left as if he too was shocked by either the ransom demand or his father’s reaction—or both.

With them gone, Stuart turned to Holden. “‘Tell the truth’? If you know who has taken Holly Jo, you need to tell me now.”

HOLDENDIDN’TWANTto meet the sheriff’s gaze. He had feared this was about him, and now he knew it was. He’d brought this on his family. He was risking Holly Jo’s life, all because of something he’d done.

Tell the Truth.

Or the Girl Pays.

For your Lies.

His mind whirled, thoughts blowing past like trash in a strong wind.

“Holden, we need to find your ward as quickly as possible,” Stu said. “If this is someone from your past with a grudge, as it seems, then Holly Jo wasn’t abducted by a stranger or a possible online predator. The kidnapper is someone who isn’t demanding money but for you to tell the truth. That seems to suggest that the person won’t hurt Holly Jo, who is an innocent in all this. But we can’t chance that. If you know who has her, you have to tell me now.”

Did he? Who would take Holly Jo to force him to confess and apologize for something he did? He still felt it had to be about revenge.

He rubbed the back of his neck and tried to get his breathing under control, fighting to think clearly. There were so many truths, and even more lies. They blurred together in his mind. He’d rationalized so much of what he’d done over the years that he’d felt exonerated because no one had ever called him on it—except Charlotte.

But thinking he’d put it all behind him, that too had been a lie. He’d never truly been free of the people he had hurt. Hadn’t he always known that there would be a reckoning and he would have to make amends that might threaten everything he’d built?

A clear thought fought its way to the surface. Why now? Why, after all this time, was someone demanding he pay for his past deeds?

“Holden?”

His mouth had gone dry. He swallowed and stood, hating to face the sheriff and admit the one truth he could no longer hide. “I have to make a list.” He saw the flicker of surprise in the young sheriff’s expression, could imagine it in the faces of his adult children if they found out. He considered all that he’d done as he moved to his desk, sat down and picked up a pen.

He didn’t know where to start, so he began to write down names of not just people he’d wronged, but people who might hate him this much. When he slowed after a few names, he saw that the first name on the list was Charlotte Stafford. He started to scratch it off, telling himself Lottie would never use a child to get back at him, but Stuart stopped him. He watched the sheriff take the list from him, glancing at what he’d written, then up at him. Their gazes met.

Stuart pointed at his shirt pocket, where he’d hidden the DNA report. The sheriff gave him a look that sent a chill through him. “Brand’s not at the top of the list?”

“Brand?” Holden said in surprise. “No, he wouldn’t—”

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