She didn’t tell Kade that Jonas had very likely slept with his wife. She didn’t want to be responsible for the grocery store owner winding up in the hospital.

“You going to his house for supper?” Kade asked.

“No. I would have politely declined. But thank you for saving me the trouble.”

He flicked her a glance that held a trace of amusement. “My pleasure,” he said.

* * *

Kade sat hunched over his desk that night, staring at the screen on his laptop. Ellie wanted the name of the men who had worked part-time during the roundup, or anyone he might have pissed off enough to kill two of his steers.

He had just finished perusing the list one more time when a light knock sounded at the door. He already recognized the knock as belonging to Ellie, and anticipation he didn’t want to feel poured through him.

“Come on in.” He felt a little kick as he watched her cross the room and sit down in the leather chair across from him.

“Did you make the list?”

He studied the screen on his laptop. “I pulled up the names of the part-time guys on the payroll at the time of the roundup. I know most of them. They’ve worked for me before. They’re good men. I can’t remember having a beef with any of them. Or anyone else.”

“Are you sure? Maybe it was something that seemed unimportant to you but was a big deal to one of them.”

He looked down at the computer screen but nothing stood out. He shook his head. “I don’t see anything that rings a bell.”

“How about someone who didn’t make it to the end of the pay period? Someone who might have been paid before the roundup was over and left?”

He thought about it, and a memory surfaced. “Frank Keller. Older guy, always bitching about something. We were short a few men. Seth found him in town and brought him out to the ranch. I remember he only worked a week or so before he got into an argument with Alejandro. Used a racial slur, said he wouldn’t take orders from someone like him.”

“So you fired him?”

“Wyatt sent him packing, but Keller confronted me before he took off. Said he deserved extra pay for changing his plans and driving all the way out here. I told him to forget it. He was a troublemaker. He’d get paid what he’d earned but not a dime more. I told him the only thing he deserved was a punch in the mouth and I’d be happy to give him one.”

Ellie laughed. “Not a good idea to go around assaulting people, Kade. Someone might press charges, and you could end up in jail.”

He didn’t bother to reply. He hadn’t hit the guy, so it was no big deal.