Page 79 of Among the Innocent

Leah frowned. “I don’t see how. Ellis would have mentioned it if they had a son.”

“What if he wasn’t the father?”

She searched his face for a long moment. “You think she had a baby before she and Ellis married?”

“Maybe. I realize this has nothing to do with what’s happening, but we have several hours before we can call Stephens’s family, and I need something to distract me.” Dalton ran a hand through his hair. “I’m thinking Marge had a child, and she either had to give it up for adoption or maybe it died. If we can find out for sure—if the child lived and was adopted—maybe we could give Marge some closure that she did the right thing for the baby.”

“That’s sweet. She could use something positive. I left a message for her doctor to see if he can tell me if Marge had a child. But what if we find out it’s bad news? What if the baby died?”

“We’ll know for certain. We don’t have to share the bad news with her,” he said gently. “When did Ellis and Marge marry anyway?”

She leaned back against the sofa. “They celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary a couple of months before Ellis died.”

“You had said Ellis and Marge lived in a small community in Wyoming. Do you know where?”

“Not really. They didn’t like to talk much about their past. I assumed it was family problems. Maybe their parents hadn’t approved of the marriage. There was never any family to visit at the holidays. After coming from an Amish background where the family get-togethers were important, it seemed odd, but they were happy. I do know they lived in Missoula after Wyoming.”

“What about Marge’s maiden name?”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I’m not much help. Marge is short for Margaret. Ellis called her that once.” Leah looked around the room. “Maybe there’s something here. Ellis kept all his important papers in his file cabinet.”

Leah went over and tried to open it, but it was locked. “Hangon.” She looked under a ceramic bear and retrieved the key. After unlocking the cabinet, she opened the first drawer while Dalton peered over her shoulder.

“These look like a bunch of old cases.” She flipped through the files and replaced them. The bottom drawer contained a single folder. The label on it grabbed Dalton’s attention right away. It was marked “Personal.”

Leah pulled it out and looked inside. “Ellis’s birth certificate.” She held Dalton’s gaze a second. “He was born in Crook County. Isn’t that in Wyoming?”

“It is.”

The next document was their marriage certificate. “Margaret Beiler.” Dalton read the name aloud. He leaned forward, a sliver of excitement running through his body. “Let’s see if we can find any record of a Margaret Beiler from Wyoming having a child.” He grabbed his laptop once more and searched records in the area. “I’m not finding any record of a birth.”

“Maybe the birth wasn’t recorded,” Leah told him.

If Marge hadn’t wanted anyone to know she had a baby—and from her silence on the subject, it seemed that was the case—then it made sense.

“Private adoption records are usually sealed,” Leah murmured to herself. “There would be no way of checking.”

Dalton could see the idea was unsettling to her. “Let’s table this for another time.”

She turned his way, and inches separated them. More than anything he wanted to kiss her. Did she feel the same way? They stared at each other for the longest time.

“Leah,” he whispered. She dropped her gaze. He tipped her chin toward him. “I think we need to talk about what’s happening between us.”

Color filled her cheeks. “Dalton...”

“I’m not going to deny I have feelings for you, but the timing—it feels off,” he said with regret.

She slowly agreed. “I care for you too.” A sad expression crossed her face. “More than I’ve ever cared for another man. But we have to finish this case for both of us. Once and for all, we have to bring justice to those who gave up so much.”

He’d been so close he could smell her hair. See the scar on her throat. He enjoyed toying with her. Letting her know there was nothing her chief could do to stop him. Leah’s strength crumbled around him. Her fear excited him.

The time was coming soon when he and Leah would meet again for the last time.

He drove away from the house where he was squatting. The thrill of killing called out. He would need to assuage that desire soon.

The Amish community spread out before him. He didn’t use headlights because there was added police presence. He parked the car some distance from where it all began.

Getting out, he made his way through the trees until he caught glimpses of the barn through the leaves. Faint voices drifted his way. Police officers were stationed nearby.

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