The Devil's Daughter (Hidden Sins #1)(12)

“Dunno.”

He wanted to hit Michael so bad he could practically taste it. Zach had never liked the man, but now he was finding that he actually loathed him. Needing to distract himself, he turned to Ruby. “What about you?”

Her shoulders hunched a little more, like she was trying to close up on herself. “She was leaving.” She disappeared down the hall, reappearing a few seconds later with a small stack of papers in her hands. “She got into college without telling us.” She passed them over, and sure enough, there were half a dozen acceptance letters from state schools. One had even offered her a full ride. He kept reading, the ice in his chest spreading at the mention of a wonderful letter of recommendation from none other than Martha Collins.

Fuck.

He motioned to the letters. “Can I take these?”

“Go for it.” Michael spoke from his spot on the couch. “Now get the fuck out if you’re not going to be helpful.”

Zach ignored him, taking a moment to meet Ruby’s gaze. “I’m going to find out who hurt your daughter. Justice will be done.”

For a second, something like life sparked in her dark eyes, but it was gone almost as fast as it came. Instead of answering, she went to the fridge, opened another beer, and delivered it to Michael as he was swigging the last of his first one. They both ignored Zach, so he saw himself out.

He started up his cruiser and just stared out the windshield. The visit had opened up too many possibilities. If Michael knocked his daughter around, chances were that her trying to leave Clear Springs behind for good had pushed him over the edge and he’d killed her. Most homicides were perpetrated by the people closest to the murder victim—he knew enough to know that, and there was the whole thought process that said the simplest answer was most likely the true answer. The simplest answer was that Michael Perkins was an abusive son of a bitch, and he’d finally snapped.

But there were the new tattoos to consider.

And the fact that Martha Collins had known the girl well enough to write her a recommendation letter.

There was no help for it. He was going to have to go back out to Elysia and give talking to Martha another shot. He cursed and threw the car into gear. The trip took twenty minutes, and he was greeted by the same closed gates as last time. At least it wasn’t Joseph leaning against the fence with the shotgun held casually in his hands—it was Lee.

She has to know something’s up. Even if she closes the gates on a regular basis, she wouldn’t leave one of her favorite three out here at all times if she wasn’t serious about keeping everyone away.

He had to wonder if it was the murder that caused this change of behavior—or if it was the return of her daughter.

Zach shook his head. “This is going to be a goddamn nightmare.” He climbed out of the cruiser and waved. “Lee.”

“Howdy, Sheriff.”

Of Martha’s three core men, Lee was the least aggravating to Zach. He seemed to be exactly what he was—an attractive black guy in his late twenties who always had a ready smile and rolled with the punches. Zach wasn’t dumb enough to think he was exactly what he appeared to be, but it made it easier to talk with him. He nodded at the gates. “More meditation?”

“You know how it goes.” Lee’s smile was white against his dark skin, as if inviting Zach in on the joke. “Martha gets her mind set on something, and that’s how it is. Three days of nonexposure to the outside world is exactly what our people need.” His smile disappeared. “She’s not wrong this time, either. World’s a terrible place.”

“You know something about that?”

Lee shrugged. “I know enough. We might not have television here, but it’s impossible not to hear what’s going on out there. War, murder, rape, corruption on every level. It’s better in Elysia. Simpler. Martha takes care of us, and we take care of her right back.” The edge to the words stung.

Zach raised his eyebrows. “I have no problem with Martha and her flock—never have. But I do have some questions for her regarding an ongoing investigation, and I’d really appreciate it if she’d oblige to talk to me—sooner rather than later.” He didn’t much like groveling to get an interview with the woman, but he’d do that and worse to get some answers where Elouise Perkins was concerned.

“Investigation? That sounds awful official for some kids just trespassing again.”

If Lee knew about the murder, he was a better actor than people gave him credit for. But then, he was also one of the more public faces of Elysia, the pinnacle of what a person could accomplish by joining up and signing over everything they had in search of a simpler life. That meant Zach couldn’t trust him as far as he could throw him. Even if Lee didn’t know a damn thing, he’d cover for Martha, no questions asked.

He wanted to drop the information to see if he got a response, but if Martha didn’t know about the murder yet, he wasn’t going to give her a chance to practice her reactions. So Zach just nodded at the closed gates. “Tell her that I want to see her when you’re open again.”

“She already knows.”

Because I was here yesterday. Not because she’s some kind of prophet.

He tipped his hat. “See you around, Lee.”

“You, too, Sheriff Owens.” At least coming from him, it didn’t sound like the threat it had from Joseph. That just meant Lee was the more dangerous of the two, because no one would expect a blow coming from his direction.