along. “The shepherds are Zack and Obby and belong to Caroline.”
Amy knelt to get acquainted. “More cop dogs. I should be relieved, but I think I’m getting surrounded.”
Luke chuckled and ruffled Chester’s fur while he tossed the ball Wilks had brought him. “They like the open territory to run.”
“I didn’t get to meet Caroline Thursday.”
He looked around the property. “There she is.” He nodded toward the barn, where Caroline was closing the large swinging doors. “I’ll let her show you around the house; it apparently struck her fancy when she saw it.”
“You’re not into the big outdoors.”
Luke smiled. “Not as much as I am the convenience of a grocery store and gas station a block away from my house. And winters out here can give you a lot of snow to shovel and push around.”
She laughed and he relaxed. This was going to work out okay.
Caroline had been out somewhere on the property taking its measure, Luke thought. She still wore work gloves, and the farmer’s coat was spotted with mud. And if he wasn’t mistaken, that was her service revolver being worn on her belt and something of the cop’s gaze he remembered as she walked over to join them, relaxed but alert. “Amy, I’d like you to meet Caroline St. James. Caroline, Amanda Griffin.”
“Hello, Amy.”
“Caroline. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
They shook hands and it was a quiet sizing up. Caroline smiled and gestured to the house. “Come on in-let me show you around. We’ll see what you think of this place.”
She led the way up the stone walk path to the front door. It opened into a small closed-in porch that had several closets, pegs for coats, two brooms, snow shovels, and a place to sit and pull off boots.
Caroline stepped out of her shoes and hung up her coat. “The house is old, a farmhouse rebuilt over the years to incorporate central heating, a modern kitchen, and a spacious living room taking advantage of the original fireplace. The barn and additional buildings out back have been converted into a garage and self-contained heated workshop and private study. There are four bedrooms upstairs under the attic eaves, and the grounds cover a quarter section, about a hundred sixty acres. The nearest neighbors have places that are close to two hundred acres of tillable land with a stretch of woods along the river. Beyond a mailman and those two neighbors, it’s a private road.” She opened the door into the living area of the home and let Amy walk through to make her own impressions.
Luke stepped inside after her. He thought immediately that it was a good fit. Warm rugs, colorful fabric on seat cushions, ample seating, and a lot of polished hardwood floors that looked to be refurbished original boards. “The larger windows really brighten up the rooms.”
Amy wandered through the door to the left, and Luke followed. It was a well-laid-out kitchen, with long countertops compensating for the fact there wasn’t room for an island. The kitchen table was covered with a blue- checked tablecloth.
“How did you find this place?” Luke asked, looking back at Caroline.
“Family connections. They travel now they are retired and hate to have the place sit empty. He’s a former arson investigator; he understands it’s more than a simple lodger needing a place to stay. We’ll up the insurance policy to cover any unfortunate actions. Daniel already has the paperwork in place if you’re comfortable saying yes.”
“It’s different than I expected,” Amy remarked.
“You were thinking gated community and patrolled grounds and the controlled surroundings.”
“Yes.”
“I’d go stir-crazy,” Caroline said, smiling. “I’ll take forewarning that someone is coming and leave it at that. There are several places in this home you can actually disappear to if necessary. Somewhere way in the past the owner of this place must have run moonshine on the side or else been part of the Underground Railroad, because he’s got the most elaborate network of storm cellars and storage drops on this property I’ve ever seen. I was checking out one of them when you arrived. I’ll give you the tour of them later and keys to the various vehicles around here. I saw two all-terrain-type runabouts in the far building.”
Amy looked at Luke. “Your dogs can stay?”
“They can.”
“Then I guess I need to get my stuff out of the car.”
Luke offered his keys. “I’ll help you carry in a second.”
Amy headed outside.
“Thanks, Caroline.”
“I haven’t done anything yet.”
“You’ve read her right, on the need to keep her from feeling trapped in somewhere. You’ve got phone numbers for Jonathan if you need more help quietly on the side out here? There could be a few guys watching that private road, the back ways onto the land, without Amy ever knowing they are there.”
“There’s one already out there mapping the area for when that information is needed later. They’ll have more guys around whenever you arrange for Marie and Tracey to be here. Can you stay for lunch?”
“I’d better pass. I’ve already disappeared for a few hours; it’s best I show up at the office, and I’m overdue for stopping in to see my sister. I’ll plan to come out for a late dinner tomorrow night and talk with Amy then about her sisters visiting.”
“Why don’t I plan to disappear about then for a few hours and give you two some privacy?”
Luke smiled. “The relationship is hardly progressing past friends, Caroline. You won’t be in the way.”
“It’s not ever going to progress that far if you don’t give it room to do so. Amy and I will fix dinner together, and I’ll have other things to do tomorrow night. Do you know if Marsh has given Tracey the ring yet? I don’t want to be stepping into new news yet.”
“Not the last I’d heard.”
“What is with that man? He dithered something terrible on figuring out the right ring to buy and he keeps it stuck in his pocket? It’s not like him.”
“Money changes things.”
“If it has, he’s not being quite as bright as I would have thought. Go help Amy get her things; I’ll show her the bedrooms and then unload my own luggage.”
Amy leaned her hand against the bedroom window and watched the wind stir the trees behind the house. The anonymity of her life on the run had been a blessing, no one knowing the truth beyond the basic fabric she told them. It wasn’t going to be as easy as she had hoped to relax in this new world where people around her knew who she really was. But Caroline seemed like a nice-enough lady. A lot more interesting than Amy had expected for a cop. And it hadn’t taken much time to see there was history between Caroline and Luke, a comfort that went beyond what she’d expect for a cop and the police chief.
She left the bedroom she had chosen-the corner room with the wedding-ring quilt on the bed and bookshelves tucked under the attic eaves and braided rugs over the hardwood floors-and walked downstairs. She found Caroline in the kitchen. “What did you do in the army?”
Caroline looked up from the ham she was slicing.
“Luke told me,” Amy offered.
Caroline nodded. “Military intelligence. What about you?”
“Logistics.”
“Miss it?”
“Yeah.”
“So do I,” Caroline confided. “Want one of these, or would you prefer turkey? I stopped at the deli on the way over.”
“Ham is fine.” Amy found the bread knife and sliced open a loaf of sourdough bread. “So what’s the plan for today?”
“Television reception is not great, hence the stack of DVDs in the living room. I thought I’d take one of those four-wheel, all-terrain toys for a ride and see what kind of wildlife is around that the dogs haven’t already spooked away. You’re welcome to join me, or you could spend a couple hours exploring the house.”
“I’ll come along. I spend too much of my days inside as it is.” Amy found the refrigerator fully stocked and got
