Rita Herron - Beneath the Badge

She glanced at Hayes, suddenly realizing that he probably felt the same way, probably blamed her.

“Go on,” he said sharply.

She cleared her throat; it was still so dry it hurt to talk. “I couldn’t sleep, so I checked the alarm and changed into my swimsuit. Then I went for a swim.”

“Had you been drinking?”

Irritation gnawed at her. “I had a glass of wine with dinner, but I wasn’t drunk if that’s what you’re implying.”

“You usually swim alone at night?”

She tensed at the scrutiny in his tone. Did he think she was being stupid, that she’d brought the attack on herself? “Sometimes,” she said truthfully. “I’m a good swimmer, and I had the security system set.” She glared at him. “Besides, I thought you rangers had caught the killer and that I was safe.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw, and she knew she’d scored a direct hit.

“Your attack may or may not be related to the other crimes,” he said sharply. “You’re wealthy, everyone knows that. You must have some enemies.”

She tore her gaze away with a shiver. If he’d meant to scare her, he had.

“Were the lights on when you came out by the pool?”

“Yes, Sergeant. I would have called security if they hadn’t been.”

He simply arched a dark brow, his expression cold and hard, and she silently willed herself to stop reacting. What did she care what Hayes Keller thought of her?

When she continued, she tried to relay the events as if it had happened to a stranger, not to her. “I was swimming laps when the power flickered off. I got nervous, decided to see what caused the outage, then I saw a movement by the gardens. I got out and ran toward the door…Before I reached it, the man jumped me from behind.” She paused, unable to breathe for a moment as she remembered his fingers around her throat.

Again, the ranger stared at her with an intensity that made her more nervous.

She could not break down in front of the man again. “We struggled and he tried to strangle me, then we fell into the pool.”

“He fell into the pool with you?”

“Yes. I fought him, but he kept choking me, then pushed me underwater and held me down.”

He made a low sound with his teeth. “That’s probably the reason he turned on the water hose, to wash away his prints. But I’ll have the pool dragged for trace.” He paused. “You said you were a swimmer?”

“Yes, high-school swim team. I set the record for holding my breath the longest on my team.”

“That’s probably what saved you.”

“No, Sergeant Keller, you saved me,” she said with a tentative smile. “If you hadn’t shown up when you had…”

He glanced away for the first time, his jaw clenched tight, then shrugged. “Just doing my job, ma’am.”

She didn’t like the way he said ma’am, as if it was an insult. “Well, thank you anyway.”

His eyes darkened, narrowed to slits as if he was issuing some kind of silent warning. “You don’t owe me thanks. Just answer the questions.”

She tensed at his brusque tone. Just when she thought he was human, he turned back into a growling lion. “What else do you want to know?”

The bite to her voice echoed in the silence for a moment before he replied. “You didn’t see the man’s face?”

“No. He was wearing a mask.”

“Like a ski mask?”

“Yes. And gloves. Latex gloves.”

His brows pinched together with his frown. “Maybe those will turn up or we’ll lift some trace off of your fingernails.”

She nodded, glad she’d fought back.

“Anything else you remember about your attacker? A particular odor? His height, size?”

“No, it’s all so foggy.”

His dark gaze met hers. “Tell me about your day, what happened earlier, before the attack.”

She scrunched her nose in thought. “I don’t see how that’s relevant.”

“Just do it, Taylor. Retrace your steps.”

“All right, but you don’t have to be so ornery.” She tried to think back. “I spent the morning handling routine business matters for the foundation. Had lunch there. Then a business meeting with the City Board at five that ran till about seven. After that, I met a friend for dinner in San Antonio.”

“Did you notice anyone following you during the day? Or when you left the restaurant?”

She rubbed her temple where a headache pulsed. “No.”

He folded his arms. “Who attended the board meeting?”

“All of the board members. Sarah DeMarco, Devon Goldenrod—”

“Kenneth Sutton?”

“Yes.”

“I was told that he and Kimberly McQuade had an argument before she died. Do you know what their disagreement was about?”

She frowned. “No. Kimberly was looking over the campaign budget, and she’d also reviewed the other finances for the board. Maybe there was a problem.”

“So they might have argued about money?”

“I really don’t know. Why is that important?”

“I’m just tying up loose ends. Sometimes small details can offer clues.”

She conceded his point. After all, he was the cop. The chip-on-the-shoulder one, but it looked as if she was stuck with him.

“So, did anything unusual happen at the meeting?”

She hesitated, hated to impugn Kenneth unnecessarily.

“Taylor, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me the truth.”

“Kenneth seemed excited about planning ahead for the gubernatorial election, but we did have a tense moment.”

He leaned forward. “About what?”

“The bid for the new city library and to extend the tourist area by the Riverwalk. There’s talk that the bid was tampered with.”

“And that Kenneth was involved?”

“That’s what I’ve heard, but he denied it and I believe him.”

Silence met her statement, making her wonder what he was thinking. “You don’t like Kenneth Sutton, do you?”

“He’s a politician. No, I don’t trust him.

“And after the meeting? Who did you have dinner with?”

She hesitated.

“Taylor?”

She twisted her hands together. “Margaret Hathaway.”

His jaw tightened again. “You two are friends?”

“Yes. We met at our favorite restaurant and sushi bar, Bluefish. Margaret’s wedding to Devon Goldenrod is around the corner, and we were finalizing wedding plans.”

“Did anything unusual happen while you were there?”

“Not unusual. But I ran into my half brother, Miles.”

His mouth thinned. “How did that go?”

She sighed, knotting the bedsheet between her fingers. She hated to discuss family. But if the ranger asked at the restaurant, he’d find out on his own. Her problems with her brother weren’t exactly a secret.

“Taylor, I know that Miles has been hitting up friends for loans. Caroline told us that already.” He cleared his throat. “Is that what he wanted with you?”

So much for family privacy. Then again, she should be used to it. Just because she was wealthy, tabloids, reporters and neighbors thought her life was food for the gossipmongers. “Yes, but I turned him down again. He blew up, made a scene….”

She looked away, his phone call echoing in her head.

Hayes narrowed his eyes. “He threatened you, didn’t he?”

She sucked in a sharp breath. “Not exactly.”

“What does that mean?”

She finally faced him. “He told me I’d be sorry for turning my back on him.”

He stood, bracing his feet apart, and hooked his thumbs in his belt loops. “That sounds like a threat to me.”

She shrugged, unable to voice the truth. That she was afraid of Miles.

“I’ve posted a guard outside your door.”

“You think that’s necessary?”

He nodded. “And your father called your house. I told him I’d protect you 24-7.”