“Mom, go run a bath. A cool one. Quick! Throw some oatmeal in it. Or baking soda.”
The screen door slamming again was the only indication he had that she’d heard him.
Caroline got Henry stripped down, and they brushed every fire ant they could see off his tiny body.
“See any more?”
Caroline ran her fingers through Henry’s hair. “I don’t think so. Let’s get him in the tub so we can drown anything that’s still hiding.”
He wanted to follow her, but right now he could be more help if he stayed put. With Caroline inside, he turned to his dad. “Do you mind keeping an eye out while I check the car?”
He got a quick nod in response.
Jason turned to the Explorer. Henry’s car seat had been in there since he’d brought them home from the hospital yesterday. The Explorer had been locked, and he’d noticed no signs of tampering when he’d looked around this morning.
He studied the car seat without touching it. Fire ants swarmed all over it.
No way this was an accident.
What kind of monster would do this to a kid?
Ants now swarmed all over the driver’s seat. A quick glance at the passenger seat indicated the same. If Henry hadn’t reacted as quickly as he did, they would have been driving down the road when the ants started stinging both him and Caroline. He could have easily wrecked and they all could have been killed.
Jason pulled his phone from his pocket and brushed a fire ant off it before dialing Michael’s number.
“What’s up?”
“I need a crime scene team out to my parents’ house.”
“What?”
Jason explained what had happened.
Michael responded by saying all the things Jason wished he could say. When he’d calmed down, he assured Jason they’d be out there in a few minutes and he’d find an exterminator while he was at it.
Jason pocketed his phone. Father, what on earth is going on?
*
Caroline smacked at another fire ant.
Man, those little monsters hurt! She looked at Henry floating in the tub. Mama Drake had gone into full home-remedy mode. The scent of oatmeal and apple cider vinegar permeated the tiny bathroom.
“How many bites did he get?” Caroline asked.
“I count twelve. Mostly on his arms and chest. I didn’t see any abnormal swelling and he’s breathing fine, so it looks like you don’t have to worry about him having too severe of a reaction. Might not hurt to give him a little bit of an antihistamine, though.”
Caroline leaned against the door. “That’s a good idea. I have plenty at home.”
But was home safe? Even to run inside and grab an over-the-counter medication? She closed her eyes and blew out a breath.
“Don’t you worry about it, sweet girl. I’ll take care of it.”
Mama Drake disappeared down the hall, and Caroline took her spot on the closed toilet. Her phone buzzed. A text from her brother checking on her. She stared at the phone. What could she say? Oh, we’re fine. Someone is trying to kill us all, but other than that…
As much as she missed her brother’s wisdom and insight, she was relieved that he’d been away for the past few days. Having him and her niece, Maggie, home meant having them in harm’s way. Not that they hadn’t been there before, but this was getting ridiculous.
She tried to think of how to frame her answer to Blake. She typed in three different versions and deleted them all. A tap on the door startled her.
“Everything okay?” Jason asked.
She waved her phone. “Blake wants an update.”
“I’m sure he’s worried.”
“I’m sure he’ll be more worried after I tell him about this.”
A sound from the living room pulled Jason’s attention away. “I’ll be right back.”
He returned with a bottle of medication and a small spoon.
“Where did that come from?”
“Mom told me what you needed and suggested we call Michael. He picked it up at the Triangle Stop on his way over with the crime scene team.”
He handed her the bottle, his face a mask of worry. “Should we get Henry checked out by the pediatrician? He got a lot of bites.”
Jason going paternal again?
“This is one time I’m thankful he doesn’t have my highly allergic genes,” she said. “He’s breathing fine. There’s no major swelling. We’ll keep an eye on him, but I think he’s fine.”
“You’re the expert,” he said. “Speaking of, how are you?”
Caroline smiled. “My EpiPen is in my pocket, but I only got a couple of bites. Nothing to worry about.” Jason shook his head, and she thought about what she’d said. “Okay, plenty to worry about, but I’ve never needed to use an EpiPen for anything other than peanut exposure, and today’s incident hasn’t changed that.”
“I called the Crawfords,” he said.
“What did you tell them?”
“That something had come up. I asked if we could come later this afternoon. They were fine with that.”
“Do you think we should go over there?”
Jason seemed surprised by her question. “I thought we’d agreed we need to talk to them.”
“We do, but what if we bring our bad guys with us?”
Jason shook his head. “I don’t think that’s going to be an issue. No one’s tried to harm my parents. Putting the ants in the car shows they’re still targeting Henry and you.”
“It doesn’t seem like they tried too hard with this one. How stupid do you have to be to try to kill someone with fire ants?”
“You’re either stupid or very smart. It’s impossible to trace. We found little canisters—one in Henry’s seat, one in the passenger seat, one in the driver’s seat. When we sat down, it allowed the ants to crawl out.”
“Yeah, but fire ants?”
“Well, you can be sure a fire ant will bite whatever it comes into contact with. And Henry’s small. Little kids have been killed from fire ant bites, especially when there are several in a row.”
Caroline poured the pink medicine into the spoon. Did Jason notice how her hand shook?
“Someone broke into the Explorer last night—did it without leaving a trace—and planted the fire ants. Maybe they hoped we’d run off the road in the confusion? I don’t know what the reasoning was.”
She spooned the medicine into Henry’s mouth. He drank it without complaint. She stared at his face. The red welts on his arms screamed at her that she wasn’t enough to protect this precious child. Why was this happening? “Nowhere is safe, is it?”
Jason’s face confirmed her worst fears. “Right now, the best solution is to find out who is behind this. Once we know who they are and understand what they’re up to, we’ll be able to fight back.”
Fighting back seemed like a great idea right now.
“Let’s have some lunch and go see the Crawfords,” he said.
Jason’s phone buzzed. He glanced at it, then back to Caroline. “It’s your sister-in-law. She wants me to give her regular updates, and she says someone is at your house right now reviewing the security system. You may be able to go home tonight.”
Home. Her own room. Her own bed. It sounded lovely, but would they be safe?
“We need to tell them to check for fire ants.”
He smiled. “Already done. Come on. Mom’s love language is food. She’s made sandwiches, and she won’t be happy until we eat.”
“Go ahead. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Need any help with Henry?” he asked.
Again with the paternal stuff? “No. I’m good. Thanks.”
Jason left. She dried Henry and dressed him in clean clothes that she’d inspected thoroughly. She pulled him into her arms.
Father, help us. Show us. Give us something to go on. Protect us. Protect Henry. Protect Jason.
*
Three sandwiches, yet another change of clothes for Henry thanks to a leaky sippy cup, a car seat borro
wed from a neighbor and two hours later, Caroline knocked on the Crawfords’ door.
“Come in, come in!” Mrs. Crawford opened the door with a warm smile, her eyes roving over Henry. “There’s my sweet man. Come in!”
They stepped into the entryway of the split-level house. Mrs. Crawford led the way up the stairs, and they settled in the den. They visited for a few minutes, Mr. Crawford bouncing Henry on his knee until Henry wanted to get down to explore the room. Mrs. Crawford gladly followed him around, but when he toppled into a coffee table and spilled a glass of tea, Caroline scooped him into her lap and gave Jason a look that he correctly interpreted.
“Mr. and Mrs. Crawford,” Jason said. “I’m sorry to bring up a difficult subject, but we need to talk to you about Stephanie.”
Silence.
The room pressed in around her. Henry squirmed in her arms. The Crawfords stared at the floor. She had time to dig through the diaper bag and find two toy trains to distract Henry before Jason cleared his throat.
“Stephanie was my friend,” he said. Mrs. Crawford’s eyes flew to Jason’s face. “Many of my fondest memories of childhood include her, and I am so sorry for your loss. Sorry for Caroline’s loss. Sorry for my own loss. And mostly, sorry for Henry’s loss.”
A tear slid down Mrs. Crawford’s cheek.
“I know she was everything to you, and memories of her are painful.”
Mr. Crawford hadn’t moved since Jason began speaking. Mrs. Crawford’s shoulders heaved with silent sobs.
“I can’t and won’t pretend to imagine your grief, and I apologize for causing you additional pain, but I know you love Henry, and if you want him to live to see his second birthday, we’re going to need your help.”
NINE
Jason didn’t miss Caroline’s sharp intake of breath. Mrs. Crawford choked on her sobs. Mr. Crawford leaned forward in his recliner. “Son, what on earth are you talking about?”
“I’m sorry to have to be so blunt, but in the past thirty-six hours, someone has tried to kill Caroline and Henry—”
“Kill?” Mrs. Crawford said with a gasp.
“Three times,” Jason confirmed.
“Three?”
Might as well rip the Band-Aid off quick. “Yes. Three times. Caroline interrupted an intruder in her home on Thursday. He fired a weapon at them but then ran away. We hoped it was a random breakin.” Not that he’d actually believed it to be random, even then. “But then we discovered that someone—probably the same someone—had tampered with the water heater. They were nearly overcome by carbon monoxide poisoning in the early hours of Friday morning. Then this morning, we discovered that someone had filled the seats in my Explorer—including Henry’s car seat—with fire ants.”
The fire ant attack bothered him. Getting past Caroline’s alarm system and then sneaking the ants into Jason’s car without leaving any trace behind proved that they were dealing with a pro. But why would a pro use such a random, ineffective means of attack? It didn’t fit with the others.
“Mrs. Crawford.” Caroline’s soft voice broke, and she swallowed hard. “Stephanie was my best friend, and I would never want to say anything negative about her. I’ve tried to honor her request that we never search out Henry’s birth father’s family.”
Mrs. Crawford’s mouth flattened into a thin line. “I appreciate that, Caroline. I never want to know anything about that…that—”
“I don’t, either, but we don’t have a choice.”
“Oh, yes, we do. I will not violate my daughter’s last wishes. She must have had her reasons, and I don’t need to know what they were to follow them.”
Not good. “I’m sure she did,” Jason said. “But it seems safe to assume her intention was to protect Henry. Unfortunately, in order to protect Henry, we now need to find out everything we can about the family. If Henry’s being attacked because of his father, then we can’t protect him without knowing why he’s a target.”
Mrs. Crawford shook her head back and forth. She sat straight and fixed a venomous glare, first in his direction, then Caroline’s.
“No.”
“Mrs. Crawf—”
“I said no.” Mrs. Crawford stood. “I will not go against my daughter’s wishes. I’m sorry someone has tried to harm you, and, of course, I don’t want Henry hurt, but you can’t even be sure this has anything to do with Henry’s father.”
She pointed at Caroline. “It’s not like you’ve never had issues at HPI. This could just as easily be the work of a disgruntled employee. I don’t know why you’re so determined to stick your noses where they don’t belong, but you won’t get any help from me.”
Caroline’s fingers flew to her throat. Her face was a mask of shock racing toward fury.
Mr. Crawford shifted in his seat. “Maybe we should talk about this another time,” he said. His tone spoke of many years of peacemaking experience.
“But—”
“That’s probably best,” Jason said, cutting Caroline off and earning himself a lethal look. He scooped Henry into his arms. “If you should think of anything that might help, you know how to reach us.” He stretched his free hand to Caroline. She met his eyes, and he willed her to trust him. She pulled in a deep breath and took his hand, standing.
He tried to ignore the way her hand in his, combined with the weight of Henry on his other arm, satisfied some deep place he made a real effort to pretend didn’t exist.
Once he had her moving toward the door, Caroline didn’t waste time exiting the house. She stomped to the car but kept her thoughts to herself until Henry was strapped in and the doors closed on them.
Then she let them fly.
“What kind of woman would endanger her living, breathing grandson to try to protect the shreds of her very dead daughter’s reputation?”
Jason turned the key in the ignition. As he backed out of the driveway, Mr. Crawford stepped onto the porch. It was hard to tell if he was angry or regretful.
Father, let it be regret.
Jason would give them a day. That was all he could afford. After that, he’d pay Mr. Crawford another visit. If they were going to get any information, it would come from him.
Caroline hadn’t finished venting. “It’s not like Steph’s reputation wasn’t in tatters already. She came home pregnant. Most people don’t believe she was married. How can Mrs. Crawford think digging into Henry’s father’s past will make people think anything worse?”
Jason let her stew for a few minutes. He hadn’t forgotten how hot her temper burned, or how quickly the flame extinguished. At least that was how it used to be.
She stopped ranting but continued to glare out the passenger window. He could see the emotions playing across her features reflected in the glass. They’d almost reached his parents’ driveway when she sighed.
“Stephanie’s death devastated them,” she said in a whisper. “For years, they thought they couldn’t have children, and when she was born, she was the light in their world. They enjoy Henry, and I’m sure if she’d lived they would be the stereotypical doting grandparents, but…”
“But?”
“It’s hard for them when he reminds them so much of her. Not in looks, really, but every now and then he does something and I see her. She’s in his mannerisms more than his features. I think her parents pick up on it more than I do, and I think it causes them more pain than comfort. It happened with Steph, too, when she was still alive. Every now and then she’d look at Henry and she’d just look so sad. I knew she was thinking of her husband.” She groaned. “I wonder how much Steph knew.”
“Knew about what?”
“Henry’s dad.”
“I’m not following you.”
“In the will. Her wishes were explicit. No contact was to be made with Henry’s father’s family. She never wanted him to know them, and she didn’t want them to know him.”
“Okay.” Jason didn’t want to point out that she’d told him all this already.
Caroline shif
ted in her seat, turning toward him. Her eyes no longer sparked with anger, but with excitement. “What if Stephanie knew Henry would be in danger from them? What if she suspected what would happen if his existence came to light?”
Jason parked the Explorer. She might be onto something. “But if Stephanie knew, why on earth wouldn’t she have confided in you? Why would she leave you without any way to know what’s going on?”
“Maybe she planned to but didn’t have a chance?”
Jason tried to remember everything he’d known about Stephanie. She’d been organized and thorough. “Or maybe she left you information and you haven’t found it yet.”
“What do you mean?”
“Did she leave you anything, Caroline? A note explaining things separate from the will?”
“Yes, but there’s nothing—”
“Are you sure?”
Caroline narrowed her eyes at him. “You can read it if you like. Maybe you’ll see something I missed.”
“Where is it?”
“At my house.”
He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “Was Stephanie living with her parents at the time of her death?”
“Oh, no. She had a cute little duplex.”
“Where was it?”
“In town.”
“So, when you got Henry, did the Crawfords give you his stuff from the duplex, or…”
Caroline fiddled with the bracelet on her arm. “I stayed there with him for a couple of days while we were figuring out what to do. It was all very confusing and upsetting, and we thought he’d feel better in a familiar environment. I had no idea she even had a will, much less that it was this complicated trust document. The attorney was nice, but all business. Kept going on about how Ms. Crawford had been quite clear about her wishes and he had drafted the documents in accordance with her requests.”
Caroline mimicked a formal voice. “Ms. Crawford this and Ms. Crawford that. I still don’t know how she was able to afford him. He’s the definition of a high-priced attorney. Dad says he handles the trust and estate business of half the wealthy people in the county.”
Jason fought the smile threatening to break across his face at the way Caroline said “the wealthy people in the county” without any indication that she was one of them.
Hidden Legacy Page 7
