Page 57 of Durango

I step into the kitchen so I can watch Nancy when she answers my question. “How exactly did you get to the field where you found us?” I ask.

Nancy crosses her arms. “You saw me. I drove.”

Moose is watching her closely now, too.

“Where did you come from?” I ask.

She has an accent, but I can’t pinpoint where it’s from. It’s not English or Russian.

Nancy pushes past me and opens the cupboards, all of which appear empty. “I live in Minsk. I met Sylvia and Damien last year when they were in town.”

Moose leans against the counter. “How often did you see them?”

“When Damien came to town, we’d have dinner.”

Moose arches a brow. “Just the two of you?”

Sylvia steps into the kitchen.

“Yes, just the two of us. We had work to discuss,” Nancy says.

Sylvia visibly stiffens. I wonder if she knew her husband was spending time alone with Nancy.

“And Sylvia, how did you get your husband’s phone? Didn’t he have it on him when he was kidnapped?” Moose asks.

Damn, he’s direct. But it’s a good question.

Sylvia turns to face Moose. “He gave it to me to hold, along with his wedding ring. He was meeting someone and was concerned it might go badly. That’s why I followed him. And was able to share his location with your team.”

She must mean Harding.

“Who did you contact?” Moose asks.

She throws her hands up. “I don’t know. It was a number Damien had given me. He said if anything went wrong, I needed to call it.”

“What did your husband do for a living?” I ask.

“He was a dealer of ancient artifacts. It shocks me that people would kill to get their hands on some old clay pot from centuries ago, but Damien warned me that there was a criminal side to the business that could try to come after him.”

“Ancient artifacts?” I repeat.

She turns her gaze to mine. “Yes. Damien loved history and knew all about them. I found the topic dreadfully boring.”

“I didn’t,” Nancy says. “I find it fascinating how people lived thousands of years ago.”

Sylvia glares at Nancy. I’m not sure why Nancy is trying to irritate Sylvia, but I need to put a stop to it now.

“There are two bedrooms. Why don’t you two each take one and try to get some rest? We’ll stay here and keep a lookout,” I say.

“Sounds good to me,” Sylvia says and stalks off toward the rooms.

Nancy yawns. “The sooner I go to sleep, the sooner I can wake and leave.”

Once they are both out of earshot, I turn to Moose, who is shaking his head.

“What do you think? Nancy and Damien were having an affair?” he asks.

“Not sure. If he and Nancy were discussing work, whatever that may be, she might be more involved in all of this than we realize. And she did find us in the middle of nowhere just before Damien was shot.”

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