Anacacho, An Allie Armington Mystery (10 page)

I hesitate, knowing there’s that unasked question in
his invitation.

He must read me because the famous smile radiates
again. “Just dinner, I promise.”

He motions me to join him in his car, opens the
passenger door, and bows.

I slide in, wait until he shuts his door, then give
him the news. “The sheriff wants to take Reena’s car.”

Paul stares ahead, a definite set to his jaw. “How
do you know?”

“
When I was coming down the
Dardens’ drive he was parked at the entrance, waiting. We had a
nice, long chat.”

He shakes his head and moves the car slowly down the
gravel road toward the house.

We’re at the front door, but the motor’s still
running and Paul’s made no move to get out.

“
Cotton wondered what I was doing
with Reena’s car, since you told him she left the ranch in it.” I
rush to add, “And frankly, I was wondering, too.”

“
But she did leave in that car.”
He bangs his fist on the steering wheel. “This noose around my neck
is getting tighter by the minute. Everything points to me.
Everything. But I didn’t kill Reena. I swear.”

“
Where did you find the car?” “In
the garage.”

“
I didn’t know there was a
garage.”

“
It’s that long, low, steel
building between the stables and the barns. We store the farm
equipment there—a tractor with a posthole attachment, a small back
hoe, an ATV for running the fences, and there’s a place for our
cars, but we seldom use the garage because it never
rains.”

“
What made you look
there?”

“
When they found Reena’s body, I
realized she had to get back here somehow. So, I waited until the
law left and the servants turned in, then I took a flashlight and
there it was. All bright and shiny, with a full tank.”

“
Oh, Paul, you should have told
the sheriff the minute you found the car. There might have been
fingerprints.”

“
Fat chance of that.” He slumped
forward on the wheel. “Face it. I’m being set up. I might as well
find Bill Cotton and turn myself in.”

I can’t disagree. Everything seems just a little too
pat. “Don’t be too hasty about turning yourself in. There’s no hard
evidence as far as we know.” I think a minute, then say, “I guess
the question comes down to, who hates you so much that they would
kill your wife, then fix it so you’ll hang for it?”

Paul winces at my words, then gives me a thin smile.
“No nooses for years and they cashed in Ol’ Sparky for the needle a
while ago.” He shudders and rubs his arm. “Oh, God. I hate
needles.”

I’m now driving the Anacacho station wagon. Miguel
has been demoted to driving a ranch pickup.

The motel room is still stuffy despite the open
windows, so I slam them shut and turn on the air conditioner. It
rumbles into action, the noise promising more than the pale
emission the machine produces, but it’s still cooler than nature’s
best.

After collapsing into the creaking armchair, I check
my cell for messages. Only one from Del asking that I call him as
soon as possible.

I grab the phone and punch.

Del answers on the second ring and yells hello over
the blaring television.

“
Hi Del, it’s Allie.”

“
Just a minute.” He’s all
business. I hear the noise fade and a door slam before he mumbles,
“I have to speak to you a.s.a.p.”

“
What about the diner across from
the motel?” “Twenty minutes.”

I’m halfway through my first cup of coffee when I
see Del’s truck roll up and the headlights flicker and die. He
waves to me, says something to the cashier, then eases into the
booth. “Thanks for seeing me.”

After the waitress sets his beer on the table and
refills my cup, I lean forward. “What can I do for you?”

“
Nothing but listen.” He chugalugs
half the longneck and bends closer. “I didn’t want to get into
this, but I thought you might want to know something. Paul took out
an insurance policy on Reena for a million dollars.”

There goes another hitch in the noose around Paul’s
neck. “When did this happen?”

“
Right after you came to visit
last January.” “How do you know?”

He looks away. “Reena. She told me Paul made her go
for a physical. Said she wasn’t looking too good. You can imagine
how she felt when Doc mentioned the reason for the exam.”

His sheepish look says it all.

“
Oh, Del, don’t tell me it’s
true?”

He glances at the cashier, who’s leafing through a
magazine, then turns back. “It was over last summer, except for a
few times in February. Reena was scared Paul was going to have her
killed.” “And so you just ambled over and offered your... your...
support?”

He winces, then rushes to dig his hole deeper. “I
never intended to let things get that far, but when Susie’s
nursing, she’s not real romantic.”

“
Oh, well, that excuses
everything.”

“
No, no. But I’m only human. And
Reena... you know how persuasive she could be.”

That’s the last straw. I shoot back. “Susie Baxter
is one hundred times the woman...” I see the cashier come to
attention and lower my voice, “... Reena Carpenter ever was.”

Del’s face reddens. “Don’t you think I know
that?”

I snort. “If you recall, it was Susie who saved your
life after Reena dumped you. How could you cheat on her like
that?”

He looks up, face filled with misery. “You gotta
know I would never leave Susie. I love her.”

I pat his hand. “I’m glad to hear that. Now, make it
up to her, will you?”

His large paw covers mine and he gives me a broad
grin. “You don’t know how close I am to doing that very thing.”

The worst is over. I’ve chastised, Del’s apologized.
It’s time to get back to the subject at hand. “So, you think Paul
killed Reena? And he did it for a million-dollar policy?”

“
I’m just passing on
information.”

“
That’s a piece of pretty damaging
evidence. But, I don’t think Paul would be stupid enough to kill
his wife at his retreat. Besides, Reena couldn’t ride. She told me
she was scared of horses.”

Del’s mouth falls open. “She told you she couldn’t
ride? When?”

“
Last January.”

“
She sure had you buffaloed. Where
do you think we were meeting? It damn sure wasn’t in her
bedroom.”

So that’s how Reena knew. She and Del were using
Paul’s hide-away for their own secret rendezvous.

“
Did Paul know Reena could
ride?”

“
I’m not sure, but Miguel knew. He
was the one who taught her. Reena told him she wanted to learn as a
surprise for Paul.”

“
And Miguel bought it?”

Del sighs. “Miguel’s a man, Allie. Reena could charm
the birds out of the trees if they were males.”

What if Paul somehow discovered what was going on
between Reena and Del? Maybe he followed Reena to the lean-to. Saw
them together. Waited until Del left and...? No. Not there. That
place means too much to Paul.

“
Paul tells me Reena slept around
a lot. Were you aware of that?”

Del pulls his gaze from mine to stare out the
window. When he speaks, his voice is low. “Okay, dammit. I knew
there were others. Lots of ’em. I even ran into Reena and one of
Paul’s shooting buddies at the Saint Anthony Hotel in San Antonio.
“But for some reason, it didn’t matter when we were together. Reena
made me feel like I was the only one.”

I think back to Del’s desolation. How he wanted to
die when Reena dumped him to run off with Paul. What did she
possess that made her so irresistible? What was it that made Del
want to come back for more?

Del touches my arm. “I know you’ve never forgiven
Reena for taking Paul away, but there wasn’t a mean bone in her
body. She never intended to hurt anyone. It just never occurred to
her that she was.”

I don’t answer.

Del drains his beer, then half whispers, “Okay then,
don’t admit it. But you and I know you miss her too.”

It’s my turn to look away as sadness wells. Del is
right. We all worshipped at Reena’s shrine. She was the center of
our world. When we were with her, anything was possible.

I grab Del’s hand. “I guess that’s one thing we can
agree on, no matter what she did, everybody loved Reena.”

He sadly shakes his head. “No. Not everybody.”

Del walks me across the highway and unlocks the door
to my cottage, then opens his arms and says, “How ’bout a hug for
an old friend.”

“
You bet.” I let him fold me to
him, then I rest my head on his shoulder. It’s a brotherly hug
offering no more than much-needed comfort.

We stand there for a moment, then Del steps away.
“Thanks, I needed that.”

“
I did, too. You can collect one
anytime.”

I wait until he disappears, then close the door
behind me, letting the dull hum of the air conditioner numb my
thoughts.

The evidence against Paul is mounting. The
million-dollar insurance policy on Reena was a stupid move,
especially since half the county knows he’s been seeing another
woman.

I make my way across the room by the dim glow of
neon from the motel sign and grope for the bedside lamp, when a
voice comes out of the darkness.

“
It’s about time.”

I recognize the voice and the aftershave. Bill
Cotton. My pulse zips into the tattoo I’ve come to expect when he’s
in proximity.

I switch on the light to see him in the only
comfortable chair in the room. “How did you get in here?”

“
Friends in high
places.”

I settle on the straight chair in front of the desk.
“Don’t you ever sleep?”

“
Do you?” He’s mocking me, but his
voice has a warm cast to it. “Not too well in this place. It’s the
pits.”

“
You ought to try the jail. What
did Del want?”

“
To tell me about an insurance
policy Paul took out on Reena.”

“
Old news. But why was Darden so
anxious for you to know about the insurance policy?”

“
Beats me.”

He smirks. “Maybe what he wanted was a little
sympathy and a warm body.”

“
Maybe your mind is in the
sewer.”

He laughs. It’s a nice laugh that comes from
somewhere near the bottom of his belly.

I rearrange myself on the hard seat searching for
comfort. “If you already know about the policy, then I’m afraid I
can’t help you.”

“
Well, I have two bits of
information for you.”

When my brows arch he says, “The car was clean.
Other than your prints we found zip, zero, nada. Whoever had the
car last must’ve worn gloves.”

“
That doesn’t necessarily mean
Paul.”

“
No. But why didn’t Paul come to
us with this important piece of evidence?”

Since I’m not Paul’s attorney, I squelch my urge to
mount a defense. “Go figure. What’s the other bit?”

“
I’m allowing Carpenter to leave
the county tomorrow. Seems his CPA needs him, tax extension or
something, so one of my boys is driving him to Laredo bright and
early.”

“
What possible difference could
that make to me?”

He gives me a lazy grin. “I didn’t want you to think
he was standing you up.”

“
We didn’t make breakfast plans.”
I check my watch and stand. “It’s late and I’m exhausted. See you
tomorrow.”

The sheriff pulls himself out of the chair and
crosses the room to stand much too close for comfort.
“Tomorrow?”

His eyes don’t leave my face, but I feel as if he’s
stripping my clothes from my body. I realize I’m trembling, but not
from fear. No man has ever sexually stirred me so—not Paul nor
wonderful, steady, comfortable Duncan. A momentary wave of guilt
cuts through my heat, but quickly fades as he closes the distance
between us. He’s not touching me, but he might as well be. And, if
he does, I don’t think I can be held accountable for my next
move.

I use every bit of will to break the moment and
slide toward the door. “Reena’s autopsy report? Nine o’clock?”

The minute there’s space between us, my strength
resurges and a crazy thought burbles through my head that maybe
this man’s aftershave contains Kryptonite.

“
Oh. Right.” He stands there
staring at me, face soft with longing.

“
Thanks for dropping by.” I nod
toward the darkness and say, “See you tomorrow.”

He runs his hand through his thick mop, then smiles
back. “Tomorrow.” Then slips past me and steps into the night.

My reaction to Bill Cotton’s visit only adds to my
frustration as I check my heart rate and find it has hardly
diminished in the minutes since his departure. In fact I’ve been
wandering about, slowly peeling my clothes away, dropping them
wherever I stand until I collapse on the bed and pull the sheet
over my bare body.

The air conditioner wheezes, sending a small rush of
tepid air across me. It’s then I realize I didn’t have time to deal
with the cooling problem, much less with the evening crowded with
new revelations.

The news of Paul’s trip to Laredo troubles me. He
didn’t mention one word about it at dinner. There were several
phone calls during the evening, all taken on the second floor, but
he remained a winning host throughout. To my surprise he took my
exit reasonably well, and was even gracious enough to walk me to
the station wagon.

He took my hand. “There’s so much I want to tell
you. So much I need to tell you.” He sighed. “There’s been a lot
going on in my life. A lot I’m not very proud of. Now that Reena’s
dead, I’m afraid I might be next.”