Sunset Over Misty Lake

by Margaret Standafer

“Sure,” he said. He left Joshua waiting by the door. “Hold tight,” he said.

  Jake led Bud to the far side of the room. Joe watched until both had their backs turned, studying some papers Jake must have conjured out of thin air. Joe led the parade to the opposite side of the room where Joshua eyed them warily.

  Cort spoke first, his voice even lower and more menacing than before.

  “You won’t get away this time, Barnes. You’ll pay for Vanessa and for everything else. If I have to hire every lawyer in the country, I’ll do it. I’ll do whatever it takes, mark my word.”

  From somewhere, Joshua found a misplaced sense of courage. “Good luck. Didn’t work before, won’t work now.”

  He spit at Cort. It was all any of them needed. Riley and Frank moved toward him first and it only took a split second for Joshua to realize he’d made a mistake. He stepped forward, trying to avoid them, but Riley and Frank had never been more in tandem than they were at that moment. They flanked him, Riley on his left, Frank on his right. When Joshua stepped forward, Riley’s right foot and Frank’s left moved with him, directly in the path of his feet. Without his hands to right himself, Joshua pitched forward. Then it was Cort and Joe’s turn. Cort went high, his fist connecting with Joshua’s face. The crunching sound would have been sickening, Joe thought, if Joshua hadn’t deserved it. And more. The more came when Joe buried his fist wrist deep in Joshua’s gut.

  When Joshua hit the ground, he yelled, but with the wind knocked out of him, there was precious little to hear. He writhed on the floor, the handcuffed wrists flailing, as he tried to catch his breath. Out of nowhere, Shauna stepped forward, her foot swinging and connecting solidly with what was left of Joshua’s pride.

  As one, four men sucked in their collective breath and winced.

  “I guess that about wraps it up,” Bud said loudly.

  Joe watched both Bud and Jake slowly turn, then stroll across the room, chatting as they walked.

  Bud toed Joshua’s shoulder. “Took a tumble, did you? That’s too bad.”

  Joshua gasped and sputtered. His eyes watered.

  “Looks like you got the wind knocked right out of you. Must have been quite a tumble.”

  “Help me,” Joshua sputtered.

  “Oh, now, you’ll be fine. You know, getting the wind knocked out of you is actually a spasm of the diaphragm. Did you know that? Yeah, there’s all kinds of technical mumbo jumbo about what happens in there, but basically it hurts like a bitch for a while and then you’re fine. There are a coupla tricks to help, I think.” Bud scratched his head. “Let’s see now, what were they? I think you’re supposed to apply pressure. No, wait, that’s something different. Oh, well, you’ll recover in a few minutes.”

  Joshua managed to pull his knees to his chest. He rocked from side to side, whimpering and moaning.

  “Huh. Maybe that was it. Pull your knees up.” Bud turned to Cort, Shauna, and the McCabe brothers. “You guys see what happened? Was he trying to make a run for it? Not going to get far in those handcuffs, throws off your balance. He should’ve known that.”

  “Them,” Joshua puffed. “All of them.”

  “They tried to help? All of them? Why, thank you. All of you. That was mighty nice of you. Too bad he still fell.”

  Bud bent over and pulled Joshua to his feet. He stood but stayed bent at the waist.

  “I’ll have questions, I’ll need statements, but it can wait. I’ll be in touch. Take care.”

  Bud tipped his hat then pushed Joshua out the door and just like that, it was over.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  THEY’D COME HOME at different times, but it had been a couple of weeks and everyone was getting back into their routines. Karen had savored the few days she’d spent alone with Joe and the memories of their getaway would last a lifetime, but nothing beat being home, being with her family, and knowing everyone was safe and sound.

  And since everyone was home, everyone was safe and sound, Karen was throwing a party. It had taken some doing, but she’d gotten all those she loved deeply and all those to whom she owed a lifetime of gratitude gathered at her home on a pretty, sunny, Sunday in August.

  After seeing everyone was fed and everyone was comfortable, and with a moment to herself, Karen stood a bit outside the group and watched.

  She watched Dylan race along the beach with Claire, who had just started taking her first steps, toddling along after him, both under the careful watch of three sets of eyes. Her twins napped in the shade of a leafy oak after getting a dose of love from nearly everyone there. Kelly and Wes sat on the dock, their hands clasped and resting on Kelly’s growing belly. Any day now. Karen could hardly wait for her sister to become a mother. Jennica and Jordyn, the teenagers who’d been so helpful at the inn while Susan had been on her own, waved from the boat as Joe zipped by the dock, the girls’ boyfriends doing their best to show off on their water skis.

  Her parents chatted with Anna and Sean. The four had been close friends for years and after missing their time together at the Fourth of July party, had catching up to do. Watching her mother, seeing her relax and lose some of the worry lines from her face, warmed Karen’s heart.

  Karen spotted Shauna and Cort alone so took the opportunity to catch them for a chat in private.

  “Enjoying yourselves?” she asked, then hugged them each in turn.

  “It’s perfect,” Shauna said, “just what we needed. Thank you.”

  “Nope. Today’s about me thanking you. All of you.”

  Shauna shook her head. “Nothing to thank us for. It turned out well for everyone.”

  “Then things are going well? With the case, I mean? Have you heard any more?”

  “He’s in jail and he’s not getting out. The list of charges against him is a mile long. He’ll pay for what he did to you, to the others like you, and to Vanessa.” Cort’s jaw clenched and he blinked hard.

  “The last I heard they’d identified ten victims like me but figure there are more. And, of course, your sister and the other woman he’d been married to. Bud told me he’s confirmed Joshua was married twice, under different names. Tattooing the women’s initials on his wrist helped identify his first wife. Bud said he collected a big sum when each wife died, but they figure Joshua decided it was too risky to try again so moved on to the sort of thing he did to me. Cort, I know I told you how sorry I am that you had to relive all that happened with Vanessa, but know, again, that I am. I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine your pain.”

  Cort looked out over the lake. “It’s a double-edged sword, isn’t it? We both suffered at the hands of the same psychopath, yet we’ll both see justice as a direct result of the other’s pain and heartache.”

  Karen had to blink against tears of her own. “I had a call from your mother a few days ago. Such a sweet woman. She told me over and over how sorry she was for what happened to me and then thanked me for being strong enough to do something about it, to fight back. She sounded so sad but at the same time I sensed some relief. I hope that’s the case. I hope finally seeing justice for your sister helps her.”

  “It does. It helps. While it’s been hard on everyone dredging up such painful memories, my family is grateful to you, grateful for the outcome.”

  “None of it would have happened without you. I’ll never be able to repay you for dropping everything and making that first call to Dave, for flying to Las Vegas and meeting with him. You set the whole thing in motion and without you, I’m certain it would never have been resolved. I’d ask you for Dave’s contact information so I can thank him too, but I have a feeling I won’t get that.”

  Cort smiled for the first time. “No, I don’t think I can give that to you, but I’ve thanked him.” Cort paused and turned his gaze back to the lake. “He knew, Dave did. He put it all together. He knew Joshua was Derek Barnes and was responsible for Vanessa’s death. That’s why he gave us Brendan’s name, that’s why we were able to set the whole thing in motion.”

  “You didn’
t tell me that,” Shauna said. “How do you know?”

  “I knew there had to be more to it than what Dave told Joe and me that night in the bar. More than the fact that Brendan Pike crossed him. That’s something Dave would have handled on his own and never mentioned to me. He would have turned over the information from Brendan and moved on. I’d been thinking about it and some comments Dave made started to make sense. He wanted to be certain Barnes—Joshua—went to prison, wanted it for me. I asked Dave about it. He didn’t confirm, but he didn’t deny. I also pieced together the fact that while everything was happening at Mystique, he had people there, inside and outside. Had Joshua tried to hurt any of us, had things gotten to a point where his people felt we were in danger, or had Joshua managed to slip away, Dave’s people would have stepped in.”

  “Wow.” The information knocked the breath right out of Karen. “He did all that. This Dave, whoever he really is, is a heck of a guy.”

  “That he is. An interesting guy, a sometimes-scary guy, but at the end of the day, a good guy.”

  “I’m going to choose to believe you’ve known that for all the years you’ve been working with him instead of just now figuring that out,” Shauna said.

  Cort nodded and kissed her cheek but didn’t say anything.

  “Enjoy the day, you two,” Karen said.

  Just as Shauna and Cort strolled away, Sam walked from the beach toward the house, a wiggling Claire in her arms.

  “She needs a change but refuses to believe it,” Sam said.

  “Mind if I follow you?” Karen asked.

  “Of course not. You can help me corral her because she will certainly try to make a break for it.”

  “I’ve wanted to thank you, Sam, for helping when I was in Vegas and for keeping me sane when I was here. I’m not sure I would have gotten through it without you.”

  “You’re welcome, but you need to stop short-changing yourself. If there’d been no one to help, you’d have still come through it all unscathed. I haven’t a doubt.”

  “I don’t know about that. Thank you, too, for being okay with Jake staying in Vegas so long. He was incredible the way he worked with Bud and the way he kept everyone in line. I still think if he hadn’t been there, the rest of them would’ve gone rogue.”

  Sam laughed. “Jake said the same. I can’t believe they had that whole plan in place ready to put into action at the drop of a hat. Maybe rogue isn’t such a bad thing.”

  “Maybe you’re right. Opal called Cort and they flew into action, everyone’s role scripted to the minute.”

  “Did you ever hear how Joshua knew he was in trouble? Why he was planning to leave that day?”

  “Joshua hasn’t said much to the police, but Bud said Brendan Pike has been talking. He thought twice about his threats against Dave, got scared, and decided to flee Vegas. While he didn’t tell Joshua everything, he told him enough that Joshua was spooked. Thank goodness Opal’s shift overlapped with Joshua’s. Thank goodness Dave called Cort when he did. Thank goodness all the big-hearted but crazy McCabes were in the right place at the right time.”

  “It all worked out. That’s the main thing. And I agree, those McCabes are quite a bunch.”

  “I’m glad we both joined their ranks.”

  “So am I,” Sam said as she finished with Claire’s diaper and set the wriggling bundle of energy free. “And speaking of McCabes…there’s going to be another.” Sam’s face glowed and she shimmied with excitement.

  “Another? A baby? Really?”

  “Really.”

  Karen shrieked and threw her arms around Sam. “Congratulations! I can’t tell you how happy I am. Another baby. When?”

  “I’m about three months along so about six months from now.”

  “Three months?” Karen looked her up and down. “Why don’t you look pregnant? When I was three months, I couldn’t see my feet.”

  “You were pregnant with twins. Three months equals six months when there’s two, right?”

  “We’ll go with that.”

  “No one else knows yet. We’ll tell people soon, but right now, no one else knows.”

  “Thanks for telling me. I won’t spoil your surprise, don’t worry. But if I keep looking at you and grinning, you’ll know why. I’m thrilled, Sam, I really am.”

  On her way out of the house, Karen caught Susan coming in.

  “Have a minute, Suze?”

  “I’ll have a minute in a minute. Gotta run to the bathroom.”

  “I’ll wait.”

  “What’s up?” Susan asked when she returned.

  “Just wondering how you’re doing. I know how much you wanted to be in Las Vegas. I hope you know how much I appreciate the fact that you stayed behind, that you helped with the kids so I could go, and that you took care of everything at the inn so Cassie could be there. I owe you big time.”

  “You don’t owe me anything. And if you don’t stop thinking you do, I’m going to be ticked.”

  “Okay, don’t want that.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  “How’s Riley been since he got home? I hope he’s not driving you crazy with stories from Vegas.”

  “Not really. He’s had other things on his mind.”

  “Good. And even though I know I don’t owe you, thank you. For everything.”

  Susan chuckled. “You’re welcome. I’ll admit, I was a bit envious of all of you and your sting operation. I would have been good at that.”

  “No doubt.”

  “But I’m not Cassie. I wouldn’t have been able to take her place.”

  “None of us would have been able to take her place.”

  “She was pretty awesome? I think Riley’s afraid to tell me too many details and Cassie downplays the whole thing.”

  “She was pretty awesome. You should have seen her, Suze. She looked, well…wow. And it wasn’t just the way she looked. I watched the surveillance video later so I saw her in action and Riley gave us a synopsis of the kinds of things she said, of how she acted. There was no chance of Joshua not taking the bait.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I heard.”

  “I’m sorry you missed it.”

  Susan surprised Karen with a smile and a shrug. “It was worth it.”

  “Worth it?”

  “As much as I wanted to go, at the same time, I kind of didn’t want to go.”

  “Oh. I see. I guess.”

  “If I’d gone, there’d have been questions. I would have done something, or not done something, and with everyone together all the time, I would have had to answer questions non-stop.”

  “What kind of questions. You’re not making much sense.”

  “Oh, the kind of questions like, ‘You have to go to the bathroom again?’ or ‘What do you mean, you don’t want a glass of wine with your dinner?’ You know, those kinds of questions.”

  “Those kinds of—” Karen gasped. “You’re pregnant? Oh, my gosh! You’re pregnant!”

  Susan jumped up and down in place. “I am! I really am!”

  For the second time in thirty minutes, Karen found herself throwing her arms around a pregnant sister-in-law.

  “That’s wonderful news, Susan. I’m thrilled for you and Riley.”

  Susan finally quit jumping.

  “I’m thrilled for us too. I suspected before everyone left, but I’ve suspected before only to be disappointed, so I didn’t even tell Riley before he left. I found out while he was gone, then surprised him when he got home. I bought him some socks, he’s always ruining his socks, and when he got home, told him there were new ones in his drawer. He went to grab a pair, unrolled them, and there was a pair of baby socks inside. Of course, it took him a few minutes, but oh…” Susan wiped at the tears trickling from her eyes. “He was so happy.”

  “I’m sure he was. It’s so fun to tell them, isn’t it?”

  Susan nodded, but the tears didn’t seem to want to stop. Karen handed her a tissue.

  “When?”

  Susan snif
fled. “I’m only nine weeks, so we’ve got a way to go. We decided not to tell anyone quite yet, just in case, but I had to tell you. I can’t keep it inside any longer.”

  “Have you told Sam?”

  “Not yet. I’ve wanted to but I’ve gotten the feeling she and Jake have been trying again and I don’t want to make her sad, you know?”

  “I don’t think she’ll be sad, she’ll be happy for you, but I get it. You’ll know when the time is right.”

  “And you won’t tell anyone?”

  “Cross my heart.” Karen drew a cross over her heart and decided she’d need a list soon of all the things she couldn’t tell anyone.

  Cassie was in a bright blue sundress, her hair bundled on top of her head, and Karen was almost certain, nothing but sunscreen on her face. Still, her complexion was flawless, her messy bun looked anything but, and she could have been wearing a gunny sack and it would have been as flattering. Karen had no idea how Cassie did it.

  “You look amazing. Of course.”

  “So do you,” Cassie said. “Home is good for you.”

  “There’s no place I’d rather be than right here, with all of you.”

  “We talked about that when we were in Vegas, before you got there, about whether we should have insisted you come along. At times it seemed ridiculous you weren’t there, but other times it seemed like it would have been the worst place in the world for you to be. I don’t know that we ever reached a consensus but then you were there, and it all worked out, and it was perfect.”

  “It was perfect because of what all of you did. I’ll never be able to thank you for your part. You were amazing, some crazy good undercover work, but I’ll admit to being scared to death the entire time you were with Joshua.”

  “It was nothing, but I think my espionage days are behind me.”

  “Of course, they are. It had to be terrifying. I’m so sorry you had to go through that, at the end.”

  “It was scary, for a minute. I saw that girl, Laney, she signaled Joshua and he didn’t hesitate, just changed course. I knew the plan, that the guys were supposed to stay put in the bar, none of them could take the chance that Joshua might spot them. The police were expecting the elevators, so they weren’t around. I’ll admit, I didn’t know what to do.”