Sloan stripped off his sand-encrusted clothing and stepped into the shower, scrubbing the grit from his hair and skin and simply indulging in the strong spray of water. Then he remembered that Chet was coming by and he emerged, dried and got dressed. The door to the master suite was still closed; he imagined that his federal agent was enjoying the heat and steam, just as he had....
He’d barely returned to the living room when he heard Chet’s car drive in. He opened the door as his young deputy entered the house, carrying a file. “So you found the whole body, huh?” Chet asked, and Sloan realized that as far as Chet knew, he’d spent most of the afternoon at the theater while the medical examiner removed the bones of Sage McCormick.
“Well, we’re assuming.” Of course, there was no proof yet, but the skeleton almost had to be hers....
“I think you can feel pretty sure,” Chet said cheerfully. “DNA testing will prove who she was—that she’s Sage McCormick, your ancestor.”
“Thanks, Chet. Anyone go through this?” Sloan asked, taking the file.
“Yes, sir. So far, they haven’t found the rental car. The bullet was pretty degraded because it went through the hard part of the skull, but it was .45 caliber. It’s a nightmare for the crime-scene guys, since dozens of people go through that tepee every day, so sorting anything out is going to be tough for them. They have some hair and some fibers, but...those could belong to the guides or to a bunch of tourists. No luck tracing anyone who knew anything about the man coming here. He hopes you’re having better luck.”
“Thanks, Chet. I’m going through the books the man bought. Hopefully, that will give us some clue.”
He couldn’t have said exactly why he wasn’t telling his own deputy that he’d been crawling around the mine. He trusted Chet and Betty and his entire department. But just for now, he wanted to investigate on his own. Or with Jane.
Maybe I shouldn’t even be investigating, he told himself.
Chet never knew that Jane was in the house; he was gone before she came out at last in one of his grandfather’s beautiful old Native American robes. It was too big for her but she’d tied it around her waist and she seemed comfortable, walking out in bare feet with her hair slick and clean and clinging to her face and neck. She carried her clothing, neatly folded. “Tell me where your laundry is, and I’ll manage to get the dust out of these before we head back.”
“It’s right off the kitchen.”
“Thanks.” She seemed at ease, but he realized he wasn’t. The thought that wouldn’t leave his mind was that she was naked beneath the robe.
He went into the kitchen and rummaged in the refrigerator. Johnny had left him a meat loaf. There was a bowl of fruit to go with it, and a note about how long to nuke the food. He took it out and put it in the microwave.
Jane reappeared, smiling wryly as she watched him. “Do you like cooking?” she asked.
“I don’t mind it. Problem is, my hours are usually long. Johnny’s a decent cook, as well as the best property manager I’ve ever known. He’d been with my grandfather since I was a teenager, the best friend someone could have. We respect each other, we look after each other. It’s good.”
“It is good,” she agreed. She pointed at the folder he’d set on the counter. “So Chet came by?”
“Yes.”
“This is what Detective Newsome has?”
“Yep. Not much.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be sharing with him?”
“I intend to, as soon as I have something to share. You hungry?”
“Well, crawling around in abandoned mine shafts does whet the appetite,” she told him.
“It’s meat loaf, but don’t be too disheartened—Johnny makes a hell of a meat loaf.”
They ate, and she swore it was the best meat loaf she’d ever tasted. He explained that it was slightly different because of Johnny’s gift with seasoning and because it was made with pork and beefalo. “Emu is popular around here too,” he said. “I don’t think it ever caught on the way people hoped, but we still have some big ranches around here.”
When they’d finished eating, he found himself staring at her. He also saw her staring at him.
Her clothes must be ready by now. They’d eaten, and it had been a long day; he could take her back to town.
But he didn’t offer and she didn’t say she needed to go. Their silence should have grown uncomfortable. It didn’t. He wasn’t sure which of them smiled first, but then they both were and their smiles deepened.
“I guess I should ask if you’re in a relationship,” she said.
“Pretty obvious, I think. You see me living here alone.”
“Ah, but I saw the way Alice looked at you today. And then I noticed that Valerie got that touch of awe in her eyes. Of course, you came to her rescue when she discovered the skull, so...”
“I guess I’ve missed those looks.”
She glanced down and her lashes swept her cheeks for a moment. Then she raised her eyes again. “You didn’t ask me if I’m in a relationship.”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Is that because you don’t care?”
“It’s because I don’t believe you’d be here now, speaking to me like this, if you were,” he told her.