Read Online Dangerous Inheritance by Barbara Warren - Free Book Online Page B

minute, her expression suddenly uncertain, as if she wanted to say something but wasn’t sure. He waited. “Nick, where was my father the night my mother was killed? If he wasn’t here then he must have had an alibi for that time.”
    Nick shook his head. “Look, Macy. It happened a long time ago. I was just a kid, and by the time I grew up it was old news. That’s one of the things we have to find out, but I haven’t had a chance to go through the file yet. I hope to get to that tomorrow. I’m off work until tonight and then I’ll be on patrol.” And he didn’t want Sam to catch him reading it. Not after he’d been warned to back off. No point in stirring up trouble between him and his boss until he had to.
    She rubbed her forehead, as though she had a headache coming on. “There’s so much I don’t know, and I have no idea where to start. I’m not finding anything here. At least not so far.”
    “Don’t give up. We’re just starting to ask questions. We’re bound to learn something.”
    “Is Sam still so opposed to me being here? I have to wonder what he’s afraid of. My other grandmother believed the police had a hand in making sure my father was convicted. That they knew he was innocent, but they protected a guilty man.”
    Nick sat looking at her, trying to figure out how to deal with this. He’d heard the same thing from Sam, but everything within him denied the very concept. He couldn’t accept it—refused to believe it. All his life he had tried to live up to what his father had been, always feeling he fell short. Macy was watching him, as if she wondered why he wasn’t saying anything. The question in her eyes sent his mind reeling. Somehow he had to come up with something that sounded positive.
    He shook his head, denying her accusation. It was one thing for him to be forced to think about it. It was something else to hear her say it out loud. Before he could openly admit it was a possibility, he’d need some very strong proof, and that proof wasn’t out there. He’d stake his life on that.
    “That’s a serious charge. I’d go easy on saying things like that until you have more information. You need the police on your side, and this is no time to build walls between us. If you expect to learn the truth, you’ll need our help.”
    She stared at him, and from the little he’d learned about her, he knew she’d be too stubborn to back down. He had to try, though. “Look, Macy, you’ve cut out a difficult enough job for yourself. Don’t complicate it any more than you have to by taking on the police department. Wait until you know more about what you’re facing, okay?”
    He waited, hoping she’d agree. He wanted to do some digging on his own concerning the trial, and he didn’t want her slowing him down. And he definitely didn’t want her or anyone else even hinting his own father was involved. His dad had been a decent man, a good, staunch Christian. Angus Baldwin wouldn’t have done anything that went against what he believed in and stood for.
    Nick took a deep breath, staring down at the table, struck by sudden doubt. He quickly pushed the thought aside. He was right. He had to be.
    Learning he was wrong would rip him apart.
    Macy folded her mother’s dress and placed it on the table. Nick watched, noticing her tense expression. Living here had to be hard on her. He couldn’t do anything about that, but he’d make every effort to find out who was harassing her and put a stop to it. That was his job as a policeman. No, someone was doing more than harassing her. The person was threatening her, actually raising the possibility that her very life was at stake. He couldn’t just walk away and forget that.
    He also couldn’t forget the way Macy had felt in his arms. Soft, sweet and as if she belonged there. Somehow he had to learn the truth about her mother’s murder, not just focus on what he believed to be true, but make a concerted effort to learn the real role the police