Page 18 of Murder at Rescue Ridge

“Where will you go?” Irene asked. The older woman once had dark hair that was now salt and pepper based on the hints of dark brown. It was thick with short, loose curls. She was medium heightandthin without being frail. Serious without being too intense. There was an underlying kindness in her demeanor that was foreign to Nikki. Her own mother could best be described as someone with sharp edges. She had shoulder-length straight hair and muscle tone courtesy of the gym. Nikki couldn’t remember a time when her mother had cooked a meal, so she’d learned her own way around the kitchen from an early age. In fact, her mother was most likely to observe the cocktail hour than dinner time.

As complicated as Nikki’s feelings might be toward her mother, she knew her mother would be worried to death. The fact just dawned on Nikki. Could she use the Zilker’s cell to call her mother and reassure her? Her stepfather would be worried. Since stepping into their lives, he’d been the worry wart. How many times had her mother called him that very term?

A successful construction business had kept him on the road enough for Nikki to become adept in the kitchen. Her mother mostly shoved food around on her plate with a fork while polishing off a glass of wine.

What would Nikki say to her mother and stepfather if she could get a message to them? That she was fine? That she was helping a friend?

As soft as her stepfather had always been with her, he had a harsher more controlling side. She’d overheard him talking to one of his foremen enough times to realize the man didn’t dicker around. He was serious about his work, kept a high standard, and expected others to live up to his demands. At fifty-three, he was on his third marriage. But this one, he’d said many times, was special. This one was the real deal.

Nikki loved her mother despite her shortcomings. Born in France, she’d followed her serviceman boyfriend back to America, then she’d convinced her parents to let her enroll in university. She’d fallen in love with Austin first and then Texas second and had stayed after the relationship had ended. Nikki’s father had been in law school when her parents met. Nikki’s mother often said the serviceman boyfriend had been the love of her life. Harrison Guidry had charmed her into thinking he really loved her. The heated fights and bruises had said otherwise, but those hadn’t come until after the wedding, which had followed a whirlwind romance.

The other side to Harrison had come out next, controlling and mean. Nikki’s mother had finally had enough, grabbed her daughter, and started over with nothing but the clothing on their backs.

So, no, Nikki didn’t dislike her mother. She understood her, which allowed her to love her. Nikki understood that her mother loved her in her own way. Not in the wrap you in a warm hug and heat you chicken soup when you were sick manner. But in the ‘not leaving you behind’ sense. That counted for something in Nikki’s book.

Fingers snapped a few inches in front of her eyes.

“Hey,” came Conrad’s low, masculine timbre. “Are you okay?”

No. And she would never be okay again.

“I’m good,”Nikki said, but Conrad didn’t believe her. How could he when she’d zoned out and gone to a dark place? It had to be dark based on her somber expression. “What were you saying again?” Whatever was going on in her mind, she’d snapped out of it. Her gaze focused on his, sending fireworks shooting through his chest.

Conrad refocused. “I was just saying that we’ve probably stayed too long as it is, and I don’t want to put Mr. and Mrs. Zilker in danger by being here.”

“I understand that you don’t want them to commit perjury, and I agree, but what makes you think they might be in danger?” she asked, blinking at him as she seemed to reconnect with the conversation.

“I had an argument with someone who is now dead. What if someone is intent on setting me up and follows me around to kill those I have contact with? Think about it. If anything happens to the Zilkers, we’ll be blamed. Our DNA is here.” His thoughts had gone to a dark place because he needed to anticipate what might happen next. What if someone had decided to set Conrad up? Would the person stop at Harrison Guidry? It had to be considered.

Nikki muttered a curse and then an apology to the older couple.

“Don’t apologize, child,” Hank said to her. “I just thought the same word.”

Conrad couldn’t put this kind couple in danger. “I have to go back to the ranch in order to search for evidence to clear my name.”

“Is that the best move, son?”

“I can’t think of another one,” Conrad said. “But I’d welcome ideas.”

“One of us could go for a visit,” Hank said.

“What reason would you have to visit?” Conrad asked.

Hank shrugged. “Give me a minute, and I’ll think of something.”

Irene snapped her fingers. “I know. We could borrow something. Both of us could go. You know how it is in these parts. Folks spend half an hour saying goodbye. And that’s just when you make it to the front porch. I could stall for time while Hank searched around the barn.”

Conrad didn’t immediately hate the idea. He didn’t love the thought of putting the Zilkers in harm’s way, either.

“I’m already risking your freedom,” he said to them. “I can’t risk your lives to boot.”

Irene gave a solemn nod.

“You remember the clubhouse that you and Jake built years ago around the lake?” Hank asked, placing his elbows on the table and steepling his fingers below his chin.

“Yes, I do.”

“No one ever goes there from what I hear,” Hank said.

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