She rubbed the tips of her middle fingers over her closed eyelids. An image of Tommy’s angry scowl invaded her mind. She shook it away and opened her eyes. The man had more sides than she’d given him credit for. But what had he meant by tragedies? Losing his mother had to be difficult—she’d be lost without her own mom—but was there something else that darkened his past?

It didn’t matter. She had no desire to learn about his secrets or get to know him better. His resources in helping find Shawn’s killer were the only things she cared about. Something she needed to keep at the forefront of her mind from here on out.

Grabbing her phone from her back pocket, she dialed the number for the station and pushed to her feet.

“Millerton County Sheriff’s Department.” The voice on the other end rang out loud and clear.

“This is Deputy Sadie Pennel. I need someone to bring me my cruiser or swing by and pick me up when available.”

“What’s the address?”

Shit. Tommy had known where Shawn lived. She didn’t have a clue what the address was, or even the street name out in the middle of nowhere. “Umm, give me a second.”

A pile of loose papers took up the tabletop. Sadie rummaged through them, searching for an addressed envelope or utility bill. A bank statement caught her eye, and she shoved it to the side until she found what she needed and read the address to the deputy on the phone.

“I’ll get a couple deputies to get your cruiser to you. Shouldn’t take long.”

She thanked him then disconnected, returning her focus to the bank statement. The numbers listed in the account summaries dropped her jaw.

Shawn was loaded.

She tossed the papers down on the table. Her wheels spun as she glanced around. Shawn had more money than she’d know in a lifetime and lived in squalor. Something didn’t add up.

Sadie put her gloves back on and dug through the rest of the mostly-barren cabinets then searched every inch of the living room. She held her breath as she went through the bathroom—careful not to touch more than she had to in the rancid room.Nothing else piqued her interest like the bank statement, but she still had the bedroom.

She pushed open the flimsy door and the odor of unwashed clothes and stale food slid against her skin. She wrinkled her nose but pushed forward. Like the rest of the trailer, empty beer cans scattered along the floor. But in here, they mixed with discarded clothes and rumpled bed sheets. The queen-size bed dominated the room, the mattress was uncovered and a yellowed blanket huddled in the corner. A laptop sat on top of the bed. She’d make sure to take that into the station. Getting a closer look at Shawn’s financial records was top of her priority list at the moment.

Rounding the bed, she kicked aside debris, making sure nothing of importance was hidden under the clutter. The bed sat directly on the floor. She gripped the side of the mattress and shoved it on its side, leaning it against the wall. Nothing. She lowered the mattress back down then slid open the closet door. A dresser was jammed into the space, clothes spilling out of drawers. One by one she opened them, searching for anything worth giving a second glance.

Nothing to note of inside, but a picture lay wrinkled and marred on top of the dresser. Three high school-aged guys leaning against a nice car in front of the school. She studied the youthful, smiling faces. The one in the middle was undoubtedly a young Shawn, but she wasn’t sure who flanked him. Maybe Tommy would know. Hell, maybe it wouldn’t even matter. If Shawn’s entire life had gone downhill after he graduated high school, chances were slim he was still close to whoever was in this picture.

She flipped the photo over, interested if names or dates were scribbled on the back. Black ink wrote out a single sentence: Before I destroyed everything.

Intuition tingled the back of her neck. Maybe she hadn’t been too far off with her assumption Shawn had a secret that sent him on a downward spiral.

A distant sound reached Sadie’s ears, like the rattling of a door handle. She walked to the lone window in the bedroom and peeked outside but didn’t have a clear view of the driveway. The wind probably shook the trailer, causing the home to shift. A brewing sense of alarm told her to check into it.

Pulling her weapon from her side, she crept back into the living room. The door handle moved from side to side. No way the wind would make that sharp of a motion. Someone was trying to get in.

A loud thumping vibrated the trailer and rocked it back and forth. The door bent, as if someone threw themselves against the thin barrier.

Sadie’s heart sputtered. Adrenaline shot through her veins. She might not know who was attempting to break into Shawn’s home, but whoever it was had no idea what waited for them once they got in.

Setting her feet, she aimed her gun at the door and waited.

5

The continuous pounding against the door shook the trailer, as well as every nerve in Sadie’s body. She tightened her grip on her weapon. Flashbacks of the accident in Iraq invaded her psyche and threatened to break her concentration.

But she couldn’t let it.

A loud crack sounded, and the door swung open. A woman fell forward, the momentum carrying her inside.

“Police. Stop right there.” Sadie commanded. Her heart hammered. Adrenaline spiked in her veins, taking away any of the tremors from moments before. “Get to your feet. Put your hands where I can see them.”

“Police?” Confusion lifted the inflection of her word into a question. She clamored to her feet and lifted her palms in the air. “Is it really necessary to keep that thing pointed at me, Deputy?”

“Judge Downs?” She dropped her weapon so the barrel was pointed at the floor. “Why are you breaking into Shawn’s home?”