Under the Gun

by Kelsey Browning

  Sera smiled at her yoga students. “And release that last breath to clear away all the burdens on your mind. Remember, nothing good comes of worrying about something in the future that may never happen.” Something she needed to remind herself on a regular basis these days, because she’d done more than her fair share of worrying about what her tomorrows would look like—with or without Marcus. Whether in California or back here in Summer Shoals. Not to mention she’d spent the past hour pretending to focus as she silently brainstormed ways to put Operation Remington into play. And that did anything but relax her.

  By the time Abby Ruth parked and climbed out of her truck, the yoga students were scattering, and Sera had texted Jenny to let her know her mom was home.

  Sera couldn’t help but notice Abby Ruth’s swagger was a little less swaggery than normal. She jogged over to her, the bells around her ankle tinkling lightly as her bare feet bounded across the grass. “Need help with anything?”

  Abby Ruth withdrew a small duffel bag from the backseat and handed it over. “I wouldn’t mind if you took this in the house.”

  “You look tired.”

  “I drove all the way from Ho…uh…New Orleans today. That’s a lot of hours for this old butt to be in the driver’s seat.” She reached back into the truck and pulled out something else.

  “Oh, what did you…”

  When Abby Ruth swung back around, she had two guns and her grin, though tired, was wide. “Did some shopping while I was on the road.”

  “And to think some women like shoes,” Sera teased.

  “It’s hard to scare off an intruder with a ballet flat.”

  Sera wanted to protest, say they didn’t need to worry about intruders in Summer Shoals. But the recent disappearance of Abby Ruth’s gun collection had blown a hole in that. “Why don’t we go inside and get something to drink? I know Maggie and Lil are eager to see you.”

  “I had a feeling that Lil might not cry big ol’ tears if I never returned to her precious Summer Haven. In fact, I thought about just—”

  “You know what?” Sera grabbed her arm. “You’re home now, and that’s all that counts. Last I heard, Maggie was planning to make her special chicken pot pie, and you’re right in time for dinner.”

  “Supper will wait.” Abby Ruth turned the other direction, the one leading directly toward her horse trailer. “I want to introduce my new babies to the rest of the family.”

  That absolutely wouldn’t do. When they’d discovered Abby Ruth’s guns were gone, they’d all agreed it would be best to break the news to her gently after they’d fixed her a couple gallons of Maggie’s special iced tea. All hell would break loose if Sera let Abby Ruth walk into that trailer now to find her other babies missing. Not to mention the black fingerprinting gook smeared all over the place in there. Think fast, Sera.

  “Jenny will probably kill me for saying this.” She darted out in front of Abby Ruth and pivoted so she was walking backward while Abby Ruth was striding forward. “But she was the one who was so worried when we called you the other night.”

  That stopped Abby Ruth in her tracks. “My daughter? Worried about me?”

  “You make it sound crazy.”

  “Cady women take care of themselves.”

  Sera did a do-si-do move that lured Abby Ruth back toward the house. “I’m sure that’s true, but I’m telling you what I saw the other night, and Jenny was concerned. Don’t you think you could spare a few minutes to call her? It would probably hurt her feelings if she found out you prioritized your guns over her.” After all, Jenny had already endured the sting of Abby Ruth’s guns taking up her brag book’s premium pages.

  And goodness knew Sera needed Jenny as backup when she broke the news to Abby Ruth about the guns. In fact, they probably should’ve booked a couple of Teague’s off-duty deputies because this was going to be u-u-ugly.

  “I don’t remember raising such a sensitive daughter, but fine. She must be getting soft now that she’s all googly-eyed in love again.” Abby Ruth laughed and stowed her guns back in her truck, pressing the key fob to lock them up. “Or she could be getting hormonal.” She rubbed her hands together as she and Sera headed for the house. “Oh, what I wouldn’t give for a Castro-Cady baby.”

  Based on the glass of wine Jenny had tossed back after discovering her mom’s guns were missing, Sera was certain that wasn’t the case, but what was the harm in leveraging a soft spot? “Could be.”

  They made their way inside, and Sera called out, “Guess who’s home, girls?”

  Lil and Maggie came rushing out of the kitchen, but Maggie looked as if she wanted to turn and hightail it back in the other direction when she laid eyes on Abby Ruth.

  Sera dodged around Abby Ruth to wrap her arms around the paling Maggie and steady her. Poor thing didn’t have much of a poker face.

  “Abby Ruth,” Maggie said. “It’s good to have you back. We’ve missed you.” Sera shoved Maggie in Abby Ruth’s direction. She wrapped her in big hug, which always tickled Sera’s funny bone because Maggie was much shorter and only came up to Abby Ruth’s shoulder. Sometimes less when Abby Ruth was wearing her cowboy boots with the taller heel. Abby Ruth patted her on the back. “You’d think I’d taken a trip to Antarctica and been gone for months.”

  Lil said, “Well, when you traipse off and don’t tell anyone where you’re going, we have a right to worry.”

  Abby Ruth shot Lil a raised-brow look over Maggie’s shoulder. “Do you need me to tell you the story of the pot and the kettle?”

  She had a point. When Lil had turned herself in at the federal prison camp, she hadn’t said a word to anyone. Granted, that had been before Abby Ruth came to live at Summer Haven, but Lil’s duplicity all those months ago was still a sore spot with Maggie.

  “Guess we all have our reasons,” Lil said.

  Thankfully, the front door swung open and broke the tension between the two women. And as if he’d lived at Summer Haven every day of his life, Marcus strolled in like king of the manor. “Ladies.”

  “Who in hell’s blue bells is this hot hunk?” Abby Ruth said, her swagger suddenly back and in full force.

  Sera stopped Abby Ruth before she embarrassed herself. “Abby Ruth Cady, I’d like you to meet my…my…husband, Marcus Johanneson.”

  Abby Ruth’s expression changed from flirtatious to impressed. “Well, if that don’t beat all I ever stepped in. I pictured you a lot older looking. And shorter. Guess I should’ve put two and two together. The funeral. Sera. You being in the business and all.” She reached out to take Marcus’s hand, pumped it up and down like she was trying to get water from an old-fashioned well. “Sure is nice to meet you. I loved what you did with your movie For Guns or Country.”

  Oh, if Sera didn’t nip this in the bud right now, Marcus would stand there all night and talk about filmmaking. She gave him a move-it-along look.

  Apparently, they hadn’t lost all their marital mojo because he nodded. “Abby Ruth, it’s a pleasure to meet someone who likes a good war movie. But if you’ll excuse me, I have some…ah…calls to make.”

  Both Sera and Abby Ruth watched him climb the stairs to the second floor.

  “You know, I’ve seen pictures of him all these years,” Abby Ruth commented. “But he’s a damn sight sexier than I ever imagined. Don’t let that get away from you, Sera.”

  Definitely not a discussion Sera felt up to having tonight. “It’s complicated, but when I get it worked out, I’ll let you know. But enough about him. Did you hear that someone made off with Jessie Wyatt’s gauntlets?”

  “It was on the local radio when I was coming in. That must’ve been a fiasco,” Abby Ruth said.

  “It’s been interesting, to say the least. Would you like something to drink before Jenny gets here?”

  Abby Ruth struck her notorious pose with her hip cocked out. “I don’t know why she’s all fired up to see me tonight.”

  Lil shot her a disapproving look.

  “What?” Abby Ruth lif
ted a shoulder. “It’s not that I don’t want to see my daughter. I just needed…wanted…some time to get settled again.”

  A few minutes later, Jenny rushed through the door. “Mom!” She pulled Abby Ruth in for a tight hug and mouthed over her shoulder to the grannies, Does she know yet?

  All three of them shook their heads vigorously.

  “We want to hear all about your vacation.” A slightly forced grin on her face, Jenny released her mom. Then she hurried into the parlor and planted her behind on the velvet divan. Abby Ruth glanced at Sera, her question clear in her expression: Has my daughter been drinking?

  “I’ll get us some tea.” Maggie made a beeline for the kitchen.

  Yes, they would break the conversational ice with some chitchat and Maggie’s tea, then they would tell her what happened. Sera said, “I bet you ate some fabulous food. What was your favorite?”

  Abby Ruth sprawled her long form on the velvet divan beside Jenny and propped her boot heels on the turned leg antique ottoman. “Oh, you know that thing at that place.”

  “Bananas Foster at Brennan’s?” Sera asked.

  “Yeah, that’s it.”

  “And what about Bourbon Street?” Maggie said, setting a tray of tea on the piecrust table. “I love Bourbon Street. Although most folks were drinking lots of things aside from bourbon. What’d you have?”

  “I had that drink at that bar.” Abby Ruth dropped her foot to the ground.

  “A hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s, I bet,” Sera said. “Marcus loves those.”

  Abby Ruth snapped her fingers. “That’s the one.”

  “Are you sure?” Lil asked.

  “Why wouldn’t I be?” Abby Ruth scowled. “I was there, wasn’t I?”

  “It’s just that…” Lil glanced at Sera, but she had no idea what the message was supposed to be. “Brennan’s has been closed for renovations and isn’t due to reopen for at least two months. And I read on CNN a fire broke out in Pat O’Brien’s block of Bourbon Street and caused enough damage that they evacuated all the businesses until an investigation could be done.”

  Abby Ruth jumped up from her slouch and strode toward the doorway to the entry hall. “What’s with y’all? I feel like you’re a pack of jackals chasing after a half-lame baby gazelle. What does it matter what I did or didn’t do? Quite honestly, I’m not sure it’s any of your business.”

  That brought Jenny to her feet, and she squared off with her mom. “You know what gives us the right? We love you and care about you, even though you’re the most hardheaded, most jackass stubborn woman we all know.”

  Abby Ruth pulled her hands up on her hips. “Excuse me?”

  Jenny kept right on. “And when you take off without a word, it makes us worry. And dammit, Mom, that’s not fair. In fact, it’s downright childish.”

  Abby Ruth’s face paled, but within seconds, her color came back with a vengeance and flooded her face. “Fine, you want me to tell you that you’re right? That I didn’t visit either of those places?”

  “You didn’t, did you?” Sera’s voice came out soft. A bad feeling crawled up her spine, and she swallowed hard. Did she want to know where Abby Ruth had actually been?

  “I’ll admit it. In fact, I wasn’t in New Orleans at all.”

  “Then why would you tell us—”

  “If I’d wanted you to know where I was going, then I would’ve shared. But if you feel the need to know my every move, then here’s the truth. I was in Houston. Does that satisfy all of you?”

  Jenny held out her hand as if to calm her mom. “If it was only a visit back home, then why all the—”

  “Because there are some things a woman needs to do alone,” Abby Ruth said, her tone high and tight. “And one of those things is hearing a doctor tell her she has breast cancer.”

  Chapter 9

  Breast cancer? After Abby Ruth’s blurted revelation, the parlor went silent. And no matter how many times Sera heard that diagnosis, it set off a primal fear inside her. Too many women were dealing with cancer.

  The space was a complete vacuum, as if every smidgen of air, thought, and emotion had been sucked away. Only the television made any noise, but no one was paying any attention to it.

  Sera glanced over at Jenny. Stunned wasn’t an accurate description of her expression. Devastated was more like it, and the same feeling was reflected on Lil’s and Maggie’s faces. Sera had seen people wearing it a few times while traveling with Marcus, especially in countries hit by civil war or natural disaster. It was as if the cosmic carpet had been ripped out from under them.

  “Mom?”

  “Hellfire,” Abby Ruth muttered. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

  Sera didn’t know which woman needed a hug more right now. She stood there wishing she could press a reverse button.

  Jenny took two stumbling steps forward and cracked her shins against the ottoman.

  Sera grabbed her arm. “You should both sit.”

  But Abby Ruth remained on her feet, her mouth a stubborn line even though her face was drooping with exhaustion. “Are we done with all this show and tell now? I’d like to go out to my trailer.”

  “You can’t be serious.” Jenny’s voice shook in a way Sera had never heard before. A vibration hinting that she was seconds away from meltdown. “You lay a bomb like that on us and then plan to stroll outside and play with your guns like nothing happened?”

  “What’s wrong with—”

  “My God, I have called you hardheaded and stubborn on plenty of occasions, but I’ve always believed you weren’t as self-absorbed as some people made it sound. But, Mom, now I’m not so sure.” Jenny’s voice broke on the final word. “Maybe you could stick around for a few minutes and fill us in on this little cancer thing.”

  Although Jenny might not be able to see it through her anger and hurt, Abby Ruth’s weariness and confusion were clear to Sera. They hovered around her in an oval of dark muddy yellow.

  “Jenny,” Sera said quietly. “Your mom is tired, and I don’t think this is helping.”

  Jenny whirled toward Sera, obviously about to bite off her head and spit it on the floor. Sera raised her chin but softened her eyes, and Jenny seemed to get the message.

  “I…uh…okay.” Her voice steadier, she turned back to her mom. “But if you’re so tired, and I can imagine you are, then I’m asking you to please go up to your room and get some rest. I don’t want to fight tonight. Sera’s right, this isn’t the time.”

  Abby Ruth’s eyes closed. Her nostrils flared as she inhaled. “Jenny, I’m sorry. I…”

  Sera could feel the weight of pain inside Abby Ruth right now.

  “Can you make it upstairs by yourself?” Jenny slipped an arm around her mother’s waist and turned her toward the parlor door.

  “I think so.”

  “Well, that won’t cut it. I’m coming with you. I’ll help you get unpacked and settled in. I won’t ask another question. I promise.” She led Abby Ruth into the main hallway but shot Sera a look over her shoulder that wasn’t hard to interpret.

  Whatever she, Maggie, and Lil did, they absolutely could not let Abby Ruth know about the missing guns.

  Sera sat with Lil and Maggie in complete silence. Soft conversation floated down from the second floor, and with every one of Abby Ruth’s and Jenny’s footsteps, the tired old boards of Summer Haven creaked overhead.

  The rainbow of color that usually filled any room these girls were in had turned to black and white and gray so quickly.

  The sound of Abby Ruth’s door clicking closed was followed by Jenny’s footsteps on the stairs. She descended, ever so slowly, as if any distance between her mother and her right now was too far.

  “I think we all could use a good night’s sleep after that,” Jenny said.

  Sera’s heart felt as if it would break into a million pieces. The story wasn’t a new one. Almost every family had been attacked by cancer. But that didn’t make it easier when you were the one in the disease’s crosshairs
. The emotional toll it took on the victim and their families was so personal. Made a person feel so incredibly alone.

  Even those who survived had a rough run of it, bearing a scar. The sick, the caretakers, and every friend and loved one shared in that journey.

  Sera should know, losing her mother to colon cancer. All the healthy eating, nature loving, and good living hadn’t protected her.

  “This is one bad day,” Jenny said.

  “Uh…uh…oh,” Maggie stammered. “I think it might have just gotten worse. Looks what’s on TV.”

  They all swung around to the massive flat-screen Abby Ruth had, as Lil liked to say, desecrated her parlor with.

  Sera dropped to the ottoman to watch. “That’s footage of Jessie’s funeral.” Those damn newshounds. They’d made a mockery of her friend’s final farewell. Well, the paparazzi and Jessie’s family had.

  Maggie grabbed the clicker and turned up the volume. “I hope I didn’t see what I think I saw.”

  “What?” Sera asked.

  Maggie pointed to the television.

  The newscaster’s voice was full of drama. “It’s no secret that Jessie Wyatt’s famous gauntlets disappeared during her funeral. But tonight, we bring you exclusive footage of the moments just prior to the theft.” They cut to a clip of a family member talking about the true worth of the gauntlets. “Those rumors about Jessie’s gauntlets? All true. They’re worth a fortune and they belong to this family!” The newscaster leaned forward as if looking into every home across the country. “You tell us, America, do you think an old Southern belle wanted Jessie’s gauntlets for her very own?”

  The screen zoomed in, showing a crowd around Jessie’s casket, but with one woman touching the gauntlets. And there was no mistaking that blue-blond hair. “Oh, no,” Sera breathed.

  “That’s what I thought I saw,” Maggie said. “Good Lord, Lil.”

  “Who the heck does he think he’s calling old?” Lil protested.

  “That should be the least of your concerns. This could be serious,” Maggie said. “Your hand is right there.”