Burden of Proof

by DiAnn Mills

  “Glad to help. Praise God, He’s using me to put Willis in his place. Jail. Maybe there he’ll find Jesus and have eternity with Him instead of pleading for ice cubes in the other place.”

  April stifled a giggle. Miss Ella had determination etched into her lined face.

  “What can this old woman do to help? I can pray about anything if God’s in it. Had my own war room long before the movie.”

  “We can certainly use all the God help,” April said. “What I’m wondering is if you’d change clothes with me, including your hat. And let me borrow your car.”

  Miss Ella clapped her hands. “Um. Um. You’re one brave girl. ’Course we can do that. Makes me feel a bit like Rahab, helping out the spies for God, without the job description.” She held up her finger. “First we pray. On your knees, little girl. You need divine help.”

  Awkward. Yet April knelt on the wood floor and folded her hands. How long had it been since she talked seriously to God other than a brief thank You or help?

  “Dear Jesus, we’re so glad You’re with us. We can feel Your presence, and it’s mighty powerful. We thank You for all the things You bring our way, the good and the downright ugly, so we can glorify Your name. You’ve given us a purpose, and we’re saying yes to whatever You ask.” Miss Ella continued for what seemed like thirty minutes. Finally an amen came from her lips.

  Ted helped Miss Ella and his wife to their feet.

  “Y’all can change in our bedroom,” Vicki said. “Isabella’s asleep in the guest room upstairs. Miss Ella, why don’t you stay the night? Who knows when April will get back.”

  “No thanks. I need to get back home to my cat. She misses me when I’m gone.”

  It was nearly 11:55 when April emerged dressed like Miss Ella. The older woman refused to wear April’s jeans and chose Vicki’s floor-length bathrobe. The three planned to study the Bible together while April met with Jason. When given the opportunity, April intended to research Rahab and why he or she was important to Miss Ella.

  “Without full light, you’ll pass just fine for me,” Miss Ella said. “Nothing you can do about your pale skin and skinny body.”

  Miss Ella gave April the keys to her 2011 Buick Regal. “It’s a standard.” She lifted a brow. “I assume you can drive it?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” April texted Jason to let him know everything was unfolding according to plan.

  The car swung into action like a well-oiled trail bike, but a little smoother. She drove past the truck housing the deputy watching the house. He didn’t even flash his lights, confirming he must trust Miss Ella to stay out of Willis’s affairs.

  Sweet Briar Community Church was nestled in the pine trees off Main Street. April parked in a specific spot, one Miss Ella had indicated. She shrugged Miss Ella’s deep purse onto her shoulder and locked the Buick. She feigned an aching back and slowly made her way to the front door of the church. The night air blew chilly around her, and she held tight to Miss Ella’s hat. The quiet disturbed her, like the calm in a horror movie just before the killer overpowered the victim. City noises were more familiar, but not the chorus of insects. Miss Ella’s sensible shoes tapped on the five concrete steps leading to the double doors. The older woman had insisted April wear them for the complete costume. Using Miss Ella’s key, April let herself inside the dark building and locked the door behind her. After several blinks, she gave up on adjusting to God’s house of light.

  “You could use a little help seeing in the dark,” Jason whispered to the right of her. “Might want to consider training at Quantico. Heard they graduate some fine FBI agents.”

  The sound of his voice lightened her mood. Strange for her to admit or feel. “Be glad I knew you were here, or I’d have opened fire.”

  “Miss Ella is a crack shot.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “She’s walked away with first prize in the shooting competition for the past fifteen or so years. Donates her winnings to the church.”

  “No wonder I like her.” She scanned the dark sanctuary. “By the way, who is Rahab? It was Miss Ella’s analogy to helping us.”

  Jason laughed. “She was an Old Testament prostitute who helped the Israelites. Those were God’s chosen people.”

  “Oh, my.”

  “She ended up being in Jesus’ lineage.”

  “Good to know. Is there a place we can talk and possibly have light?”

  “In the back of the pastor’s office. We’ll take refuge in a closet.”

  “Your idea sounds rather covert. Except we have much to discuss, and I don’t want a bullet sailing through a window.” She thought about how Jason’s friend had died. “I’m sorry I said that.”

  “It’s okay. Both of us want to stay alive. Willis is a deacon and has a key. He’d have no problem shooting us at the altar.” He took her arm. “You trust me, right? I grew up in this church. Know the creaks in the floor and how many pews until we take a right. I won’t steer you wrong.”

  She hoped not. Or her career was dead for believing a fugitive, and she’d be spending the next three decades behind bars.

  She took one blind step after another and noted the creaks in the floor, more like groans and complaints. They turned right, just as he’d said, and then left. Trust was a big thing. As much as she valued using logic, sometimes she reached conclusions that she simply couldn’t back up with facts. Worse, she’d failed to think through where her fragile feelings for Jason and Isabella might lead.

  “Hold on and I’ll find the closet door.”

  “What if it’s too small?”

  “We’ll snuggle.”

  This went beyond awkward. “Seriously?”

  “Relax, Agent Ramos. It’s a walk-in storage closet.”

  A click, and she knew he’d located it.

  “Take three steps to the left, and you’re in.”

  She obeyed like a submissive child.

  Her psychology books held little info about hostage negotiators who swallowed a fugitive’s story. She needed to proceed with caution and focus on her training. The guidelines expected a negotiator to use sound reasoning. Feelings never outweighed logic.

  Within the closet’s confines, light now flooded the area. Both side walls contained metal shelving with papers, books, and boxes upon boxes. All neat and labeled. Most had the letters VBS and a date.

  April and Jason camped out on the carpeted floor. His nearness left the boundaries of awkward and transported her to uncomfortable. He was attractive, caring, and independent, but not her type. She preferred men who wore suits to work—business professionals—not a man who got his hands dirty for a living.

  She pulled the laptop from Miss Ella’s purse. She’d compiled a file there containing her notes and observations since taking on the case. She retrieved the report and typed in the date of her and Jason’s closet meeting.

  “First, the truck parked near your parents’ home didn’t follow me.”

  “You’re brilliant. You must have taken strategy in college.”

  She shook her head, unable to conceal a smile. “Miss Ella is a keeper. Second, I have misgivings about Kevin Viner. Whose side is he on?”

  Jason’s light demeanor changed. “Tough call. Can’t fault him for protecting his wife and kids. He’s afraid for his family.”

  She replayed the motel scene with Kevin and his concern for Isabella. “Are you convinced he’s not siding with Willis?”

  “I’d like to be. With the way the past few days have gone, it’s hard to sense the truth.”

  “Willis made a mistake by reporting you’d kidnapped Isabella and a federal agent. That brought in the FBI. My guess is Willis isn’t happy the Feds are on this case. He did agree to meet with them on Monday.”

  “Is it a plus or a minus for my side?”

  “Hard to say.” She poised her fingers over the keyboard. “A few things more. Did Kevin make a copy of the original crime scene report before handing over his phone to Willis?”

  “He didn’t
see a need. Remember, this is a small town.”

  April scrutinized him, a man risking his life to right a series of wrongs. She went over what she’d documented. “Have you told me everything about you and Willis?”

  “Actually, I don’t know.”

  Honest but of no help. “Where’s the note threatening Isabella?”

  “Tossed it.”

  She frowned. “Promise me if you receive anything else, you’ll give it to me.”

  “Will do my best.”

  “I’m going to type and talk. Correct me if I make a mistake. These are the CliffsNotes.” She paused. “Russell requests a meeting with you. You meet with him, and he’s killed before he gives you information about why Willis threatened his family. You’re arrested for murder. Willis then releases you, and you learn your daughter was kidnapped. Willis tells law enforcement you escaped jail and are armed. He adds kidnapping charges to the mix. I come into the picture with Isabella. We’re on the road together. At the motel, Willis claims he’ll make the charges disappear and offers cash if you tell him where to find Billie and Zack. What’s the story behind his wife and son? You indicated there’d been some abuse, but what are the specifics?”

  He ran his fingers through his hair. “How much do you want to know in one sitting?”

  20

  APRIL WANTED TO KNOW every detail about Willis, Billie, and Zack, but not at midnight. Although she craved all the information to help end a crime, only a fool attempted to deny rest.

  “Short version,” she said. “She’s left him, taken their son, Zack, and since you helped them escape, Willis believes you know where they are—his contention with you.”

  “Right. Vengeance is mine, says Willis.”

  “Are they alive?”

  Silence invaded their space.

  “I haven’t seen them since I drove her and Zack to Dallas, where they boarded a plane for Chicago.”

  “When?”

  “Six weeks ago.”

  “Were you two having an affair?”

  His jaw clenched, and he stared into her face. “Not hardly. We were friends from before she and Willis got together. Billie came by the construction office with Zack. He’d blacked her eye and broken Zack’s arm in a series of abuse incidents. Hurting her son was the breaking point. I followed them to Tyler County Hospital.”

  The more April learned about Willis, the more she wanted him put away. “What happened then?”

  “At the hospital, she claimed her and Zack’s injuries were due to a bicycle accident.” His features clouded. “The hospital would have the records. A nurse questioned her. I gathered she’d been there for treatment a few times because the woman knew her by name. Billie stuck to her story.”

  “I’ll subpoena those records and request an interview with the nurse and doctor who treated her. So no charges were filed?”

  “With Willis as county sheriff? The next time he’d kill her. I’m sure the medical staff realized the circumstances.”

  April tamped down the anger surging through her veins. “She asked you to drive them to the airport?”

  “We drove partway in separate cars. She left her car on a back road and called me to pick them up. On the way to Dallas, we stopped at Walmart and bought a change of clothes and a few other things. She also bought a burner phone.” He thought for a moment. “From her actions, she’d been working on a plan for a while. She smashed her original phone and made flight reservations to Chicago on mine. I let her use my credit card, and she paid me in cash. Guess Willis could have accessed my cell phone records to learn that information. I promised to keep her secret.” He hesitated.

  “What are you not telling me?”

  “Billie is the one who gave me the flash drive. Told me to keep it safe and take a look only if Willis was ever arrested for something serious or she ended up dead. I have the original, and Dad had the copy.”

  “Why didn’t you see what was on it?”

  “I assumed the contents were photos or documentation of Willis’s beatings. She voiced repeatedly her fear of him. Now I see I was really stupid.”

  April put the pieces together. “The same missing flash drive from your parents’ safe-deposit box.” When he nodded, she continued. “But we’re trying to bring justice to Sweet Briar so she doesn’t have to hide.”

  “Still seems like I betrayed her confidence.”

  “Does she have family or friends in Chicago?”

  “Not to my knowledge.” He brushed his hand over his face. “She wanted no means for Willis to trace her. I remember she was amazingly calm.”

  April understood, a part of fight or flee for victims. “What about her family?”

  “Her parents and Willis’s retired to Florida together. Longtime friends. Billie has a sister my age who left Sweet Briar years ago and teaches school in North Carolina.”

  “Name?”

  “Gwen Scottard, married to a guy she met in college. Went to Rice University in Houston. And before you ask, Billie called Gwen on the way to the airport on my phone. Must have gotten voice mail. Told her she’d left Willis.”

  “Who told Willis you’d helped her?” April said.

  “No idea. Could have been someone on the construction crew, in the hospital, or even at Walmart. A few guys were in the warehouse when she arrived.”

  “Russell?”

  “He was on a job. Russell and Willis weren’t exactly friends.”

  “Willis might have viewed the security cam footage at the hospital or talked to staff there, who could have given your description.”

  “True. When I think about it, Chicago might not have been her final destination. This whole mess is tangled, complicated.”

  “But we’re determined to unravel it.”

  “I wish I had solid answers for you.” He snorted. “I’d like to have the truth about all this myself.”

  “It will come, Jason. When you and Willis were alone at the motel, did he say anything specific?”

  “Nothing we can use or haven’t already heard.”

  “Does he have any close friends, someone who might have insight?” If only she could talk to Billie . . .

  “He has a lady friend. Her name’s Brenda Krew, owns Krew Real Estate. Could be something there.”

  She typed the info into her document. “I’ll handle an interview with her tomorrow. What’s she like? Are she and Willis involved?”

  “Friends only. She’s older. All business. Hard to read.”

  She tapped her chin with her finger. “You said he’s a deacon. He does the charitable community thing too?”

  “You’re a fast learner for a city girl. Brenda and Willis are on the same community and church committees. Do the orphan and widow care ministry.”

  “How spiritual.” Those who professed to be Christian while living hypocritical lives cemented her dissatisfaction with faith. “Looks like a solid front to the citizens.”

  “Some know better, and others need what he and Brenda offer. Neither of the two have many friends, except for each other. She doesn’t care for me, and I assume Willis has filled her head with lies. You’ll have an opportunity to use your negotiation skills with her.”

  “I welcome a challenge.” She told him about requesting information regarding Willis’s political life. “Not so sure I’ll get it. Your dad believes Willis buys or threatens voters. Can’t you oust him? Not everyone in this county could be afraid of him or need a handout.”

  He grimaced. “I’m a coward for not doing something about him until now. I thought as long as he ignored me and my family, I’d go about my life.”

  “Has he always been this way?”

  “Yep. But his actions escalated while serving as sheriff. Power does that to a man.”

  Maybe in Jason’s shoes she’d have done the same thing. Newly married. Then a year of raising Isabella alone and mourning the loss of his wife—it would take a chunk out of anyone’s priorities. A question burned into her mind. “What can you tell me about Vic
Henley?”

  “Works at the bank?” When she nodded, he continued. “Why?”

  “Curious. Seemed very nervous today and then I learned he handled Willis’s deposit, the one your dad witnessed.” She didn’t want to discuss the matter any more until she talked to Henley in the morning. “Hey, another task for tomorrow is I’m taking a look at your office.”

  “I’m heading there tonight.”

  “Have you lost your mind? You know Willis has your office staked.”

  “Beats walking in at daylight. I have night-vision goggles. Use them for night hunting.”

  She tilted her head. “You shouldn’t go alone.” She looked at her blue cardigan, pearls, and black dress. “I guess I have no choice but to go dressed like this.”

  “Looks cute on you. Ever work undercover?”

  “Not until I met you. Look, I’ve gone along with your antics until now. My instincts are shouting ‘no’ at a late-night visit to the scene of the crime.”

  “I’m still checking it out. Besides, if you’re caught snooping around a crime scene with a fugitive, you could lose your job and do jail time.”

  Alone, he could walk into a trap. But her accompanying him had stupidity stamped on it. “Postpone the walk-through until tomorrow. We’re both exhausted. Things could change, and don’t forget your family’s safety.”

  “My family’s safety is exactly why I need to see things for myself.”

  “If you’ll wait until the FBI arrives on the scene, and they will, I’ll see about meeting them there. Just tell me what to look for.”

  “Look, I’m going. Willis claimed the window wasn’t broken. I have to see for myself. The stop won’t take thirty minutes. I want to see if anything’s missing and check my safe.”

  Arguing with Jason Snyder was pointless. He’d venture into the firing range with or without her. Where had her sound judgment escaped to? With a phone call, she reached out to Ted and asked to speak to Miss Ella. Once permission had been granted to keep the Buick a little longer, she slipped her phone into Miss Ella’s purse.

  Jason switched off the closet light, and the tension between them knocked at her logic. “When this is over, I’d like to take you to—”