Page 20 of The Ice Sisters

“None of your damn business. Now, you got nothing to tie me to that killing so get out of here or I’ll shoot.”

“It’s a crime to threaten a police officer,” Ellie said with an eyebrow raise.

“You’re the one trespassing, lady.” He swung the barrel of his gun toward a No Trespassing sign dangling from a post beside the lean-to. “Man’s got a right to protect his own damn home.”

Suspicions rose in Ellie’s mind. He was hiding something.

Ellie narrowed her eyes. “You have something in there you don’t want me to see?”

“I said get out of here and leave me alone.” His fingers tightened around the gun.

Ellie silently cursed but took a step back. “If I find out you’re connected to these murders, I’ll be back.”

Dammit. She needed evidence, something substantial to justify warrants.

Maybe the hunting knife Cord found would offer that. If Modelle’s DNA or prints were on it, she could come back and tear his house apart.

And if he was guilty, she’d do the same thing to the bastard.

TWENTY-THREE

COAL MOUNTAIN HOSPITAL

Treading carefully, Derrick slipped into the woman’s hospital room. She was a petite brunette, probably mid-thirties, with brown hair, a non-descript face and a bandage covering her forehead. Bruises darkened her face and arms, and her lip was split. She appeared to be sleeping so he approached quietly, remembering the doctor’s warning.

But the sound of his footsteps must have roused her because she opened her eyes and looked up at him. Her stare was blank, eyes filled with confusion as if she was disoriented.

“I’m Special Agent Derrick Fox,” he said softly.

Her eyes flickered with something like fear. They were giant in her thin pale face and looked haunted. For a moment, he paused to give her time to focus.

“Can you tell me your name?” he asked.

Her sharp intake of breath punctuated the air, and she bit her lip then shook her head.

“You don’t remember it?” he asked.

She didn’t answer, just looked at him with that blank expression again. “What are you doing here?”

He offered her a tentative smile. “I wanted to talk to you about a case I’m working.”

She frowned and rubbed her fingers over the bandage on her forehead. “I’m sorry, but I can’t help you.” Her voice was fading, slurred with sleep.

She was fragile and weak, but he had to push her.

“Tell me about your accident, ma’am.”

She clenched the sheets with a shaky hand. “I… hit a patch of ice and skidded,” she murmured. “I don’t remember anything after that.”

“Ma’am, this is important. We found two little girls dead at Emerald Falls. Your accident wasn’t far from there. Would you know anything about that?”

“No.”

He studied her body language, watched her shift uncomfortably. “Do you have family we can call? Children who might need looking after?”

“No… no kids,” she murmured in a teary voice.

A second later, she closed her eyes and rolled to her side putting her back to him. A machine beeped and a nurse rushed into the room and hurried to the woman’s bedside, checking the machines monitoring her heart and blood pressure.

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