“Fair enough. I’d best be getting on. I appreciate you keeping an eye out for my sister.”
“I’ll keep her safe.”
After Mitch left, Ethan wiped his mouth and considered his next move. Whether Miranda believed it was a thing or not, nobody went around slashing random people’s tires without a reason. He and Miranda had already started a list last night of who’d been at the bonfire, but he knew it wasn’t complete. With that in mind, he walked the three blocks to City Hall to track down Norah. In his short time in Wishful, he’d learned that the city planner had a mind like a steel trap when it came to people. She ought to be able to flesh out the guest list considerably. Ethan knew the perpetrator might not have been someone everybody saw at the party. Somebody could have arrived and left without ever joining the group, but it was the next logical step.
Man on a mission, he greeted Jerry Noble, the guard stationed at the front of City Hall who was old as Croesus, then loped up the stairs to the third floor. Norah’s door was closed, so he knocked and waited.
“It’s open! Come on in.”
Turning the knob, he stepped inside. “Hey Norah, I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions.” The sentence faded by the end because she wasn’t alone. Miranda’s mother was seated in one of the guest chairs across from Norah’s desk. “I’m sorry. You’re tied up. I can come back later.”
When he made to beat a hasty retreat, Norah just waved him to the other chair. “Sit. Aunt Liz and I were just finishing up. You remember Lisbette Campbell?”
Ethan inclined his head, wishing he had his Stetson to take off, so he had something to do with his hands. “Yes, ma’am.”
The woman was a shorter, older version of her daughter, albeit with slightly darker hair and blue eyes. Those eyes were fixed on him with an intense scrutiny that made him wonder if he’d managed to get all the lipstick off his mouth. Was he just going to run into all of the Campbells today?
“You’ve been seeing my daughter.”
The back of his neck itched. “Yes, ma’am.”
Liz nodded. “You’ll come to family dinner on Thursday.”
Ethan recognized an order when he heard one, no matter how much of a smile went along with the delivery. “That’s a kind offer, Mrs. Campbell, but I’m on duty Thursday.”
She waved that away and rose from her chair. “Nonsense. You have to eat. If you have to leave early, so be it. You should meet the rest of the family.”
He’d seen all of them at Norah and Cam’s wedding back in the fall. There were a lot of Campbells. It looked like he was gonna get trotted out for their inspection to deem if he was worthy of one of their own. Recognizing there was no graceful way out of the situation, short of manufacturing a call on the day of the event, Ethan conceded. “Yes, ma’am. A home-cooked meal would be nice. I’ll look forward to it.”
“Good. Miranda will let you know the time and place.” She patted him on the arm. “See you Thursday, Chief Greer.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Norah’s eyes were sparkling with unrestrained amusement as her—What the hell was Lisbette Campbell to her? Aunt-in-law? Was that a thing?—walked out of the office. Once her footsteps had faded, he let out a careful breath.
“You have any survival tips for that?”
Her mouth bowed. “Oh, no. You get to navigate this on your own. I’m just gonna enjoy it all from the cheap seats.”
Ethan offered her a bland stare. “Thanks for that.”
She laughed. “What can I do for you, Ethan?”
“Were you aware that Miranda’s car was vandalized at the bonfire last night?”
All humor fled. “What?”
“Her tires were slashed. I was hoping you could help me compile a list of who all was there last night. I know you left before we did, but I figure you can add some names to the existing list.”
“Yes, of course.”
He pulled out his little notebook and they went over the list. She added quite a few more, offering up little vignettes about each person to give him an idea of their character.
“But I can’t imagine any of these people doing something like this.”
“What about Delaney Newell?”
Norah blinked. “I know she’s had some issues. But from what I understand, she’s been medicated since her stint in treatment, and hasn’t stepped a toe out of line.”
“What exactly was Delaney treated for?”
“Bipolar disorder, I believe. Miranda would be able to tell you more about it.”
“You and I both know she won’t.”
“True enough. She’s very protective of Delaney. Either way, I’d have a really hard time imagining her targeting Miranda like that. Miranda has done a lot for her, when nobody else would.”
“That’s essentially what Miranda said.”
Norah’s expression turned thoughtful. “Although...”
“What?”
“It’s just that she seemed a little upset last night.”
“Upset how?”
“Well, honestly, it was when you were singing to Miranda. Nicely done, by the way. Delaney just looked a little sick and left not long after. Maybe the hot dogs didn’t agree with her or something and the timing was coincidental, but I remember thinking it was a little odd. We were all enjoying you and Clay performing.”
It wasn’t a lot, but it was enough to make Ethan hang on to the suspicion nagging at the back of his brain. He’d do his due diligence to chase down any other leads, but whether Miranda liked it or not, Delaney Newell needed a closer look.
Nodding, he closed his notebook and rose. “Thanks for your help, Norah.”
“No problem. If I think of anything else, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
“I guess I’ll be seeing you Thursday.”
“I promise Grammy’s pie will make the whole experience worth it.”
“I’m sure pie would make all interrogations go better.”
“Oh, they won’t interrogate you. Probably. Aunt Liz knows Miranda would wait forever to bring you around because she never brings guys to family dinner. She’s just circumventing for the chance to see the two of you together.”
“So it’s a recon mission.”
Norah laughed. “Something like that. You’re a smart man, and you’re legitimately into her. You’ll be fine.”
“You don’t have any warnings to issue? Mitch already had his shot today.”
“Nope. I saw everything I needed to see last night at the bonfire.”
Ethan realized he had, perhaps, shown too much of his hand with that performance. “She’s an amazing and appealing woman.”
“Yes, she is. It’s good that you can see that. See you Thursday, Chief.”
“Let me just say again how sorry I am she shanghaied you into family dinner.” Miranda bustled around the kitchen, gathering plates and utensils so she didn’t quite have to look at Ethan. Of course, of course, her family couldn’t let her bring him around in her own time. Of course, they bypassed her entirely. “I love my family. I really do, but there’s a reason I haven’t introduced anybody to them in years. It’s one of the perils of dating in the same small town where you grew up. I have an enormous family, and they all really like to meddle. I mean, I really shouldn’t say anything. I meddled all over the place with Cam and Norah, but I totally had ulterior motives.”