“Yes, but Gina said Marissa was done with it, that she had wanted Bordain to pay for what he’d done to her, but that it wasn’t worth the hassle to her anymore. She was tired of having to live under Milo’s thumb.”

“What had Bruce done to her?” Dixon asked.

Vince shrugged. “I don’t know. She said he killed her.”

Dixon’s brow furrowed. “What the hell does that mean?”

“I don’t know. That’s when I got asked to leave,” Vince admitted. “Gina says there’s a lot more to the story. She claims they were trying to do something good.”

“For themselves?”

“For Haley. But Gina thinks Marissa was going to tell the Bordains Bruce wasn’t the father.”

“Four years of child support to a kid that wasn’t his,” Dixon said. “At the rate they were paying her, that’s about a quarter of a million dollars. I have to think that would be enough to piss off anybody—even Bruce.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“He flew to Vegas yesterday.”

“I’d call Vegas PD and see if they can’t sit on him for you,” Vince said. “If there’s anything to this, he’s a definite flight risk.”

“And he was willing to throw his own son under the bus for this,” Dixon said. “That’s cold.”

“I don’t know,” Vince said. “It’s like you said to him yesterday—that’s probably the best spin he could put on it. If the world thinks Darren got Marissa pregnant, that would dispel any rumors about him being gay.”

Dixon’s phone rang before he could even think about it. He hit the button marked Speaker.

“Sheriff, Detective Mendez is on line one. He says it’s urgent.”

Dixon punched line one. “Tony, what have you got for us?”

“Are you sitting down?”

“Yes.”

“We showed the photo array to the postal clerks.”

“Who did they ID?” Vince asked. “Bruce?”

“Milo.”

“I beg your pardon?” Dixon said.

“Milo Bordain. The clerk was adamant about it. I don’t know what to say, boss. I’m not sure what it means.”

Vince felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. He was halfway to the door before Dixon could speak.

“Where are you going?”

“Anne took Haley to Bordain’s ranch.”

Chapter 101

101

“I didn’t know Marissa,” Anne said. “What was she like?”

“She was lovely, of course,” Milo Bordain said as she brought the food out of the picnic basket. Grapes, cheeses, crackers, bread. Haley was on a mission looking for butterflies. Anne kept one eye on her, making sure she didn’t wander too close to the water.

“She was talented,” Bordain said. “So talented, but headstrong. She could have been internationally known, but she lacked the discipline necessary. I tried to guide her, but she wouldn’t always take the best advice.”