Sammy whined and settled at his feet. Dustin leaned down for a moment to pat the dog. When he looked up, she was at the counter, waiting for him to face her, waiting for his reply.
“I would guess that’s it, yes,” he told her. “Here’s the good thing. Whoever’s doing this hasn’t gotten to a point where they’re desperate. This person is just...researching the situation right now.”
“What should I do?”
“Tell everyone you’re getting an alarm system.”
“And then?”
“Get an alarm system.”
“Oh!”
“Listen, no one else believes that Marcus met with foul play. Well, other people might suspect it, but the police found nothing that would lend to more of an investigation than the one that’s been done. You can’t blame them. They found you with a man who was already dead. Thankfully, he’d been dead for hours, or you might’ve ended up as a suspect. But they found a man who’d been an addict dead with heroin in his system. There was no one around and no sign that anyone had been. There were no obvious marks on his body, other than those attributed to the fall.”
“There were also no needles or drug paraphernalia,” she reminded him sharply.
“True, but no addict keeps his stash where it can easily be discovered.”
The coffee gurgled its last and she poured them both cups.
“The attorney’s coming to the Horse Farm today to explain the will and dole out the individual bequests Marcus left.”
“Just go, listen, watch other people. And as soon as possible, call an alarm system company.”
“You don’t think that’s kind of paranoid?”
“Paranoid is better than—” He broke off. He’d been about to say dead. “You’ve heard the old adage a thousand times. Better safe than sorry.”
She smiled at that. She’d known what he’d been about to say. “Would you hang around down here for a few minutes while I go up and get ready for the day?”
“Of course.”
She’d drunk half her coffee. Leaving it, she turned around and dashed up the stairs.
He was going to be sorry to see the beautiful robe go, he thought.
Restlessly, he walked the ground floor of the house, checking windows as he went. The place was sealed tight. He sat in the parlor, thinking about the psychology of what had happened. Whoever had done this wasn’t a serial killer with a penchant for a certain physical type; this was a person or persons with an agenda.
Dustin knew he should be looking for someone who was after something that wasn’t obvious. Or maybe Marcus’s killer had been seeking revenge for some reason. But if revenge was the only agenda, why come after anyone else?
No, fear of discovery had to be the motive for targeting Olivia Gordon. What did she know that she didn’t even realize she knew?
And how far was the killer willing to go to safeguard a secret?
Olivia came down the stairs, Sammy at her heels. It was barely seven and beginning to get light outside.
He rose. “I have an idea. Go to the café in your car. I’ll get my own car and follow you. You are allowed to dine with ‘guests’ if you happen to arrive at a restaurant at the same time?”
“Yes, we always run into people at the café and there’s never been any kind of policy against sharing a meal. After all, we do the camping trips, Mariah runs her ghost tours... I’m sure that ‘running into you’ will be fine.”
She seemed grateful for the suggestion.
He collected his backpack; she picked up a shoulder bag.
“All right, Olivia, I know I already mentioned this, but it’s important. You need to make it known that you’re hiring an alarm company.”
“What reason would I give for suddenly doing that?”
“You say you heard noises—and that you’re far away from anyone else. You’re just feeling nervous, that’s all.”
“Okay,” she said.
They headed out.
At the door, Sammy whined. “You need to protect the homefront,” Olivia told him, then locked the door, checking it a couple of times.
She got in her car; he waited until she was safe inside, backing out onto the drive. Then he followed. As they approached the café, he slowed his car. He wanted her to be there for a few minutes before he joined her.
And yet, he wondered if whoever had attempted entry at her house had been there all the while, hidden somewhere in the trees.
Watching him watch Olivia.
*
Olivia was the first customer to arrive at the café that morning. Behind the counter, still setting up, Delilah looked at her with surprise. “Liv, honey! What are you doing here so early?”
“Oh, I couldn’t sleep, so I got up and I didn’t feel like my own company,” Olivia explained.