Covert Kisses. Jane Godman
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two women were related. Moreton had approached Laurie’s chief with a request for her to be assigned to the Bureau for this case...and here she was.
Laurie felt obliged to ask the question that had been bothering her since the previous night. “Could Cameron Delaney be wary of me? He might have made up this whole story about the flowers as an elaborate way of scaring me off. He could have had someone plant these in my cabin, in which case, I’ve already blown the whole operation.”
Moreton considered the suggestion, his head on one side. “I checked your credentials before I recruited you. You’ve never aroused any distrust before. If Delaney wanted to get rid of you, the flowers seem like an elaborate way to do it. He doesn’t strike me as that kind of guy. But you tell me what you want to do. If you think Carla’s stalker is targeting you, or Delaney’s guard is up, don’t go back to Stillwater. Come in now.”
Laurie had been afraid of this, had actually considered not bringing the flowers to him in case he insisted on ending the operation immediately. At least he was offering her options. “Let’s not be hasty. You’ve been trying for a long time to get someone close to Delaney Transportation. I’m not there yet, but I’m the best you’ve got. I won’t take any chances with my personal safety.”
He pursed his lips thoughtfully, then he nodded. She got the feeling she’d given him the answer he wanted. Hell, she was having a lot of feelings today. Most of them uncomfortable. “Let’s meet again tomorrow morning. By that time, I’ll have had a chance to get the information we need. We’ll take it from there. In the meantime, you have your gun with you, right?”
“Of course I do.”
Having made arrangements to return to Moreton’s office the following day, Laurie headed back to her car. She was surprised and relieved Moreton had listened to her and, having done so, had not insisted on ending the operation there and then. It was a lack of caution that was out of character with what she knew of him, but then, what did she really know of Moreton? She didn’t even know his first name. Their interactions were limited to discussions of the case, and this one felt different from any other she’d been on. So different that she was tipped off balance. She had come here certain about her role, but now there was a possible new element to be considered that was throwing everything off-kilter.
She spent the drive back to Stillwater deep in thought, much of it going over the same ground she had covered the night before. She was already convinced Carla’s death was not an accident. But, if that was the case, who had killed her and why? The only person who seemed to be in the clear was Cameron. He had a watertight alibi for the night Carla died. Hundreds of people could vouch for his presence at the political function. He was the person who had told Laurie about Carla’s secret admirer and the flowers he sent her. And, unless he had an accomplice who had carried out the task on his behalf, he had been with Laurie last night and couldn’t have left the flowers in her cabin.
She was so preoccupied she had to slam on her brakes hard to avoid a truck as it pulled across the road in front of her and into the entrance to a concealed track. The black-painted trailer bore the words “Delaney Transportation” in bold red letters across its side. A timely reminder of the real reason why I’m here. Perhaps I should complain to Cameron about the carelessness of the driver? She pulled away again, watching the truck in her rearview mirror as it disappeared along the track. Away to her right, a hill shaped like an inverted funnel caught her eye, standing out stark and unusual against the surrounding flat landscape.
Laurie’s mother had talked to her about the openness of Wyoming. The vast tracts of unoccupied country through which you could drive and drive without seeing another vehicle. Towns with their population only just creeping into double figures, spread so far apart it took forever to get from one to the other. Scenery so beautiful it hurt your heart to look at it. Traditional ranches stretching beyond the horizon in every direction. Maybe her mother had instilled a love of this land into Laurie with her stories, but it pulled at her. It was a raw, powerful, unexpected feeling, unlike anything she had experienced for any other place.
On her arrival in Stillwater, Laurie stopped for groceries. Pulling up in front of the general store, Milligan’s, she tried to recall where she had heard the name mentioned. With her finely tuned memory for detail she recalled Dino saying something about a girl called Milligan running off with an unsuitable boyfriend. Small-town life.
Laurie supposed it was like having an extended family. It was a complete contrast to her own life. She had grown up without a father and was only discovering now that she had a cousin. Who knew how many other family members she had that she was unaware of? For her whole life, it had just been her and her mom. Because she hadn’t known any differently, she had accepted their lack of family and close friends as normal. She knew, of course, that her fierce independence and determination not to rely on others stemmed from that isolation. Now, for the first time, she thought it must be kind of comforting to think everyone knew your name and watched out for you.
Laurie was the only customer, and she selected her few purchases, making her way to the single checkout. The woman behind the counter put aside the magazine she had been reading and greeted her with a listless gaze. Laurie’s eyes were drawn to the poster at the side of the checkout. It was a photograph of a pretty, smiling girl with blue eyes and long dark hair. Emblazoned across the top in bold font were the words “Have you seen this girl?” Below, in smaller lettering, were details of when and where Deanna Milligan was last seen, a plea for her to contact her mom and a cell phone number. Laurie had glimpsed a few similar posters around town, but this was the first time she had seen one up close.
An icy little worm wound its way up Laurie’s spine as she studied the picture. Although Deanna Milligan was much younger than Carla, they both had the same coloring and there were some similarities about their delicate features.
“I’m so sorry.” She nodded to the poster while the woman continued to scan her purchases. There was enough of a resemblance between this woman and the girl in the picture for Laurie to make the assumption that this was Deanna’s mom. What had Dino said her name was? Sarah Milligan, that was it.
Sarah’s eyes instantly filled with tears. “It’s the not knowing that’s so hard, you know? If she’d just get in touch, tell me where she is. I don’t understand why it had to be like this.” She withdrew a handkerchief from her pocket and blew her nose into it. “I mean, I didn’t like the guy she was seeing—thought he was too old for her—but running away with him? We could have worked it out.”
“So you met her boyfriend?” That didn’t fit the same secret-admirer approach as Carla. Maybe Laurie was seeing connections where none existed. Lots of girls had blue eyes and dark hair. She did herself. Things are complicated enough. Don’t go trying to make them worse.
“Once or twice. As I said, I didn’t like him. He wasn’t from around here. His name was Xavier.” Sarah spat the name out as though it was an insult. “Xavier-Quentin Fontaine. He made a big deal of making sure he used his full name. Sounds kinda French, doesn’t it? He was a charmer. All that blond hair and those baby blue eyes. Flashing his big, charming smile at every woman who came his way. Deanna was smitten. She even started lying to me. Told me she wasn’t seeing him anymore, that he’d left town. But I knew it wasn’t true. Why, he was still sending her those flowers, even though she tried to tell me they were from a secret admirer—”
“Flowers?” Laurie couldn’t help herself. She interrupted the other woman’s flow, her voice a staccato exclamation.
“Every week. Right up until the day she left home.” Laurie’s heart gave a sickening thud as she anticipated Sarah’s next words. “Fancy dark red roses in the shape of a heart.”
* * *
“Laurie!” Cameron caught up to her as she reached her car at the front of the store. “You were lost in your own world. I’ve called your name twice already.”
She turned her head, a half smile piercing her distracted expression. “Pardon?”
“Hey, are you okay?” He scanned her face, amazed at how he could have become so attuned to this woman’s moods in such