by T. L. Haddix
“We need to stop for an ice pack, and I probably should call my doctor. See what he wants me to do about this. I feel so stupid.”
“You are not stupid. Don’t say that.” Gordon’s eyes were full of concern as he drove into town, looking for a drug store. He didn’t have to go far. “Are you going in or staying here?” he asked as he turned off the car.
“Here. Can you get some water and some ibuprofen, too?”
“Sure.” He rolled the windows down halfway, then got out. “I’ll be right back.”
Stacy slumped down in her seat, letting down her guard a little as he disappeared inside the building. She considered everything Maggie had said, particularly her concerns about Stacy’s life being in danger. As much as she wanted to deny that her mother’s goal was to kill her, something about the idea felt correct. She wondered if whoever was helping her mother knew if that was Pam’s endgame.
CHAPTER 36
TUESDAY MORNING FOUND GORDON AND Stacy at the sheriff’s department, debriefing Jason and Wyatt. Ethan was still on leave with Beth and the babies.
“And that’s where we are,” Gordon concluded. “They’re planning to start digging this afternoon, weather permitting.”
Wyatt was sympathetic. “I’m sorry things have turned out this way.”
She gave a one-shoulder shrug. “What can you do? It happened twenty-five years ago.” She was back in a cast, having re-fractured her wrist. The injury wasn’t as serious as the initial break, but she would have a few more weeks of recovery.
“So we know that her partner here is male and that they met in Cincinnati. Does that help us any?” Gordon asked.
“Possibly,” Jason mused. “I can nose around, see what I can find out. I know a couple people I can ask who would probably know, and they’re discreet enough to not say anything. If we’re sure she’s working with a man, that narrows the suspect pool considerably.”
Everyone looked at Wyatt, who nodded and gave Jason the green light. “You know how to do your job. Have at it.” He stood and groaned. “I hate to cut this short, but I’ve got a meeting with the county commissioners in an hour.”
For the first time since Sunday, Gordon saw a flicker of genuine amusement cross Stacy’s face. “Gee, boss, try not to act so excited.”
Wyatt scowled. “You’d better watch it. I might decide to retire next fall, and your name’s near the top of the list to replace me.” When Stacy blinked at him in surprise, he smiled. “I thought that would do it.”
“I can’t. You’re not seriously thinking about retirement, are you?” she asked as he walked them out.
“About half serious, yeah. What with the baby on the way, I’m thinking I might enjoy being a househusband.”
“Who else is on that list?” Jason asked. “Just out of curiosity.”
“Ethan. You. Neva. It’s a short list.”
Jason laughed. “Shorter than that. Ethan doesn’t want it. I’m not ready. That leaves Stacy and Neva.”
Stacy shook her head. “You all are nuts. Wyatt’s not retiring. No way.”
Gordon wasn’t so sure. Something on the older man’s face said otherwise, but he kept his own counsel. “We’ll be in touch.”
As he, Stacy, and Jason headed downstairs, Jason teased them about getting married. “You two are sneaky. Who all have you told?”
“A handful of people so far,” Gordon answered. “Chase and Annie know. They were there.”
Jason whistled. “Beth and Ethan?”
“Nope.”
“You’d better make a special trip out there this afternoon, then. Because if Beth hears about this from someone else, she’ll never let you live it down.”
When they reached the first floor, they ran into Kathryn, whose hands were full with boxes and bags from The Brown Bag. Jason and Gordon both rushed to help her.
“Thanks, guys,” she said with a smile. “We’re catering the commissioners’ meeting.” Her smile faded when she saw Stacy’s cast. “What happened?”
“I re-fractured it. Just a hairline, but I’m back in this for a few weeks.”
“Where are these going? The large conference room?” Jason hefted his stack of boxes.
“Yes, please. So you’re back sooner than I expected. How was Louisville?”
“It was good.” Gordon sat the bags he was carrying on the table, and when he did, Kathryn gasped. When he turned around, she was staring at his hand.
“You’re wearing a wedding band.”
His cheeks grew warm. “I am.”
Stunned, Kathryn turned to Stacy, who obligingly held out her left hand when Kathryn motioned. “You’re married?”
“I’ll see you later.” Jason closed the door behind him to give them some privacy.
“Yeah. We are.” Gordon steeled himself for Kathryn’s reaction and hoped it wouldn’t be very loud.
Looking from Stacy to him and back again, she huffed out an offended snort. “Well, this is unexpected. You didn’t waste any time, did you? How soon after you saw the house did you make your move?”
Stacy narrowed her eyes, but she didn’t lose her temper. “One had nothing to do with the other.”
“Oh, I’ll just bet it didn’t. Do you know what people are saying about her?” Kathryn turned to Gordon, her face livid. “Her own mother burned her house down. What do you even know about her?” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder at Stacy. “I thought you were smarter than that.”
Stacy may have held her temper, but Gordon lost his. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me. For God’s sake, Gordon, you don’t have to marry someone to screw them. I didn’t think even you were that old-fashioned.”
“Who the hell do you think you are to sit in judgment on me? After everything you’ve done, you’re the last person on earth I’d take relationship advice from. At least I can name all the people I’ve slept with!”
“Galen, don’t.” Stacy stepped in between him and Kathryn. “Don’t do this. You can’t unsay some things.”
“You’re defending her?” He was incredulous.
“No. But I understand why she’s upset.”
“Oh, aren’t you a frigging saint.” Kathryn sneered. “And to think, I actually liked you. Do you know what Mallory would say? She’d be appalled,” she told Gordon. “And you call him Galen? He hates that. He wouldn’t even let Mallory call him by his first name.”
“Don’t you dare bring Mallory into this. She’s dead, Kat. She’s gone. She’d want me to be happy, and I am. That’s all that should matter to anyone.”
Kathryn rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you’re happy now. What about a year from now, when she’s divorcing you, or worse, and taking everything? How the hell are you going to feel then?”
Gordon didn’t bother answering her. Deliberately, he moved his gaze to Stacy. “Are you ready to go?” She nodded, and he laced their fingers together. “Then let’s get out of here. We have better things to do than listen to shit like this.”
They were stepping out into the hall when Kathryn fired her last salvo. “She’s a pitiful substitute for Mallory. Are you so desperate that you really couldn’t find a better choice, Galen?”
He stopped so quickly that Stacy ran into his back. She cursed under her breath as he turned slowly, glaring at a smirking Kathryn over her head. “What the fuck did you say to me?”
Kathryn’s eyes widened as he tried to step around Stacy, but she blocked him.
“Let it go. It’s not worth it.”
“It’s worth it to me,” he growled.
“And is it worth it to rip her a new one in front of the people I work with?” Stacy’s voice was soft, but the words pulled him back.
Looking down the hall, he saw that their raised voices had attracted attention. He made an effort to regain control. “No. It’s not.”
Kathryn snorted. “Pussy-whipped already. Good job, Stacy. If I ever decide to get married again, I’ll be sure to call you and ask for advice.”
“If you were
a man, I’d beat the shit out of you for what you’ve said here.” Something in his face finally told Kathryn she’d gone much too far, and uncertainty flickered across her eyes. “Until and unless you can keep a civil tongue in your head when you’re talking to or about my wife, you stay the hell away from us. My marriage is none of your fucking business.”
Not waiting for her response, he placed his hand on Stacy’s waist, and they headed down the hall. With a few murmurs of support, everyone dispersed as they approached, except one person—Neva Brewer.
Sixty years old if she was a day, Neva had been with the sheriff’s department so long that the place would probably fall down without her. Wyatt was fond of joking that she was the real power behind the office, and Gordon figured he wasn’t far off. Most days, he enjoyed talking to the woman, but he wasn’t in any mood for idle chitchat. Neva, however, had other plans. Arms crossed, she stood firmly in their path.
“Kids. We need to talk. Head back to the small conference room, if you don’t mind.”
Stacy looked up at him questioningly, and Gordon threw up his hands. He turned back the way they’d come. Luckily, the room was a few doors down from where Kathryn was.
“Okay, one of you tell me what in the Sam Hill is going on,” Neva commanded as she shut the door. “Is it true? You’re married?”
“Yes.” When Neva smiled, her relief was obvious.
“Let me see that ring.” She gently held Stacy’s hand as she turned it this way and that. “That’s beautiful. Are you happy?”
“I am. With this, with Gordon? Yes.”
Neva studied her closely, and her smile grew misty. “Good. It’s about time the two of you figured things out.” She hugged Stacy, and Stacy hugged her back. When she let go of Stacy, she turned to Gordon and held out her hand to inspect his ring.
“I take it you approve?” Some of the tension and anger from the encounter with Kathryn was still seeping in, making his voice raw.
Neva shot him a look over the top of her glasses. “Smarty pants, if I could have hooked the two of you up months ago, I would have. When did this happen?”
“Friday.”
“Hmm. Didn’t tell anyone about it, either, apparently. Did Wyatt and Maria know?”
“Yes, I told Maria,” Stacy answered. “And Chase and Annie drove down. Do you think we should have handled it differently?”
Gordon could see that she was having doubts, and he cursed Kathryn and himself, all over again.
“Why don’t you tell me what’s really going on, and I’ll let you know.”
For some reason, the words struck his funny bone, and Gordon found himself laughing. He sat on the edge of the table and howled. Stacy leaned against the table beside him and gave Neva the short version.
“I’m surprised no one has told you,” she said. “I thought Jason was going to.”
“Well, with the new babies in the family and everything else that’s been going on, I’m not that surprised. Honey, I’m sorry this is happening. I wish like crazy I knew how to stop it. And I think you handled things exactly the way you should have.”
“Do you have any ideas on who the mole might be?” Stacy asked. “You know almost everything that goes on here.”
Neva walked over to a potted plant in the corner and picked the dead leaves off it. “I don’t know. Maybe. Let me get up with Jason, and then I’d like to bring someone else in on this. At the very least, she’ll be able to help us figure out any anomalies.”
“Who’s that?” Gordon asked.
“Carrie, in dispatch. She knows these guys, is their lifeline to the rest of us a lot of the time. Plus she has a good head on her shoulders, and she’ll keep her mouth shut. Are you both okay with that?”
Gordon deferred to Stacy, who nodded. “Yes. I like Carrie, always have. I think she’s a good choice.”
“Then I’ll go track down Jason and get started. If things really are as ominous as it sounds, we don’t have a lot of time. Are you planning on going down to Kentucky this afternoon, for the exhumation?” she asked as she opened the door.
“No. I don’t have it in me, Neva. Does that make me a bad person?”
Her uncertainty tore at Gordon.
“No, but it does make you human. Not to sound callous, but your daddy’s been in that ground for nearly three decades. Your being there to see him unearthed won’t benefit him any, and I doubt it’s something he’d want, even with you being in law enforcement. There will be time to visit him later.” She hugged Stacy again, then Gordon, and let them go.
As they walked to Stacy’s parked car, she sighed.
“That did not go as I’d imagined it would,” she confessed as she unlocked the doors. “I’m sorry.”
Gordon shrugged. “Not your fault. You aren’t responsible for what other people say or do.”
“I know. I still feel bad, though. Not bad enough that I regret marrying you.”
He let go of some of his anger. “You sure? I might turn out to be more trouble than I’m worth.”
Stacy laughed so hard and fast that she snorted. “I seriously doubt that. What now?”
“You tell me. I need to do something, though. Maybe swing by Richard and Jackie’s, get some of your things?”
“No, not until we have the condo sorted out enough to put them there. Plus, everything is so dirty from the smoke and water, it will need to be cleaned. Maybe Jason is right, though. We should go see the Moores. Get that out of the way.”
He gestured. “You’re the driver. I’ll go wherever you want.”
As she pulled out, she tried to keep her voice casual, but he could tell she was anxious for his response. “Mallory never called you Galen?”
He looked out at the passing scenery. “No. She never did.”
She didn’t question him further, just looked at him when they stopped at a stop sign. A quizzical smile lifted the corner of her mouth, and she hmm’d.
“What?”
“Guess that means I’m special, huh?”
Gordon smiled widely, his hand coming up to caress her neck. “Guess it does.”
Gordon called Beth to make sure it was okay for them to drop by. She assured them it was.
“You’d be doing me a favor. Ethan’s driving me nuts. He’s trying to get some vinyl siding put back up on the house, and he can’t stop checking on us long enough to do what needs doing.”
Gordon grinned at Stacy across the phone. “We’ll do our best to save your sanity, then. See you in a few.”
“He’s changed so much since they got married,” Stacy said as he put the phone back on his hip. “You didn’t really know him before, did you?”
“No. I only ran into him a time or two. You think a lot of Ethan.”
She smiled. “I do. Beth, too. They’re good people.”
They swung by her property on the way, to survey the damage. A strong storm had blown through the night before, wreaking havoc across the county, and Stacy wasn’t surprised to see that it had done a number on the remains of her house. What was left of the front wall had caved in entirely, and the rest of the structure was listing dangerously toward the backyard.
“It’s a good thing Marlen is coming out tomorrow with the dozer,” she remarked, looking at the mess. “I don’t even know where to start.”
“With a good plan, which might take some time, we’ll figure it out.”
When they pulled in Ethan and Beth’s driveway, Ethan was pushing a double stroller up and down the walkway in front of the house. To Stacy’s surprise, he was scowling through a decent start on a beard.
“What’s wrong?” She bent to look in the stroller.
“Are they asleep?” he whispered.
“Cole is. Ian isn’t.”
“Damn.” He started walking slowly. “They can’t sleep when they’re apart. They like the car, and they like the stroller. Ian has a screech that could raise the dead and a temper to match. Go ahead, laugh,” he told Gordon. “You won’t wake Cole. Ian’s screech is
the only thing that can do that.”
“Where’s Beth?” Stacy asked as they kept pace with him.
“Inside. She’ll be right out. What happened to your wrist?”
“Hairline fracture. I’ll explain later. Beth said you had some siding down?”
“Yeah, and some shingles came off, so I need to check the roof.”
Gordon spoke up eagerly. “I can help with that.”
Ethan stopped the stroller when one of the boys started crying. “I’d appreciate any help you want to give me. Shhh, Ian, Daddy’s here. Please don’t wake your brother up.” He lifted the crying baby and cradled him. “Can one of you keep walking Cole until we know he’s asleep?”
Gordon took the handles and pushed the stroller. “Slow like you were?”
“Yep.” Ethan sat on the steps, rubbing Ian’s belly. Stacy followed and sat beside him.
“Colic?”
“A touch. That’s my boy,” he murmured as the whimpers died down. “I think you just like to be held.”
Stacy smiled. “Duh, Daddy.”
When Ian worked a foot free from the blanket he was wrapped in, she gently touched it. That’s how they were when Beth came out onto the porch.
“Stacy Kirchner, what is that on your hand?” she gasped, easing down to her knees behind them. She rested her hand on Ethan’s shoulder and lightly touched the ring.
Ethan looked down with a frown, then up at Gordon with suspicion. “That looks like a wedding band to me.”
Gordon raised his eyebrows. “Brilliant, Detective. You get a gold star.”
When Beth gave a tiny squeak, Stacy braced herself. Beth threw her arms around Stacy’s shoulders, rocking her back and forth.
“Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. You eloped! Oh my gosh.” She got up and edged around Stacy, heading straight for Gordon with a huge smile on her face. “Lemme see!”
He grinned at Stacy and Ethan as Beth danced beside him, holding his hand. “I think she approves. What about you?”
Ethan squinted up at him. “I think you’re right.”
“Of course I approve. Why wouldn’t I? I’ve been wanting this for so long now. Oh, my gosh!” Beth’s was the quietest outburst of excitement Stacy had ever seen. Though her response was encouraging, only half the battle was won.
