“Tory—”
“Don’t!” She squared her shoulders, stood, shook her head and looked away from him while her stomach twisted into painful knots. How could this be happening? “I don’t want to hear reasons or excuses or anything!” Cringing away from him she backed into the kitchen counter.
“This had to come out, y’know.”
“But you didn’t have to do it, did you? You didn’t have to drag it all out into the open and destroy everything that’s mattered to me. First my father and now my brother. God, Trask, when you get your pound of flesh, you just don’t stop, do you? You want blood and tears and more blood.” Tears ran freely down her cheeks. “I hope to God you’re satisfied!”
Trask flinched and the rugged lines of his face seemed more pronounced. He ran his fingers raggedly through his windblown hair and released a tired sigh. “I wish you’d believe that I only wanted to love you,” he whispered.
“And I wish you’d go to hell,” she replied. “I’d ask you if you intend to testify against my brother, but I already know the answer to that one, don’t I?”
His lips tightened and the pain in his eyes was overcome by anger. “I had a brother once, too. Remember? And he was more than a brother. He was a husband and a father. And he was murdered. Murdered, Tory. Keith knew all about it. He just didn’t have the guts to come clean.”
“That’s all changed now, hasn’t it? Thanks to you.”
“I didn’t want it to end this way,” he said, stepping closer to her, but she threw up her hands as if to protect herself. He stopped short.
“Then you should never have started it again. Face it, senator, if there was ever anything between us, you’ve destroyed it. Forever!”
“There are still a lot of unanswered questions,” he reminded her.
“Well, just don’t come around here asking for my help in answering them,” she retorted. “I’m not a glutton for punishment. I’ve had enough to last me a lifetime, thanks to you.”
Trask stood and stared at her. His blue eyes delved into her soul. “I won’t come back, Tory,” he warned. “The next move is yours.”
“Just don’t hold your breath, senator,” she whispered through clenched teeth before turning away from him. For a moment there was silence and Tory could feel that he wanted to say something more to her. Then she heard the sound of his retreating footst
eps. They echoed hollowly down the hallway. In a few moments she heard the front door slam shut and then the sound of Trask’s Blazer roaring down the lane.
“Oh, God,” she cried, before clamping a trembling hand over her mouth. Tears began streaming down her face. “I love you, Trask. Damn it all to hell, but I still love you.” The sobs broke free of her body and she braced herself with the counter.
“Get hold of yourself,” she said, but the tears continued to flow and her shoulders racked with the sobs she tried to still. “I never want to see him again,” she whispered, thinking of Trask and knowing that despite her brave words she would always love him. “You’re a fool,” she chastised herself, lowering her head to the sink and splashing water over her face, “a blind lovesick fool!”
Knowing that she had another investigation to face this night, for surely Sheriff Barnett and his deputy would arrive shortly, she tried to pull herself together and failed miserably. She leaned heavily against the counter and stared into the dark night. Far in the distance she saw the flashing lights of an approaching police car.
“This is it,” she said softly to herself. “The beginning of the end…”
CHAPTER TWELVE
THE COURTROOM WAS small and packed to capacity. An overworked air-conditioning system did little to stir the warm air within the room.
Tory sat behind Keith. She tried to console herself with the fact that Keith was doing what he wanted, but her heart went out to her brother. He hadn’t been interested in hiring an attorney, in fact, he had petitioned the court to allow him to represent himself. Even the district attorney was unhappy with the situation, but Keith had been adamant.
He looks so young, Tory thought as she studied the square set of her slim brother’s shoulders and the proud lift of his jaw. Just the way Dad had faced his trial. Tory had to look away from Keith and swallow against the thick lump that had formed in the back of her throat.
The district attorney had already called several witnesses to the stand, the most prominent being George Henderson, who had been accompanied by a guard, when he testified. Not only did George tell the court that Keith, not his father, Calvin, had been in on the Quarter Horse swindle, but he also explained that Linn Benton had blackmailed Calvin into admitting to be a part of the scam.
According to Henderson, Linn Benton had been interested in recruiting Keith as a naive partner in order to have some leverage over Calvin Wilson and the Lazy W. Linn Benton knew that Calvin would never let his son go to prison and a deal was made. Calvin would accept most of the guilt in order to keep Keith’s name out of the scam.
“Then what you’re suggesting, Mr. Henderson,” the soft-spoken D.A. deduced, “is that Calvin Wilson’s only crime was that of protecting his son.”
“Yes, sir,” an aged Henderson replied from the stand. He had thinned considerably in prison and looked haggard. While he continuously rubbed his hands together, a nervous twitch near his eyes worked noticeably.
“And that Linn Benton was blackmailing Calvin Wilson with his son’s life.”
“That’s about the size of it.”
“Then Keith Wilson knew about the horse swindle.”