Page 53 of Lie for a Million

“Fancy meeting you here,” he remarked as they cleared the front steps of the church.

Rachel turned to look at him, one eyebrow shifting upward. She was a tall woman, almost as tall as Sam. Roper may have gotten his height from her. “I didn’t know you were a God-fearing man, Agent Rafferty,” she said.

“Calling me that is probably a stretch.” Sam adjusted his stride to hers. “I don’t usually have time for church. But today I just needed a bit of spiritual refreshment.”

“Since you’re still around, I take it you’re still looking for Frank’s killer,” she said. “How is that coming along?”

“Not as well as I’d hoped. I’ve been going over my notes, looking for something I may have missed. And I’ve been following up with people I interviewed earlier. But I seem to have hit a dead end. That’s why I’m especially glad to see you this morning. I hope you don’t mind answering a few questions—just to help me tie up some loose ends.”

Her expression was distrustful. Maybe he’d come on too strong. He could have already struck out with her. “I won’t keep you long,” he said. “I just need to verify some things I’ve already been told.”

Her mouth tightened, the lips narrow and bare of makeup. “You can walk me to my car,” she said. “But I can’t talk long. I need to get home and start dinner.”

“Is your family at home?”

“The younger ones are gone. They’ll be back tonight. If I make ham and beans, I can warm everything up when they get home.” She began walking toward the curb, where the cars were lined up in front of the church. As Sam fell into step beside her, he recognized the older sedan he’d seen in the McKennas’ yard.

“I need to verify the alibis of the people in your family,” he said. “It’s just procedure.”

“That’s easy enough,” she said. “Cheyenne and the boys were on the road. Kirby and I were in bed. And Roper was home, too.”

“In my notes, I have something about Roper getting up to chase a skunk off the porch. Do you remember that?”

She nodded. “The dog barking woke me up. I’m a light sleeper. Not like Kirby—an earthquake wouldn’t wake him. I called to Roper in the next room. A couple of minutes later he came back in and said the dog had been barking at a skunk. He’d chased the skunk away and put the dog in the barn so he wouldn’t go after it.”

“What time was that?”

“After midnight. I didn’t look at the clock, but it was still dark.”

“You say you got up. Was that when you heard the dog or later?”

“It was right after I heard the dog. I put on my robe and waited for Roper in the kitchen.”

“When Roper came inside, did you see what he was wearing?”

Rachel shook her head. “Neither of us turned on the light. No need. But I could hear his boots on the floor. He would’ve put them on before he went outside. It’s not safe to walk around barefoot in the dark. Anything could be out there—stickers, scorpions, maybe even a rattler.”

“You say you heard him outside. Did you hear anything earlier, like the sound of a vehicle?”

They had reached her car. She stopped and turned to face Sam. Her eyes were slits of anger. “That’s enough. If you think my son would kill Frank, you’re dead wrong. Roper’s a good man. I raised him by the holy book. He’s honest to the bone. He loves his work, and most of what he earns goes to help our family. You keep coming back to that skunk story. I could see skunk tracks the next morning. The dog was shut in the barn, just like Roper said.”

She fished her keys out of her purse and opened the car door. “Our family never did think much of the Culhanes—Frank and that fancy-pants wife of his, with their big house and their cars and their money. But the McKennas are God-fearing people, and murder is a sin. If you want to find out who killed Frank, maybe you should look closer to home.”

With that, she climbed into the car, slammed the door, and started the engine. Sam stood looking after her as she drove away. She’d put up a passionate defense of her son. Had she protested too much? That remained to be seen. The story of the skunk sounded plausible, but Sam didn’t know enough about skunks to judge.

Still, Rachel’s account had left some openings. Evidently, she hadn’t heard Roper go outside. So he could have gone out earlier and awakened the dog when he came home. The skunk story could have been real or a fabrication.

Also, she said she hadn’t seen what Roper was wearing. If he’d been fully dressed, that would argue for his having gone to the Culhane place, killed Frank, and returned.

How much did Rachel know? How much was she hiding?

Only one person could give him more answers—Roper McKenna.

When he got back to the ranch, he would find a time to corner Roper and ask some probing questions. Meanwhile, he would put that issue on the back burner while he spoke with the reverend about the death of Ethel Grishman.

* * *

After working with Fire Dance and Milly for most of the afternoon, Roper decided to take a break and go home for supper. He was tired and hungry. Besides, Cheyenne and the two boys were due back this evening. He looked forward to hearing about the rodeo and talking with Cheyenne about her future plans. Rowdy, still on bail awaiting trial, would be sulking as usual. Roper could only hope the young man had learned his lesson. So far, that didn’t seem to have happened. Rowdy was surly and defiant, insisting that the lawyer he’d hired would get him off and then he’d be free to do whatever he wanted.

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