“We both do. We’ve hiked together many times.”
“Did she like to hunt? Did you ever go hunting together?”
“No. Adrienne had no interest in hunting.”
“Do you think Adrienne might have gone along on a hunting trip with someone, just to enjoy being outdoors?”
He reacted without pause. “Never. She wouldn’t want to be in a hunting camp. She might like to go hiking and camping, but she wouldn’t have anything to do with shooting or killing animals of any kind.”
“Do you own a horse?”
“No.” His tone reflected his impatience.
“Do you have a friend in Willow Springs or Hightower that owns a horse?”
He shook his head in disbelief. “Why are you asking me all these things?”
“Please answer the question, Mr. Vasquez,” Stella said, her tone mirroring his level of impatience.
“Yes, I have several friends in both places who own horses. What of it?”
“Do you know how your sister died?” Stella asked.
“I don’t. How many times do I have to tell you?”
Stella leaned back in her seat and paused for a moment. “She was shot.”
Vasquez appeared to take it hard. He bent forward, closing in on himself. Mattie noticed that the detective had withheld the exact cause of death: shot by an arrow.
“Wuh . . . was it an accident?” he asked with a slight stammer.
“That’s under investigation,” Stella said.
He bowed his head for a moment and then looked back at Stella. “Did she go hunting or something? Is that why you asked all those questions?”
“I can’t say at this time. Do you think it could be a possibility?”
“I don’t. But I can’t believe someone would shoot Adrienne on purpose. It must’ve been an accident.” He searched Stella’s face, his eyes turning fierce. “Is that what happened here? Did someone shoot her on purpose?”
“Like I said before, Mr. Vasquez, her death is under investigation.” Stella gave him a penetrating look. “Did you kill your sister?”
“My God! Absolutely not!”
“Would you be willing to take a polygraph?”
“If that would eliminate me as a suspect, yes. You should be finding the person who shot Adrienne, not wasting time on me.”
“I believe we can arrange for a polygraph by tomorrow. We’re holding you for possession of drug paraphernalia tonight. We’ve got a nice, clean cell you can sleep in.”
Belligerence came back into his face. “You’re making a mistake. Between this and police brutality, you’re gonna be sorry.”
“I’ll get Deputy Johnson to book him,” Mattie said, standing to leave the room.
After Johnson took Vasquez to the back, Stella looked at Mattie. “What do you think?” she asked.
“Convincing reactions,” Mattie said. “I’m not positive that he killed her.”
“Twisted story,” Stella said. “I’m not yet convinced that he didn’t.”
Chapter 23
Cole drove through town in time to follow the school bus to his lane. He stopped his truck behind it, waiting for his kids to unload. After it pulled away, he turned in behind them, making Sophie hop with excitement when she saw him. Angie’s reaction was much less exuberant, but at least she gave a smile to her old dad.
He hit the button to roll down the window. “You girls want a ride?”
“Not supposed to ride with strangers,” Sophie said with a grin.
“I’m friends with your sister here,” he said, giving a nod to Angie.
“I can vouch for him,” Angie said, opening the passenger-side door. She boosted her sister up to help her clamber into the seat, Sophie’s backpack looking huge on her small frame, and then climbed up to join her. They settled into the bucket seat on the passenger side with Angie’s arms around Sophie while Cole drove slowly down the lane toward the house. It did Cole’s heart good to see them be playful with each other and to include him. He wished he didn’t have to do what he planned, but he decided he couldn’t avoid it. Why did parenting have to be so hard?
Cole parked under the cottonwood tree out front, and they all unloaded and trooped inside. While Cole and Sophie paused to strip off their coats, Angie headed toward the staircase. His suspicion somewhat confirmed, Cole decided to follow her rather than confront her in front of Mrs. Gibbs and Sophie.
“Go see if Mrs. Gibbs can help you get a snack in the kitchen,” he said to Sophie.
He took the stairs two at a time, hurrying to catch up to Angie before she could shut herself away in her bedroom. “Hold up, Angel,” he called after her retreating back. “I want to talk to you.”
She paused at her bedroom doorway, facing him with a frown. “Can it wait a minute, so I can put down my things?”
“Sure,” he said, coming close to the door so she’d be hard-pressed to shut it in his face.
Making an exasperated sound, she walked in and put her backpack on the bed. With her coat still on, she crossed her arms and faced him. “What do you want, Dad?” Her face and tone said she was none too pleased.
“Go ahead and take off your coat. I can wait a second.”
“Dad! What do you want?” If she’d been a few years younger, she would have stamped a foot.
Cole decided on the direct approach; it usually served him best. “Okay, Angela. No more games. I want to see what you wore to school today.”
She hugged her coat tightly closed. “Geez, Dad! What’s your problem?”
“Angela, let’s not quibble about this. I want to know if you wore the shirt that we told you not to wear.”
“What makes you think I did?”
“I don’t need to explain myself. Did you wear it?”
If possible, she clutched her coat even tighter. “What if I did?”
Her defiance was maddening. “From the way you’re acting, I’m going to assume that’s the case. It’s not acceptable for you to sneak around and disobey me.”
“Since when have you even cared what I wear, Dad? Why are you so interested all of a sudden?” Her eyes shot daggers at him.
“I care about you, Angela. And I don’t want others to think badly of you.”
“You never gave it a second thought until Mrs. Gibbs brought it up.”
She had him there. “Maybe so, but cut me some slack. Your mother always took care of your clothing. I’m not used to needing to do it.”
She raised her chin, showing the flushed skin on her neck. “Well, I don’t need your help. Go back to ignoring me like you’re used to.”
“I don’t want boys to get the wrong idea.”
“Maybe one of them will pay attention to me.”
Cole stopped his next angry retort and drew a breath. “Angela, why do you say things like that? What is it that makes you believe I don’t care about you?”
Tears filled her eyes and threatened to spill over. “It’s what you do, Dad.”
“I’m doing the best I can here. I had Tess schedule this hour so that I could be home to spend time with you kids after school.”
“Oh, good. Work us into your schedule.”
“Angela! That’s enough. It’s my work. It’s how I pay the bills.”
Her breath caught in a sob, tearing at Cole’s heart. He wanted to move toward her but stood rooted in the doorway. Would comforting her reinforce her misbehavior? What would Olivia do?
“Maybe I’ll go away like Mom. Or die like Grace and Adrienne. Then you won’t have to worry about trying to spend time with me,” Angela said.
Her words snatched his breath away. “You know that’s not what I want. Don’t even talk like that.”