Page 146 of Traces Of You

“I kept thinking someone was watching me,” she said. “At the event. In town. A few days ago, something was reflecting in the back by the trees. I thought it was the sun, but then when I found out Lyle was on the property, I thought maybe it was them.”

“No way,” Clay said. “They wouldn’t have gotten down the road without the camera triggering something.”

“Only someone familiar with the property would know to go back by the apple trees,” Ford said. “An employee that knows this cabin is even here. Rod has always been a little too nice to Reenie. Do you think he could have done this? Could have been watching her?”

Clay was looking at the window, then crouched down and picked something up on the floor.

A little white pill.

“It’s not Rod. I know who it is.”

“Who?” she asked.

“Lexi,” Clay said, looking at Ford, his face showing no expression but his eyes troubled.

“Is that a Tic Tac?” he asked.

“Yep. Must have fallen out of her pocket when she came through the window. She’s small enough to fit and smart enough to be here without triggering lights if she’d been watching the cabin.”

Lexi had been walking this land for years. She’d know the cabin was here, probably even tended to the new crops in the back and saw Reenie’s car.

The lights would only trigger at the doors, but the bedroom window was on the side and she could have come at it from that direction and never got close to the back of the house enough to trigger a sensor. Being an employee and always around, it waspossible Lexi even knew the cameras were recently installed in those places.

“Why would she do this?” Reenie asked. “She’s always been nice to me.”

“Because she’s got a crush on Ford and always has,” Clay said.

“No,” he argued. “It’s you. She has it onyou.”

“I’ve been telling you for years you can’t see what is in front of your face. It’s never been me.”

Could his brother be right?

He always thought Lexi’s flirting was something she’d done with all of them.

But Lexi was closer to him in age. And she still came around for years when Clay was gone and was friendlier with him than his other siblings.

“This makes no sense. She’s shown no signs of anger,” he said.

“Ford. I’ve always thought the way Lexi looked at you was off, but I was told she grew up with you,” Reenie said. “Jealousy is a powerful motivator. Add the fact you were hurt. If it’s really her, I bet that is part of it. I was afraid I’d be blamed for this and I was.”

“You were afraid you’d be blamed by my family,” he said. He didn’t believe Lexi would do this. Not over jealousy or a crush he’d never recognized the signs of. “Lexi isn’t family.”

Clay was still looking around and shaking his head. Frustration on his face. “Close to it. She’s been on this farm since she was a kid. Her parents and Mom and Dad were close. You know it. Reenie could be right. Women have come and gone in your life, but none of them has caused you to almost die.”

“I didn’t almost die,” he argued.

“You see it your way,” Clay said. “I see it mine. If I hadn’t stopped the bleeding, you don’t know.”

His brother was going to be saying that to him for the rest of his life.

“Is she working?” Ford asked. “We need to talk to her.”

“She is,” Clay said, his hands going into his front pockets. “She isn’t a danger to Reenie. Not like we think. This is more about you, Ford, and Reenie was a byproduct.”

“What?” he asked. What a clusterfuck for a guy who always prided himself on seeing everything and having it all under control.

“She did this to get back at you,” Clay said. “If she upsets Reenie, then it upsets you. She wouldn’t be stupid enough to do anything to you directly. She’d rather try to scare Reenie away.”