Page 42 of Rancher to the Rescue

“So, you never witnessed any arguments between the two of them?” he continued.

“No. To be fair, I was never around the couple. I watch their dog. Miss Peabody is their bichon. Hutch is their lab. He’s all over the place with his energy but make no mistake about it, Miss Peabody is the one in charge. Why?” she asked.

“Because according to this note, Mrs. Ramsey killed her husband and named his mistress, saying she had to kill her too.” Lawler got real quiet. “The mistress named in the note is you.”

Adam didn’t believe it for one minute.

Prudence blinked a few times, trying to let Lawler’s statement sink in. She knew she wasn’t having an affair with Mr. Ramsey or anyone else for that matter. At the present time, her heart wanted to be with the impossible man in the room with her, his hand on her lower back.

She needed to know what Lawler thought.

“You don’t be—”

“No,” he cut in before she had time to finish. It was the obvious question to ask. “The note references you as already dead.”

She tried not to vomit again as bile climbed up her throat, burning a trail to her mouth.

Adam’s thumb drew circles at the small of her back and brought a surprising amount of comfort with his touch. She couldn’t think about the senseless loss of two lives and still keep a clear mind. With great effort, she had to put those emotions aside—emotions that threatened to pull her under and trigger feelings from her traumatic past.

Years of therapy from her youth kicked in, and she remembered to focus on something real, something that kept her in the present and aware of being inside her own body. Like the light, reassuring touch on her back. She used Adam’s hand to ground her. Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey deserved justice.

“Let me see if I have this right. Someone broke into the Ramsey home with the intention of killing them and setting the scene to look like a murder-suicide. Prudence was to be…what…ambushed?…when she showed up at six o’clock in the morning to care for their pets where she would also be killed and ‘arranged’ to fit,” Adam surmised.

“The note was already written, so, that’s exactly the way this looks,” Lawler stated.

“In the hopes of gaining what?” Prudence could feel the blood rush out of her face. Dizziness set in but she had no plans to let it take over. Breathe. She looked at her hands that were planted against the island and focused on the feel of the granite beneath her fingers.

And then it dawned on her.

“The baby,” came out in a whisper.

“Someone wants this angel pretty badly,” Lawler suggested.

“Is there any way to speed up the paternity test based on this new information? I can’t help but think this would have to settle down if I can claim her as mine legally,” Adam said.

“You know I’m doing my best there,” Lawler said in his usual calm tone.

Prudence had no idea how he did it. A job like his would undo her. There was no way she would want a front-row seat to people’s worst days. She was grateful for lawmen like him. The detective who’d taken her to child protective services had been a godsend. She couldn’t remember his name anymore or the details of his face. All she could recall was a dark-haired man in a suit with a kind, steady voice and a teddy bear taking her to a foster family until her next of kin could be notified and cleared through the courts to come pick her up. The same detective had been present when her aunt and uncle pulled up in their small pickup. She’d sat in the middle and her aunt held her hand the entire drive to their home.

No words had been spoken, or, if they had, she couldn’t say what they were. All she remembered clearly was clinging to that teddy bear like it was her lifeline.

“Elizabeth’s parents made an appointment to come to my office at seven a.m. tomorrow to give statements before he goes into work. You’re welcome to come down and hear what they have to say,” Lawler said. “I can arrange for you to be in a sound-proof room with a two-way mirror.”

“I’d like that very much,” Adam immediately piped in.

“Stop by half hour before the meeting. Say, six-thirty,” Lawler said.

“What’s going to happen to Miss Peabody and Hutch?” Prudence couldn’t stand the thought of the dogs ending up in a shelter after what they’d been through.

“They’re with animal control,” Lawler said.

Prudence shot a desperate glance at Adam. He seemed to immediately pick up on the meaning.

“Any chance they can be released into our custody?” he asked.

“I can have that arranged,” Lawler said.

“Is it possible to pick them up now? They must be so scared.” Prudence balled her fists. She flexed and released her fingers a few times trying to work off some of the tension.