In the hallway, he took Jenna’s hand and pulled her close. “Happy family.”
“Yeah, I just love the smell of babies.” Jenna leaned into him and sighed. “It’s going to be fun watching them grow.’
Biting back the need for a family of his own, Kane dropped her hand and shrugged. “It’s a lifetime commitment. Kids need their parents and our job isn’t exactly nine-to-five. Could you give up being sheriff to raise a family?”
“I wouldn’t give up being sheriff, Dave.” She smiled at him. “I’d take my baby to the office with me. I’d change the new back room into a nursery and I’ll hire a nanny to watch over her while we’re out.”
Kane only heard one word. “Her? You don’t get a choice you know.”
“Yeah.” Jenna giggled. “Just checking you’re awake.”
Thirty
The drive back up the mountain terrified Jenna. She sat as quiet as a mouse as Kane urged the Beast through the fallen snow, although Emily seemed unconcerned and had curled up on the back seat and fallen asleep as soon as they’d left town. Condensation built up on the windows and, even with the heater pushed to full capacity, cold seemed to seep through every crack. Ice piled up on the hood and slowed the wipers. If they stopped, they’d die for sure. Before they’d left, Wolfe had insisted on refilling Kane’s gas tank. He had fuel on site for his vehicles and an aviation tank to refuel a helicopter should the need arise in an emergency.
Shivering, Jenna pulled the blanket more firmly over her knees and licked dry lips. Being out in freezing weather caused her lips to crack if she wasn’t careful. She glanced at Kane. The trip was taking a long time. The snowplow attachment barely pushing enough snow aside to allow them to pass. She refilled Kane’s to-go cup from the Thermos and placed it within reach. “Hot coffee. I’m sure glad we brought the Thermos flasks with us. Do you know where we are?”
“Not exactly but we just passed a sign to beware of fallen rocks, so I figure we’re past halfway.” Kane reached for the coffee but didn’t take his eyes from the road. “Why don’t you try and get some sleep? It will take a while yet.”
Astonished, Jenna gaped at him. “Sleep? I have enough adrenalin pumping through my veins to run up to the ski lodge without losing my breath.” She gripped the seat as the back wheels fishtailed for the hundredth time. “Anyway, you’ll need me to keep you awake. You look all in.”
“Nah. I’m wide awake.” Kane flicked her a glance. “It’s been one hell of a night. We’ll be lucky to get a couple of hours sleep before we start investigating people’s movements again.” He sighed. “Oh, that reminds me, Wolfe will send through the autopsy reports in the morning sometime. He said he’ll call and walk us through them.”
Already making mental notes in her head on what to do the following morning, Jenna nodded. “Did he do a preliminary examination on Kitty Pandora?”
She listened as Kane brought her up to date. “Wolfe must be exhausted—the autopsies and then delivering twins. Don’t forget he has a little one at home too and he manages just fine.”
“Anna is hardly a baby now.” Kane frowned. “And I know for a fact Wolfe is always at home when she finishes school and puts her to bed. He arranges his workload around her and usually works at night when she’s asleep. His housekeeper is like a grandma to his daughters. He was lucky to find her.”
Jenna smiled at him. “That was Maggie. We have a great receptionist; she can fix just about everyone’s problems.”
“Maybe we should put her on this case.” Kane gripped the wheel and pushed the Beast around a corner. “Right now, nothing is making much sense. I hope Bobby Kalo hunts down something to link them apart from all being involved with publishing, because so far, I’ve found diddly squat. Having limited resources up here is annoying.”
Jenna sighed at the sight of the lights up ahead. “We at least have suspects and nobody is going anywhere. The killer is right under our noses. We just have to catch them.”
Suddenly feeling tired, she rubbed at the pain in her temples. Coming down from an adrenalin high was like suffering a hangover minus the alcohol. As they slid into the parking space outside the lodge, Jenna nudged Emily awake. “We made it. It’s going to be cold out there.”
“I’m good.” Emily wrapped a scarf around her head and pulled up her hoodie. “Let’s go. I’m so tired I can hardly walk.”
Jenna dashed through the doors with the others close behind. It was warm inside and the smell of woodsmoke filled the foyer. She stripped off her gloves and hat and stuffed them in her pockets as she headed for the elevator. She’d pulled down the zipper of her jacket by the time they’d reached their floor and noticed Kane had done the same. The heat inside the elevator seemed stifling and the smell of dampness enclosed her. They headed up the hallway, walked past Zac Rio’s single room, and paused at Emily’s suite for her to unlock her door.
“Darn, Julie’s locked the door.” Emily hammered on the door. “Julie, open up, it’s me.”
“Not so loud. You’ll wake everyone.” Kane moved to her side.
The door opened and a sleepy-eyed Zac Rio peered at them. The next second, Kane had him by the front of his T-shirt and hauled him out and against the wall. Jenna moved toward him. “Hey, put him down.”
“I will as soon as he explains what the hell he was doing in Julie’s room.” Kane glared at him. “I trusted you.”
“You still can.” Julie appeared at the door wrapped in a robe. “Put him down, Uncle Dave. He was here protecting me is all.”
“You done?” Rio’s gaze was as cold as ice as he brushed Kane’s hands away. “What do you take me for? Do you figure I’m some kind of pervert? Someone broke into her room. I slept on the sofa in case he had a mind to come back.”
“Okay then, I’m sorry. I overreacted.” Kane offered his hand. “She’s like a daughter to me.”
“I feel the same way about my sister.” Rio relaxed. “I’m a little overprotective since my parents died too.” He shook Kane’s hand.
“When you two have finished male bonding, I want some answers.” Jenna waved everyone inside. “Get inside, we’ll talk there.”