color drained from her beautiful face and her short dark hair lay in contrast to her pale skin. “What’s wrong?”
She shuddered, opening her mouth for a few seconds but shutting it before saying anything. She took the ring from his palm. Tears glistened in her eyes. She closed them and inhaled a deep breath.
“Aubrey?”
She swiped a wet tear track from her cheek, straightened her shoulders and looked at him. “That’s Samuel’s wedding ring. When he was murdered, the killer took his ring. My name is engraved inside. I didn’t think I would ever see it again, especially not among my children’s clothes.”
No wonder she was stunned. “So whoever left the rat was either your husband’s killer or knew the guy.”
“And neither is good news. Why now, after two years?”
“A connection between Villa’s trial and Samuel’s murder?”
“Possibly. Both involved drugs. Villa is a lieutenant of the Coastal Cartel.” Aubrey held up the ring. “And they’re sending me a message.”
Sean glanced over his shoulder to where his SUV was parked in the driveway. Darkness had settled over the landscape. “Let’s go inside and talk about this. What kind of security system do you have?”
“I have an alarm system with a couple of cameras inside, as well as motion detectors by the porch and garage.”
“Any cameras outside?”
Aubrey shook her head then turned her attention in the same direction. “What if they’re watching me?”
“You need to get a couple for the front and backyard.”
“I’ll call my company tomorrow and arrange for them to add them as soon as they can.”
Sean scooped up the clothes at their feet and gave them to her, then picked up the bag with the dead rat. “Go inside. I’m locking this in my vehicle, then we’ll talk some more.”
She nodded, but before she reached the garage entrance into the kitchen, a little boy with brown hair opened the door and poked his head out.
“Mama, I’m hiding from Abuela.” Sammy clamped his gaze on Sean, and his eyes grew big.
“Let’s get inside.” Aubrey hustled her son into the house and waited for Sean to leave the garage before putting the door down. “I’ll let you in at the front.”
Sean hurried to his SUV, his gaze sweeping the terrain for anything unusual. He assessed several places where someone could possibly hide and watch Aubrey’s house. Not only did he lock his rear door, but also the evidence box built into his car under the back mats. Then he headed for the porch and started to ring the bell.
Aubrey swung the door open before he could push the button. “I promised my son I would introduce you to him. He said you look like how his daddy looked in some of the pictures he’s seen. I told him you were a Texas Ranger like his dad, and he got all excited. Do you mind?”
“Not at all.” His older sister in Amarillo had two boys, ages seven and nine, as well as a five-year-old girl. He loved visiting them. “Where is he?”
“In the den with his sister and my mother.” She closed and locked the door. “This way.”
He followed Aubrey toward the back of the house, realizing he was over a foot taller than her.
Sammy stood in the entrance to the room with a big grin on his face. “Did ya know my daddy?”
“I met him once, but I really didn’t know him. Everyone says he was a great Texas Ranger.”
Sammy’s grin grew even bigger. “That’s what Mama says.” The little boy grabbed Sean’s hand and tugged him forward. “I gotta show ya somethin’.”
Sean accompanied the child as they crossed the room to the fireplace. The boy pointed at the mantel to a photo of his father, wearing a long-sleeved white shirt with a blue tie and an off-white cowboy hat.
“He has on his badge like you. And we have it!” Sammy pulled on Sean’s hand, guiding him to an end table with the star badge framed in a shadow box. “I’m gonna wear one when I grow up.” He thrust out his chest.
“I felt that way when I was a young boy.” Sean turned toward the little girl standing next to Aubrey. “And you must be Camy.”
She nodded but stepped closer to her mother. Seeing them side by side, he noted a strong resemblance between the two.
“She’s shy with strangers,” Sammy said.
Sean smiled and winked at Camy, whose eyes grew round as saucers.
“I’m Camilla Roberts, their grandma, or as Sammy has been saying lately, their abuela.” The petite older woman with black hair and the same dark brown eyes as Aubrey stood and held her hand out.
Sean shook it. “It’s nice to meet all of you.”
“Camy and Sammy, it’s time to get ready for bed.” Camilla peered at her daughter. “The Texas Ranger is here to talk business with your mama.”
While Camy went to her grandmother, Sammy stood still. “I’m not sleepy. I want to stay.”
“Samuel Craig Madison, this isn’t negotiable. Go with Grandma now.” Aubrey’s firm voice emphasized the word now, which drew a big frown from her son, but Sammy left with his grandmother.
“Sorry about that. My son takes his job as the man of the house very seriously. He thinks he’s supposed to know about everything that goes on here. Let’s go back to my office.”
As they left the den, Sean said, “I understand. My father died when I was fourteen. I was the oldest male. I have two sisters, one younger and one older, and a younger brother. I thought I needed to protect them and be the man of the house, too.” Yet he hadn’t been able to protect his youngest sibling. He’d failed to accomplish his dad’s last request.
“Sammy’s only four and a half. He got that idea from a kid at church about six months ago.”
“Kids are growing up too fast today.”
“You don’t have to tell this mother.” Aubrey walked toward the doorway. “I need to put these new clothes in the washing machine. The idea that someone might have handled them in addition to the faint odor of a dead rat are more than enough reasons to wash them before they wear them.”
Sean glanced up and down the hallway before asking, “I wish you had answers to your husband’s death. It’s hard to get closure when there are so many unknowns. Do you mind telling me again about what happened? I haven’t had a chance to work on his case for a couple of months.” The influx of drugs had increased in the past few months, and he was determined to do what he could to stop the flow. He often wished there was more time in a day to do all he wanted. He’d even neglected Jack’s missing-person case.
“Sure. Have you had dinner yet?”
“No. When you called, I’d just arrived home.” He entered the kitchen.
“Knowing my mama, she put the leftovers in the refrigerator for me to have later. It won’t take long to heat them up in the microwave. It’s lasagna. Mama is a great cook, a trait I haven’t inherited from her.” She crossed to the utility room and disappeared inside.
Like the rest of the house, the kitchen was clean and neat, with little evidence they had just eaten dinner. He was glad that Aubrey had help with her children. He’d been there for his mother after his father died in a ranch accident. He’d tried his best to do what his dad had done at the family’s ranch and go to high school, then later college. Being a parent was hard, but being a single one was even more difficult. Reflecting on Sammy showing him the picture of his father and his badge brought a smile to Sean’s face. But then he remembered Camy’s shyness, and he thought about his younger sister,