Chapter 11

eleven

"My plan is to spend the summers in the fields collecting fossils ... and the winters in describing the new finds."

~Earl Douglass

F RIDAY , J ULY 14, 1916 · A DAMS F ARM

Eliza was tired. Her heart. Her mind. Her body. Everything was just plain old tired. Thank heaven the quarry was still closed. And she wasn't meeting with Deborah until later. Right now, sipping coffee on the front porch with the Adams women laughing and chatting around her was as much as she could manage.

Especially after finding that note. She should probably show it to Devin. As if he needed one more thing to plague him in addition to what she'd done to him the other day. Still, she longed for his presence—mad at her or not. He would know what to do.

She took another sip of her coffee and worked to still her swirling emotions. Right now, she should be ecstatic that she'd met Dr. Masterson. That he wanted to discuss one of her papers! And she should be even more ecstatic about the fossils out at the Meyer ranch.

Instead, all she could think about was her best friend.

With a shake of her head, she released a huff. She'd made a mess of things.

Horse hooves pounding the packed dirt silenced all conversation. Eliza narrowed her eyes. Was that ... Devin? It was. Her shoulders tightened as he slowed his horse to a trot, then stopped at the small barn on the edge of the Adamses' property. A minute later he emerged and made his way toward the porch.

She put her mug on the small table next to her and stood. Her palms slicked with sweat as he made his way up the stairs and toward their group.

"Good morning, ladies." He nodded at each one, connecting with Eliza last.

Her breath hitched. All traces of the anger seemed to be gone. Hope sparked a tiny flame in her heart. Perhaps they were all right after all.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but would you mind if I borrowed Miss Mills?"

Mrs. Adams stood and gestured for her daughters to follow her lead. "Not at all. Let's go in, girls, we can start our lunch preparations."

Eliza watched them slip past her, noticing the longing look Louise gave Devin. But he seemed to not notice. His bright blue gaze was trained steadily on her. Her heart skittered into a faster pace.

Once the group was out of earshot, he touched her elbow, leading her to the now-vacated chairs. "I truly don't want to make things more difficult for you." His face was etched with deep lines. He was tired. And serious.

She'd done that to him. Guilt flooded her and she felt the heat rise to her face. They sat and Eliza pulled out her handkerchief, needing something to occupy her nervous hands.

"But I can't meet with Dr. Masterson and pretend I've written a paper I know nothing about. I think you need to come with me."

She swallowed against the lump forming in her throat. "So ... you're going to tell him you didn't write it?" Biting her bottom lip, she considered the possibilities. Dr. Masterson would know that she'd lied. What would he say?

He huffed and studied her for several seconds. Then palmed his face and let his hand fall. "No. I'll play your little charade this once. I'm not out to embarrass you in front of the man. I know how much you admire him and have wanted to meet him. It's not my place to burst your bubble and take you to task. But remember, I don't know what I'm talking about. I need you there. And I need you to somehow give me a crash course on whatever it was that you wrote so I will not appear the fool when I'm speaking with him."

Relief washed through her. "Thank you, Devin. I know I don't deserve it. But thank you." She looked down at her hands, which had been twisting her handkerchief into a knotted mess. "Are you still mad at me?"

He shifted his gaze to the mountains in the distance. "No. And I apologize for my outburst of anger."

"It was justified."

Releasing a short half-laugh, he turned back to her and their gazes connected. "Yes, it was. You've seen my temper over the years, but nothing like that." His words had softened along with the crease in his brow.

Staring into his eyes, Eliza started. Oh.... So that was it.

These unexpected feelings were because she was attracted to him! In a very real—a very strong—way. It hadn't just been in the heat of an argument. Or when he'd held her when she cried. Or when he'd simply looked at her. Her heart had known. Her stomach had known. All the crazy flutterings, flippings, and uneasiness.

She had a crush on her best friend.

The thought was ludicrous.

But then it wasn't.

"I'm sorry I'm the one that made your temper flare. It was wrong of me. It was selfish. I allowed my pride to get in the way. Please forgive me? I feel horrible for the position I've put you in."

He tipped her chin with his knuckles. Teasing in his eyes. "Don't do it again and I guess I can forgive you." He lowered his hand and stepped away, but she still felt the warmth of his touch zipping through her. "Like I could ever stay mad at you."

"Hey, that's my line." She smiled. Usually, it had been Eliza's temper that had gotten them into a tiff. She'd always said it when they worked things out. Usually when she had to apologize for flying off the handle at him. Gracious, what a horrible friend she'd been all these years!

"I stole it." He shrugged. "But it's true. I guess I understand now why you said it so much."

"Our friendship means the world to me, Devin. I hope you know that."

He blanched a bit and the warmth slipped from his face as he dropped his gaze to the ground. "I do. You better get back to the girls. But I'll meet you at the Meyer ranch in a bit. I wish I could read the paper, but you'll just have to fill me in on the high points as best you can."

Eliza frowned. Had she said something wrong? Why the sudden shift in his expression and posture?

They stood and walked toward the porch stairs. Movement out of her periphery snagged her attention. Why was the front door open? Her gaze connected with Louise, whose face was in the open crack. The young woman gasped and pushed the door shut.

Had she been listening all that time? How much had she heard?

"Hello? Are you paying attention?" Devin waved his hand in front of her face.

"What?" She blinked. "Oh. I'm so sorry. I got lost in thought for a moment. Yes, I'll be sure to fill you in. We are meeting with him on Monday for lunch."

He dipped his chin at her and walked toward his horse. His broad shoulders filled out his suit coat.

Images of Devin through the years floated through her mind. His thick, wavy hair used to fall over his forehead before he tamed it to look the part of a university professor. His blue eyes had always held a smile and sparkle for her, whether they were studying together or out in the dirt digging.

The way he looked at her had always made her feel special. That's what friends did, right?

But there was so much more to it. At least, for her now.

And she longed for more than just friendship with him.

She'd never cared to explore a relationship with a man. No one had ever stricken her fancy—never. She'd never had a crush. Never even entertained the idea of a suitor because she thought every man was after her family's money. And to be honest, every other man seemed boring and only concerned about their own lives and wealth.

Every man except Devin.

Why hadn't she seen it before?

Deep in the back of her mind, she compared everyone to him. Oh, she'd acknowledged that some men were handsome and appreciated their looks. But that was as far as it had gone.

Why?

Because she had Devin. Her best friend. The best-looking man, in her opinion. The only person who knew everything about her. The most caring and compassionate man she'd ever known. She'd never longed for anything else other than him.

Her heart shifted into a faster rhythm. Her mouth went dry.

Her insides couldn't decide which way was up.

Devin was completely different. Always had been.

He was her favorite person.

She swallowed against the lump in her throat...

She loved him.

And he was leaving in just a couple days.

F RIDAY , J ULY 14, 1916 · A DAMS F ARM

Devin stepped off the porch of the Adams's house and walked to the barn, hoping the shade and water were helping his poor horse. This insufferable heat was about to do both of them in. As much as he hated leaving Eliza, he wanted to get back to Pittsburgh and its cooler summers.

"Mr. Schmitt," a soft voice called after him as he entered the barn. He turned and saw Louise Adams enter behind him. She closed the barn door and leaned against it.

"Is everything all right?" He studied her.

Her chest rose and fell in rapid succession, and she pushed off the door and stepped toward him. "I wanted to make sure you were okay." Her voice was breathless. "Everyone knows you and Eliza had a terrible falling-out."

"That's why I came here today. Don't worry, everything is fine now." He sent her a big smile to ease her concern.

But her face lifted, and her eyes widened. Sending her own smile back, she stepped toward him again.

Oops. He hadn't meant to encourage her in that way. But apparently, he had. He retreated a couple steps and held up his hand. "I need to go, Miss Adams. But I appreciate your concern."

The smile slipped, and she bit her lip. "Can I pack you a lunch or anything? Where will you be today? I could bring it to you."

"That's very kind of you to offer, but I believe Eliza has everything we need. Thank you." He made a wide circle around her to reach his horse and rushed out of the barn as if his pants were on fire.

Once he was outside, he mounted and urged his horse to a fast gallop. He didn't dare look back, for fear that would encourage her.

It seemed his admirer was getting brave.

Now how was he supposed to deal with this?

S ATURDAY , J ULY 15, 1916 · J ENSEN

A little poison here, a little poison there.

Who cared? She'd make death quick. These people didn't need to suffer like her husband had.

With the quarry closed for now, she only had a small window of opportunity. Might as well cause as much chaos as she could right now to keep everyone scrambling.

She didn't need a plan for chaos either. Which was thrilling. All she needed was the end result. There were a number of ways to bring that about. Wouldn't it be fun to find out which one worked?

Smiling, she carried her basket of flowers back toward town with the poison tucked safely underneath.

One job done for the day.

Only two more to go.

Who would die first?

M ONDAY , J ULY 17, 1916 · M EYER R ANCH

Eliza practiced what she would say to Dr. Masterson today as she rode out to the Meyer ranch. A few hours of chiseling away at some rock should help her mind. It was all over the place.

The way Devin had looked at her again... she hadn't been able to stop thinking about it the last couple of days. Why, she'd almost thrown herself into his arms! If she wasn't careful, her stomach would fly away, there were so many butterflies taking up residence.

She'd risen early and written up a hasty list with a few short notes for him to read over before meeting with Dr. Masterson. At least it covered the high points he needed to know.

She needed to tell him how much she appreciated him. For everything. But with all these new feelings swirling, she was afraid of saying too much. Especially if they weren't in private.

She slowed her horse as she rode up to the gate of the Meyer ranch. It was shut and appeared to be locked. Two men stood there with rifles. Their faces were streaked with dirt and sweat as if they'd been in the sun a good while already this morning.

"What's your business?" one man barked and then spit on the ground.

The threatening note came back to mind. She shook it off. "I'm Eliza Mills. Mr. Meyer has given me permission to dig on his property."

The man nodded. "Yeah, we were told you'd be coming."

The other man opened the gate.

As she rode her horse through, she questioned the first man. "What's going on?"

He shifted from side to side for a moment, considering her question. "Mr. Meyer will have to tell you that, miss."

The gate was shut behind her and she urged her horse forward. When she made it to the creek, Devin was there standing beside his horse.

She dismounted and hurried over to him. "What on earth is going on?"

He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. "Not only were more of Meyer's animals killed, but seven of his hired hands were found dead this morning."

" What ?" Had she heard him correctly? " Seven ?"

"Yeah. The sheriff asked me to stay here because he wanted to question both of us as well. It sounds like they might be suspicious of Meyer. But I have no idea why. Other than the fact that it's his land." His attention shifted to something behind her.

She turned and looked. The sheriff and two others with badges on their chests walked toward them.

The sheriff eyed her. "You're Miss Mills."

She swallowed. "Yes, sir."

"Meyer said you're out here digging for fossils?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"Have you seen Mr. Meyer be violent toward his workers?"

What? She frowned. "No. Never. He's a very gentle man. Quiet. He seems weighed down with grief every time I speak with him. I don't think—"

The sheriff shook his head, cutting her off. "I can't go on feelings, miss. I know exactly what you're saying. I'm the one who went and found him when his whole family disappeared. Too many awful things have happened on this property. I don't believe in ghosts or hauntings or whatever else the people might say, but it does seem like something dark hangs over this land."

She managed a nod.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but your digging will have to halt for a little while. Just until we can clear up whatever has happened here."

From where Eliza was standing, he didn't look a bit sorry. But maybe she was judging him a bit too harshly. "But—"

"No buts, Miss Mills. At first glance, the doc is pretty sure that these people were poisoned." His dark eyes darted between Eliza and Devin. Was the man waiting for one of them to confess? "He's not sure how or why, but that means there's a murderer on the loose."

"I'll help her gather her things, Sheriff." Devin laid a hand on her arm. "Please let us know if there's anything else we can do to help."

As he led her away, she had no words. People were poisoned? Is that what happened to the animals as well? A chill raced up her spine. She'd made a grave mistake. "Devin, wait."

"What is it?"

"There's something I should have shown you. I think I probably need to show the sheriff."

His jaw clenched. "What is it?"

She reached into her bag strapped onto the horse and pulled out the note.

As he read it, his face hardened. "We need to show the sheriff right now." He turned them around and marched over to the man. "Sheriff!"

The lawman faced him.

Devin got there before she did and handed over the note.

The sheriff lowered it and looked at her. "When did you get this?"

"Thursday. I think"—she dared a glance at Devin's hard face—"I think someone must have put it in our picnic basket while I was out here. This was the only place I was stopped, and it had to have been after lunch."

"Was anyone else with you?"

"Mrs. Deborah Hawkins has been helping me dig, but she wouldn't do something like—"

The sheriff folded the note and slipped it in his pants pocket. "Best not to make assumptions, miss. You need to go on back home, and we will handle this." He rocked back on his heels, his mouth pulled down in a tight frown. "I don't know what is happening in this town, but people have lost their minds. We've got vandalism, theft, dead animals, and now dead people."

The back of her neck prickled. "With that note ... do you think I'm safe? That we're s afe?" She gestured to Devin. "And what about the Adams's farm?" The thought of that precious family being in danger made her feel sick.

"Now, Miss Mills, thinking about every wrong and evil thing that could happen helps no one. Mr. Adams isn't shy to speak up if anything goes wrong. Best thing you can do is go home and let us figure out what in tarnation is going on around here."

"Yes, sir."

She walked back to the horse with Devin beside her. Silent. Brooding.

They mounted and rode out of the ranch's gate.

Once they were a good ways down the road, she got up the nerve to break the silence. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

He shook his head, his lips pinched in a tight line. "We can talk about the threatening note you neglected to tell me about for four days later. Right now, we should get cleaned up and prepared to meet Dr. Masterson."

"But—"

"No buts, all right? I'm tired, and I need to read through the notes you brought me so I know what I'm talking about." He shook his head again. "And then we need to talk. It might not be pretty."

He urged his horse ahead a few feet, and she was forced to stare at his back. Even from this angle, she could see how tense he was.

What a horrible mess. But in her haste to keep him from worrying, she hadn't thought everything through.

It was clear now. From the expression on the sheriff's face, and Devin's, they thought the same thing.

Someone wanted to scare her or get rid of her.

But why?