“Oh, Jen-Jen.”
Hilary hugged her, and then they both burst into tears—two girls from the wrong side of town dreaming of a better way of life. For Hilary, her dream would probably never come true. She was stuck in Willow Creek. That broke Jena’s heart.
For herself, her dream was just within her grasp.
CHAPTER THREE
ASA DIDN’T FEEL well and went to bed early. Aunt Fran gave him something to help him rest, so Carson didn’t get a chance to talk to him. The next morning Asa was still asleep when Carson had to take the kids to school, but he told his aunt to call when Asa was up. He wasn’t sure how to confront his father, considering the man’s mental state, which was precarious, but he had to do it.
He had a sick ache in the pit of his stomach at what had been done to Jena Brooks. For he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that her baby had been taken by his father. He just couldn’t figure out why, especially since Asa didn’t believe the baby was Jared’s.
A life for a life, his dad had told her. Could that mean...? He couldn’t even finish the thought in his head. What kind of a monster would kill an innocent newborn? Not one he wanted to be related to.
There had to be an answer somewhere. There were other people involved in this, and the only way to find out who, was to look through Bernard Milliner’s files, as he had been the constable at the time. Since Jared’s case was a murder, the sheriff’s office would have handled the investigation, but it happened in Bernie’s precinct, and he would have been there on the scene of both murders.
When Carson reached his office, he started looking through the files. His office was filled with regular office equipment and filing cabinets. He also had a small storage room that housed old files. Nothing much happened in Willow Creek, but all cases were documented, and the records went back over fifty years.
He found the paper work and sat down to read. Jared’s body had been found by Roland at 8:12 p.m. on a Thursday. Bernie had a note jotted on the side: Asa sent Roland to look for Jared when he didn’t come home. Carson already knew this. He had been able to fly home three days after the murder, and Asa was still ranting and raving about revenge. Carson had asked the doctor to give him something to calm him. But Asa had still been frighteningly angry. To him, it seemed Lamar’s death wasn’t enough. He wanted more. Did he get what he wanted?
It had been a horrific time, and Carson didn’t look forward to the thought of reliving it. To find answers, though, he had to go back.
Lamar Brooks was found at his house at 6:05 a.m. the next morning. Just like Jared, he’d been killed with a shotgun blast to the chest as he got out of his truck. Asa was the logical suspect, but ballistics could not match the gun with Asa’s. The murder weapon had never been found and neither had the murderer. What a mess.
The door opened and his friend Levi Coyote strolled in with two cups of coffee. “Hey, I haven’t seen you in a week, so I thought I’d stop by for a minute. I even brought coffee.” He and Levi had been friends since they were kids. Along with Ethan James, another friend, they’d been as inseparable as brothers growing up. Ethan was a detective in Austin and Levi was now a private investigator, but their roots ran deep in Willow Creek.
“Thanks. I could use it.” He took a sip from the disposable cup.
Levi pulled up a chair. He was a tall, muscled guy. Carson and Ethan decided a long time ago that in case of a fight it was always good to have Levi on their side.
“What’s the hangdog expression about?”
“Jena Brooks is back in town.”
“Shit.” Levi almost spit coffee all over the room. “Is her child with her?”
“No, and that’s the problem.” He told his friend what Jena had told him.
“Man, that’s quite a story.”
“Yeah, but she’s not lying. I found the bloodstain in the basement.”
Levi shook his head. “Asa’s always been a little off-kilter, but since losing Jared he’s been way off.”
“He hasn’t been able to cope with Jared’s murder, and I’m so afraid...that baby is dead.”
“If he did something so heinous, you’ll never find the body on the Bar C. It’s too big. Where would you start digging?”
“Oh, man.” He ran his hands over his face. “This is hell. I might have to arrest Asa. I can’t do that, Levi. I can’t do that to my own father.”
“Just take it slow. You’ll need more than that stain in the basement to prove Asa was involved. Start searching for info. You know people around here love to talk, and I’ll help. I’ll be away on a case today and tomorrow, but I’ll check with you when I get back.”
“Thanks.” Carson placed his hand on the papers on his desk. “I’ve been going through the murder files, and I can’t understand why Lamar would kill Jared. You were around at the time. Did he hate Jared?”
“Just the opposite. He bragged about his daughter marrying a Corbett. She’d never want for anything.”
“Did Jared ask Jena to marry him?”
“Not to my knowledge, but I remember he was crazy about her.”
“Maybe it was more about the sex than something long-term. Maybe Lamar confronted Jared and demanded he marry his daughter and one thing led to another.”
Levi shrugged. “Could be. But it was real stupid of Lamar to leave his shotgun at the scene.”
“Mmm.” Carson flipped through the files. “After my dad was ruled out as the murderer, no one else was ever questioned.”
“Nope. They closed the case and no one objected.”
“Why? That’s not normal police procedure.”
“I was clocking a lot of hours as a cop in Austin at the time, but Pop said the sheriff investigated and a Texas Ranger got involved. Then suddenly the case was closed. Like I said, no one was too concerned who killed Lamar Brooks. He’d murdered an innocent boy, and everyone felt he got what he deserved.”
“That’s not justice.” Carson had a bitter taste in his mouth that so much about what had happened back then seemed to be overlooked and easily forgotten.
Levi shrugged.
Carson shifted through the papers. “Bernie doesn’t have too much, but I’ll read through all of it, and then I’ll go to San Marcos to see what the sheriff has on the murders.”
“Don’t expect too much.” Levi crushed the cup in his hand. “The case was wrapped up quickly. My advice is to talk to Minnie again. She’s your weak link. And, of course, Asa.”
“He had a bad night. When he wakes up, I plan to confront him.”
Levi stood and aimed the cup toward the trash can. It landed perfectly. “Bam. Three points. Coffee’s on you next time.”
“You got it.” He picked up the lawyer’s card from his desk. “Ms. Brooks works for a criminal attorney now. She’s giving me a chance to find her child, and then she’s turning it over to the attorney.”
“Damn. That’s the last thing you need.”
“Yeah. Because of Pa’s involvement I can’t let her do that. I’ll have to call Ms. Brooks and ask for more time.”
“Do you think she’ll agree to that?”
“I don’t know. She seems...nice.”
“Nice?” Levi lifted an eyebrow.
“She was determined at