Page 60 of The Perfect Hosts

“Sure,” Jamie says. “Sounds fun.”

“Wes, you’ve got a call on the landline,” Madeline says as she walks toward them. She’s moving slowly, her hands cradling her belly as if holding it up. She looks uncomfortable and exhausted.

“Take a message,” Wes says shortly. “I told you I didn’t want to be interrupted.”

“But it’s Franklin,” she says. “You always take calls from him. He’s been trying your cell, but it’s been going straight to voicemail.”

So Wes has been avoiding his attorney’s phone calls, Jamie thinks. Why? And why would Wes agree to talk to a member of law enforcement without his lawyer present?

“Hold on a sec,” Wes says, and he walks Madeline back toward the house, one arm around her waist as he talks a steady stream into her ear. Jamie can’t hear what he’s saying, but Madeline seems to wilt with each step.

“You sure you don’t want to take that call?” Jamie offers when Wes returns. “I’m happy to wait.”

“Nah,” Wes says. “I want you to have my undivided attention.” He leads Jamie and the horses out to the paddock and gives him an abbreviated riding lesson, showing him how to approach Nell calmly, how to stand on her left side and use the mounting block to step into the stirrup and swing his leg over her back and settle into the saddle. “Make sure you sit up straight and hold the reins with a light grip,” Wes says. “Relax. She won’t take off on you. Now, to get her to walk, squeeze your legs together.” Jamie presses his knees into Nell’s side, but the horse doesn’t move.

“She won’t break,” Wes laughs. “Harder. Show her who’s in charge.” Jamie tries again, and still Nell stays put. “Well, look who’s acting like a little bitch,” Wes says, and Jamie doesn’t know if he’s addressing the horse or Jamie. “Get,” Wes orders, and using the palm of his hand strikes Nell on the rump, and the horse surges forward. Jamie’s teeth clank together as the horse gallops from the paddock and toward the mountains. After what feels like an eternity, Wes catches up with him.

“Now, to get him to stop,” Wes says, “pull back on the reins, and saywhoa. Just like in the movies.”

“Whoa,” Jamie says, and to his relief Nell stops.

“You got it,” Wes says. “I’ll show you more as we ride.”

They start off again, and Nell ambles along at a leisurely pace. They pass the charred remnants of the blown-up barn and the mangled entrails of the truck and head toward the mountains.

The afternoon is warm, and Jamie likes the feel of the sun on his head and the smooth four-beat rhythm of Nell’s hooves striking the ground. The mountains cut jaggedly into the crystalline blue of the sky, and the air smells like pine needles. They cross a shallow creek where the horses dip their heads to drink, and Wes explains to Jamie how to maneuver his horse to the left and to the right and warns him to keep an eye out for rattlesnakes. Jamie turns his head sharply to Wes to see ifhe’s serious. It appears he is. It’s a good thirty minutes into their ride before Wes pulls back on his reins and brings his horse to a stop. It takes Jamie a few tries to get Nell to do the same, then another few moments to bring her back to where Wes is waiting.

“This is as good a place as any to talk about the case,” Wes says. “Do you have an update?”

Jamie decides to jump right in. “I reviewed the pictures and video from the party, Wes. And you omitted one very important detail when we first talked. You followed Johanna into the barn a few minutes before the explosion. Why?” Jamie watches him closely for a reaction.

Wes removes his cowboy hat and scratches his head. “I’m sorry,” he says, sounding like he means it. “At first, it honestly escaped my mind.”

Jamie is skeptical. How can someone forget that they were in a structure that minutes later exploded, killing a woman and injuring dozens of others? But Jamie doesn’t contradict Wes, just waits for him to go on. “When I did remember, I thought it would seem suspicious that I didn’t tell you right away. And it didn’t matter. I mean, I didn’t think it mattered.”

“Everything matters in a murder investigation,” Jamie says sternly. “Why were you going into the barn?”

Jamie expects Wes to say that it’s his barn. That he was just going inside to check on something or grab something, not to rendezvous with his wife’s best friend. Instead Wes says, “To talk to Johanna.” Jamie can’t hide his surprise, and Wes rushes on to explain. “I asked her to meet me there.”

“What for?”

“I was going to fire her,” Wes says, shaking his head. “I didn’t think she was good for Madeline. I did some checking up on her, and it turns out she wasn’t really a midwife. She had all the education and accreditation, but she never applied for a license to practice in Wyoming. She’d been practicing here fornine years. I thought she was sketchy as hell, but Madeline loves her.Lovedher. And I didn’t want to hurt Madeline or embarrass Johanna. I told her I wanted her to resign from being Madeline’s midwife and to stop practicing, and if she didn’t I’d go to the sheriff about it.”

Jamie thinks of the text messages he found between them on Johanna’s phone. What had Johanna said?Nothing you say will change a damn thing. Fuck you. I’m finished.From what he can recall, in this new light, their texts match Wes’s narrative—an angry husband trying to protect his wife from malpractice. Unfortunately, Johanna wasn’t around to confirm this narrative. And what had Wes texted in return?I don’t want you anywhere near me or my wife... you’ll regret it.

“What did Johanna say when you confronted her in the barn?” Jamie asks. Wes clicks his tongue and his horse starts walking again, and Jamie taps his heels urging Nell to move forward too.

“She agreed,” Wes says. “Well, she said she just hadn’t gotten around to completing the Wyoming licensing paperwork, but she would.”

“And...” Jamie prods.

“I said I didn’t want her touching my wife until she did. She was fine when I left the barn.”

“But a few minutes later she was dead. How do you think that happened?” Jamie asks.

“My bet is on her husband,” Wes says. “You saw the way he was acting in the baby’s room. His accusations were ridiculous. He attacked me. I thought you would have figured this all out by now.”

“Listen, Wes, I’m here to get to the truth, so if there’s anything else I need to know, it will be really helpful if you tell me now.”