Veronica cleared her throat. “I’m going to assume that my brother is still under guard.”
Sydney nodded.
Veronica reached into her pocket and pulled out the flash drive. “Then you know he wasn’t responsible for the shots taken at me. Someone else is hunting in this town. Not Cale. And this...this can prove his story about heading down to the Caribbean to work a case.”
She handed the flash drive to Sydney.
A frown pulled Sydney’s brows together. “Where’d you get this?”
“From Reed Montgomery’s computer.” She shrugged. The mud felt cold and hard on her skin. “So I tampered with the scene. Lock me up if you—”
“No one is locking you up,” Jasper snarled immediately.
Sydney’s eyes widened. “That’s why the computer was smashed.”
What? Veronica shook her head. “Look, I called earlier and told Jimmy what I’d found. He was supposed to tell—”
The doors burst open behind her. Wyatt rushed inside, his face haggard. “Veronica!” He grabbed her and pulled her into a crushing hug. “Oh, damn, when Logan got me on the radio and told me about the attack...” He pushed her back, stared down at her with blazing eyes. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. She wasn’t going to let herself think too much about the bullet that had missed her head by about, oh, an inch.
Jasper clapped his hand down on Wyatt’s shoulder and jerked him back. “Where were you?”
“I— What?” Wyatt frowned at him. “Kyle Jamison’s house took a hit from the storm. A tree crashed into the side of his place. I went to see how he was, to make sure everything was all right.”
“And where’s your deputy?” Sydney asked him quietly.
Wyatt glanced back at her, brows rising. “Jimmy’s out patrolling. With the storms still running through the area, we needed to make sure folks here were safe. That no one was stranded anywhere.”
Stranded as she’d been. Stuck on the side of the road. Easy pickings.
No. Her shoulders straightened. Not so easy.
“Why are you checking on me?” Wyatt asked as his eyes suddenly narrowed. Then he looked over at Veronica. “Oh, no, you don’t think that I—”
“Evidence has been destroyed,” Sydney interrupted. “Evidence that only a few people in this town had access to.”
“What kind of evidence?” Wyatt wanted to know as he yanked a hand through his wet hair.
“Reed Montgomery’s computer. I think the killer smashed it to hell and back because he didn’t want us to find...” Sydney held up the flash drive. “This.”
He shook his head. “I haven’t destroyed anything. Why would I care about Reed Montgomery’s computer? I want you to catch any killers in my town. This is a safe place.” His voice dropped. “Or it was.” Raindrops trickled down the side of his face. “I came to Whiskey Ridge so I could get away from all the death and violence. I sure never thought it would follow me here.”
The door opened once more. Logan stepped inside. He swept a fast glance at Sydney, then at Jasper. The gaze he gave Wyatt held suspicion.
“I can’t seem to locate your deputy,” Logan said. “He won’t answer his radio or his cell.”
Wyatt’s chin lifted. “Jimmy’s probably just out of his car. Helping someone.”
“Maybe.” Logan’s tone said he doubted that possibility.
Wyatt’s gaze narrowed as he snapped to his full height. “You said someone shot at Veronica. Jimmy would never do that! The kid wants to keep everyone safe in this town. He’d have no reason to go after Veronica. She’s—”
“Did he tell you that I called?” Veronica asked because she had to know this.
Everyone went silent.
&