In the pictures taken after that, Trapper was alone.

The bedroom had been left undisturbed by the investigators. Trapper touched nothing in it now. Although the room had been prepared for him, he was never homesick for it. The things in it belonged to him, but he felt no emotional connection to anything, no compulsion to claim ownership. They were stage props.

He went out and closed the door behind him, then continued down the hall to The Major’s bedroom. The door was standing ajar. He opened it the rest of the way and was embraced by familiar scents.

The room smelled like Old Spice. Leather. The wool coat hanging on the wall rack.

It smelled like Dad, like the man in the photographs.

This room, much like the front room, attested to the thoroughness of the investigation. It had been determined that the two intruders had gone out through a window in this room because it was on the back side of the house. That window, the wall surrounding it, the floor beneath, had evidence tags attached and a coating of fingerprint dust.

Trapper went over to the window and looked through it to gauge the distance to ground. Because of the grade, it was a more severe drop than the one outside the powder room, which Kerra had braved. A man with reasonable physicality could get out this way.

It would be much more challenging to get in.

As he made his way back down the hall, Trapper was so lost in thought, he didn’t realize that anyone else was there until he reentered the living area and saw the silhouette of a large man filling the front doorway.

Chapter 26

Trapper dropped into a crouch and went for his pistol.

“Hell, man, easy there.”

Trapper then identified the man by his cowboy hat and uniform. “Jenks?”

“Didn’t expect you. Isn’t that Ms. Bailey’s car?”

Trapper eased up to standing. “Yeah. How’d you know?”

“It’s been parked at the motel for almost a week. We’ve been keeping an eye on it, afraid somebody would strip it.”

“She and I picked it up earlier today. Since her key is still in her shoulder bag, and it’s in evidence, I had to break into her car and hot-wire it.”

Jenks advanced into the room and took a look around. “She with you?”

“No, she’s on her way back to Dallas.”

“Without her wheels?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Sounds like it. Looks like it, too.” Jenks motioned toward Trapper’s cheek. “She do that?”

“No. That’s courtesy of a preacher man.”

Jenks guffawed. “Hank Addison threw a punch?”

“Hmm.”

“I didn’t think he had it in him.”

Trapper touched the sore spot and winced. “He was riled over Glenn. I guess you know he’s in the ER.”

The deputy nodded. “I wasn’t in the office when it happened, but everybody was in a flap. Word got around fast.”

“Hank blames me for bringing it on.”

“I heard about the scene this morning with the suspect. He’s been arraigned. Bail denied.”

Carson had already texted Trapper. He didn’t pursue it with the deputy. “What’s the latest on Glenn?”

“Wasn’t cardiac, except that his heart was beating a mile a minute. Bad panic attack. They’re going to monitor him for a couple more hours to make sure he’s okay, but it’s expected he’ll go home.”

Trapper exhaled a long breath of relief. “Good to hear.”

Jenks nodded agreement, and for a moment nothing was said, then, “Officially, nobody’s supposed to be in here, Trapper.”

“Officially, I know that. But The Major asked me to fetch him a bathrobe. They’re getting him up more, moving him around. He’s tired of mooning the nurses.”

Jenks chuckled, but he looked down at Trapper’s empty hands. “Couldn’t find his robe?”

“I did, but it was pretty sad, and you know how The Major prides himself on his appearance. I decided to buy him a new one.”

“Good plan. I’ll walk you out.”

The deputy moved aside. Trapper realized the choice of whether or not to leave wasn’t his to make. He headed for the front door, Jenks a few steps behind him. Close behind him.

As they moved onto the porch, Trapper asked, “Is this part of the county your regular patrol?”

“No. But when The Major comes home, sheriff wants the house to be intact. He asked me to drive out at least once a day, keep an eye out for intruders, souvenir seekers, like that.”

“You going to write me up?”

“Naw. You own the place, right?”

“Only half.”

“Did you stay on your half?”

Trapper gave him the expected laugh.

“Besides,” Jenks said, “the sheriff’s got enough on his plate. Had to bother him last night with a missing person report.”

“She was with me.”

Jenks threw back his head and laughed. “That’s just what Glenn said, but it wasn’t for Ms. Bailey. You know a guy named Petey Moss?”

Trapper shook his head.

“Well, doesn’t matter. Landlord filed, but I think Moss is trying to outrun his ex. Left the landlord with dead goldfish and unpaid months on his lease.”

Trapper replaced the spare door key where he’d found it, cleared the steps, and walked toward Kerra’s car, which was still purring. “Thanks for keeping a watch on the house.”

“You bet.” The deputy brushed the brim of his hat with his finger and climbed into his unit.

He followed Trapper down the drive and gave two friendly honks of his horn as he turned in the opposite direction out of the gate.

A couple of miles down the road, Trapper spotted an old cattle auction barn, which now stood vacant and derelict. He pulled off the highway and drove around behind the structure where he couldn’t be seen.

He got out of the car and began searching the wheel wells and undercarriage. In no time at all, he spied the transmitter. “Souvenir seekers, my ass.”

“What happened to your face?”

“Hello to you, too.” Trapper dropped a plastic Walmart bag onto the bed and sat down in the chair at The Major’s bedside. “I went to the ICU floor. They told me where to find you. Not that I needed directions once I reached this floor. The hallway is so crowded with goodie baskets and flowers, the staff is having to run an obstacle course to get to their other patients. When did they move you?”

“Couple of hours ago.”

“Means you’re on the mend.” He gave a casual look around. “Nice room. Open the blinds, you’ll have a view of the sunset. And I can bring some of those flowers in if you want. I spotted some chocolates that look good.”

“I asked you a question, John.”

Trapper sighed, propped his forearms on his thighs, and stared down at his boots. They were covered with dust from the old auction barn. From there, he’d made a quick stop at the store before coming to the hospital. There were several things he wanted to discuss with The Major, all of them touchy subjects.

He said, “Hank is what happened to my face.”

“Hank?”

“Right before he went to correct an I-beam misplacement for the tabernacle that’s under construction. Did you know about that?”

“Couldn’t live here and not know about it. Hank says it will be the fulfilment of God’s plan for his church.”

“Well, God may want to anoint a new architect. This one fucked up the I-beams.”

“Did Hank slug you for making a crack like that? Or did it have to do with Glenn’s anxiety attack?”

“So you know?”

“Hospital grapevine. I’m told it was alarming but not life-threatening.”

“I’m grateful it wasn’t worse.” He pointed to his injured cheek. “Hank blames me for maxing out Glenn’s stress level. I contributed to it, I’m sure. But I’m told you two had a visit this morning, and that Glenn was upset after it. How come?”

The Major hesitated.

“Well?”

“I told him everything, John. Beginning with Debra’s diary and how you used it to persuade—”