Likely he’d found the results of the paternity test. That was something else Jessie didn’t want to discuss with Willa. Actually, it was something she didn’t want to think about. Not while she was trying to piece her heart back together.
“I don’t know,” Jessie lied.
“Well, you’ll have to call him back later.” She caught Jessie’s arm. “Right now we have to go into that banquet room and try to sparkle.”
She couldn’t sparkle if her life depended on it. “I think they’ll just have to settle for me showing up.”
“Then, at least try to smile.” When Jessie just stared at her, Willa gave her a demonstration. It was a beauty queen’s smile, one that had no doubt won her a pageant title or two. “Now, see how easy that was? And I did that with a roaring headache. You might as well get used to it, you know. Jake has at least one or two of these every week. It’ll only get more hectic when the election gets closer.”
But it would get more hectic without Jessie. After this, she was leaving. “Thanks for trying to help,” Jessie told her.
Willa stopped in the doorway that led into the banquet room. She took a deep breath. “When this dog-and-pony show is over, why don’t we sit down and try to get to know each other? Then you can tell me all about what a rotten jerk my brother’s been.”
Jessie shook her head. “He hasn’t been a jerk.”
Willa kept her gaze on Jessie. “Well, well, I can see it now. I wasn’t sure before, but it’s written all over your face. You really are in love with Jake.”
It would have felt wonderful to deny it, but the lie would have stuck in her throat. “We should go in now,” Jessie reminded her, stepping into the room.
“Wonderful,” Willa said in a sarcastic whisper. “There’s Markham and he’s headed straight toward us. Too bad I forgot to bring poison darts with me.”
Jessie reminded herself that Markham wouldn’t come after her here, in a crowded ballroom, but knowing that didn’t do much to stop her heart from pounding. If only there was some evidence to connect him to the plot, then perhaps she could convince the police to bring him in for questioning.
“What’s he doing here, anyway?” Jessie asked.
“Since the Citizens’ Action Board hasn’t made an endorsement yet, they invited both candidates.”
Markham stopped just a few inches away from them. He offered Willa a terse greeting before turning to Jessie. “Ms. Barrett, I’d hoped to see you here this morning.”
Jessie didn’t bother to answer him. Abel Markham didn’t deserve even mock politeness from her.
“I did a background check on you,” he continued, a smile bending his mouth. “I learned some very interesting things.”
“I’ll bet. But then, you already knew I worked at Ray’s since he’s a friend of yours.”
“Yes, you were a cocktail waitress. Funny, the press hasn’t picked up on that yet.”
It wasn’t even a veiled threat. The look in his eyes let Jessie know that. “And you’ll be the one to let them know,” she pointed out.
“Well, of course. I consider it my civic duty.” He paused, smiled again. “I’ll also let them know about your criminal record.” Markham glanced at Willa. “I suppose you know all about that.”
Jessie had to give it to Willa. Somehow the woman managed to keep that beauty queen poise in place. “I know many things about my future sister-in-law. And about you,” Willa said sweetly. “For instance, I’ve heard you’re an impotent jackass. Any truth to that?”
Markham’s smile slipped slightly. “I have proof to back up my claims.”
No, he didn’t. But he probably thought he did because he’d read the fake rap sheet. Jessie stepped around Markham and Willa.
“It’s time I stopped all of this.”
Willa caught up with her just before she made it to the podium. “Don’t let him provoke you into doing something you’ll regret. Think of Jake, of his campaign.”
“That’s exactly what I’m thinking of. I won’t let Markham use me to ruin things for Jake.”
Jessie stepped up onto the platform and turned the microphone so she could speak. It took several moments for people to realize she was there, but eventually the conversation began to die down.
“For those of you who don’t know, I’m Jessie Barrett and I’m engaged to Jake McClendon. Abel Markham has just informed me that he’s spreading rumors. Rumors that he hopes to use to discredit my fiancé. I’m here to set the record straight.” She paused when she saw Markham at the back of the room. He didn’t look pleased, but he would certainly be even more displeased when she finished. “I’m a police officer on a leave of absence.”
That brought on some whispers—whispers that wouldn’t stop there. And neither would the confused looks she got from some of the guests. Willa seemed especially shocked.
Jessie cleared her throat. “I’ve been conducting an unofficial undercover investigation into the death of Christy Mendoza, a woman who drowned at the McClendon ranch. At no time was any other officer involved in this investigation. I acted alone.”
The statement just might get Byron off the hook, but she wouldn’t know for sure until she returned to Austin to face Lieutenant Davidson. Too bad it had come down to a decision to protect Jake or Byron. Jake had won out, of course. Not that it would do her much good.
“Why were you investigating that woman’s death?” Willa asked. Her eyes were wide and she held her hands stiffly by her side.
Jessie gripped the podium. “I wanted to verify that it had been an accidental drowning and not a suspicious death.”
From the back of the room, Markham called out to get her attention. Jessie could tell from the man’s expression that he thought he’d just uncovered a gold mine. “So let me get this straight. You, a police officer, believe Jake McClendon had something to do with Ms. Mendoza’s death?”
Jessie was about to answer, when a movement caught her eye. She swept her gaze in the direction of the side doors. And there was Jake. Unlike the others, he didn’t have a stunned look on his face. There was hate. Just hate.
Jessie had no doubt it was all aimed at her.
JAKE HAD ALREADY STOPPED in his tracks by the time he heard Jessie’s last comment. Just seeing her there in front of the group was enough to send his feelings for her on a roller-coaster ride. She shouldn’t be up there making herself a target. He wanted to protect her. But then he heard what she said. I wanted to verify that it had been an accidental drowning and not a suspicious death.
So she’d told everyone what she should have said to him days ago. It felt like a twist of the knife in his back.
“What does she think she’s doing?” Douglas snarled.
He kept his voice at a whisper, but Jake heard the anger in it.
“To hell with this. I’m stopping her.”
Jake grabbed his arm. “No, you’re not.”
“She’s trying to ruin you.”
It certainly seemed that way, but Jake looked beyond the obvious outcome of this impromptu announcement. The press would have questions about his innocence in Christy Mendoza’s death, but that wasn’t what concerned him at the moment. If Douglas ran up on that podium and stopped her, the public display would verify the wedge between him and his fiancée. It would give him grounds to kill her. And grounds for her to be killed. After she was done, he would see how much he could do about damage control.
“That investigation is something else I’d like to explain,” Jessie continued, her voice trembling. “I’ve found nothing to indicate that Jake even knew Christy, much less had any part in her death. Hopefully, this will put an end to all the rumors and innuendos. There’s no way I could have become involved with a man that I thought was responsible for my friend’s death.”
Markham didn’t speak again until he had nearly everyone’s attention. “But how do we know that? I mean, your original suspicions must have been based on something. You had to have seen or felt something to make you believe McClendon was guil
ty.”
Jake watched the emotion cross Jessie’s face. Her chin was up, her shoulders straight, but none of that could hide the pain in her eyes.
“As I said, Christy was a close friend and I owed it to her to investigate her death. But I also know Jake is completely innocent. I’d stake my life on that.”
The room went silent, and Jessie gave an almost apologetic nod before stepping away from the podium.
“Hell. What now?” Douglas barked. “Do you want me to get up there and—”
“No,” Jake interrupted. “I’ll go.”
“You’ll tell them that the engagement is a farce?”
“No.” At all costs, he had to protect the baby. And Jessie.
Jake quickly made his way through the crowd, hoping to stop Jessie before she left. However, by the time he made it to the lectern, she was nowhere in sight. He stepped up, anyway, and took the microphone.
“As you heard my fiancée say, she’s a police officer and had been investigating a death. That investigation is over. I’m asking now that you give Jessie and me some privacy when it comes to our personal lives. I’d planned to announce this soon, anyway, but now seems a good time. We’re expecting a child.”
That caused the reactions he’d anticipated. There were some stunned looks, some congratulatory smiles, some murmurs. Markham, on the other hand, seemed ready to keel over. Jake searched for Willa and Douglas. They had pretty much the same expression as Markham. This wasn’t the way his sister should have learned she’d soon be an aunt. Unfortunately, a killer’s plot had made it necessary.
“I know this news will shock some voters,” Jake continued. “And all I can say is this pregnancy was obviously unplanned. The baby, however, is very much wanted. Jessie and I are both looking forward to becoming parents.”
Satisfied that he’d done what he could to protect them, Jake stepped down and came face-to-face with his sister. He reached for her, to take her aside so he could explain everything, but she slung off his grip.
“Damn you,” Willa whispered, her voice tight and filled with anger. As she repeated the words, she turned and stormed down the hall.
Jake considered going after her. But there was nothing he could say that would help her understand why he’d made that announcement. Nothing but the whole truth, and he wasn’t ready to tell her that yet. Maybe after the police found the evidence to put Markham behind bars. Maybe after all the danger was behind him. Then he could try to mend bridges with Willa.
Well, he’d made a mess of things. His sister was furious with him. Douglas probably was, too.
And so was Jessie, of course.
Jessie no doubt thought he hated her. He didn’t. It’d just been the shock of finding out who and what she really was. A cop. The mother of his child was a cop who’d once thought he had killed someone. She obviously didn’t feel that way any longer. She’d risked everything when she made her announcement and declared his innocence. It would probably cost her her job. Yet she’d done it.
For him.
Jessie didn’t yet know about the results of the DNA test. She didn’t know for a fact the child was his. The news probably wouldn’t please her. Right now she might be hoping the baby belonged to anyone but him. Heck, she might wish she weren’t even pregnant.
The hair prickled on the back of his neck. Jessie wouldn’t do something like that. She wouldn’t get rid of the baby because of the way she felt about him. Still, it wouldn’t hurt for him to go to her and try to talk things out. For the sake of the baby.
Jake immediately shook his head, correcting himself. He didn’t want to talk things out just for the sake of the baby. He wanted this for himself. He wanted Jessie.
He only hoped it wasn’t too late to convince her of that.
Chapter Eighteen
Jessie inserted her key card and pushed the door open. She had to get her purse and get out of there before Jake or his family saw her. The last thing she wanted to do was face them. Too bad most of her money was at the ranch. Maybe she could convince Byron to help her get it back.
If Byron would speak to her, that is.
After all, she had thrown him out of the hotel suite. And with her announcement in the banquet room, she’d probably done a heck of a lot of damage to his career. It would take some fast talking to persuade the lieutenant that Byron shouldn’t be reprimanded for the investigation. It might take a whole lot more than talk to make Byron forgive her for the way she’d treated him.
She hurried to the bedroom and reached for her purse on the dresser. The glint of light that danced across the mirror stopped her hand in mid-reach. It took her a moment to realize what it was. The engagement ring. It occurred to her that she could sell it and use the money for the baby, but she couldn’t do that. It would be like taking something from Jake, something that never had really belonged to her.
Jessie took one last look at the ring and slipped it off her finger. She set it next to the cuff links that Jake had worn the night before. A night Jessie would never forget because he’d made love to her.
“Not now,” she whispered under her breath. “Don’t do this now.”
She didn’t have time for tears or regrets. There would be plenty of time later for those things. Jessie grabbed her purse and the portable phone from the dresser. She had to call Byron to see if he could help her get out of the hotel. Despite her misgivings about him, she had to trust someone, and he was the most likely candidate.
While she dialed Byron’s number, she left the suite and went back into the hallway. She’d walked only a couple of feet when he answered.
“Byron, it’s me.” Jessie ducked behind a huge potted plant. “Listen, I know I’m probably the last person you’d want to talk to, but I—”
“Right now, you’re the only person I want to talk to. Where are you?”
She tried not to feel too much relief. Or have too many doubts. This was her friend, she reminded herself. Her close friend. “Still at the hotel. I’m just outside the room, hiding behind a huge palm plant. I want to get out of here before Jake gets back.”
“I can understand why. How can I help? What do you need me to do?”
“I need to meet you somewhere.”
He paused. “How about you stay right where you are. I’m walking in that direction right now.”
“You’re still in the hotel?”
“Yes, and I’m a lot closer than you think. See you in a minute, Jess.”
She clicked off the phone and glanced into the hallway. Empty. No Jake. No Markham, either. But then, Abel Markham would be a fool to come after her now that he knew she was a cop. He was probably off somewhere cursing himself for picking the wrong woman for his plot. If she had been simply a cocktail waitress working for Ray, she would probably be dead by now. And Jake would be behind bars for her murder.
Jessie breathed easier when she heard the sound of the metal doors of the elevator. Byron had been right. It hadn’t taken him long to get there. She looked into the hallway and saw the man walking straight toward her. Not Byron. Douglas. And he looked as if he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. He had his hands stuffed in his pockets and he was mumbling to himself.
“Something’s happened to Jake,” he said when he reached her.
She stepped out and felt the blood drain from her head. “What? What’s wrong?”
“He’s missing. The security people can’t find him.”
Missing? How could that be? She’d seen him in the banquet room only twenty minutes earlier. “Markham—”
“No one can find him, either.” Douglas grimaced and added some harsh profanity. “Damn it, if you know where he is—”
She frantically shook her head. “I have no idea. Have you told the police?”
“Not yet, but I need to do that.” He started walking and Jessie followed him.
“If Jake’s missing, I want to help find him,” she vowed.
He quickened his pace and turned at the end of the hall. “That isn�
�t what Jake would want and you know it. He wants you away from Markham, and since we don’t know where he is, the best thing you can do is go back to your suite. I don’t want to have to worry about Markham snatching you while I’m trying to find Jake.”
Douglas came to an abrupt stop. He whipped out his key card and quickly opened a door. Jessie stepped back. Away from him. But not soon enough. He gripped her shoulder and roughly shoved her inside. Before she could even react, he pulled a gun from his jacket.
Without taking his staked gaze off her, he reached behind him, shut the door and activated the locks. Protectively, she placed her hand over her stomach. It wouldn’t help. He had pointed the gun rigged with a silencer right at her. It was then she noticed that he wore a pair of thin surgical gloves.
“One scream,” he whispered, “and I’ll have to kill you a little sooner than I’d planned.”
Her breath caught in her throat. She had faced a gun before in the line of duty, but Douglas didn’t just have that weapon aimed at her. He also had it aimed at the baby.
With his other hand, he took out his phone and punched in some numbers. “I have what I promised you,” he said to the person on the other end of the line. He turned off the phone and slipped it back into his jacket pocket.
So he wasn’t acting alone. He had a partner. Was it Willa? God, was Jake’s sister in on this, too?
“Why are you doing this?” Jessie asked. She tried to keep her voice level. No need to give him an additional thrill by letting him see how terrified she was. But she was terrified. Not just for herself. And not just for the baby. But for Jake. If he came through that door, there was no telling what Douglas would do.
Douglas shrugged. “For the oldest reason in the world. Greed. Necessary greed,” he quickly added. “I need all the money from the trust fund, not just the half Willa will inherit. I have debts to pay.”
“That doesn’t make sense. Jake will give you the money—”
His Child Page 18
