It seemed like Eve wanted to confess, and Mattie was afraid it was because she planned to kill herself. Keep her talking. “Why did that surprise you?”
“They fought all the time. A few months ago, Kasey wanted to divorce him. Then, after he was dead, she put him on a pedestal.”
Now that the gun was out of the girl’s hand, Robo had settled, and Mattie felt she could concentrate fully on Eve. “That’s often the case.”
Eve knelt at the overhang, her shoulders slumped. “Tell Kasey I’m sorry I hurt her.”
“You need to tell Kasey yourself.”
Eve winced. “But I’m not sorry Nate’s gone. He’s been nothing but trouble for Mom and Dad.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s the reason the ranch is failing. At least his insurance money can save it now. Kasey had nothing to do with his death … tell that to the investigators. There’s nothing to keep them from paying her.”
Mattie doubted Nate was the sole reason for the Redmans’ financial problems, and she wondered if, under these circumstances, the insurance company would contest the benefit payout. But she didn’t want to bring that up, and the longer she could keep Eve from jumping, the better the chance she would change her mind. “How did you know about the insurance policy, Eve?”
“I heard Kasey tell Mom they planned to borrow money on it to pay them back, but it wasn’t enough to save the ranch. Besides, Kasey was crying her heart out about Nate running up their credit card bills, too. He was causing more trouble than he was worth.” Eve scooted closer to the edge as she wept. Thunder cracked overhead, and huge raindrops splashed down, splattering on the rocks. “Dad loves our home. He grew up there. I couldn’t stand by and let the bank take it away from him. Not after everything he’s been through lately.”
Mattie hoped the girl’s father would be the key to changing her mind. “Just think how heartbroken your dad would be if he lost you, Eve. Don’t put him through that.”
Eve rocked back and forth, hands fisted against her thighs. “He’ll suffer no matter what I do. I’ve made such a mess of things. Everyone will be better off if I’m dead.”
“These are your parents you’re talking about, Eve. Losing you is the worst thing that could happen to them.” Mattie judged the distance between them to be about twenty feet. Too far for her to be able to grab Eve and hold on, when it would take only a split second for the girl to lean to the side and fall. “Don’t make your parents suffer the death of their youngest child.”
“It wasn’t just Nate; it was Wilson, too.” Eve stared at Mattie as if looking right through her. “I tried to pin it on him, but I screwed that up.”
Though the rainfall drenched Mattie within seconds, the dead look in Eve’s eyes chilled her more than the storm. Maybe if she tried to align herself with Eve in some way, it would help. “Why did you want to set Wilson up, Eve? Help me understand.”
“He wanted to cheat Dad out of the ranch. Prey on my parents when they were down and try to get them to sell their home. The only home my dad’s ever known.” A spark of anger seemed to put some life back into her eyes. “Tyler and I told him to back off, but he said he planned to talk to Mom. I thought if I could send him to prison for Nate’s murder, that would get him out of our way.”
“How did you try to pin it on Wilson, Eve?”
“I took his gun from his car when he came out to see Tyler at the ranch, and I planted it in the ditch beside Nate’s van before I set it on fire. I also left the Molotov cocktail supplies outside his office. I thought my plan was going to work, but then it all started falling apart.”
Mattie projected her voice over the clatter of the rain. “What do you mean?”
“Wilson called Tyler and accused him of stealing his gun to shoot Nate. It made Tyler so mad. Of course he denied it. Tyler didn’t know I was the one who took that stupid gun.” Eve hung her head, shaking it woefully. “It scared me. I figured it was just a matter of time until Wilson pointed the finger at me. Or worse yet, he’d point it at Tyler. I wanted to make Wilson’s death look like a suicide, but I botched it.”
Mattie figured the girl wasn’t used to planning a murder, and she didn’t seem to be thinking clearly. “What do you mean, botched it?”
Eve’s mouth tightened with scorn. “I called Wilson, told him to come up to see the tiger. When he got there, he was all excited. Brought his binoculars. But then I panicked and shot him in the chest instead of the head. Nobody shoots themselves in the chest. I planned to put that gun in his hand, but ended up keeping it instead.” Eve gestured toward the gun she’d put down on the rock.
“Where did you get this gun, Eve?”
“I’ve had it since I was in high school. Dad taught me how to shoot, and I used it for target practice.”
Mattie’s mind went in two different directions. One, they now had a murder weapon to match to the slug Robo had found at Wilson’s crime scene. And two, how could she talk this girl off the ledge?
“I’m curious, Eve. Why did you burn Nate’s van?”
“I didn’t want the stuff he’d been doing to fall back on Kasey. She had nothing to do with his crap.”
“What stuff?”
Eve shook her head and glanced away before answering. “Bringing in that tiger to hunt. Running drugs and God only knows what else across country for months.”
The breaking of eye contact was enough to make Mattie believe Eve knew about all the trafficking activity, and if she knew, then Mattie believed Kasey knew about it as well. But now wasn’t the time to bring it up.
“Eve, listen to me, okay? What I’m going to say is very important. Everything you’ve done has been to try to help your parents. I can tell how much you love them. But if you kill yourself, it would be the worst thing you could ever do to them.”
Eve straightened, staring at Mattie with strained eyes, reddened from crying, her blond hair plastered to her head in the rain.
This seemed to be the only statement that brought Eve out of herself, and Mattie decided to press the point. “Parents love their kids more than they love property. Your mom has faced tough times this year. Don’t give her something she can’t bear. And I’ve seen the way your dad looks at you. He loves you dearly. Don’t hurt him, Eve. Don’t make him endure that kind of pain on top of what he’s suffered this past year.”
Eve bowed her head and sobbed, covering her face in her hands. Cautiously, Mattie rose from behind the boulder. “Let me take you to them, Eve. Let’s go to your parents.”
Eve extended her hand, and Mattie took that as permission. She hurried forward and knelt close enough to gather Eve into her arms and snatch her away from the ledge. As the girl sagged against her, Mattie held her and rocked backward, scooting away from Eve’s gun.
They sat that way in the driving rain while Eve wept for what seemed like a very long time, huddled together on the hard stone. The things we do for love, Mattie thought as she gently rocked the sobbing girl back and forth.
She wanted to assure Eve that everything was going to be all right, but nothing would ever be the same for her again. Eve loved her parents and her home, but her reasoning had been driven by anger and hate.
Eve had lost everything, trading her blessings for a life in prison.
THIRTY
It was dusk by the time Mattie and Eve arrived at the spot where Brody waited with the captives. On their hike down the mountain, Eve had at first chattered, like she was driven to talk. She told Mattie about her hopes and dreams for the ranch, how she wanted to use her education to help turn it around so it could support not only her parents but also their three kids. Mattie let her talk, even though it became painful to hear. If only the girl had stuck to legal means for producing income rather than criminal ones. It was a relief when Eve apparently talked herself out and fell silent.