Another reason to talk to Adam alone. Maybe he hadn’t been as forthcoming with his brother as he should have been. Or he just needed to be asked the right questions.
“What about your father? Any enemies? Close friends?”
“None that I know of. My dad was stubborn, but everyone liked him.”
Except Tim couldn’t truly know that, Lucy realized, if he rarely visited.
She stopped outside her cabin. “Is the coroner coming here in the morning or going straight to the mine?”
“They didn’t say. I suspect they’ll check the body first, then talk to us.”
“I’ll meet them at the mine then. I’m hoping they’ll know who the victim is.”
“Victim?”
“The death may have been natural, there’s no way of knowing without an autopsy, but the position of the body was deliberate. I guess I’m wired to assume she was murdered.”
They said good-bye at the cabin’s doorstep. Lucy stepped inside and glanced at the bed. Sean lay right where she’d left him, on his back, eyes closed. He still looked pale, but he didn’t appear to be in distress.
“Sean, it’s Lucy. Wake up.”
Sean moaned when he heard his name. “Ten more minutes.”
“Good,” Lucy said. “You’re okay.”
Sean felt Lucy sit on the bed next to him. He opened his eyes and tried to glare at her for disturbing his sleep but it hurt his head too much. His leg throbbed as if it had been stitched by Dr. Frankenstein, making his sore shoulder feel downright good in comparison.
“Who beat me up?”
Lucy sighed. “Are you trying to be funny or trying to scare me?”
“I guess I’m not funny when I’m in pain.” He winced as he pulled himself up on the bed so he could lean against the headboard. Lucy put a pillow behind his head. He smiled. “Maybe I should get hurt more often, if you’re going to play Florence Nightingale.”
Lucy rolled her eyes at him, but he saw a hint of a grin. “I don’t want to keep you up too long.”
“I’m awake.”
“You need to sleep.”
Sean took her hand. “The faster we come up with a strategy, the faster I can go back to sleep.”
“You’re a rotten patient.”
“So you’ve told me.” Sean shifted to get comfortable. His leg itched, but when he touched it the pain shot up to his back.
“The doctor left some Vicodin,” Lucy said.
“Hell no. That stuff is nasty. Do you have any aspirin?”
“That’s like using a water pistol to put out a fire.”
“I’m not taking pain pills.”
“Fine, Tylenol it is, and your antibiotics.”
“Yes, Doctor Kincaid.”
She shook her head and read the bottles that the doctor had left. Sean never tired of watching Lucy, even now when he was hurt and exhausted. Her black hair hung over one shoulder in long, silky curls, damp from the shower she’d taken when they’d returned. Her profile was aristocratic without being sharp. Her skin revealed her half-Cuban heritage, neither light nor dark, but a perfect blend. Lucy had no idea how beautiful she was or how much he loved her. He’d told her many times, of course. He couldn’t hold it back once he’d realized how strongly he felt. That she hadn’t yet admitted that she, too, loved him wounded his ego a bit, but he knew her feelings for him scared her. He’d seen it especially today, in the pit, when she’d realized his injuries might be serious.
She handed him three Tylenol and an antibiotic. He took the pills and a swig from the water bottle she offered.
“Learn anything interesting about what’s going on around here?” he asked.
“We need to talk to Adam,” Lucy said. “He spent every summer here, but Tim hasn’t been here since he was sixteen, not until his father’s funeral last year.”
“We should go into town tomorrow as well.”
She glanced at his leg.
“I’ll be fine.”
“I doubt you’ll be able to walk.”
“I didn’t say walk to town.”
“Can’t you just take it easy for a day?”
Sean took her hand and squeezed. “The kid on the ATV is in some sort of trouble. I can help him.”
“That
“He’s scared.” At the look on Lucy’s face, Sean quickly added, “I’m not saying he had no choice, I’m just saying I can get to him.”
“You think if we just drive through town you’ll be able to spot him?”
“Not really, though I might. But I want to have a drink at the local watering hole, talk to people, watch them, see what we can learn.”
Lucy frowned. “That tone-what do you have planned?”
“Nothing specific-yet.”
“Now that the Sheriff’s Department knows about the vandalism, they’ll be on it.”
“I haven’t seen a cop since we got here. They didn’t exactly rush over here after the arson fire, but I’m not going to step all over their investigation.”
“All right, we’ll go
He ran his fingers down her cheek. “I’m fine, Lucy. Just sore. We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”
“Maybe not first thing-the coroner and a search-and-rescue team will be here tomorrow morning. To retrieve the body from the mine. Can you wait to go to town until I get back from there?”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Not back down in the mine!”
“Tonight, I feel like shit. But tomorrow, it’s back to work.” He paused, seeing the worry in her eyes. “What about you? Sure, my body took a licking, but that dead woman really shook you up.”
“I think she was murdered,” Lucy said. “Her body was posed. She was fully clothed, but something was wrong. If I hadn’t suddenly lost my nerve and run away, I might have noticed what struck me as off.” Lucy stared at a blank wall, but Sean knew she was picturing the morbid scene.
“You’re cold.”
She shook her head.
“Then why are you shaking?” He pulled her down to lie at his side. The tension in her body was from more than the gruesome memory.
He rubbed her back until she finally relaxed. When she closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder, he breathed easier. “What happened down there?” he asked quietly.
Lucy didn’t immediately answer, but Sean knew she wasn’t asleep. Her heart was beating too fast, and her hand absently rubbed his chest.
“If we hadn’t found you, you would have died.” Her voice cracked at the end of her sentence. “For a split second, I saw you instead of the woman. Lying in that alcove.”
“But you did find me. And I’m not completely helpless.” She didn’t respond to his reassurance, and he kissed the top of her head. “Princess, I understand.”
Lucy had been scared of losing him and she didn’t like being scared. She didn’t know how to interpret or respond to the complex emotions about their relationship. It was as if admitting she loved him would jinx it, or put one or both of them in physical jeopardy.
Sean understood all this about her, even though she had never voiced her fears. They lived dangerous lives, and that wouldn’t change. Sean would no more tell Lucy to dump the thought of becoming an FBI agent and take a nice, safe teaching job than she would demand he quit Rogan-Caruso-Kincaid and sell computers.
And even if they did take an easier road? Sean suspected trouble and danger would follow them-or they’d
