Roxanne Rustand - Murder At Granite Falls

“I’m sure they’re busy enough as it is,” he said finally. “And what are they going to do? A little vandalism won’t warrant some big investigation.”

“I think there’s more to all of this than just that.” She regarded him for a long moment. “Since I moved to town, two deputies and a teacher have hinted that I should be worried about living here. I ignored them, because I think you and your sister seem like nice people. But now Robbie and Danny’s mom acted like she didn’t want them to ever come out here, no matter what. So what’s going on?”

No wonder she hadn’t packed her bags and fled to town after her first day here. She didn’t know.

“Well?”

He felt the old, familiar weight of sadness and regrets crush his heart. “Probably because everyone in the county, barring a few jurors, still believes I murdered Sheryl Colwell.”

“W-who was Sheryl Colwell?” Carrie stared at Logan, still not believing what he’d just said. Murder?

That he’d been tried in a court of law meant there had been evidence. Good evidence. And that the sheriff’s department and district attorney had been convinced of his guilt. From the oblique warnings she’d received, at least two deputies still believed he was a dangerous man. Had she been living this close to a cold-blooded killer? Chatting casually with a man capable of violence?

And he knew exactly how alone she was out here, on these long, cold Montana nights.

Logan’s expression turned stoic, as if he knew she was judging him and had already found him guilty. “Sheryl was a nice lady, far as I know. Thirty-two, with a husband and son.”

She drew in a sharp breath. “Is her son Noah Colwell?”

“That’s right.”

“I’ve had him in class a whole week and didn’t know anything about it. Poor boy—I have yet to hear him say a word in class. I just thought he was shy.” She felt her heart squeeze at the thought of all Noah had been through. “No wonder he’s so withdrawn.”

“His father has been intensely protective of the kid ever since. His sister came to live with them, since he has to travel quite a bit. He’s sometimes gone for weeks at a time.”

“That’s awful.”

Logan stared off at some distant point on the horizon, his voice flat and emotionless. “It was all part of the prosecution’s summation—how an innocent young child lost his mother due to one heinous act of violence, and has an even more disrupted family life because of his dad’s absences as a long-haul trucker. The attorney made it clear just how traumatized the boy was—to the point that he had barely spoken after his mom’s death. And maybe that was all true. But someone else killed her.”

She searched his face, trying to find the truth in his words. Wondering what she should believe. “If you were acquitted, why would those deputies still think you’re guilty?”

“Frankly, I don’t know why they ever thought so in the first place.”

The logical, practical side of her urged her to grab her keys and flee to the safety of Granite Falls. A growing feeling in her heart told her that this man couldn’t possibly be guilty of such a terrible crime. “But it’s over now, right?”

“Not at all.” He wearily shook his head. “I think the sheriff figured it was an easy, high-profile case, and expected it to wrap up with a nice, tidy conviction just before reelection time. Instead, my lawyer proved reasonable doubt and made him and his department appear inept. Which was true.”

“And the locals…”

“Some still figure this was just one more case where a crooked lawyer managed to set a killer free. Small-town gossip just doesn’t die.”

“I know. I grew up near a small town like this one, and memories run deep. As in, ‘Jane Doe? Oh, yeah—she’s the one whose mother had the affair with that doctor over in Evansville back in 1982.’” Carrie faltered to a stop as heat started creeping up the back of her neck. Way to go…now you’re babbling. “Uh, well…some things just brand you for life in a small town.”

As if he didn’t already know that from recent, bitter experience—a fact that he’d made perfectly clear. Even more embarrassed, she clamped her mouth shut.

He met her gaze squarely, as if he’d just read her thoughts, a muscle ticking along the side of his jaw. “If you want to tear up your lease contract, I’ll refund the deposit. But if you have any questions that could help set your mind at ease, fire away.”

“How well did you know Sheryl?”

“We ran into each other on Main Street now and then, and she came out for a couple of float trips. Once with her boy, then she came again alone. That’s it. End of story. We were just casual acquaintances. And on both raft trips there was a full load of passengers—tourists from all over the country, so neither trip included the intimate interlude that the prosecutor implied.”

“You were the guide?”

“Just by chance, both times. Tina hadn’t finished her training and safety certification yet.”

“So…what was Sheryl like?”

“As I said, she was a nice lady. Quiet. I don’t think she asked a single question during either trip. In fact, she seemed a little scared of the water. And when we beached the raft at our midway point for a riverside lunch, the other passengers took a hike up to Badger Peak rather than take time to eat. She was the only one who stayed behind, and she read a book the whole time. Said she didn’t like heights.”

“I suppose the other passengers were questioned, and said you two had…plenty of time alone together.”

“Right. The prosecutor tried to prove it was the start of an ongoing affair, if that’s what you’re getting at it.” Logan snorted. “So given the supposed affair, she later committed suicide? Or I killed her in a jealous rage because she wouldn’t leave her husband? None of that makes sense.”

“And if there was no proof—”

“Oh, there was ‘proof’ all right. An imprint of a Chaco sandal near where she fell off the cliff. In my size…as if most outdoors enthusiasts around here don’t wear that kind of sandal.”

“That’s it?”

“A scout troop saw me in the area earlier, while they were out working on a hiking badge.” He heaved a sigh. “I was out hiking myself. And since I was up in the mountains alone most of the day, I had no alibi for the hours in question. A witness claimed Sheryl said she’d been seeing me on the sly. There was more, but none of it was true.”

Carrie had watched enough old Law & Order reruns to know that some serial killers possessed enough charm to gain their victims’ confidence. But if Logan was lying about this, he was incredibly good at it. Even with her gaze riveted on his face she hadn’t seen so much as a flicker of guilt or deceit.

“I guess…I just don’t know what to say,” she said finally.

“All I know is that I’m innocent, and that I’m not going to stop searching until I find the guy who did kill her.” A corner of his mouth lifted wryly. “Though there’s a saying about how there are no guilty prisoners on death row, so I guess you’ll have to decide for yourself just what you want to believe.”

Before talking to Logan on Saturday, Carrie would’ve automatically believed the sheriff’s department over a claim of innocence by a man she barely knew.

Yet she’d already seen Logan’s gentleness with the local kids and his teasing banter with Penny. His wry, self-deprecating humor and quiet sense of honor. She’d been drawn to him for those very reasons, and that feeling had grown with every passing day.

Those surely couldn’t be traits of a killer.

All day Sunday she’d been able to think of nothing else. Wavering from one hour to the next as to whether or not she’d be wise to just leave. Praying for guidance.