Heath blinked and swept up her money while replacing it with plastic. “Didn’t work.”

  As Willow gathered her purse in her lap, she felt her phone buzzing in the side pocket. Wrinkling her nose, she studied the unfamiliar Seattle number. “I’d better answer this, given the circumstances.” She spoke quietly into the phone. “Hello?”

  “Is this Willow Sands?”

  “It is.”

  “Glad I reached you. This is Jason Hart, Toby Keel’s attorney.”

  Willow clutched the phone as she watched Heath sign the check and pocket his credit card. “I was actually going to call you once I found your number.”

  “Oh? Did Toby already inform you of his plans?”

  “No. I had no idea what was in his will. We never discussed it, but I was attacked by Ellie and Garrett Keel this morning, accusing me of all kinds of things.”

  He cleared his throat. “That’s why I wanted to contact you so quickly. I gave them the bad news this morning after they called and gave me the worse news about Toby. Didn’t think they’d track you down so fast.”

  “They were speedy.”

  “I have some papers for you to sign, Ms. Sands, but I’ll come to you. I have plans to head out to the island anyway. Can we meet when I get there?”

  “Of course. Call me when you arrive, and we’ll set up something. Just so you know, I didn’t discuss Toby’s land with him at all.”

  “Oh, I know that. He had some arrangement with your father. He bought the land from him, right?”

  “Yeah.” Willow wrinkled her nose and shrugged at Heath, watching her closely. “I was unaware of any kind of arrangement with my dad.”

  “I’ll tell you about it when I get to the island.”

  “Okay, Mr. Hart. Thanks for the call.”

  “Call me Jason, and I’ll see you in a few days.”

  Willow ended the call and tapped the edge of the phone against her chin. “That was weird.”

  “Toby’s attorney?”

  “Jason Hart. He told me Toby and my dad had some kind of arrangement.”

  “Regarding the land?”

  “You know, my dad sold it to him originally.”

  “I don’t remember that, but it makes sense that he left it to you, then. Maybe that was the agreement.”

  She scooted back from her chair, suddenly anxious to get away from all the turmoil. “My father never told me about it.”

  Heath put a hand on her back as they passed the table where Ellie and Garrett were sitting, both on their phones and oblivious to everything around them. His firm hand steered her toward the entrance as if protecting her against a couple of wild bears.

  Once in his car, he turned to her. “Are you going to tell the sheriff about the will when I take you back to the station?”

  “The sooner, the better.” She snapped her seat belt. “Where does that leave you?”

  “Soundly on this island. I still have some business to conduct.” He winked at her. “And don’t discount my powers of persuasion so easily.”

  Shifting in her seat, she stared out the window. When a simple wink from Heath Bradford’s eye sent flutters to all the right parts of her body, she had no doubts at all about his powers.

  He pulled up to the station, his engine idling. “Do you want me to go in with you? I can at least be a witness to the Keels’ animosity toward you.”

  “That’s okay. I’m sure Ellie’s animosity will come out when she sues me for that land.” She slid from the truck, and resting a hand on the door, she said, “Thanks for the ride and the verification that you weren’t lurking in the woods outside my cabin.”

  “Glad I could clear myself, but if I wasn’t the one in the woods, who was?”

  She shrugged and slammed his door. As she meandered toward the entrance to the sheriff’s station, she fingered the soft piece of cloth in her pocket. She couldn’t run around and invite every man...or woman...with a red flannel shirt to breakfast to interrogate them.

  Her visit to the station didn’t last long, as Sheriff Chandler was out. Nobody else could or would give her any information about the investigation into Toby’s death.

  She’d lost a morning’s work, so she headed straight back to her cabin. She’d left the dogs on a couple of long leads—long enough to reach their water and beds outside, but short enough to keep them out of the woods. She didn’t want Luna snuffling around Toby’s cabin.

  As she drove up to her place, she hunched over the steering wheel to look for the dogs. Apollo knew enough to not run toward her truck, but Luna was probably still feeling displaced and anxious.

  She eased back when she spotted them both asleep near the firepit. As she parked and swung open her door, she braced for Apollo’s assault. He always hobbled over to greet her.

  Her heart jumped when she shut the truck door and still neither of the two dogs stirred from their nap.

  “Apollo! Luna!”

  Dropping her bag, she rushed toward the dogs lying on their sides, the ropes still attached to their collars. Had tying them up left them as prey for some forest predator?

  She crouched beside them and sucked in a sharp breath as she wiped bubbles of foam from Apollo’s mouth. She placed her hand on his barrel chest and gave a sob when she felt the gentle rise and fall of his breathing.

  She crawled to Luna, who whimpered in her sleep when Willow touched her face. Prodding the dog did nothing to rouse her. She ran her hands along Luna’s fur, much like she did last night, but didn’t feel any wound or even see any blood this time.

  Willow sat back on her heels and surveyed the ground around the two sleeping dogs. No signs of a fight or scuffle or animal attack. Her gaze tripped over a lump of something organic a few feet from Apollo, and she lunged toward it.

  She grabbed the bloody piece of meat in her hand and squeezed it through her fingers. A blue pill oozed out of the mass.

  On her hands and knees, she searched the rest of the yard for any vestiges of the drugged lures. She scooped up a few intact balls of meat with the same blue pills embedded in the middle.

  She rose to her feet, shock making her movement and thoughts lethargic. Someone had come onto her property and drugged the dogs. Why? Her gaze floated from the tree line to her truck to the firepit to the dogs and then finally to her porch, littered with splintered wood.

  The mess on her porch gave her a shot of adrenaline, and she darted toward her cabin. Kicking aside the wood, she pushed open her damaged front door.

  As she stood on the threshold, she gaped at the upheaval before her. Someone had ransacked her place.

  Chapter Six

  “The Samish call this ‘where the mist meets the earth’?” Heath’s gaze dropped to the white tendrils circling the ground, the swirl of it almost hypnotizing.

  His Realtor, Astrid Mitchell, cleared her throat. “This particular area is called Misty Hollow. I think you’ll find that Samish description applies to many locales on the island. What do you think?”

  Heath thought he’d like to start digging right now. “I like the location. The aspect is great. I know a two-story house won’t give me a view of the falls, but it wouldn’t be half bad.”

  “So, you’re thinking residential instead of commercial property, right? You can go commercial here, but that means pulling a few strings with the zoning commission.” Astrid cupped a hand over her sunglasses and stood on her tiptoes. “We have a visitor.”

  “Not competition for the property, I hope.” Heath turned toward the oncoming SUV plowing through the mist.

  “Nope, Sheriff Chandler just bought another property on the island.” She waved as the sheriff pulled up.

  He stepped out of his vehicle. “Sorry to interrupt, babe, but I was in the area and I knew you were showing out here. Hey, Heath.”

  Heath let out a breath. These two must be in a relationship, and that was how the sheriff had known about his interest in the Misty Hollow site. “Sheriff. Good to see you again. Anything new on Keel’s death?”

  “Nothing yet, and call me West. Sorry to barge in. I’m taking my girl to lunch, but you two carry on. I can wait.”

  Her face now beaming, Astrid turned to Heath. “Is there anything else I can show you, Heath? Once you get past the property’s ghoulish history, it’s a great location.”

  Heath turned in a slow circle, taking in the land and the ramshackle ranch house. Did this property hold even more ghoulish history than the family massacre that had taken place twenty years ago? Were other secrets buried here? Would those secrets be buried with Toby Keel?

  “I’m good, Astrid. If you don’t mind leaving me behind to wander by myself, I’ll have another look around. You go have lunch with West.” Heath held his breath as the sheriff walked past the bed of his truck, hoping he wouldn’t notice or ask about the shovel and pick stowed there.

  “Look around all you like and call me if you have any more questions.” She hooked her arm around West’s. “Where to for lunch, Sheriff? I’ll follow you.”

  West’s cell phone rang loudly, and he twisted his lips. “You might be able to stay here with Heath after all. Chandler here,” he said, answering his phone.

  Heath turned away as West paused on the phone. He hoped the sheriff would take Astrid away for lunch and leave him to explore the property on his own.

  “Willow Sands’s cabin? Again, out there? What the hell is going on? I’ll be right there.”

  Heath spun around and said, “Is Willow okay? I just saw her for breakfast this morning.”

  “She’s fine. Cabin was ransacked.” West kissed Astrid on the forehead. “Meet you at the Grill in about an hour?”

  Astrid huffed out a breath. “Of course. I hope Willow is all right.”

  “I’m following you over there.” Heath held up his hands. “I won’t interfere, but I want to check on Willow. What about the dogs?”

  “My deputy didn’t say anything about the dogs. You can come, but stay out of her cabin until we’re done with our investigation.”

  “Got it.” Heath thrust out his hand to Astrid. “Thanks for meeting me out here again. Any objection if I mosey out this way later and have another look?”

  “None at all. I want to make this sale, Heath.” She winked at him and waved at West.

  Not that he needed to this time, but Heath followed West out to Willow’s cabin, his thumbs drumming a beat on the steering wheel. This assault on Willow’s home obviously had something to do with Toby’s death. Was it some kind of warning, or was someone looking for something?

  Was his father capable of threats like this? He knew his father was capable of many deeds that made Heath’s continued employment and association with Bradford and Son almost untenable. Did he have the guts to follow his principles and make a move? Could he drive the old man out of his own company?

  If Dead Falls Island gave up its secrets to Heath, he might have all the ammunition he needed to oust his father from Bradford and Son.

  By the time he reached Willow’s property, minutes behind the sheriff, Heath had convinced himself that Bradford and Son had something to do with this recent threat against Willow. He hadn’t quite persuaded himself that the company was also responsible for Toby’s death, but the idea had occurred to him that someone might have discovered that Heath had been in touch with Toby for reasons other than the land deal.

  One look at Willow’s ashen face as she sat on the ground with Apollo’s head in her lap banished every other thought in his head except the desire to protect her and make everything right. If the intruders had also killed Apollo and Luna, Willow would be devastated.

  He scrambled out of his truck and rushed to Willow’s side. “Are you okay?”

  She nodded. “I’m fine. I got here after the fact. Didn’t interrupt anyone doing the deed, but I wish I had been here.”

  “I’m glad you weren’t.” He stroked Apollo with one hand and Luna with the other as a substitute for what he really wanted to do—take Willow in his arms and hold her close. “The dogs aren’t dead. What happened to them?”

  She pointed to a plastic bag containing raw meat. “Someone wrapped up some pills in meat and tossed it to the dogs. I’m saving that for the vet. She’s coming to look at the dogs but said as long as they’re breathing steadily and not vomiting or foaming at the mouth, they’ll probably be fine. They’ve just been in a pretty deep sleep since I discovered them.”

  “So someone incapacitated the dogs to get to your cabin and what?” He pried open Luna’s eye, and she stirred and whined. “West said your place was tossed.”

  She flicked her fingers at West talking to one of his deputies on the porch as he examined the splintered door. “Is he consulting with you now?”

  He felt her barb pierce his chest. Their easy camaraderie over breakfast had ended with a busted door. “I was with Astrid Mitchell at the Misty Hollow property when the sheriff drove up. I guess the two of them are in a relationship and had a lunch date. He got the call when he was standing there, and I insisted on following him.”

  Her green eyes narrowed to a cat’s stare. “Why?”

  Shoving a hand through his hair, he said, “Chill, Willow. I wanted to make sure you were okay after what we witnessed last night. That doesn’t make me a stalker or someone complicit in the break-in. Is that what you think?”

  “Did you tell your daddy that I was the lucky recipient of Toby’s land?”

  “No.” As Willow sank back next to Apollo and rubbed his head, Heath said, “But I did call the office. Of course I did. That’s just business.”

  She shot back up, her spine erect. “Shady business. You tell your cronies at Bradford that I inherited Toby’s property, and minutes later someone drugs my dogs and trashes my house.”

  “Exactly.” He rolled his eyes in relief. She’d just vanquished any suspicions he had of the company being involved here. “Minutes later. Think about it. Do you really believe Bradford and Son has a goon squad on call to perpetrate violence against land holdouts?”

  Leveling a finger at him, she said, “You think about it. If that goon squad was already in the area to take care of Toby, they wouldn’t have had to go too far, would they?”

  “The company doesn’t have an enforcement division waiting in the wings.” Even as the words left Heath’s mouth, dozens of dirty tricks he’d suspected Bradford of perpetuating marched across his brain.

  He tipped his head toward a white van rolling up, with the words Mobile Vet inscribed across the side in blue. “I think your vet’s here to check out the dogs.”

  “Willow!” West gestured with his hand in the air. “We need you to check for missing items.”

  “You go.” Heath nudged Willow’s shoulder with his elbow. “I’ll handle the dogs.”

  On her way to answer the sheriff’s questions, Willow stopped to talk to the vet, who had the lowdown by the time she reached Heath and the two sleeping dogs.

  “Hi, I’m Dr. Jaimie. Willow told me what happened.”

  “I’m Heath. If you need any help with the dogs, let me know. Do you think you’ll be taking them into the van?”

  “From what Willow told me and the looks of these two, I don’t think so.” Dr. Jaimie reached over and opened the plastic bag with the meat. Running her thumb across one of the blue pills, she squinted at it. “This is a tranquilizer, not poison. Even if the dogs ate several of these, it won’t kill them. Whoever did this wanted to knock out a couple of guard dogs, and that’s what they got.”

  “Just a long nap.”

  “Pretty much.”

  The vet grasped the stethoscope around her neck and proceeded to check the vitals of each animal. Luna stirred several times and whimpered in her sleep. Even Apollo snorted a few times as the doc prodded him.

  Heath glanced over Dr. Jaimie’s head as Willow exited her cabin, her face set in a scowl. Must be bad in there.

  She and West approached the vet together, and Jaimie turned her head to greet the sheriff. “How’s Sherlock doing, West?”

  “He’s doing great. Follows Olly around everywhere.” West explained to Heath. “Olly is Astrid’s son, and Sherlock is a stray they adopted.”

  Dr. Jaimie ran her hand through the fur of a still-groggy Apollo. “I hope nobody is running around the island drugging pets.”

  “I think that’s reserved for my pets.” Willow crouched beside the vet. “Are they okay? Will they need any treatment?”

  “Their vitals are strong. Luna is already showing signs of coming around, probably because she’s younger than Apollo, but he’s doing okay. They just need to sleep it off.” With two fingers, the vet picked up the plastic bag with the meat and dangled it in the air. “Is it okay if I take this, West? I can tell by the markings on the pill that it’s a tranquilizer, but I’d like to test it.”

  “Unless there’s another one, I’m going to have to take it for evidence.”

  “There was another one.” Willow jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “I gave it to Deputy Fletcher when he first showed up.”

  “Then keep it, Jaimie.” West squeezed Willow’s shoulder. “I think you should invest in a security system, Willow.”

  Willow pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. “I can’t even get Wi-Fi out here.”

  Heath said, “There are still security cameras that record directly to a hard drive. You don’t need Wi-Fi. I can handle that for you.”

  “I think I can figure that out myself.” Willow jumped to her feet, dusting the knees of her jeans.

  As she and the vet talked, Heath edged closer to West. “Was anything taken from her cabin?”

  “Not that she could tell. Computer, guns, a few expensive jewelry items—all safe.” Hooking a thumb in his belt loop and tilting his head back, West surveyed the remote property. “You should encourage her to get a camera up sooner rather than later.”

  “As if I have any pull with her.” Heath spread his arms. “She has the idea that Bradford and Son is responsible for this.”

 

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