Read Online Cold Case at Carlton's Canyon by Rita Herron - Free Book Online Page B

guy?” Justin asked.
    Amanda shook her head no. “Terry and Kelly were tight their freshmen and sophomore years. He was a big jock, but he had a cocky attitude.” She gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Besides, by then I was more interested in the cases my father was working. I used to quiz him all the time.”
    “What about your mother?”
    Sadness flickered in her expressive eyes. “She left when I was fourteen. Said she couldn’t take wondering if he was coming home at night any longer.”
    Justin understood that kind of worry, that marriage for lawmen was near impossible. The reason he’d avoided it altogether. No reason to put a woman or himself through the pain when things fell apart.
    And things always fell apart.
    “But what about you?” he asked. “Why didn’t she take you with her?”
    A self-deprecating laugh rumbled from her throat. “She said she knew I’d choose Dad, and she wasn’t going to make me choose.” She shrugged. “Maybe she was right. I don’t know.”
    “But you wanted them both,” he said, understanding. “Do you keep in touch with her?”
    Her jaw tightened. “She remarried, has another family now.”
    A wealth of hurt underscored her words, but he didn’t reply because shuffling sounded inside the condo. Feet pounded. Something slammed, like a window or a door.
    Justin’s senses jumped to full alert.
    “He’s trying to run,” he muttered.
    He slammed his shoulder against the door, knocking the thin wooden frame askew. Then he pulled his gun and rushed in, Amanda behind him.
    A noise from a back room made him jerk his head to the right, and he ran toward the bedroom. The window was opening, wind swirling through the room. He rushed to it and saw Sumter climbing into the bushes. “Stay here and look around. I’m going after him!”
    Not bothering to wait for her response, he ran back through the den and outside. He veered around the side of the building, then saw a figure dive from the bushes below the window and take off toward the woods in back.
    “This is Sergeant Thorpe, Sumter. Stop. I’m armed.” He sprang into motion and chased the man as he jumped a pile of trash in his backyard. “You’re not going to get away!” Justin shouted.
    The man tripped over something and nearly fell, but caught himself, glanced back and continued to run. Justin picked up his pace and caught up with him within seconds. He jumped him from behind and threw the man to the ground.
    “Get off of me, I haven’t done anything wrong,” Sumter growled.
    “You ran,” Justin snapped. “That makes you look guilty.”
    Sumter spit on the ground as Justin dragged him to a standing position and shoved him back toward the building. Sumter smelled like booze and cigarette smoke and cursed as Justin forced him back into the apartment.
    Amanda stood in the den, her expression angry. At him or Sumter?
    He didn’t have time to analyze it.
    Justin shoved Sumter toward the couch, which was piled high with dirty laundry. The scruffy man collapsed on it with another round of expletives.
    “You have no right to barge in here and harass me,” Sumter muttered.
    “We have every right,” Justin said coldly.
    Amanda crossed her arms and stepped in front of Sumter, staring down at him.
    It made her look sexy as hell, but Justin refrained from commenting out loud.
    “Why did you run, Terry?” Amanda asked.
    “I thought you were a burglar,” Terry said sarcastically.
    Justin shook his head. “We identified ourselves.”
    “You know why we’re here,” Amanda said.
    For a brief second, pain flashed in the man’s eyes, before a smirk replaced it. “Yeah, I know, Amanda. You think that you’re better than the rest of us now because you have that badge.”
    Justin squared his shoulders, irritated at the sarcasm in Sumter’s tone.
    He’d wondered if some of the younger people in town resented having one of their classmates assume the sheriff’s position.
    “I am better than you, Terry, because