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“Fifteen years ago, I did something terrible.”
“What?” Taylor asked, capturing his face in her hands, steeled for what he might admit. “What did you do?”
He read a thousand fleeting emotions in the pretty hazel eyes trained on his face. But it was the trust he saw in them that stabbed at him like a knife. She was going to despise him if he told her the truth.
He was the first to look away. “I can’t tell you, Taylor.”
“Sure you can,” she insisted. “Believe me, no good ever comes of keeping secrets.”
Her fervent tone gave him pause. Regarding her quietly, he felt as if he was looking at a total stranger. A dangerous total stranger. It could only be his imagination that made her words sound as though she knew from bitter experience what keeping secrets could do to a person. Which was absurd, because Taylor was the most straightforward, least secretive person he had ever met.
Wasn’t she?
The Last Landry
Kelsey Roberts
MILLS & BOON
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For my beautiful Katie Scarlett,
who will love seeing her name in a book!
Acknowledgments
Thanks so much to Don Scott and Marty Bass of WJZ-TV, Channel 13 in
Baltimore, Maryland, for sharing their time and expertise with me!
Congratulations and many thanks to contest winner Larenda Twigg—
I love the name you selected for Chandler and Val’s baby! I would like to
thank Pat Lieberman for helping me name Lorelei, and Helen from
Sault Ste. Marie for helping name Kasey and Sarah.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelsey Roberts has penned more than twenty novels, won numerous awards and nominations; landed on bestseller lists, including USA TODAY and the Ingrams Top 50 List. She has been featured in the New York Times and the Washington Post, and makes frequent appearances on both radio and television. She is considered an expert in why women read and write crime fiction as well as an excellent authority on plotting and structuring the novel.
She resides in south Florida with her family.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Shane Landry—The youngest Landry runs the Lucky 7 ranch but may have no claim to the land considering he may not be a Landry at all.
Taylor Reese—She’s been housekeeper for the Landrys for five years and about to turn in her resignation…if she can bear to part ways with Shane.
Priscilla Landry—The mother of the Landry brothers has turned up dead. What secrets did she take to the grave?
Caleb Landry—The Landry patriarch was murdered. Was it a twisted romantic triangle that led to his death and that of his wife?
Will Hampton—The Lucky 7 ranch foreman is keeping many secrets behind his quiet facade.
Luke Adams—This ranch hand has a questionable past and a tendency toward violence.
Senator Brian Hollister—He has everything to lose. But is he capable of murder?
Constance Hollister—Knows all the Landry secrets and will keep them in order to protect her marriage and place in society.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Epilogue
Prologue
WMON-TV, News at Eleven
“Funeral services were held at the Jasper Community Church this afternoon for Caleb and Priscilla Landry, the wealthy Jasper couple whose remains were discovered last week in a dry abandoned well on the ranch owned by the family.
“Law enforcement officials have classified the gruesome discovery as an active murder investigation. Sheriff Seth Landry, seen here with his six brothers, is currently heading the investigation, though sources close to the story have indicated that the Montana State Police are planning to take over, since the victims are the parents of the Jasper sheriff.
“Detective Fitz Rollins, chief homicide detective with the state police, said in an interview following the funeral that despite the crime happening fifteen years ago, several strong leads have been developed based on items recovered in the well along with the remains.
“Among the hundreds of mourners, many prominent Montanans attended the services today, including Governor Greenblat, Senator Hollister and State Legislator Jack English. In the interest of full disclosure, we here at WMON also wish to express our condolences to the Landry family. As many of you may remember, Chandler Landry was an anchor here at this station for many years and we all send our sincerest sympathies to Chandler and his family during this difficult time.
“Switching gears now…”
“Turn it off,” Callie groused as she rubbed circles on her very extended belly. Her feet were propped on a chair to ease some of the swelling in her ankles.
Taylor turned off the TV, then went into the office, returning with a pillow that she gently wedged into place beneath her friend’s knees. “You look beat.”
“No, I look like Shamu,” Callie whined. “I’m huge. I’m gigantic, I’m—”
“Eight months pregnant with twins?” Taylor smiled as she went back to the towers of plastic containers lining the counter. “I’ve got enough food here to feed a developing country. What am I going to do with it all?”
“It’s calving season,” Callie said. “Pick out what you want and send the rest down to the bunkhouse. I think Sam said they hired on twenty new temporary hands. Those guys are always hungry.”
“Good