The Texas Ranger's Family

“He never said a word about a living relative. The poor thing lost a married son and a grandson. How cruel life can be...” Her voice trailed off.

“All the more reason for us to go there and surprise her. In the meantime, where will you be the most comfortable to answer some more questions?”

“The living room. Amy will bring her trove of treasures from the nursery and stay busy going back and forth for another few hours.”

He got up and cleared the table while she wiped Amy’s hands and face and got her down from her high chair. When she told him she’d finish up, Kit went to the den for his suitcase. He took it to the bathroom and swapped his clerical shirt for a casual sport shirt. Any time he needed to answer the door, he’d quickly put it back on.

When he returned to the living room, Natalie and Amy looked up from the floor where they were working on a puzzle. They made a beautiful sight. Both pairs of eyes wandered over him. “So my cousin is on vacation from the priesthood this afternoon?”

“Yup. It’s Ranger Saunders reporting for duty. If you’re ready to get started, I’ll turn on the digital recorder.” She nodded and he proceeded. “First question. Your income taxes. Where do you keep a copy?”

“Rod prepared them at work and kept everything there.”

“Then I’ll have to speak to the people at LifeSpan. Did he have the Sentra when he met you?”

“Yes. He said he’d bought it three years earlier.”

“From a dealership here in Austin?”

“I don’t know.”

“Did he continue making monthly payments on it?” Amy toddled over to give him a horse from her farm collection. “Thank you, honey.” She smiled and got busy again.

“No. Rod said he’d paid it off.”

“Do you know where he kept the title?”

“At the office with everything else. You’ve probably never met a wife so in the dark about her husband’s dealings. It never occurred to me not to trust him. I’ve been so naive, I’m embarrassed and ashamed.”

He grimaced. Harold Park had put her on a short leash. He sat forward in the chair and handed Amy a dog she’d dropped. He made a barking sound she tried to imitate before handing him a goat. “There’s no shame in trusting someone.”

Natalie looked up at him. “My mother never trusted my father and always questioned him about everything. They had a lot of fights. At twelve I was old enough to understand their marriage wasn’t happy. I swore that if I ever got married, I would never do that to my husband. If she were still alive, I’d ask her to forgive me.

“After what’s happened to me, I’m thinking my father must have done something to ruin their marriage from the beginning, but Mom tried to shield me from the worst of it. She didn’t believe in divorce. Thank heaven, she didn’t live long enough to find out I married a true, hardened criminal. Mother and daughter both lucked out, didn’t we?”

Kit took a deep breath. “Bad marriages happen to wonderful people. Tell me about the early days before Amy came along. What did you do? Did you take trips, go out a lot? Did you make friends with other couples? Did he have a favorite sport or hobby? I’m trying to get a picture of the pattern of your lives.”

The answers to those questions and many others—How much time did he spend away from home? Did he take the occasional business trip? Was he an early riser? Did he get home from work late? If so, how often? Did she go to his work once in a while? Which people at work did he associate with?—took up the rest of the day. Natalie’s observations led Kit to realize Harold Park had been the worst kind of controlling husband.

By nightfall Natalie had fed Amy dinner and now whisked her off for her bath. Kit took advantage of the time alone to prepare for the trip and make half a dozen phone calls to get his investigation started.

Their flight to Denver was booked for eight fifteen. It meant they’d have to be at the airport by six thirty. Kit hadn’t been on a trip since April when he’d flown to Billings, Montana, to watch his brother compete at the Wrangler Rodeo Competition.

Natalie peeked into the den to say good-night. Kit looked up from the desk. “We’ll need to leave the house at six.”

“We’ll be ready.”

“I’ve already taken the liberty of putting Amy’s car seat in the back of my car. When we reach the airport, it will go on the plane with us. Technically, Amy qualifies as a lap baby, but I want her secured no matter what. In Denver we’ll install it in the rental car.”

“Thank you for taking care of that. I’ve been wondering how it was all going to work. Don’t stay up too long. Good night, Kit.”

“Good night, Mrs. Harris.”

“Please call me Natalie.”

He nodded.

Once she’d vanished, he walked through the house to make sure windows and doors were locked. When he finally stretched out on the floor of the den in his sleeping bag, Kit rolled onto his side. He’d put his .357-caliber SIG Sauer halfway under his pillow, very much hoping he wouldn’t have to use it while he stayed here. Natalie was living through a horror story with her daughter and didn’t need anything else to add to her pain.

He was determined to solve this case as soon as possible because already he could tell he was emotionally involved to a greater degree than he should be.

“Be careful not to cross the line,” Cy had warned him.

Unfortunately that advice had come too late. In truth Kit found himself looking forward to tomorrow with more excitement than the occasion warranted.

* * *

AT 11:00 A.M. they entered the Cottonwood Nursing Home in downtown Denver. Amy had sat on Natalie’s lap for most of the flight, but she seemed happy enough to be held by the Ranger as they spoke to the people at the front desk. Everywhere they went, whether it was the tourists on the plane or the staff here, people stared at the fabulous-looking, dark-haired priest holding Natalie’s little golden girl.

“Father Segal? If you’ll go down the hall and around the corner on the left, you’ll find Gladys Park in room 120. She’s had bouts of pneumonia that have weakened her. This is the best time of day to visit. Once she’s had lunch, she usually sleeps and it’s difficult to wake her.”

As they walked along, Natalie got a good feeling about the clean, nicely decorated facility. If Gladys’s care was as good, that was the most important thing. When they reached her door, they found it open. The ninety-two-year-old woman was in bed with the head raised. She was listening to the radio.

Kit nodded to Natalie. “Go ahead and talk to her while I hold Amy.”

Her heart pounded extra hard as she walked over to the side of the bed. She’d already made up her mind to keep certain facts to herself to be kind. The woman’s eyes were closed. “Gladys?”

“Yes,” she responded without opening them.

“My name is Natalie. I’ve come to visit you.”

“That’s nice.”

“I used to know your grandson Harold.”

A long silence ensued before the woman turned her head toward Natalie. “You knew Harold?”

“Yes. I was married to him. We live in Austin, Texas.”

That revelation caused her eyes to open. “Come closer. My eyes aren’t what they used to be.”

Natalie leaned toward her. “Can you see me better?”

“A little. What’s your name?”

“Natalie.”

“You married Harold? When?”