Native Cowboy (7 page)

“Regan Wurst?” Mason asked.

The couple nodded in tandem.

“How about the baby’s father? Has he tried to contact you?”

“No,” they both said at once.

Julie’s eyes widened. “Do they want Lacy back?”

“No,” Mason said. “Why do you think that?”

“I’ve just seen stories about that happening,” Julie said.

“It’s all right, Julie, I promise you, that’s not why we’re here.” Cara stroked little Lacy’s soft dark hair. “Can I hold her?”

Julie looked wary, but nodded and allowed Cara to gently lift the baby from her arms. Cara rocked Lacy back and forth, her heart constricting when the baby looked up into her eyes and cooed.

“Please, Dr. Winchester,” Julie said. “Tell us what’s going on.”

Cara glanced at Mason, and he cleared his throat.

“Where were you the night before last?”

Don narrowed his eyes. “At a work function until midnight, then in the hotel the rest of the evening.”

“What kind of work do you do?”

“I’m a developer,” Don explained. “I helped develop this housing community, and we’ve just opened up a similar one in Dallas.”

Mason angled his head toward Julie. “What about you, Mrs. Davidson?”

Cara tensed. He couldn’t possibly suspect sweet Julie Davidson of such a heinous crime.

Julie squared her shoulders. “Lacy and I were here. My mother came for a visit, and we took Lacy to the park that afternoon, then had dinner out and came home.”

“So you both have people who can confirm your whereabouts?”

Don’s mouth compressed into an angry line. “Yes. Now what the hell is going on? Why do we need an alibi?”

Mason heaved a sigh. “Because Nellie Thompson was murdered that night.”

“Oh, my God,” Julie gasped.

Don’s eyes widened in shock. “You think we had something to do with her murder?”

“We’re simply trying to work through the process of elimination at this point. If Nellie or the baby’s father had pushed you to relinquish custody—”

“That would be motive,” Don said as he reached for his cell phone. “Don’t say anything else, Julie. I’m calling our attorney.”

“Don,” Cara said. “We’re not accusing you of anything. We’re just trying to figure out what happened to Nellie.”

Julie took the little girl from Cara. “Regan promised us confidentiality, and we did everything by the book. Lacy is ours.”

Cara squeezed her shoulder. “I know that, Julie. We’re just trying to find Nellie’s killer. And frankly, I had to make sure Lacy was safe.”

Don clenched the phone, hesitating. “You think whoever killed Nellie might come after the baby?”

Mason cleared his throat. “At this point, we don’t have any idea. But just to be on the safe side, you should be careful.”

“We could take her away somewhere,” Julie said, her voice stricken. “Maybe my mother’s in Houston.”

Mason shook his head. “Until the investigation is over, don’t leave town.”

Fury flashed in Don’s eyes. “Then I’ll hire around-the-clock security. No one is going to get our little girl.”

Cara shot Mason an angry look. She didn’t believe Julie or Don had anything to do with Nellie’s murder any more than she thought Alfredo had.

And she hated that they’d frightened the couple.

After all, the murder might not have anything to do with the baby. It could have been a random killing.

* * *

M
ASON HANDED HIS CARD
to the couple, then asked both of them to write down contact information to confirm their alibis. The couple was huddled together as they left.

“They didn’t have anything to do with this,” Cara said as soon as they stepped outside.

“You don’t know that. Even with their alibis, they have money. Davidson could have hired someone to do his dirty work for him.”

“But you heard what they said, and Regan confirmed it. Neither Nellie nor Alfredo contacted them about custody.” Cara opened her car door. “Besides, the Davidsons have plenty of money. If there had been a problem, they could have hired a top-notch attorney to defend their position and won. There would be no reason to resort to murder.”

Mason climbed in the car, and Cara slid into her seat and fastened her seat belt. “So if they had nothing to do with it, we’re back to nothing.”

“Except that we have a violent offender.” Mason raked a hand across his jaw. Cara’s rationalizations made sense. Both Nellie and Alfredo had been impoverished. And money talked. The Davidsons probably would have won the case if it had gone to court. “We need to take a closer look at Nellie, find out everything she did in the days leading up to her death.”

His cell phone rang, and he connected the call as he pulled down the drive. “Detective Blackpaw.”

“This is Dr. Tarrington, the ME working on the Thompson body. Dr. Winchester requested I contact you with my report.”

Mason’s heartbeat picked up. Maybe he had something helpful. “Yes, what did you find?”

“No forensics, I’m afraid.”

“Cause of death?”

“Exsanguination. But that’s where it gets interesting.”

Perspiration beaded Mason’s neck. “What do you mean?”

“This bastard didn’t simply stab Nellie Thompson,” Dr. Tarrington said. “He cut out her uterus.”

* * *

H
E WATCHED THE WOMAN
cozy up to the man in the bar, her long black hair sliding over her shoulders like a dark curtain. She was flirting outrageously, sipping her third martini, lavishing attention on the poor guy who had no idea that she was nothing more than a common whore.

Not the mother she should have been to her child.

No, she’d thrown her kid away like it was an inconvenience, barely taking a day off from her busy work life and partying to find a couple who would take it off her hands.

And that bitch Dr. Winchester had helped her.

He sipped his bourbon and watched her lift a blood-red fingernail to the man’s cheek and scrape it along his jaw, then she rose and rubbed herself against him so he pulled her between his legs.

Disgust filled him. She was one of the worst. Nellie had been poor and would have had a hard time raising her child, but she still could have done it.

This woman had money enough to hire a damned nanny if she needed to. But she couldn’t be bothered to be a mother.

And for that she would pay.

Yes, all the sinners had to suffer.

One by one, he would see that they got what they deserved.

Chapter Six

A cold shiver rippled up Cara’s spine as Mason explained the ME’s findings.

Just as she’d feared from her preliminary exam, the killer had cut out Nellie’s reproductive organs. “This is not a simple murder,” she said. “This is a sick man.”

Mason grunted in disgust. “You’re telling me. He’s one of the worst I’ve seen.”

“He obviously has a reason for targeting that specific area.”

“Which would make me suspect the baby’s father.”

“You saw Alfredo,” Cara said. “He didn’t do this.”

Mason raked a hand across his jaw. “I hate to say it but I agree.” He drove from the gated community through San Antonio, the lights of the city passing in a blur. “In fact, this M.O. has the markings of a sociopath.”

“A sociopath with a cause,” Cara said. “A dangerous combination.”

Mason nodded, his expression grave. “Damn right it is. It’s the stuff serial killers are made of.”

Another chill swept over Cara. “So you think he’ll kill again?”

“I hope not, but I think so.” He hesitated and raked a hand through his shaggy hair. “But a profiler would say that the killer carved out the victim’s reproductive organs as some kind of punishment.”

“Because she gave birth and allowed her baby to be adopted,” Cara surmised.

“Exactly.”

Cara’s mind raced. Was this killer the same person who’d broken into her clinic? “My God, Mason. What if whoever broke into the clinic wasn’t looking for Nellie’s baby, but for more victims?”

Mason cursed. “Then we need a list of all the names he may have taken. Those women could be in danger.”

“Let’s get back to the clinic. I’ll look through the files tonight.”

Mason grimaced, and they lapsed into silence as he drove back toward the Winchester clinic. A pain clutched Cara’s stomach, and she rubbed her belly.

“Are you all right?” Mason asked.

Cara nodded. “I’m just worried about my other patients. If you think they’re in danger, we should warn them.”

Mason’s labored breath echoed in the tense silence. “It’s too early for that,” he said. “We don’t want to create panic until we have more to go on.”

Cara accepted his response, but still worry nagged at her.

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” Mason asked.

Cara chewed her lip, debating on how much to confess. “I have received some hate mail since I opened the clinic.”

He jerked his head toward her. “What kind of hate mail?”

Cara shrugged. “Protests from anonymous sources, people who thought I was starting an abortion clinic.”

“But you’re not?”

“No,” Cara said. “I set up a women’s pavilion with OB-GYN care, prenatal and family counseling, and a social worker who helps coordinate adoptions in case single mothers choose that route.”

Mason’s expression turned stony, but alarm flickered in his eyes. “Were there threats?”

Cara continued to rub her stomach as another Braxton-Hicks contraction assaulted her. “Not anything specifically. Just that I should shut down. Stop encouraging women to give away their children.”

Mason hissed. “Dammit, Cara, I need to see those letters.”

* * *

M
ASON’S MIND TRAVELED
to dark places as he realized the implications of Cara’s admission. If someone had sent her threatening letters, then killed one of her patients, Cara might be in danger.

Which meant her child was, as well.

The thought of anyone harming her, much less her baby, made his stomach knot with fear. Dammit, he couldn’t let anything happen to her.

His gaze strayed to her hand on her belly again, and protective instincts surged.

Hell, he still didn’t know if she was carrying his baby. She might have a boyfriend waiting for her, one who was the baby’s father.

He had to know the truth.

She had closed her eyes again, her face riddled with pain.

“When is your baby due?” he asked.

Emotions darkened her face when she looked up at him. “Three weeks.”

His mind quickly ticked off that information. Dammit, he could be the father.

The memory of her holding that little girl Lacy taunted him. Cara had looked like a natural mother, loving, caring, tender.

Just the way she was with everyone she knew. Except she would be even more loving with her own child. And she would fight tooth and nail to keep her baby safe.

“Cara,” he said, bracing himself for whatever she said. If the baby wasn’t his, how would he feel? Relief? Disappointment?

If it was his, what would he do? What would she want him to do?

The answer to that question terrified him.

But he couldn’t wait any longer to find out. He swerved on to a side road, then pulled on to the shoulder.

Cara straightened, alarm on her face. “What are you doing?”

“Are you with someone now?”

Her eyes widened as if that wasn’t the question she expected. “No.”

“You didn’t marry after I left?”

She lifted her head in a defiant gesture. “I don’t need a husband to have a child, Mason.”

He gestured toward her swollen belly. “Who is the father?”

She gripped the door handle of the car as if she wanted to jump out and run. “I can’t believe you’re asking me this in the car, especially considering we’re in the middle of a murder investigation.”

He caught her hand, refusing to let her escape. “Dammit, now is as good a time as any. If someone threatened you because of the clinic and this murder is connected to you, then you and your baby may be in danger.”

Panic flickered in her eyes for a brief second before she masked it. “I can take care of myself and my child, Mason. For God’s sake, I’m a doctor.”

“This has nothing to do with you being a doctor or a competent woman,” Mason said, his blood boiling. “It has to do with the fact that a crazed killer murdered one of your patients and may come after you.”

His statement must have sunk in, because her face paled in the moonlight spilling through the car. He clenched his hands to keep from pulling her into his arms and comforting her.

She didn’t look as if she would welcome his comfort.

“I did the math, Cara. We were together ten months ago. So unless you jumped into bed with another man right after I left—”

“How dare you imply that,” Cara seethed.

“Then tell me who the father is.”

Cara massaged her stomach again as if to protect the baby inside. “Mason—”

“Just tell me the truth,” he said on a pained breath. “Is it mine?”

A long heartbeat passed, then she whispered, “Yes.”

* * *

R
ELIEF AND PANIC WARRED
inside Cara. As emotions played across Mason’s face, she held her breath, unsure whether to expect his temper to explode or for him to shut down completely.

She saw remnants of both, yet a tenderness flashed in his eyes as he laid a hand on her stomach that made tears well in her eyes.

He swallowed twice before he spoke. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Cara averted her gaze, struggling with the memory of how hurt she’d been when he’d left her. “Because you were gone,” she said quietly.

“There are telephones,” Mason said, a trace of bitterness creeping into his voice.

Cara stiffened. “You made it very clear that you didn’t want a relationship,” she said. “That you thought mixed marriages didn’t work. Granted, I think that’s archaic, but it’s exactly what you said to me. So what was I supposed to do?” Her own anger shimmied to the surface. “If you didn’t want me, why would I think you’d want a child with me?”

He released a heavy sigh. But pain underscored the anger now, making her chest clench.

“I told you how I grew up,” he said. “You don’t know the half of it, the prejudice, what the kids did to me.”