Page 110 of It's a Wonderful Knife

“I didn’t think about the fact Jax had a key.” Mona frowned.

“Come on, Mona, you know I’d never do anything to hurt the farm,” Jax said calmly. “You’re letting the sheriff get in your head.”

Dakota was sitting beside his mom. He hadn’t said one word the entire conversation, but now he turned to Jax and said, “I’ve seen you at night, Jax.”

Jax held Dakota’s gaze. “What are you talking about?”

Looking sick, Dakota said, “I… I’ve seen you with strangers who come on our property at night.”

I was surprised Dakota was bringing that up, but it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. It was something that needed to be brought out in the open.

Red spears of color hovered on Dakota’s cheeks. “You say you wouldn’t do anything to hurt the farm, but… but then why were you letting those strangers go into our barn and take things?”

“Now, Dakota, you have no idea what you’re talking about,” Jax sputtered.

“Then tell us what you were doing late at night,” Max said. “If it’s nothing, it won’t be hard to explain away.”

Jax took a step back. “Look, that stuff… it has nothing to do with murder.”

“What does it have to do with?” Mona demanded. “What possible reason would you have for letting strangers onto our property at night?”

Leo stood up, his face hard. “You should come clean, Jax. Otherwise, I’ll have to tell Mona what you’ve been up to.”

Mona frowned at Leo. “You know what he’s been doing?”

Shame washed over Leo’s face. “I had my reasons for holding my tongue. But if another person has died, well, there comes a time when even if the truth can damage people I love, I have to speak up.”

Jax’s eyes were cold as he watched Leo. “Really, Leo? You wanna go there?”

“Yeah, Jax. You’ve held that secret over my head long enough. I’m sick to death of being afraid. The reality is two people have lost their lives in that barn, and whether I get fired or not, you need to be stopped.”

“I didn’tkillanybody,” Jax said harshly.

“What is Leo talking about, Jax?” Mona sounded almost scared.

Jax swallowed hard. “I didn’t kill anybody, Mona. You have to believe me. I’m no killer.”

I faced him. “What are you, then? Because you’re definitely up to something. You were at the reindeer barn this evening, weren’t you, Jax?”

“Says who?” Jax’s voice wobbled.

“You used your key to let Richard into the barn. Why?”

Jax’s face was red, and he gave an uneasy look toward Mona. “I didn’t let him in the barn tonight. I swear on my life.”

“Richard wasn’t the type to come to a place like Giggly Elves Farm. He didn’t come here for a vacation. He came here to meet up with you, right, Jax?” I studied him. “Why?”

Jax slumped slightly, looking sick. “Why couldn’t you just keep your mouth shut, Leo? You’re ruining my life.”

“Leo might be doing you a favor, Jax. Right now, you’re my prime suspect in the murders of Richard and Santiago.” I frowned. “Give me another reason why you were down at the reindeer barn tonight.”

“Stop badgering him,” Chloe said softly. “You’re all ganging up on him.”

Dakota scowled at her. “Why are you defending him?”

“You should be defending him, not throwing him under the bus,” she snapped. “He saved your life today, Dakota. Doesn’t that mean anything? It means a lot to me that you’re alive because of Jax.”

Guilt washed over Dakota’s face. “Yes. I… I’m grateful to Jax. But if he’s doing something to hurt the farm, well, I want to know that.”