“What are you going to do, though?”
“We’re going to look around, probably eat some lunch, and think about how lucky we are to have the two of you in our lives,” James answered.
“Smooth,” Jake snickered.
“I have a feeling we really are going to fight later,” Mandy said, leaning forward so she could kiss her husband’s cheek. “You can look forward to that all day, too.”
James grabbed Mandy’s chin and forced her face back for a more lingering kiss. When they separated, his eyes twinkled and his smile broadened. “I’ll look forward to the making up.”
Mandy rolled her eyes but returned the smile. “I love you.”
“I love you, baby,” James said. “Have fun.”
“We definitely will,” Ally said, planting a hot kiss on Jake’s mouth and then hopping out of the rental. “I love it when I get to go undercover. Next time I want to wear black leather.”
“DO you think they’ll get anything?” Jake asked an hour later, leaning back in the booth at a local diner and sipping his coffee. “I worry that Ally gets a little too gung-ho about these things.”
“I have no idea,” James replied. “It’s worth a shot, though. As long as they don’t volunteer our information then we have nothing to lose. If Nadine really does have loose lips when she drinks – I checked and the spa serves wine, so that might be a factor – then she might tell Ally and Mandy something good that we can use against her husband.”
“I still don’t understand why she stays with him,” Jake said. “He’s an asshat and she’s a sad woman with a lot of money. She could do better. Or … well … she could make a lateral move. With that much money she would have plenty of people interested in her.”
“Not if she’s really a nutcase,” James countered. “Maybe Mark moved in on her because he knew she was a loose cannon and he wanted to control her. If she has a reputation for being loony, she might not make an attractive mate for someone who would actually be good for her.”
“I guess,” Jake said. “Still … it’s sad that she’s so miserable and yet she has the means to move away from a life she clearly hates.”
“I do feel sorry for her,” James said. “She seems to despise her life and Mark apparently doesn’t care that he’s hurting her already fragile mental state. I wonder if he and Jessica have some plan to move her out of the picture once they get the money from this land deal.”
“I wouldn’t put it past Mark. I think the parallels in Garvey and Charlie’s deaths are too much to be a coincidence.”
“I agree,” James said. “Either way, we’re going to talk to Nixon first thing tomorrow morning.”
The two men lapsed into amiable silence for a moment. Jake was the first one to break it this time. “Do you want to talk about what happened yesterday?”
James stilled, surprised. “What?”
“About me seeing Mandy,” Jake prodded. “I swear it was an accident.”
James chuckled. “Do you really believe you would still be alive if I didn’t think it was an accident?”
“How was she after I left?”
“She came out of the bathroom and pouted for a little bit,” James replied. “She had her boots on – and nothing else – so I was fine watching her. By the time Mary dropped off dinner she was back to herself.”
“She was mortified. You should’ve seen the look on her face.”
“I don’t think she was the only one,” James teased. “You seemed a little mortified yourself.”
“I stood there like an idiot for about five seconds and then the urge to run overcame me,” Jake admitted. “I slammed into the doorjamb and I swear I thought I was going to pass out from the mixture of pain and the sound of your voice. I was sure you were going to come in swinging.”
“I understand about mistakes,” James said. “If you remember correctly, I walked in on you and Ally naked once, too.”
“Yes, but you’re Ally’s brother,” Jake countered. “You seeing her naked doesn’t fill me with dread because you’re related. Although, to be fair, that was one of the worst moments of my life.”
“Grady has accidentally seen parts of Mandy when she’s naked,” James volunteered. “I don’t encourage it, but I’ve never thought he did it because he was being perverted. You’re my brother, too, Jake. I don’t think you hatched some dastardly plot to see Mandy naked. It just kind of … happened.”
“Thanks for that,” Jake said. “For the record, Mandy is beautiful, but I would never try to do something like that.”
“That’s why you’re still alive.”
“THERE she is,” Ally whispered, a towel wrapped around her head and a green mud mask on her face. She pointed to a lounger in the corner where Nadine drank from a glass of wine and looked over a magazine. “Let’s go over there.”
Mandy, her hair and face fixed up exactly the same way as Ally, nodded. “Remember not to tip our hand.”
Ally made a face. “Does it ever bother you that they think we’re idiots?”
“Only most of the time,” Mandy replied. “Let’s prove them wrong, shall we?”
Mandy and Ally shuffled over to Nadine, bright smiles on their faces and faux surprise dripping from their words.
“Hey, it’s Nadine,” Ally said, taking the chair next to the perplexed woman. “What are you doing here?”
Nadine swallowed the mouthful of wine she’d just sipped. “I … what are you guys doing here?” Her cheeks were rosy, and if Ally had to guess she was bordering on tipsy. That would work to their advantage.
“My husband was sick of us complaining about having nothing to do out at the farm so he dropped us off here for the day,” Mandy replied, settling in the chair across from Ally and Nadine. “He left his credit card and instructions to make us pretty.”
“Don’t you just hate men?” Ally groused, leaning back in her chair.
“Almost all of them,” Nadine said, taking another sip of wine. “It’s nice that your husband paid for you to come here, though. It’s a perfect break from farm life.”
“My husband is always happy to throw money around,” Mandy replied, hoping she was playing the conversation the right way to propel Nadine to talk.
“Your husband seems to adore you,” Nadine countered.
“Oh, we get along,” Mandy said hurriedly. “He’s just busy with business a lot so Ally and I go to spas a lot.”
Nadine shifted her attention to Ally. “I thought you were excited about living a farming life?”
“As long as I have television I’ll survive,” Ally countered. “We’re not staying in the main house. We’re staying in cabins on the property. They don’t have any televisions or radios.”
“That sucks,” Nadine said. “What have you guys been doing for fun?”
“I’ve mostly been having sex with Jake,” Ally replied, guileless. “We made a whole day of it yesterday.”
Nadine snorted. “I remember those days,” she said. “Enjoy them while you can. Once the new car smell rubs off, men generally find something younger and prettier to fixate on.”
And there was their opening.
“What do you mean?” Mandy asked, feigning confusion. “Are you saying Mark cheats on you?”
“Mark has never not cheated on me,” Nadine said. “Well, maybe he didn’t cheat while we were on our honeymoon. I can’t be sure about that, though. He played an awful lot of golf for a guy who was supposed to be enjoying time with his new bride.”
“How long have you been married?” Mandy asked. “I’m worried James is going to lose interest in me one day. When did it happen for you?”
“Oh, Mark was never really interested in me,” Nadine replied, her tone bitter. “Mark always had one thing on his mind: making money. My father had a lot of money, so Mark latched onto me. By the time I realized that was the reason, it was too late. We were already married and my life was over.”
Mandy and Ally exchanged a dubious look. The wine had done its job, loose
ning Nadine’s lips so she would talk without thinking. Both women couldn’t help but feel sorry for her, though.
“Can’t you divorce him and take half of his money?” Ally asked, mentally reminding herself that they weren’t supposed to know that Nadine had access to the funds.
“It’s not just about the money,” Nadine countered. “I’m too old to start over again. I hitched my horse to Mark when I was twenty and still pretty enough to snag a man. I’m too old now and I don’t have the energy to go through it again.”
“But … if you really believe he’s cheating on you, wouldn’t you be happier walking away?” Mandy asked.
“Do you even love Mark?” Ally added.
“I’m not sure I ever loved Mark,” Nadine admitted. “He swooped in like a knight in shining armor when I was at a crossroad in my life. He seemed to know what he was doing. He had a plan for world domination, and I thought it sounded fun so I followed him.
“I’m not sure when the love died, but I’m pretty sure I was in love with the idea of Mark more than the actual man,” she continued. “It doesn’t matter now. He has his life and I have mine.” She took another long swig from her wine glass. “We’re stuck together.”
“Can I ask you something?” Mandy’s heart rolled as she watched the woman give up on happiness right in front of her eyes.
“Sure,” Nadine replied. “I’m an open book.”
“If you hate Mark so much, how are you going to share the same house out in the middle of nowhere when he buys his farm?”
Nadine snorted. “He’s not buying a farm to live on,” she said. “He’s buying a farm because he thinks he’s going to get some big government contract if he gets four of them in the same area. He’s convinced it’s going to give him enough money to live out the rest of his days like a king.”
“What kind of government contract?” Ally asked.
Nadine shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said. “It’s some sort of factory thing. He told me once what it was, but I forgot. I don’t really care. Whatever happens, we’re not living here. We’re just stuck here until he can make his deal and then we’re going back to New York.”
Mandy worried her bottom lip with her teeth, another question on the tip of her tongue. She wasn’t sure how wise it was to mention it, but since they didn’t get the information from Grady, she decided to take the plunge.
“What about the woman Mark was with at the diner the other night?”
Nadine stilled. “Which one was that? I’ve lost track of his flings.”
“I think her name is Jessica,” Ally supplied. “We saw them together when we went out to dinner. They seemed … cozy.”
“She probably thinks Mark is going to leave me and marry her,” Nadine said. “They all think that. The problem is, Mark can’t leave me for financial reasons. He’s never going to marry any of them. Of course, he never tells them that before he beds them.”
“So this isn’t the first time he’s done something like this?” Ally prodded.
“Oh, no,” Nadine replied. “It won’t be his last either. Quite frankly, I’m over it. I don’t care what he does or with whom. As long as he doesn’t knock anyone up, he can do whatever he wants.”
“What happens if he gets someone pregnant?”
“Then he loses everything,” Nadine said, lifting her glass so one of the spa technicians could see she was empty. “I almost wish he would screw up and do it one day. It would make my life so much easier.”
“How so?”
“Then I could drink in peace while he’s homeless,” Nadine replied, quickly losing interest in the conversation. “I need another glass of wine!”
Mandy and Ally were done. They had no more questions and Nadine was fresh out of answers. Instead of leaving, though, they stayed with her a little bit longer. Once they realized Nadine was too drunk to even register their presence, they left her to pass out in her chair alone.
It was a sad life, but Nadine didn’t seem inclined to try for anything different. There was nothing they could do to help her.
Twenty-Three
“It was depressing,” Mandy said, drying her hair with a towel and staring at James from the bathroom doorway. “I’ve never seen anyone so resigned to being unhappy.”
“Life wears people down sometimes, baby,” James replied, his eyes trained on is laptop.
After dinner with Ben and Mary, the three couples split apart for the night. The light was already out in Ally and Jake’s cabin, and James had no doubt what they were doing. He hoped to be doing it himself in a few minutes. He just needed to see what Steven came up with first.
“I don’t want life to ever wear me down that way.”
James forced his eyes from the email he was trying to read. “Are you worried about that?”
“Nadine said that Mark wined and dined her and made her believe he loved her,” Mandy replied. “She thinks he started cheating on her while they were on their honeymoon, though. I just … I can’t imagine thinking so little of myself that misery would be considered acceptable company.”
James patted his lap. “Come here, wife.”
Mandy shuffled across the room and settled on his lap, sighing as he pulled her close and kissed her forehead. “I’m not trying to get you to buck me up,” she said. “I’m just … it was so sad.”
“Baby, you’re not Nadine,” James said, choosing his words carefully. “Your husband loves you. Heck, your husband adores you and can’t live without you. That’s never going to change. You know that, right?”
“I do.”
“What has happened to Nadine is sad,” James said. “It’s not your burden to bear, though.”
“I know you’re right,” Mandy said, kissing his chin. “I just need to shake myself out of this. What are you reading?”
“Steven replied to my email,” James said, turning back to his laptop but not releasing Mandy from his lap. “He says the government does have a plan for this property, although they have two alternate locations in the state if it comes to it.”
“What’s the plan?”
“They want to build an oil refinery.”
Mandy furrowed her brow. “Like for making gas?”
“Yeah,” James said. “Despite how much gas we use in this country, there is actually a shortage of refineries. That’s why, when there’s a problem at one of the refineries, gas prices go up. This would be an attempt to ease some of that burden.”
“How much would the contract be worth?”
“Upwards of two hundred million. Not quite the billion that Fern was going on about, but it’s still a nice chunk of change.”
“Wow,” Mandy breathed, her eyes widening. “I guess someone would think that’s enough money to kill for.”
“Sadly, I think that’s the case here,” James said, snapping the lid down on his laptop and turning his full attention to his wife. “I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.”
“Are you guys going over to Nixon’s place after breakfast?”
“Yeah. If all goes as planned, we might be able to put this one to bed tomorrow. We’ll see, though. Just because we confront Nixon with what we know, that doesn’t mean he’ll roll over and admit he’s a murderer.”
“You know that no matter what I’m going to have to go home the day after tomorrow, right?” Mandy said, bringing up the elephant in the room that no one wanted to talk about. “I have to return to work Monday.”
“I know,” James said, rubbing his cheek against Mandy’s collarbone. “I’ll be going with you.”
“What if this case isn’t solved by then?”
“Then Jake and Ally will have to handle it on their own.”
“But … you said you would help,” Mandy pressed. “You wouldn’t feel right leaving Jake here to finish up without you. I know you too well for that.”
“I wouldn’t feel right about sending you home without me either,” James argued. “I promised you we wouldn’t be apart again after my California trip if I coul
d help it. I can help this. You’re not going home alone.”
“You know what?” Mandy asked, shifting on James’ lap so she could straddle him. “I don’t think I ever have to worry about you losing interest in me.”
“You’ve finally seen the light, huh?” James cupped Mandy’s butt and gave it a suggestive squeeze.
“I have,” Mandy said. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“No, baby. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to show me, would you?” Mandy asked, her eyes sparkling.
“What? I thought we would get to fight and then make up. Where’s the fight?”
“I’d rather just make up.”
“Sold,” James said, snapping Mandy’s body flush against his chest. “Get ready for me to show you exactly how much I love you. It’s going to be a long night, baby. You’d better prepare yourself.”
“I’ll race you to the bed.”
“WHAT are you doing here?” Mark Nixon seemed surprised to see Jake and James on his doorstep the following morning. He was partially dressed, his trousers and white shirt on, but he didn’t appear to be going anywhere.
“We have some things we want to discuss with you,” James said.
“Is this about the farm?”
“It is.”
Mark pushed the motel room door open and ushered the two men inside. “Please excuse the horrible room, but this is the only motel in town.”
“It’s not so bad,” James said, sitting in one of the chairs next to the table by the window. Jake took the other, leaving Mark in the unorthodox position of having to sit on his bed to carry on the discussion. James wasted no time and immediately got to the point. “We know who you are.”
Mark stilled, surprised. “What?”
“We know you’re Mark Foley,” James said. “We ran a background check on you.”
Before approaching Nixon, James and Jake had a long talk about how they were going to handle the interrogation. They both agreed to let James do most of the talking. Since he was the owner of Hardy Brothers Security it seemed far more likely that Mark would see him as an equal.
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