Kate turned to face him. His gut clenched at the bleak desperation in her eyes.

"The only real question," she murmured, "is where the h.e.l.l has he buried her?"

CHAPTER 26.

Kate watched as Riley collected his jacket and slipped it on and then shoved his tie into his pocket. His face was closed, unreadable and she felt a sharp stab of uncertainty.

Had he changed his mind? Was he sorry he'd slept with her, now that he knew the whole sordid truth?

As if he could read her mind, he stopped in front of her and took hold of her hands. Bringing them up to his mouth, he pressed a soft kiss against each of her fingers.

"Even though I'm off duty, I need to call in to the station and talk to the officer in charge. Hannaford's now taken a couple of days off, so at least I won't have to worry that he's around. I phoned him earlier, before he left, and actually got the b.a.s.t.a.r.d to agree to let me apply for a search warrant of Darryl's house. Hannaford tried to stall me, but I'm going to the courthouse first thing in the morning. Now that I know he and Darryl are in this together, I'm going to ensure Darryl is arrested as soon as possible. The s.e.xual a.s.sault charges should be enough to hold him for a little while-until I have enough evidence to charge him with murder."

Kate shuddered. "I'll have to testify, won't I?"

Riley grimaced. "Yes, sweetheart, you will." The hold on her hands tightened. "I know you're brave and strong enough to see this through and you know it's the only way. It's the only way you'll be completely free."

Her lips trembled. "You're right," she whispered.

Riley groaned and pulled her into his arms. "Christ, I wish I could stay with you. All I want to do is climb back in that bed and hold you all night, but I can't. I need to help get together an arrest team and pay Darryl and Hannaford a visit. Internal Affairs will need to be brought up to speed. We'll also need backup from Grafton...and all of that has to be organized tonight."

"I understand." She offered him a shaky smile. "Go. You need to go."

Leaning forward, he gave her a hard kiss on her lips and held her tight. Kate breathed in his strength. All too soon, he released her and quietly let himself out.

Riley's head whirled with a confusion of thoughts and emotions. He pulled out of the motel's parking lot and dialed the station. Off duty or not, it was imperative he report his findings.

The officer in charge of the station for the night shift was Detective Sergeant Brian Reynolds. Brian was a good officer. He'd transferred from the coast only a month ago and was unlikely to be tainted by Watson's influence. From what Riley had seen of Reynolds' character, he both liked him and felt he could trust him. He also knew Brian would act on the information right away. Darryl and Hannaford would be arrested. At the very least, charges of s.e.xual a.s.sault would be laid against both of them and that was before they looked into the fraud and corruption charges.

The scent of Kate clung to his skin and he cursed aloud. In all the fantasies he'd had about making love to her, none of them had included him climaxing first. And even worse, that she wouldn't climax at all.

Heat scorched his cheeks again at the thought of it. Christ, that hadn't happened to him since he'd been a teenager, fumbling in the backseat with Harriet Dixon. The humiliation was about the same. The only difference was he cared more about how Kate felt about it. Much more.

He frowned, remembering. She seemed to have taken it okay, but it wasn't supposed to be like that. He'd wanted their first time to be perfect, mind blowing, unforgettable. He winced. He'd probably gotten the last part right.

His mind skittered around the secrets she'd shared. Anger still simmered beneath the surface, but the need to act on it immediately like he'd wanted to, had been replaced by the necessity of dealing with the facts concerning Darryl and Rosemary and Hannaford. He needed time to think the night's revelations through, one frame at a time-but minutes were scarce and right now, every one of them counted.

The call to the station connected and Riley was met with shocked silence when he relayed his information to the OIC. To Reynolds' credit, after a few short, sharp queries, he accepted the validity of Riley's story.

They made plans to hurriedly put together joint arrest teams. It was imperative the raids be conducted simultaneously to minimize the risk that one offender could tip off the other. Riley insisted he lead the team that would conduct the raid at No.16 Baxter Road.

In a little over two hours, it was done. Riley couldn't help his smile of satisfaction as he recalled Darryl's shock and outrage when the arresting officers had knocked on his door. The click of the handcuffs as they locked around Watson's wrists had been the sweetest sound Riley had heard for a long while and securing them just a little tighter than was necessary was the least that he could do.

With Kate's stepfather loudly protesting his innocence to anyone who cared to listen, Riley had marched him to the back of the squad car and driven him to the station.

Almost immediately, Watson lawyered up. Hannaford followed suit. Upon consultation with Reynolds, it was decided to let the pair of them stew over their situation until the morning, when Riley's team would also bring Barry Bloomfield in for questioning.

Knowing there was nothing more he could do until the sun rose, Riley picked up his phone and dialed. It was answered on the second ring.

"Hi, Mom. How are you?"

Riley climbed out of the heated car and shivered. Turning up the collar on his jacket, he made his way up the old stone steps. The night was black, but a sliver of moon and a lifetime of memories were enough to enable him to make it to the front door without incident. It was after midnight, but lights still showed through the curtains of the living room window. His parents had always been night owls.

Tugging off his boots, he dropped them on the wide porch, right outside the front door. With a brief knock on the freshly painted panel, he walked inside. His mother looked up in surprise and smiled, the knitting in her lap forgotten.

"Riley!" She stood and came toward him, her face wreathed in smiles. Flinging her arms out wide, she enveloped him in a warm hug.

"Where did you come from? I thought you were in Watervale?"

He hugged her back, taking comfort from her familiar form. The faint smell of citrus clung to her hair, like it always had.

He grinned a little sheepishly. "I was. At least, I was when I called you. Somewhere along the way, I decided to make a visit. It's so much better than a phone call, don't you think?"

Her brow furrowed with worry. "What's the matter, Riley?"

He averted his gaze. His innocent act hadn't fooled her for a minute. "Is Dad home?"

Throwing him another long look filled with concern, she let it go. "No, hon. He's doing a court circuit out west. He's in Bourke tonight."

Riley smiled. "He's catching up with all the relatives, no doubt. I bet he's loving it."

"Yes, I'm sure you're right. He was going to stay with Uncle Gary and Aunt Susie. I think they were inviting a few of the others over for dinner."

Riley chuckled. "He'll be lucky to survive the night, wining and dining with that mob. I wouldn't like to be one of the defendants fronting up to his courtroom tomorrow."

Marguerite Munro smiled with fondness, shaking her head then offering to make coffee. He murmured his thanks and followed her into the newly renovated kitchen.

"This looks great, Mom. I love the color you chose for the walls."

His mother nodded as she set about making coffee. "Yes, they call it pea soup, which isn't at all inspiring, but it turned out all right."

"It looks good against all the white cabinets, and the black granite countertop really sets it off."

"I'm glad you like it, Riley, but enough about it. You didn't drive the better part of two hours, through a cold winter night to talk about the renovations. What's going on?"

He sighed heavily as he wandered over to the breakfast bar and pulled out a stool. With his elbows on the counter, he rested his chin on his steepled fingers and thought about where to start. So much had happened in two short weeks and it wasn't until he'd heard his mother's voice over the phone that he realized how much he needed to talk to someone about it-someone who'd understand.

With a deep breath, he began at the beginning. "There's this girl, Mom..."

She let him talk, uninterrupted. Two cups of black coffee later, he was finished. He sat in silence, feeling oddly lighter. His mother took another sip from her mug and set it carefully on the counter. "You really like this woman, don't you?"

He nodded, his gaze fixed on his empty cup.

"So what's the problem? Is her past the issue?"

"Of course not. I'm enraged at what she was subjected to and I hope I get a few minutes alone with Darryl Watson in a very small room before all this is over. As for it changing the way I feel about Kate, it only makes me admire her more. I mean, to become the smart, successful, self-a.s.sured woman she is after such a rough start-it's a credit to her and only goes to show the depth of her courage and tenacity."

Marguerite smiled tenderly. "It's been a long time since I saw you so worked up over a woman. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen you like this. Not even when you were with Iris."

Riley caught her gaze-her bright blue eyes, so different from his, were filled with love.

"You're right. I've never felt this way before, Mom, and...to tell you the truth, it scares me to death." As he made the admission, relief poured through him. It was the first time he'd said it aloud. Nerves thrummed under his skin as he waited for her response.

"Why, hon? Why does it scare you?"

All the old insecurities tumbled around in his head, filling his thoughts with noise and garbage. He squeezed his eyes shut and grimaced, waiting for them to dissipate.

Could he tell her? Could he tell his mother how he felt? If anyone was going to understand, it would be her. After all, she was a white woman who had married an aboriginal.

He drew a deep breath and released it on another heavy sigh. "I'm scared she won't feel the same way. I'm scared she'll be just like Iris and all the other girls I've dated-that when it comes down to it, she won't want to share her life with someone who's bi-racial."

He'd said it. The words were out there, hovering in the air between them. He snuck a glance at his mother. Her eyes were wide with shock.

"Riley! How could you think such a thing? You're a beautiful man, inside and out. What woman wouldn't want to be with you?"

He grimaced. "Plenty, believe me. Look at Iris. We lived together for more than three years. The day I started talking to her about something more permanent was the day she texted me to say it was over."

"Did she actually tell you it was because of your mixed heritage?"

"Not in so many words, but that was the gist of it."

Marguerite's eyes blazed with anger. "That shallow, little b.i.t.c.h. I always knew you were too good for her."

Now it was his turn to be shocked. "Mom, I've never heard you swear before! And when did you stop liking Iris? You two always got along so well."

"Humph. That's what you thought. I tried to get along with her because it meant so much to you. To tell you the truth, I was glad when she found someone else and ended it."

He was shocked for the second time. "Why didn't you say anything?"

She sighed and took another sip from her cup. "What could I say? You thought you were in love with her-you probably were in love with her. You weren't in a place where you were willing to listen to anyone on the subject. You even blew off Clayton at one point."

"Yeah, but he'd not long married Ellie and the whole world smelled like roses. Of course I resented it when he said he didn't think Iris was good enough for me. Who was he to judge who was good enough for me?"

"He only said it because he cared. We all do."

"Yeah, I know." Riley blew his breath out on a sigh. "The thing is, being bi-racial has seldom been an issue for me. I grew up in a home with two loving parents and a swag of brothers and sisters who were always there for me. We supported each other. The fact that we were part aboriginal... I couldn't be prouder of Dad and all that he's achieved."

His voice hitched. "Dad's been my inspiration," he continued quietly. Being of mixed race didn't define who I was when I was younger. It still doesn't. But that doesn't mean everyone sees it the same way."

"Listen to me, Riley. This Kate, if she's worthy of you, won't care about the color of your skin. She won't even see the color of your skin. If she loves you enough, if she loves you the way you deserve, it won't matter. It simply won't matter."

Tears burned his eyes and he swallowed against the lump in his throat. Hope and fear warred in his heart, choking him with their intensity. Could he really hope Kate would see the real him? That she would want him, love him, like his mother seemed to believe?

Clearing his throat, he swiped at the moisture in his eyes and offered her a shaky smile.

"Thanks, Mom. Thanks for everything. I didn't mean to unload on you like that."

Her eyes sparkled with emotion, but she offered a tremulous smile. "You can unload on me any time you want, son. Just remember that, okay?"

He nodded and bit his lip. "I appreciate that."

They sat in silence for a while, lost in their thoughts, the night still and quiet around them. Riley glanced at his watch and pushed away from his stool.

"It's late. I'd better get back. In a few hours, my day's going to start all over again and it's going to be another big one."

"You're right." Marguerite stood with him and stepped forward to give him a hug. "Are you sure you want to leave? The mountain will be foggy and they're talking snow. You could always stay here. There are plenty of spare beds."

Though it sounded tempting, he shook his head. "Thanks, but I'd rather get back. This thing with Hannaford and Watson-it's going to get nasty. We'll need every hand on deck."

"It's going to be very late when you get home."

"I probably won't be able to sleep anyway."

She nodded. "I understand." She hugged him again, a brief, fierce embrace. "You take care on those roads, okay? And let me know how you get on. Email me or call."

"I will. And thanks again." He put his arm around her and walked to the front door.

"I love you, Riley."

"I love you too, Mom."

CHAPTER 27.

With a groan, Kate rolled over and squinted at the clock on the nightstand. It was nearly eight. Morning had arrived, although it hadn't yet announced itself through the thick motel curtains. Closing her eyes again, she savored the darkness.

She'd barely slept for most of the night. Thoughts of Darryl and Hannaford and her mother had chased themselves around in her head. And then there was Riley. Every time she closed her eyes, she felt him, the hard, warm length of him, the smell of his skin, the feel of him deep inside her.

She still couldn't believe she'd done it. She'd voluntarily, even willingly, had s.e.x with a man. She'd almost given up on ever being normal enough to feel like that. And yet, with Riley, it had nearly been easy...natural.

There'd been a few moments when she'd had to breathe through her panic and focus on the man who held her, but she'd come through it, had even enjoyed it. She would have been on top of the world if Darryl and Hannaford-and what might happen with them-hadn't been foremost on her mind.

Her thoughts returned to Riley and she wondered how he'd fared fronting up to his colleagues and telling them about his suspicions. She could only hope he'd managed to convince them and that he'd received the support he needed.