Playing With Fire (Tangled in Texas, #2)(89)

“Wait,” I said, trying to wrap my brain around this new information. “If what she says is true…”

“Then they both have rock solid alibis for their whereabouts,” Cowboy finished for me. “Which means there are no more suspects to investigate.”

“Actually,” Sheriff Wells began, a somber expression taking over his face. “Sorry, Cowboy. I hate to ask this, especially right now, but…well, where were you earlier this evening when Miss Weber was abducted?”

Apparently, Mandy hadn’t seen that one coming either because we exchanged a look of shock and confusion.

“Are you f*cking kidding me?” Cowboy asked.

“You were the last one to see the victim before she disappeared, the one who reported her missing, and the first responder on the scene. Not only that, but the Barlow brothers claim you were yelling at Miss Weber and beating down her door more than once over the past few days. Like I said, I hate to ask, but…”

“Oh, f*ck me,” Cowboy said, rolling his eyes. “I left Anna’s house around midnight after my fire pager went off, but it was a false alarm. After that, I went straight back to Anna’s. Probably only took me half an hour at the most. She was gone and there was a lamp turned over, so I knew something had happened. That’s when I called the sheriff’s office and reported her missing.”

“And then? Where did you go after that?”

“I was driving around looking for her. What the hell do you think I was doing?” Cowboy glared at him, but Sheriff Wells set his jaw and stared right back, as if the man were waiting for a full confession. “Oh, give me a f*cking break! You think I kidnapped Anna, tied her up, and left her in some old barn so I could report her missing and then blame it on her father?”

The sheriff shrugged. “Crazier things have happened.”

“Then how do you account for the blue Cavalier? I don’t drive a car and I would have had to leave my truck at Anna’s house.”

“True. But like you said earlier, the man who gave us this information is an ex-convict. Doesn’t hold a lot of weight at this point.”

I scoffed. “I can’t believe you’re even considering Cowboy as a suspect. He didn’t do it.”

But the sheriff continued with his questions. “Were you alone when you returned to Miss Weber’s home?”

“Yes, of course,” Cowboy responded.

“So no one can verify your whereabouts around the time Ms. Weber went missing?”

Cowboy blew out a breath. “Guess not.”

“Then that leaves me no choice,” the sheriff said, shaking his head. “Cowboy, I’ll need you to come down to the station with me for more questioning.”

“You’ve got to be shittin’ me!”

What? This couldn’t be happening.

I ripped off my nasal oxygen tube and sat up, but Cowboy held me there, not allowing me to stand. “He didn’t do this!” I yelled, my throat burning from the effort.

“It’s okay, darlin’.” Cowboy squeezed my hand and gave me a wink. “Don’t worry. We’ll get this all sorted out soon enough.”

“This is absurd,” I said, my voice straining against the ashes in my throat as tears leaked from my eyes. “He didn’t do anything.”

“Maybe not. But someone did. And it’s my job to find out who.” Sheriff Wells motioned for the door. “Let’s go, Cowboy.”

I watched helplessly as the sheriff led him toward the door.

When they reached it, Mandy suddenly spoke up out of nowhere. “Wait,” she said, biting her lip. “I can vouch for his whereabouts. I…saw Cowboy earlier.”

“You already told me you saw him at the station when he showed up for the false alarm. But that was before Miss Weber was kidnapped.”

Cowboy and Mandy exchanged a look. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but I saw worry in both of their eyes. “No, I saw him after that, too.”

“You didn’t mention seeing him earlier in your statement, Miss Barlow.” The sheriff glared at her. “So if this is true, then why didn’t you say that to begin with when I questioned you?”

Mandy’s gaze flickered from Cowboy to me, then back to the sheriff. “Because he didn’t want Anna to know.”

“Didn’t want me to know what?” I asked.

She looked down, keeping her eyes from meeting mine. “That Cowboy was with me tonight.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked with an angry bite to my words. “No. You’re lying. Cowboy, tell the sheriff she’s lying.” For a moment, there was nothing but silence. He didn’t say anything in his defense. Instead, his gaze lingered on Mandy and he frowned. “Cowboy…?”

“I’m sorry, Anna,” he said, not even having the gumption to look me in the eye. “It’s true.”

Hurt and confusion filled my heart. Cowboy had been with another woman. Even after he made the big play of pronouncing me as his and pretending we were ever anything more than a booty call. And I had believed him.

God, I’m an idiot.

“Why don’t we give you two a minute alone,” the sheriff said, motioning for Mandy to follow him out.

Once they cleared the room, Cowboy came toward me with an outstretched hand. “Sweetheart, I—”