“You don’t know anything.” Carrie’s tone was low and dangerous. “You’ve fallen under her spell, just like everybody else. You’re naive ... and weak ... .”
“And I’m right,” Maddie added. “You killed Velma because she was going to announce a partnership with her daughter. You saw the look on Melanie’s face. She had no idea you were in cahoots with her mother, and there’s a reason for that. It’s because Velma was using you.”
“Velma was weak and naive, too,” Carrie countered. It was obvious this encounter wasn’t going the way she envisioned. “Why can’t you just fall in line?”
And that, Maddie realized, was her ultimate motivation for entering the saloon. “You didn’t even see Cadence until after you’d killed Velma. You thought you had time — there were so many others to look at, after all — and you offered up Velma’s list of enemies because you thought it would get you off the hook.
“The problem is, Boone kept looking,” she continued. “You wanted to run but waited it out so as not to draw attention to yourself. Then, when you realized Boone might look beyond the list, you started panicking ... until you realized who Cadence was. That happened the night of the seance, right?”
Carrie frowned. “I have nothing left to say to you.”
“It happened that night.” Maddie was certain of it. “Once you realized she was here, you knew you had a different sort of leverage. That’s when you decided to push suspicion to her. Your whole plan today was to make me turn on her in favor of you. Then Boone would’ve taken her in and given you time to escape.
“You said yourself that the lift is down, which means you were going to run earlier,” she continued. “Once that option was taken from you, it was time to regroup. That’s what you’re best at, regrouping.”
Carrie scowled. “Well, you certainly seem to have it figured out, don’t you? There’s just one problem with your little scenario.”
“And what’s that?”
“Nobody is taking me in.” Carrie reached inside her coat, to retrieve a weapon if Maddie had to guess, but before she could wrap her fingers around whatever she was going for, a strong hand grabbed her wrist and drew it back.
Boone, his expression dark, yanked her hand back. “I don’t think so.”
Carrie’s eyes went wide. “I ... you ... I didn’t even hear you.”
“I’m certain you didn’t.” Boone removed a set of cuffs from his belt, his gaze never leaving Carrie’s face. “I think you’re going to have to come to town with me and answer some questions.”
“I’m innocent,” Carrie insisted. “They’re framing me. Both of them.”
“I guess we’ll find out when we get to town.” Boone slid his eyes to Cadence, who was steadily sliding toward the back door. “You’re not going to want to go anywhere. You’re coming with us, too.”
Cadence balked. “I didn’t do anything.”
“That may or may not be true, but neither of you are leaving until we sort all of this out. And, by all of this, I mean all of this. You’re stuck here for the duration.”
Cadence turned morose. “I should’ve run the first moment I saw her. I panicked, though. I broke into the shed and hid inside. I should’ve done something different.”
“That would’ve been best for both of us,” Carrie agreed. “Now we’re stuck and it’s all your fault.”
“Um ... it’s your fault.”
“It’s totally your fault!”
“You’re both jerks,” Maddie supplied, shaking her head as Nick eased around Boone so he could get to her. “Unfortunately, you’re both too self-absorbed to realize it.”
“Something tells me they’re both going to have time for self-reflection,” Boone noted. “Maybe one or both of them will learn from this and grow.”
Maddie shook her head and Nick drew her close. “I wouldn’t bet on it.”
19
Nineteen
“Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed. I was expecting more.”
Hours later, Hannah sat in her apartment drinking a beer and talking to Maddie through the bathroom door. The men were downstairs dealing with the fallout — Carrie and Cadence both screaming that they were innocent and being railroaded — and the women were more than happy to escape from the noise. On top of that, Hannah had a little present for Maddie ... even though the Michigan blonde had been less than thrilled when she saw it.
“I’m actually happy that no shots were fired,” Maddie offered, escaping from the bathroom. She looked white as the ghosts she spent her days talking to.
Hannah gave her a long once-over. “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
Maddie scowled. “How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not pregnant?”
Hannah’s brow wrinkled. “The test came up negative? I thought for sure it would be positive.”
“The test needs two minutes,” Maddie replied, her expression dour. “I still can’t believe you snuck out to get a pregnancy test for me. That’s so ... weird.”
Hannah snickered. “I haven’t left Casper Creek in days. Jackie was running to town earlier and I had her pick one up. I thought it would be easier if you knew rather than just screaming ‘I’m not pregnant’ at the top of your lungs every five minutes.”
Despite herself, Maddie found she was nervous as she perched on the edge of the chair next to the couch where Hannah sat. “Well, I’m certain I’m not pregnant.”
Hannah studied the other woman for a long beat, conflicted. Ultimately, she decided to go for it and lay all her cards on the table. “What are you really afraid of?”
Maddie jerked her head in Hannah’s direction. “I’m not afraid. I’m just ... we’re not ready.”
“You keep saying that. I don’t think it’s true, though.”
“Well, it is.” Maddie made a popping sound with her lips and looked to the window. “How long do you think they’ll be down there?”
Hannah held out her hands and shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m guessing you’ll have your answer before they get up here, though.
