He wondered how many were left who hoped the two of them would get back together?
Very damn few after this reality show.
He walked into his office. Sybil Wells looked at him with an I-told-you-so smile. Jeez! It didn’t take more than two minutes for the gossip mill to roll.
Slamming his office door, he glared at Piper who waited patiently for his usual treat.
Dugan held out his empty hands.
He took a deep breath, sat down at his desk. At least the trial should prove interesting. He’d get to see Kate in action. Another facet of her life he knew nothing about.
Chapter Nine
Kate checked on Gram, then sank into the chair behind her desk. Dugan was wrong about Rita. But everything else about him was right and familiar. His penetrating emerald eyes, his scent, the way he wore his Stetson. He was a handsome man and she wondered why he’d never married. But then, neither had she. Though she’d been informed, gleefully it seemed, he was engaged, she never saw him with Mary Jo.
Kate and Dugan were in a holding pattern.
Why?
Why did he disturb her so if she gave him up once and had been over him for a long time now?
Maybe she still loved him. Or at least loved the idea of him. He was a good man from a good family.
But could she trust him not to break her heart as her dad had broken hers and her mom’s? Though her dad had taken off many times, they’d never divorced. She realized now that they’d been in a holding pattern as well.
Dugan was steadfast, solid. She couldn’t see him running from anything. He was the kind of man who ran to solve problems, not shy away from them. Hadn’t he walked straight into a bullet when a killer was after Phyl? Sure he did. Probably had the scar to prove it.
Dugan wouldn’t run.
Maybe the bigger question was could she trust herself not to break his heart and leave him stranded again?
She couldn’t answer the question.
Resting her head in her hands, she shoved Dugan to the back of her mind. She had a murder case now, had to concentrate on the evidence, see if it conflicted with Rita’s statement. Then she’d have to check on the insurance policy—when it was taken out, make sure Tobias had signed it, find out how Rita paid for it.
She had to admit, there was a lot to catch up on and not much time to do it in.
She picked up the phone to call Erik back.
“Kate, I’m so glad you returned my call. Are you ready to give me an answer?”
“I gave you my answer, Erik. You chose not to listen. I’m going to mail back your ring.”
“Absolutely not. It’s too valuable to trust to the post office. I’ll pick it up.”
She didn’t want to see Erik again. But she did need something from him. “I need a favor. Actually, you don’t have to do anything, have one of the interns do it.”
“I’d be happy to.”
His soft voice reminded her of happier times. For a moment she wished she did love him. It would make life simpler. “I have a couple of shelves of law books in my office, could you have them packed and sent to me?”
“Why in the world do you need law books in Hicksville? What little law you’re likely to practice there, you can do with your hands tied behind your back.”
“Oaktree, Erik, not Hicksville. Believe it or not, there are just as many intelligent people per capita here as anywhere else.”
His laugh said he didn’t believe her. Which upset her. But it solidified her decision. Though Eric was an unusually good attorney and a good person, she hadn’t seen his narrow outlook before. Evidently, he couldn’t understand how anyone could be happy in a small town. She would never work with him again. With her reputation, she could work anywhere. “Will you do it or not?” she snapped. If he said no, she’d call her friend, Jenna. Jenna would love to lock horns with Erik. She’d warned Kate about all the business dinners. She should have listened.
“If it’s what you want, you know I will,” Erik said. “I’d like to know why, though.”
“I’m sorry to do this over the phone, Erik. But I won’t be back to Walton and Associates. I need to spend time with my grandmother. She isn’t young anymore and I want to be close if she needs me.” She’d make a phone call to the Human Resources Department, write a letter of resignation, and make it legal. But she would do it. She wanted, more than anything, to be closer to Gram.
Her decision made, Kate realized the truth in the statement. Even though Gram had Ed, Kate wanted to be there for her.
“You want me to pack up all your stuff? For real?”
His voice held such sadness she almost wavered. “I don’t have much. But yes. It’s what I want.”
“We started this company together, Kate. I’ll make you an equal partner if you’ll change your mind and come back to Austin.”
It was a great offer. She’d have more money, a big house. “I’m sorry, Erik. I can’t.”
“You didn’t give us a chance,” he said softly.
He was right. For years she’d buried herself first in her studies, then in her work. After she left Dugan, the men in her life were friends, not lovers.
Her mind made up, she made a call to a real estate agent. They would put her condo on the market as soon as Kate signed the papers they would fax to her.
Her next call was to her friend. “Jenna, I’ll be in Oaktree for a while.”
“I know, but when your grandmother heals, you’ll be back.”
“No. I won’t. I just put my condo on the market. I gave them your number to get my spare key. I hope that was all right.”
“Are you moving out of Austin for good?” Jenna all but squealed, annoying Kate to no end.
After assuring her friend they would visit often, they chatted another few minutes before Kate hung up.
A load lifted from her shoulders. Kate would make a trip to Austin once Gram was well and pack her things. And Jenna? They could visit whenever they wanted. It would be fun.
Kate looked out the window. She wished it were possible to stay here. She’d loved being at Gram’s since the day her dad pulled into the drive and dumped her and her bag onto the ground, then all but disappeared from her life. The last time she’d heard from him, he’d been in California. He was his happy, cheerful self, but Kate was sad for hours after. He’d never change. The knowing didn’t help.
She’d been thirteen, but she remembered looking up at the house, at the sturdiness of it. She realized even then, how much she hungered for stability in her life. Her mother’s life hadn’t been easy. Her dad had left them off and on as long as she could remember. When she was about ten, he left for good. Afterward, Kate and her mom shifted from one apartment to another, each one cheaper than the last.
Gram sent them money, but her mom sent it back. “We stand on our own two feet, Kate. We take care of ourselves.”
So they did. When cancer struck, and her mom couldn’t hold food in her stomach—when there was no longer any money, the next time Gram sent a check, Kate took it to the bank and deposited it. She never told her mom where the money came from when she wrote out the checks for her to sign, and by then her mom was too sick to think to ask.
With the optimism of youth, Kate had believed they had time—time for Mom to heal—time to get their lives back on track. But not all cancer patients recover. Her mom’s took her fast. Two months after she was diagnosed, she was gone.
Kate had called Gram. In her mom’s purse, she'd found her dad’s number and called him.
Gram was on the next plane. It took her dad longer. But when he got there, he took charge. They’d never divorced so he was next of kin, and whatever he wanted to do couldn’t be challenged without going to court. He wanted Mom buried in Florida, probably because Gram wanted to take her back to Texas. Of course he couldn’t pay for the funeral, so Gram took out her checkbook.
Gram wanted Kate to come home with her after the funeral. Her dad refused, claimed it was time to make amends for disappearing
on his family. He would take Kate and get reacquainted.
Less than a month later he’d changed his mind. Or she was too much for him to handle. Kate didn’t know which. But she had been good. She never back-talked, always did what he asked. Even cooked for him. Though mostly hot dogs and hamburgers, she ate alone more days than she could count.
It was a lonely time. She was with her dad, but he still wasn’t there.
He didn’t say much on the trip from Florida to Texas. Didn’t apologize for changing his mind.
She’d spent most of the trip slumped in her seat unable to believe he was leaving her again. It took all the strength she could muster to keep from crying. But her eyes remained dry.
A part of her hardened during that trip and the subsequent dumping in Gram’s front yard.
Even after all these years, after all the love Gram had lavished on her, the rare phone calls from her dad, that same knot was still there in the corner of her heart.
Kate didn’t know if it would ever go away. Why couldn’t she get past it?
She needed to discuss this with Doc Pullman.
First she had to make an appointment.
Right now she didn’t have time. She had a defense to plan, and she needed to talk to her client.
She grabbed her purse, made sure Ed would stay with Gram, and walked to the jail.
The sun had come out, leaving the grass and trees glistening from the previous rain. The flowers that lined the drive had their heads up as if reaching for the sky. Kate took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She refused to think how life would be if she stayed here. Or how sad it would be to leave.
The walk was a short one, but she was stopped three times.
“So, you and the sheriff had a falling out at Molly’s,” Emma said, her small, dark eyes gleaming with mischief.
“We’re cool,” Kate said as she walked around Emma, only to be stopped by Sadie a few minutes later. Great.
Sadie, however, was more interested in Ed and Gram.
“Ed Clark spends a lot of time at Grace’s, doesn’t he? What’s he up to? Is he sweet on Grace?”
“Why don’t you ask him?” Kate suggested.
“I believe I will,” Sadie huffed as she marched up the walk to Gram’s.
Kate smiled to herself. Ed and Gram were in for it.
When she opened the door and walked into the sheriff’s office, the smile was still there. Where was Jonathan? The only one there was Sybil, and she gave Kate the evil eye.
From the look thrown her way, Kate guessed Sybil wouldn’t be accommodating.
But she needed to talk to Rita.
“I’d like to speak to my client, Rita Johnson. Would it be too much trouble to let me in?” Kate asked the question in her sweet, I’m-here-to-get-along voice. It didn’t work. Sybil frowned, compressed her blood-red lips until her mouth was a slash of red against her pale skin.
“Sorry. Not my department.”
“Whose is it then? No one else is here.”
Sybil’s gaze was hard and firm.
“Is Dugan in?”
Sybil clearly didn’t want to answer.
“You want me to come back later?”
“Good idea,” Sybil said, and turned back to her work.
“I’d rather see her now.”
“Sorry, it’s not possible.”
“I think it is,” Kate said firmly.
Sybil threw down her pen and started out of her chair just as Dugan’s door opened.
Kate’s heart caught in her throat. Darn man.
But it wasn’t his fault she wanted to throw off her proper-lawyer mantle and throw herself into his arms. How embarrassing. For her and for him.
Dugan must have seen her through half-closed blinds as Sybil the watchdog kept her waiting. He came toward them, his face solemn.
“I didn’t know you were here, Dugan. I’d like to see Rita.”
“I’ll take those,” he said, as he took the keys from Sybil.
“I can do it, Sheriff.”
“Get back to your work, Sybil. I’ll handle it.”
They brushed past Sybil, whose face had turned a bright pink, and were at Rita’s cell in mere seconds.
“How long do you need?”
“Can I have thirty minutes?”
“Take all the time you want. Just yell when you’re finished.”
He locked the cell door, turned on his heel and left. He was pissed. She tried not to let it bother her.
“Have you decided?” Rita asked when Kate sat down beside her. “About my case, I mean.”
“First, a few questions.”
“Okay.”
Rita still looked as if her husband had used her for a punching bag. Kate had never seen anyone so beat up. She couldn’t imagine the pain, the humiliation, and the helplessness Rita felt when the blows were raining down on her.
Kate presumed the injuries would be gone at trial, which was too bad. In and of themselves, they made a good defense. She pulled out her cell phone, snapped a few pictures of her own and forwarded them to her laptop. “I want to know about the insurance policy,” she said when she finished.
“What…?”
“The hundred-thousand-dollar life insurance policy. Tell me about it.”
“Not much to tell. On one of Toby’s sober days he told me he wanted a policy in case something happened to him so the girls would be taken care of. It was a good idea, seeing as how he was probably going to drink himself to death. I just didn’t know how we’d pay for it. He had a job then. ʼCourse it didn’t last long. They never did.”
“Who kept up the payments?”
“Who do you think? I don’t imagine he ever gave the policy another thought. Hell, even his brain was full of alcohol, the way he acted.”
“It couldn’t have been easy to make insurance payments, pay the rent, and buy food for the kids.”
Tears filled Rita’s dark brown eyes. “It wasn’t. But I figured the kids and I could use the money.” She wiped her eyes. “I expected him to die from drink. I never imagined I’d be the cause of his death.”
Kate patted Rita’s shoulder.
“Will you defend me?”
“If you’re sure I’m the one you want.”
“I’m sure, Kate. Real sure.”
“Because of the insurance money, the prosecution will try to prove that instead of killing Tobias in self-defense, you did it intentionally.”
Rita gasped. “I wouldn’t do such a thing.”
“I understand the kids weren’t there when this happened?” As much as she hated to, Kate had to ask the kids that question.
“Their bus picks them up for school at seven. Thank goodness they were gone when Toby woke up. I wouldn’t want them to see what happened.” She shivered, as just the thought was too much.
“Of course not.”
“Can you go over it again, step by step? Start when the kids left for school.”
Rita recounted the story. Kate was sure Rita had told it more than a half-dozen times already. Every detail was the same as before. When she finished, Kate hadn’t changed her mind. She was still convinced of Rita’s innocence. Was even more sure she could prove it.
“Just remember, Rita. Don’t talk to anyone about this. If anyone wants to talk to you, they have to call me first.”
“I understand.”
“It’s important, Rita.”
A half-smile formed on Rita’s damaged mouth. “You don’t have to worry. I’ll do everything you tell me to.” She grabbed Kate’s hand. “Thank you so much for helping me. I know you’ll get me back to my kids real soon.”
Kate hoped she was right.
“We have a bail hearing tomorrow. I’ll do my best to get you home before the trial.”
Tears were streaming down Rita’s face when Kate called out for Dugan to let her out.
She ignored the way her heart beat faster when Dugan was around, and headed straight for the front door.
“She’s innocent, Du
gan. And I intend to prove it.”
Chapter Ten
“Bail is set at fifty thousand dollars,” Judge Adam Greer announced the next morning.
Kate looked at her client who had slumped in her chair at the figure, tears forming in her eyes.
Kate opened her mouth to object to the ruling only to shut it again. She didn’t want to start out on the wrong foot with a judge she didn’t know. Perhaps Rita could come up with the ten percent a bail bondsman would demand. But Rita had no money.
It could be worse. He could have denied bail altogether.
She looked around at the crowded courtroom and wondered why so many people were here. Eager for every morsel of news, the townspeople had turned out for something as dull as a bond hearing.
There was Dugan, sitting on the aisle seat in the second row. When they made eye contact, he shook his head. What would it take for him to realize Rita was innocent?
“Do you have five thousand dollars?” Kate asked her client.
Rita’s eyes were still swollen from the beating, but she managed to open them wide to give Kate an are-you-kidding look.
“If you don’t, you’ll be in jail until the trial.” The judge had already set the date. Four weeks from today.
Which meant in four weeks Kate would have to make plans for her future. She couldn’t think of it right now. She had to get Rita released so she could take care of her children.
“I can ask my sister. Maybe she can help.”
Kate handed Rita her cell phone. “Call her. The sooner you get the money, the sooner you’re out of here.”
No one was in a hurry to leave. The judge had ruled and left the bench. There was no reason to stay. Her gaze found Dugan. He hadn’t budged either.
Rita handed the cell phone back to Kate. “She’ll put her house up as collateral.”
Kate took care of the logistics, shut off her phone, and walked over to the bailiff to give him the information. Still, no one left.
Jonathan led Rita back to her cell. Kate gathered her papers, stuffed them in a briefcase and turned to leave. Dugan got out of his chair and walked toward her, scowling.
Every eye in the courtroom was on them. It was as if the two of them were on stage. She took a quick breath. This was ridiculous.
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