one,” Tyler said point-blank.
“Well, originally she said she was going to turn back, but then I got a bad feeling about her being out there alone in a place she didn’t know and so I turned back to look for her, thus find her.” Another satisfied smirk crossed Milton’s features.
If that wasn’t a sack of dung bigger than a bull, Tyler didn’t know what was. Who did Milton think he was fooling?
Tyler’s right hand fisted. He flexed and then forced it to relax.
“Good that you had time to clean yourself up, you know, while you were so busy being worried about your fiancée here,” Tyler pressed.
Another frustrated pause.
“When I couldn’t find Jennifer I figured she got angry at me for leaving her, so I decided to be ready to smooth things over when she came back to the motel,” Milton said.
“Even though you couldn’t find her when you went looking for her? You still assumed she’d be able to find her way back?” Tyler asked, not letting up. “And where was this meet-up point you mentioned?”
Milton didn’t answer.
In all honesty, the man could walk out at any time. But then, that would leave Jennifer alone with Tyler and the sheriff. No way did James Milton want that.
“What are you doing in town, anyway?” Tyler continued.
“We came for the...nature. We wanted to get out of the city for a long weekend and decompress before kicking our wedding plans into high gear,” Milton said. “Life from here on out is going to be crazy, isn’t it, honey?” Milton shot another look at Red.
“What trail were you on? Do you remember anything about it that stuck out?” Tyler asked.
“Not really.” Milton shrugged.
“Was it rocky or were there trees?”
“Trees,” Milton said, trying a little too hard to sound convincing.
“Which direction did you come from?” Tyler asked.
“We came from the north,” Milton supplied.
Tyler didn’t immediately respond.
“You sure about that?” he finally asked.
“Yeah. North, right, honey?” Milton said, glancing down at Jennifer.
She managed a weak smile and a nod.
No one got to Diablo’s Rock from the north on an ATV. Tire tracks at the scene indicated the opposite. Tyler slanted a look at Tommy.
“That’s impossible,” Tyler said. “Tracks came from the south.”
Anyone could get confused in an area they aren’t familiar with, but this guy wouldn’t be confused about direction because he was wearing one of those expensive compass watches.
“Guess I didn’t notice.” Milton shrugged. “If I’m not under arrest, then can we be finished with this conversation?” His lips flattened, indicating his patience had run out.
Well, guess what, buddy? So had Tyler’s.
And they were far from done.
“Where’s the doctor?” Milton asked, rotating toward Jennifer and effectively turning his back on Tyler and Tommy. “How much longer do you have to stay in here?”
“In a hurry to go somewhere, Mr. Milton?” Sheriff Tommy asked, blond eyebrow arched.
“I’d like to get her home where I can take better care of her,” Milton said. “It’s impossible to get any rest in one of these places.”
“And where is home?” Tommy asked.
“Louisiana, like on my license. You saw that earlier,” Milton said. “You’d like to come home with me, wouldn’t you, darling?”
There he went with that darling business again. Tyler wanted to vomit. Again, Milton was pouring it on a little thick.
While Tommy was finishing his interview, Tyler excused himself in order to talk to Jennifer’s doctor, Dr. McConnell.
McConnell was a no-nonsense middle-aged woman who’d been working at the hospital since graduating medical school. A local, she wore jeans and boots under her white coat and she’d been a close family friend since longer than Tyler could remember.
“Is there any chance she’s being abused?” he asked McConnell when he was sure they were out of earshot.
“I’m bound by oath not to respond to that question,” Dr. McConnell said. “However, since you found her, I don’t mind telling you that she has quite a few bruises on both of her arms.”
“I’m guessing that’s a yes,” he said.
“She’s been through a lot.” McConnell frowned. “I’m not saying she’s been abused, but even if she has there’s no way to prove anything. And, of course, nothing can be done unless a victim is willing to talk about it or press charges.”
“In theory, would you have offered that kind of help by now?” he asked.
“I would’ve. We’re not talking about a child here, where I’d be forced to report suspected abuse and Tommy could step in,” Dr. McConnell said. “I can only help patients who want it.”
Tyler didn’t like what he heard.
“When I see a patient with bruising like we’ve discussed, I’m always sure to have another conversation with her. I can promise that she’ll know that there are folks who can help. I’ll offer assistance, but it’ll be up to her to accept,” Dr. McConnell said, placing her hand on Tyler’s shoulder. She had to reach up, considering she wasn’t more than five foot three.
“Much obliged to you, doc,” Tyler said.
“Before you go, any word on the investigation? It’s been two weeks since I submitted the results from the third-party analysis of the toxicology report,” she said, and he knew that she was talking about his parents. She’d been one of his mother’s closest friends and he could see how much the doctor missed her in the dark circles under her eyes. The recent news that his parents had been murdered hit their friends hard, their children harder.
“Nothing so far, except that Tommy is reviewing the case file personally,” he said. Tyler and his brothers benefitted the most from their parents’ deaths so they’d be at the top of anyone’s suspect list. There were no other leads at the time.
Dr. McConnell gave that a minute.
“Give your brothers a hug for me,” she finally said.
“I will.”
Walking
