Russell glared down at her. “You went out to that house in the middle of the night, by yourself, looking for a killer.”

“Actually, I was looking for her lover—not the killer.”

“How could you do something so rash? So irrational? So damned dangerous and stupid?”

She bristled. “Reckless yes, dangerous as it turned out, but not irrational or stupid. I took pepper spray and I knew what I was doing.”

“Did you?” His gaze went to her bruised face and she watched as his expression softened. “Damn it, Dulcie.” He stepped to her and pulled her into his arms.

She leaned her uninjured cheek against the warm, soft fabric of his shirt and breathed in his scent. She had been rash and reckless and a little crazed. Kind of like her feelings for this man.

“You’re coming home with me until you have to leave for Chicago,” he said.

“The killer is behind bars.”

Russell pulled back to look into her eyes. “Exactly, and I have your undivided attention for a few days before you have to leave, right?”

She grinned even though it hurt her jaw. “You did promise me a horseback ride and I could use a few days of R & R.” She touched his cheek. “Are you sure about this, Russ?”

He nodded and leaned down to kiss her softly on her lips. As he drew back, his gaze locked with hers and she realized just how risky this was. For the first time in her life, she felt as if she was in over her head.

Jolene had awakened late Sunday after a sleepless night. She’d stumbled into the bathroom to shower and stood for a long time studying her face in the mirror.

She was Angel Beaumont. She’d waited for the name to trigger a memory. Nothing. Just like her visit to the house. And to the jail, after Dulcie’s call.

She’d looked at the rainmaker, seen nothing but a man who’d aged badly over the past twenty-four years, and felt not even the slightest stirring of recall.

“Give it time,” Dulcie had said when she and Russell stopped by.

Word had traveled through the county about the arrest. Jolene had wanted to feel something. Relief. Anger. Anything. But instead, she’d felt only a little sad. With the rainmaker in jail she would never get the end of the story.

She didn’t mention this to Dulcie, knowing how foolish her sister would find it. Dulcie was convinced Jolene knew the ending, knew it probably better than anyone.

Deputy Sheriff Shane Corbett had called with the DNA results. Jolene had been expecting the outcome. She and Dulcie were sisters. DNA from the murder scene proved they were the daughters of Laura Beaumont.