Page 58 of Smoky Mountain K-9

Mara took a breath and started her tale, recounting what she’d told Carter.

“You didn’t notice anyone or anything out of the ordinary when you pulled in?” Agent Porter asked. “Maybe a car that doesn’t belong in the neighborhood? Or a shadow that didn’t look like one you’ve seen a million times?”

“There were a lot of shadows I haven’t seen before. I’m not normally out so late. But no, I didn’t see anything that made me look twice. Everything looked like it always does.”

“What about inside?” Ben asked. “Was anything different in the house? The bomb squad checked for explosives and didn’t find anything other than the one on the porch, but they couldn’t tell if anything was missing or out of place. The only other issue they found was that someone cut the power to your garage. Likely so you’d go through the front door.”

She swallowed hard. Tonight shouldn’t have ended so well for her. “Honestly, I didn’t look. I saw the mine, freaked out and ran. I locked myself in my bathroom and called Carter.” She gestured to the man standing beside her. “When he arrived, we didn’t linger. He led me out through the back door and put me in his cruiser. I’ve been there since.”

“Okay.” Porter glanced at the others. “Sheriff Davidson said y’all have been having some trouble around here with vandalism. And possibly a fraud scheme?”

Mara nodded, but it was Carter who spoke.

“All of it has centered around the two of us. Me more than her. I think whatever it is has to do with me, and she’s been caught in the crossfire.”

“Tell me about these incidents.” Porter shifted his stance and put his hands in his pockets, attention firmly focused on them.

Carter related everything that led up to this point. Mara chimed in with a few details and with her account of her meeting with Constance Miller.

“She’s your only suspect?” Porter glanced at Ben, who nodded.

“Viable one, yes. Carter’s pulled a few from cases he’s worked in the past. My detectives are looking into them, but no one’s really stood out yet except for her.”

“Have you learned any more about her?”

Ben shook his head. “She gave a false name, and the phone number she called Mara on is a burner. We haven’t been able to trace it.”

Porter looked at Carter. “This isn’t some crazy ex, is it?”

“No. I met her in the hallway at the equestrian center as she was leaving Tuesday. I don’t know her.”

“You’re sure?”

“Hundred percent. But she seemed to know me. Glared daggers as she passed by.”

“You have surveillance cameras at the center, yes?” Porter asked Mara.

“Yes.”

“I need the footage. I’ll get a warrant to run facial recognition on her. Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

A sliver of hope lit in Mara’s chest. She prayed the agent got something from the cameras. They needed to figure out what was going on before she or Carter were seriously injured. Or worse.

Thirty-One

Cool wind whipped past Mara’s face as she darted through the outdoor arena astride Stinger. Despite the chill, it promised to be a beautiful day, for which she was glad. Yesterday had been one of the longest days of her life, and she needed the relaxation riding provided. She had half a mind to load her horse into the trailer and head into the wilderness for a trail ride. Only the knowledge that someone tried to kill her and going off alone was dumb kept her riding around barrels in the arena. It probably wasn’t wise for her to be here by herself, either, but she couldn’t stay in her house alone anymore.

When they parted ways early Saturday morning after he fixed the gaping hole where her back door used to be, Carter promised to stop by later. He never did. She received a text telling her he got hung up with an emergency and that he’d try to catch her Sunday. Mara had no doubt he’d been at work. It just irked her that he couldn’t even call. Or swing by, even for a couple minutes, to tell her.

She leaned into the final turn and gave Stinger his head. The horse sailed through the dirt to the end of the arena. Mara sat up and pulled on the reins. A sharp bark made her look to her left. Carter stood along the fence with Maverick. Her silly heart skipped a beat.

Nudging Stinger’s sides, she trotted over. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“How did you find me?” She was betting Ben told him. He was the only one who knew where she was. She’d called Gemma on her way out the door and asked her to tell Ben where she was headed. Just in case.

Carter shrugged. “You weren’t home. I figured you were here or went to the store. I came here first.”