Six-Gun Investigation

His face was mere inches from hers, his blue eyes smoky and intense.

“You don’t—” she started, but her voice was swallowed up by the pounding of her heart. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

He touched her bruised neck with a surprisingly gentle fingertip. “Look at this. Of course I have to worry. If something happened to you I’d—”

Anna raised her head, meeting his gaze. His eyes lingered on her lips as his fingers slid around the back of her neck.

She melted inside, overwhelmed by his gentle touch, his quiet, caring words, the naked yearning in his eyes.

Reality tried to break the spell his tenderness had cast. Not him, her brain scolded. Not Texas Ranger Zane McKinney. She had every reason to hate him and no reason at all to trust him. She pulled away from his hypnotic touch.

“I’d better get back to my room.”

“You’re not going anywhere. I can’t trust you out of my sight, so you’re sleeping here.”

To Delores and Rita—

silver stars in their own right!

Mallory Kane took early retirement from her position as assistant chief of pharmacy at a large metropolitan medical center to pursue her other loves, writing and art. She has published and won awards for science fiction and fantasy as well as romance. Mallory credits her love of books to her mother, who taught her that books are a precious resource and should be treated with loving respect. Her grandfather and her father were both steeped in the Southern tradition of oral history, and could hold an audience spellbound with their storytelling skills. Mallory aspires to be as good a storyteller as her father. She loves romantic suspense with dangerous heroes and dauntless heroines. She is also fascinated by story ideas that explore the infinite capacity of the brain to adapt and develop higher skills.

Mallory lives in Mississippi with her husband and their cat. She would be delighted to hear from readers. You can write to her c/o Harlequin Books, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279.

Zane McKinney—A Texas Ranger who’s risen to the top of his field. But no accolades can make up for his father’s betrayal. Now, with a woman dead and his father once again the prime suspect, Zane will do anything to find the truth—anything except fall in love with the daughter of the woman who destroyed his family.

Anna Wallace—Sixteen years ago, this investigative journalist’s mother was murdered in the small town of Justice, Texas. Now her sister is dead by the same hand, and the only man who can help her find the murderer is the son of the suspected killer.

Sarah Wallace—Sarah begged Anna to meet in Justice, claiming she had proof of who had killed Lou Ann.

Jim McKinney—The ex-Texas Ranger’s career and life were destroyed when his mistress was found strangled to death.

Stella McKinney—Jim’s long-suffering wife. Does Stella know more than she’s telling?

Leland Hendricks—When his trophy wife’s daughter is murdered, this wheeler-dealer has an airtight alibi.

Donna Hendricks—A reformed alcoholic, Donna lost custody of her toddler son to her ex-husband, Leland. Then the child went missing.

Rosa Buchanan—Employee and confidante of Donna, Rosa would do anything for her friend.

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

For the third time in fifteen minutes, Sarah Wallace reached for her purse—for the cigarettes that weren’t there. She’d quit smoking two weeks ago. Two weeks, and yet she still reached for them whenever she was nervous.

Damn. How would she last for eight more months? She sighed and glanced at the half-eaten sandwich she’d ordered up to her room from the diner next door to the Matheson Inn. Ugh. It had tasted good, but now it sat heavily on her queasy stomach. She dumped the container into the wastebasket and snagged a piece of sugarless gum with the tips of her silk nails.

“I’m doing all this for you, kid,” she whispered as she chewed. Her left hand drifted to her flat tummy. “I’m working on getting rid of the crap in my life, so you and I can start fresh. I’ve got a feeling the cigarettes were easy, compared to the rest.”

Then she turned back to the sheet of hotel paper lying on the desk. Picking up the pen, she quickly read over what she’d written.

Dear Anna,

I’m sitting in this room in Justice, wondering if I’m doing the right thing. It feels right. But here, in the same room where Mom was murdered, I’m beginning to feel a little spooked. Silly, I know, but if you don’t get here very soon I may chicken out and leave.

Hopefully within a few minutes we’ll be reading this together and laughing at my paranoia.

She underlined paranoia three times. She’d gotten a few curious looks when she’d shown up. Hadn’t seen anyone she knew but that didn’t mean someone hadn’t seen her.