“Yep.”

He winked and kept walking.

“Hey, Luke?” He turned around.

“Yeah.”

“Try and get her to eat.”

What was it with the women in his life not eating? “I’ll do that.”

Jo’s desk was mounded with open folders and empty coffee cups. “Looks like someone is running on caffeine.”

“Hey.”

“What’s all this?”

Jo placed a hand over an overstuffed folder. “This is the life of Ziggy Brown, illustrated by the Department of Corrections for the past seventeen years.” She slapped her hand on a file a quarter of its size. “This is the life of Ziggy Brown, illustrated by my dad and a few of his colleagues in Waterville.” She pointed to the far left corner of her desk. “River Bend Unified School District records of the Brown children . . . and last, but not least, Sheryl Brown.” Jo tapped her finger on the smallest pile in the stack.

“Who would Sheryl’s file be illustrated by?”

“My dad and the state of Oregon.”

Luke sank into a chair. “Your dad?”

“He tried to gather enough evidence of neglect to bring Child Protective Services in without any risk of the case being thrown out.”

“Too bad that didn’t happen.”

“According to the state of Oregon, Sheryl Brown has been the wife of Theodore Brown, aka Ziggy, for twenty-eight years.”

Luke tilted his head in thought. “Sheryl and Ziggy married after Zoe was born?”

“Yep. I’m not sure if Zoe knows that fact.”

“If only Ziggy wasn’t her biological father.” He couldn’t help but envision what that would look like. The thought was fleeting, however, since Zoe had a striking resemblance to the man.

“I doubt that.”

“Me, too . . . but it was a pleasant thought for a second.”

“No, more likely Sheryl ended up pregnant, and it wasn’t until after Zoe was born that Ziggy stepped up. Not that she was better off for it.” Jo paused, then asked, “Where is Zoe?”

“Confronting her mom at the diner. She didn’t want company.”

“I have a feeling Sheryl isn’t going to tell her what she wants to hear.”

Luke didn’t think so either. “I’ll never understand why people stay in abusive relationships.”

“We’re all able to take a certain amount of pain for love.”

He thought of his own love life . . . therefore he pictured Zoe. “True, but not when it comes to putting your kids in danger. I blame Sheryl for that. I want to like the woman, but it’s becoming harder by the day.”

“She’s not on my list of favorite people. Never has been. I always saw her as selfish and using. Her hand was out all the time once Zoe started making a name for herself.”

“Zoe is kicking herself for giving her anything to support that home.”

“She wouldn’t have done it if Sheryl told her it belonged to her dad.”

“What is it you always say, believe none of what you hear and only half of what you see?” Luke asked.

Jo nodded.

“That fits this whole situation. Sheryl lies about the house, the divorce. The powers in the penitentiary said Ziggy was in for another few years . . . even that was bull.”

“He did his time.” She tapped the biggest file on her desk. “Cleaned up the fights the last year . . . started to get friendly with those holding the keys. He also managed a consistent visitor.”

“Let me guess, Sheryl Brown.”

“Bingo.”

Luke sat forward, glanced at the names scribbled on the files on her desk. “So what can I do, Jo? We all know Ziggy is going to screw up. Do you know what his parole conditions are?”

“The standard stuff. No alcohol or drug use. Staying away from known criminals or criminal activity. His license was suspended, so he can’t drive. Although he might get that privilege back within a few months.”

“I don’t see him staying away from liquor.”

“Me either. And I doubt he’ll find a local job, but who knows. The RV plant is hiring.”

“Which leaves him right back to ‘finding’ money off unsuspecting people.” Luke used Zoe’s words for her father’s days as a thief.

Jo glanced at her watch and pushed back from her desk. “I’ve put Josie on notice if he shows up at R&B’s.”

If there was any trouble to be found, it would be at R&B’s. It was the only real bar in River Bend and close enough to the highway to attract caravanning motorcycle groups several times a year. “Buddy is still working in the kitchen there, right?”

Buddy had corralled him and Wyatt into a bar fight the previous year. He’d been a drifter until he found himself useful in finding the man who was behind Hope’s abduction. He was as big as a house and had several priors leading up to the fight, so the fact that he’d helped in finding Hope’s abuser shocked many of them. Apparently Buddy was tired of the life he was leading and decided to make a few changes. Working in the bar he’d done his best to bust up had a bit of irony.

“Yep.”

“My guess is he’s spent enough time with Ziggy’s kind to spot them.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“Maybe Buddy can keep an eye open. Give me a call if he sees something Josie doesn’t.”