Page 95 of Deadly Target (Rocky Mountain Courage 2)

FORTY

Erin finished packing a few items, then moved to Mom’s room.

Lord, please help me convince her that we need to stay somewhere safe.

Maybe she and Nathan were overreacting, but there was nothing wrong with being cautious. And right now, the idea of spending a day or more at the ranch surrounded by her closest friends and Mom sounded right. And yes, it would be like old times, especially with Alex there. Except now Terra and Jack were officially engaged—their wedding fast approaching—and well, Erin and Nathan had been apart, had gone their separate ways for several years now.

But that kiss...

She pressed her fingers against her lips, thinking back to the moment when he leaned in and gently kissed her, then caught her up and kissed her with fire and passion. She could tell even then that he’d held back, but it was enough to know that he still—what? Loved her? No, no, no. She couldn’t be thinking about that during these uncertain times.

A familiar flutter thrummed inside—and she hadn’t felt that in much too long. How was it possible that Nathan could still stir her after so long? Maybe it had everything to do with the fact that Erin had never truly let go of him. Emotionally, she’d held him at arm’s length. While mentally, she’d wished him well and for him to simply move on and forward with someone else. But in the deepest part of her heart, she’d never let him go.

Maybe another time. Another place. Another set of circumstances. Like a normal life. Erin had accepted she would probably never have one, and this last week had confirmed those deep-seated fears.

She rubbed her tired eyes and forced her thoughts back to finishing packing for Mom. She zipped up the small duffel, then plopped on the bed and listened to the clock ticking in the hallway.

Mom should be home any minute. Erin had no idea how this disruption would affect her stability. Then again, Mom had always been the strongest person Erin had ever known.

Her cell buzzed.

Nathan texted he was going to send her some images. He had gotten the articles about the cold case his father had been looking into when he was shot. She sat up and looked at the images coming through, skimming the articles.

They were about a missing woman.

Right up her alley. She was glad Nathan had sent them to her and was keeping her in the loop. She moved to her office and downloaded the pictures to her iPad, then enlarged and printed them so she could get a better look. She could center them in the image of Newt Campbell’s crime board and see if they fit.

Newt said he’d been investigating a murder and something about it—she didn’t know what—had reminded him of this cold case Dwayne had asked him to look into. Why had her stepfather been so concerned about a missing woman, and who was she?

She stared at the printed images and skimmed the articles.

Dread crept up her chest.

Erin rushed to the hallway, pulled down the attic steps, and scrambled up into the attic. Heart racing, Erin stared at the boxes of junk.

She moved to the last box she’d searched through where most of the old photographs were tucked away. The other newspaper clippings. Nothing stood out to her. There was nothing about a missing woman, or even a picture of the missing woman.

Wait a minute.

Erin peered more closely at the picture in the article. Then, digging through the box, she found an old photograph that she’d seen when she was up here before.

The missing woman in the article ...

Shock rolled through Erin. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She recognized the missing woman.

---