Cindi Myers - Saved By The Sheriff

She looked away, cheeks still flushed, then shoved out of the chair. “I’d better go. I...I’ll look at those files whenever you’re ready.”

“Iris Desmet over at the Cake Walk said something interesting to me this afternoon,” Travis said. “She said we should look for any client of Andy’s who matched the description Wade Tomlinson gave of the woman whom he saw at Andy’s office about the time Andy would have been killed.”

“I don’t remember any clients who looked like me,” she said.

“Think about it. Maybe a name will come to you.”

“So that’s your new theory about who killed Andy—this mysterious woman?”

“Not necessarily. But if she was around near the time when Andy was killed, maybe she saw something or remembers something.” He frowned. “I should have followed up on that when Wade first mentioned her.”

“But you didn’t, because you thought he was talking about me,” she said.

“That was a mistake. A big one on my part.” One he wouldn’t make again.

She turned to leave. “Let me know how it goes with Alvin Exeter,” she said. “I’m curious to know what he has to say.”

He walked her to the door. Even with her bad prison haircut and too-pale skin she was beautiful. The kind of woman a lot of men might underestimate, but not him. He would never underestimate Lacy Milligan again.

* * *

“IT’S SO GOOD to see you.” Brenda greeted Lacy on the front porch of the Milligans’ house the next morning with these words and a hug that surprised her with its fierceness. When Brenda pulled away, her eyes glinted with unshed tears. “I’m sorrier than you can know that I didn’t contact you while you were in prison,” she said. “I started to write more than once, but I just couldn’t think what to say.”

“I wouldn’t have known what to say, either,” Lacy said. After all, she had been convicted of murdering Brenda’s husband. That went far beyond merely awkward. “I’m just really glad you don’t have any hard feelings now.”

“I’m thrilled you’re home,” Brenda said. “I could never accept that you had anything to do with Andy’s death. When Travis told me he had found evidence that proved you were innocent, I was so relieved.”

“Even though it means the real killer is still out there?” Lacy asked.

“I didn’t think of that until later.”

“So Travis told you he was going to try to free me?” Lacy asked.

“He told me before he told the press. He wanted to make sure I was prepared.” Brenda touched Lacy’s arm. “He told me you still have bad feelings toward him, and I don’t blame you. But he really is a good man—one of the best men I know.”

Lacy nodded. She might not be ready to forgive Travis Walker for stealing three years of her life, but she was woman enough to see the good in him, in spite of his mistakes. “I guess he told you why we’re looking through Andy’s files,” she said.

“Yes. I don’t think you’ll find anything useful, but I guess we can hope.” She pulled her keys from her purse. “Are you ready to go get the boxes? I would have swung by the storage unit and picked them up myself, but Travis said it was better to do things this way.”

“After the mistakes he made at my trial, I guess he’s being extra cautious,” Lacy said.

“I can’t help but hope that this time he finds the real murderer,” Brenda said. “I think it would help all of us put this behind us.” She climbed into the driver’s seat of her car, while Lacy slid into the passenger seat.

“I do want to put this behind me,” Lacy said. “I’m still adjusting to the idea that I’m really free.”

“Do you think you’ll stay in Eagle Mountain?” Brenda asked.

“I don’t know,” Lacy said. “This is my home, but even in three years, things have changed.”

“Not that much, surely,” Brenda said. She turned the car onto Main.

“There are new houses, new businesses, new people I don’t know. We even have a new mayor.” Lacy gestured toward the banner that hung over the street. “And what’s this Pioneer Days Festival?” she asked. “That wasn’t around when I left.”

“It’s a whole weekend of events celebrating local history,” Brenda said. “Jan came up with the idea when she was mayor and it’s really been a boon for the town coffers.” Jan Selkirk had been mayor when Lacy had left town, and, after leaving office, had taken over management of the history museum where Brenda worked.

“I guess I remember some talk about a local celebration to commemorate the town’s founding,” Lacy said. “I didn’t think it would be such a big deal.”

“I guess it morphed over time into a really big deal,” Brenda said. “Tourists come and stay all weekend. All the local motels and inns are sold out, and we have all kinds of special events at the museum.”

“Sounds like fun.” Lacy swiveled in her seat as they passed a pile of wreckage. “What happened to the Cake Walk?” she asked.

“You didn’t hear?” Brenda slowed as they passed the rubble, which was cordoned off with orange tape. “That was why Travis had to leave without picking up the file boxes. A guy ran his car right into it yesterday afternoon. Jan told me she heard the poor man had a stroke. They ended up taking him to the hospital. Fortunately, no one inside was hurt.”

“I was at the sheriff’s office yesterday afternoon and Travis never said a word about it,” Lacy said.

“Oh? Why were you at the sheriff’s office?” Brenda didn’t try to hide her curiosity.

Lacy leaned back in the seat and sighed. “There’s a man in town who says he’s writing a book about me. I complained to Travis about him.” No point in going into her accusations that Travis was selling her out to this writer.

“Oh, dear. I suppose that was bound to happen,” Brenda said.

“I’m surprised he hasn’t gotten in touch with you yet.”

“When he does, I’ll tell him what he can do with his book project,” Brenda said.

“He said he was going to write about me, whether I cooperate or not. I guess I’ll have to get used to that kind of thing. He said I was a public figure now.”

“Oh, Lacy.” Brenda reached over and rubbed her arm. “I’m sorry.”

Lacy straightened and forced a smile onto her lips. “It’ll be okay. What’s one lousy book in the scheme of things?”

For the next twenty minutes, the two friends discussed the Pioneer Days Festival, new businesses that had moved to town in Lacy’s absence and a new television series they were both watching. By the time they reached the storage facility, they had relaxed into the easy banter of old friends.

“I remember this place,” Lacy said as she climbed out of the car at the storage unit. “I used to give Andy a hard time about it being so far out here on the edge of town.”

“I guess nobody really wants a place like this in their backyard,” Brenda said. “Plus, the land is cheaper out here.” She undid the lock and pulled up the door.

The first thing Lacy spotted was a Victorian lamp that had sat on her desk in the front office of Andy Stenson’s law practice. Seeing it now, shade crooked and grayed with dust, gave her a jolt. Her gaze shifted to the big walnut desk where Andy had sat. It had usually been covered in papers, but she recognized the lovely dark finish. So odd to see these familiar things out of context.

“After Andy died, I was such a wreck,” Brenda said, as if reading Lacy’s mind. “I hired a couple of guys to clean out the office and put everything here. I hadn’t even looked at any of it until I was out here with Travis yesterday.”

“There was no reason you should have had to look at it,” Lacy said. “I hope Travis is right, and we find something useful in all these papers.”