by Jude Pittman
"Hey, Kelly, whatcha’ you doing here?"
"I just dropped by for a chat. What have you got there?" Kelly pointed at the pail.
"Minnows. I can't keep enough of these suckers in the tanks this time of year. Hang on a sec while I dump them in the trough, then I'll grab a coffee with you."
Kelly grabbed a couple mugs from the shelf, lifted the pot off the stove and poured them each a cup of Bubba's brew.
“When you gonna break down and buy a drip pot, Bubba? Like that’s ever gonna happen.”
“Dang sure ain’t. I ain’t having nothing to do with that watered-down, lukewarm shit comes outta them fancy pots. So whatcha’ you been up to?" Bubba pulled up a stool and took the mug Kelly handed over.
"Just nosing around. I found out something that might interest you. Anna had a daughter she hadn't seen in eighteen years."
"So you found out about the kid."
"You mean you knew?"
Bubba shrugged. "Anna had some lines you didn't cross and the kid was one of ‘em. I respected that. She never came out and talked about her daughter but yeah, I knew she had one. You don't think the kid killed her, do you?"
"No, nothing like that. Her name's Krystal and all she wanted to do was find out why her mother deserted her. She’s sure started me wondering about why Anna took off the way she did and I plan to try and find some answers."
"I hope you find something. I know damn well Cam didn't kill Anna. The cops probably think he did but they don't know Cam. He can’t even watch me gut fish. No way could he strangle anyone—‘specially not an old friend like Anna."
"Well, they've got to go by the evidence. That and what they find out from talking to friends and relatives. By the way, the police went through Anna's cabin and found a metal box stashed under the floorboard in her bedroom. You wouldn't know anything about that box, would you?"
"What makes you think I'd know anything about it?" Bubba narrowed his eyes.
"Because you knew Anna better than anybody else and I figured she might've told you."
"Yeah, I knew about it. So what?"
"So somebody busted the lock and went through Anna's papers, that's what."
"And you think it was me that busted into her box?" Bubba glared.
Kelly snapped right back. "Don't be so damn touchy. I figured you'd rather talk to me than get hauled down to the station and talk to Gus. If I was wrong, tell me now. I didn't say you broke into the box but I did figure you might have an idea who did."
"How should I know?" Bubba hunched up his shoulders and rested his chin on his collarbone.
The bait man was dodging and Kelly was sick of it. "What is this crap, Bubba? I had to do plenty of talking to get Gus to let me question you about this. I figured you'd be grateful. So what happens? I come in here to ask a few civil questions and you give me a ration of shit. I don't know what's got into you lately but I'm beginning to wonder what the hell you do know about Anna's murder."
"Hey, I'm sorry." Bubba's face turned red. "I didn't mean to give you a rough time. I know you're trying to help Cam outta a hole but I don't want to end up taking his place."
"I sure understand that, Bubba, but you're only making it worse by copping an attitude."
"Okay, I get the message." Bubba's lips twitched into a sheepish grin. "Yeah, I knew about Anna's box and no, I didn't break into it. Wouldn’t have had to." Bubba reached into his pocket and pulled out a key ring. "Got a key."
He selected a small silver key took it off the ring and handed it over. "You can check it yourself. When Anna made that note with Cam, she stashed it away in her box. Then she showed me where she kept it, gave me a key and said if anything was to happen to her, I should get the note and tear it up."
"Did Cam know where she kept the note?"
"I don't think so but I can't be sure. There's something I need to tell you and you ain't gonna like it much." Bubba paused and took a sip of coffee. "I wanted to tell you earlier but I was afraid of making things worse for Cam. See, I went to Anna's cabin to tear up the note like she said. The box was outta the hole, just like you said. And when I looked through the papers, the note, well—it was gone."
"You read Anna's will?"
"Yeah, I read it. I know my name’s in it. But what the hell? The daughter's alive. Nobody's got any call to think I bumped Anna off to get hold of her money."
"Nobody's thinking that Bubba. We're just trying to piece everything together and find out what happened down there."
"Well, you know everything I do now. Sorry I didn't tell you about the box earlier but damn. Kinda between a rock and hard place. I figured blabbing about that note would be the same as putting a noose around Cam's neck. I even thought about hiding the box but I was scared the cops would find out."
"Good thinking." Kelly shook his head. "You're right about me not liking what you say about the note. Gus was already wondering why it wasn't with Anna's papers and when he finds out you went through that box looking for it, he'll rake you over the coals good."
"Do we have to tell him?"
"Damn straight we have to tell him," Kelly snapped. "And the sooner the better. Your prints are on that box. I'm just wondering if Cam's prints are there too. I'd sure like to ask him a few questions but Gus told me to stay away from Cam."
"Gus ain't said nothing to me." Bubba grinned.
"I didn't hear that. But if you do happen to run into Cam, you might mention whoever took that note probably left their prints all over the box and they'd better come clean with Gus in a hurry."
"Gottcha! I think I'll close up here and mosey on down to the Hideaway. I'll catch you later."
"One more thing." Kelly raised his voice. "I promised Gus I'd ask if you saw a red scarf around Anna's stall after that ruckus with Krystal Saturday afternoon."
"No, didn't see no scarf." Bubba frowned and the puzzled look on his face was answer enough.
"Okay, it's not important. Just something I told Gus I'd check on. I'll catch you later." Kelly moved toward the door. "You might pass the word—anybody knows anything about Anna's murder, they'd best come clean. Cops don't have a sense of humor where murder's concerned and it pisses them off when they catch people lying."
Satisfied, Kelly said goodbye to Bubba and headed back to the cabin. It was past five and if he was going to pick up Krystal at seven, he'd have to hustle.
Thirty minutes later, showered, shaved and dressed in slim cut slacks and a dark blue sport coat, Kelly gave his hair a once-over with the blow dryer, added a splash of cologne and stepped up to the mirror. He'd had a few casual dates since Lynda died but nothing special. This was the first time and already he found himself fighting butterflies. Of course, this wasn't really a date but all the same, the tension was there.
"You'd think I was back in high school," he stopped to give Jake a pat. Jake flopped his tail and watched Kelly go out the door.
Kelly sped up the hill, then hit the brakes. Two police cars were parked in front of the Hideaway and Bubba stood on the steps with his hands in his pockets. Kelly pulled onto the shoulder. Spotting him, Bubba dashed across the road and jumped into the truck.
"Well, you was right," Bubba croaked. "The shit's hit the fan."
"What happened?"
"The cops showed up twenty minutes ago. With a search warrant. They took Cam back to his place. It weren't more'n five minutes before they brought him back out and took off in one of the cruisers. I guess they've arrested him."
"Did you get a chance to ask Cam about that box?"
"Yep and it's like I figured. He went up to Anna's cabin after they had that fight up on the bridge. Cam claims he didn't bust open the box though. Says he found it open same as I did."
Kelly frowned and shook his head. "Damn fool! Did he say what he did with the note?"
"Oh, hell yeah! He put it in his desk. The cops came while I was still talking to him, so he didn't have a chance to get it outta there."
"What's going on now?" Kelly pointed at the police c
ars.
"They're talking to Darlene and looking around the Hideaway. They didn't bother the rest of us none. It was Cam they wanted."
"Well, I'm late, so I've gotta get going. I'll give Gus a call in the morning."
"Okay. They haven't asked me nothing yet but I guess I gotta tell them when they do, huh?"
"You tell them the truth, Bubba. Won't help Cam a damn bit for you to get yourself tossed in a cell alongside of him."
As he pulled away from Bubba, Kelly shook his head in disgust. "Goddam Cam!"
Chapter Ten
Krystal’s blonde hair was tied back with a narrow black band, a simple act of mourning in her mother's memory. It touched Kelly's heart.
"You seem a little more rested tonight," he said, as he helped her into the truck.
She smiled, a pink flush tinting her cheeks. "After you and Detective Graham left, Penny chased me to bed. I was asleep the minute my head touched the pillow."
"Well, good. A good night's sleep sure put the roses back in your cheeks." Kelly's eyes lingered admiringly and Krystal's flush deepened.
"You must've thought I was horrible when you saw me in that scene with my mother." She lowered her eyes and twisted a strand of hair.
"Not horrible. Scared. I saw the panic in your eyes when you came to. I really wanted to pick you up and give you a hug but being strangers, I wasn’t sure you'd misunderstood." He gave Krystal a grin and she answered with a shy smile.
"I'm embarrassed about the way I acted."
"Hey, you had good reason for the way you acted." Kelly reached over and patted her shoulder. "Now let's forget about that meeting and enjoy ourselves. Okay?"
"Yes, please." She smiled and her eyes sparkled. "Where are we going?"
"A little place on the lake called Martini's. You ever been there?"
"No, I've never even heard of it. What's it like?"
"You'll see pretty soon. It's over on the far side of Eagle Mountain Lake."
Krystal leaned back in her seat and Kelly concentrated on his driving until he pulled off Jacksboro highway onto the access road that followed the lake.
"Do you like seafood?" he broke the silence.
"Of course. I'm from Houston."
"That's what I figured. Good thing I was right. Martini's has the best seafood around these parts."
The parking lot was full so Kelly drove around the lot and backed into a spot against the fence.
"I hope you don't mind a little hike." He hopped out of the truck and circled around to open her door. "Old Blue's sensitive to nicks."
"Of course not. I don't blame you for being careful. It's a beautiful truck. What year is it?"
"It's a '76. I've spent a fair amount of time patching and polishing."
"It shows." She admired the spectacle of Martini's framed against the glistening lake. "I'd no idea they had a place like this in Fort Worth. It's more what I'd expect to find in Houston."
"It does look a bit like it belongs on the ocean," Kelly took her hand and led her toward the long, low structure spread gracefully along the lakeshore. The soft gray of the paint combined with the white trim of the base suggested whitecaps beating against a rocky cliff.
"I reserved us a table by the windows," Kelly smiled down at her. "I figured it was too chilly for an outdoor table but it's nice the way they've set it up inside. Gives you the feeling you're sitting on the water. The architect was probably from Houston." He released her hand to let her precede him through the front door.
A hostess escorted them to a small alcove set off from the main dining room. A bank of greenery secluded the table. The aquarium beside them was stocked with tropical fish.
Krystal's eyes sparkled approval. "This is really charming." She pointed to the seamless pane of glass overlooking the lake. "I feel like I could reach down and trail my fingers in the water."
"I'm glad you like it." Kelly opened the menu and scanned the entrees. "Do you want me to order for us?"
"Yes, please do. I love seafood. Anything you choose will be fine with me."
"Okay. We'll start with hot, spiced shrimp and Margaritas but we'll wait a while before I order the main course. Does that suit you?"
"Perfect. It's so peaceful here. It'll be easy to talk. I do want to hear about my mother. My grandmother never allowed me to mention her and Uncle Andrew was just as bad. Stella used to bring her up sometimes—when nobody else was around. She'd say things like 'blood will tell,' and 'you'll probably turn out just like your mother', but she was just being nasty."
"Stella's your aunt?"
"Well, she's Uncle Andrew's wife, so I guess she's my aunt but we definitely aren't close. She was a barmaid when she met Uncle Andrew and as far as I'm concerned, she still is."
"She married your uncle after you went to live with him?"
"No, before. I lived with my grandmother until I was fifteen. We moved in with Uncle Andrew when Grandmother Davis developed Alzheimer's. She didn't approve of Stella but toward the end, she didn't know who any of us were."
"I guess it was tough being raised without a mother."
"My grandmother definitely wasn’t the motherly type." Krystal's tone edged toward bitterness. Kelly figured life with grandmother must have been pretty grim.
"Doesn't sound like much fun."
"Oh, I got used to it."
"I've heard in the early stages of Alzheimer's a person’s often confused between the past and the present. Did your grandmother mention your mother after she took sick?"
"Well, sort of. Sometimes she thought I was my mother. She'd say things I didn't understand. She wasn't a nice old woman, you know." Her eyes flashed with strong emotion, quickly harnessed. Kelly changed the subject.
"Tell me about your Uncle Andrew. Are you close to him?"
"No. I've never been close to my family. I like Uncle Andrew better than Stella, though. He's never been mean to me and he doesn't dig at me the way she does. Of course, he does resent my company stock. When my father died, all his shares went into my trust. Then my grandmother left me hers, too, and that surprised me as much as it did Uncle Andrew. He's never said anything to me but I heard him talking to Stella after Grandmother Davis' will was read and he was furious."
"That means you control the business, doesn't it?"
"I suppose so. I own most of the stock but it doesn't matter. I don't have any interest in the company, so Uncle Andrew runs everything anyhow."
"Maybe you'll change your mind when you finish school."
"I doubt it. I'm going to work with emotionally disturbed children. I couldn't care less about the business. We've gotten off the track, though. You were going to tell me about my mother. Please."
"Of course." Kelly smiled and took a sip of his drink. "I'm trying to think where to start. I wasn't exactly on intimate terms with Anna. Nobody was except Bubba. He was her special friend, you know. He knew her better than any of us."
"That dirty little man?" Krystal wrinkled her nose.
"Well, I suppose he might look that way to an outsider but he's really an okay guy. Oh, he drinks too much—so did Anna—but you had to know them to get beyond their drinking problems."
Krystal flinched and Kelly regretted his words.
"What I mean is, they had their own charm. Anna was cantankerous and ornery, especially when she was drinking but she was also remarkably kind and understanding. She didn't wear her good deeds like a badge the way some folks do but she did plenty of them. I know several families at Indian Creek who won't eat near as well now Anna's not around to stock their cupboards. Then there's Cam. The fellow who owns the Hideaway. He would've lost his business a couple of years back if Anna hadn't come to the rescue."
"Where did she get the money?"
"I don't know. I suspect your uncle can tell you more about that than I can. I'm not really supposed to say anything but you'll be finding out soon anyhow. Anna had a lot of money when she died and she left it to you."
Krystal stared at him. "I don't believe
it."
"It's true. I don't know why Anna took off when you were a child but I don't believe for a minute it was because she didn't love you. She left you everything. And I’m sure she loved you a lot."
"She didn't look to me like she had any money."
"Well, she did. And the only people mentioned in her will were you and Bubba. He's the alternate heir. In the event you didn't survive Anna."
"That man?"
"You need to meet Bubba. You've only seen his bad side. Bubba could charm the stinger off a hornet if he had a mind to it."
Krystal tried to smile but it wasn't very convincing.
"Anyway, your uncle seems like the logical source for all this money Anna's been getting. And the fact that he won't tell you anything about why she left the family has me puzzled."
"You think he had something to do with her death?"
"No. I just think he knows something about Anna that might point toward her killer and I'm trying to figure a way to find out what it is."
"I don't think I want to talk about it anymore." Krystal turned her head toward the window.
"I'm sorry. What say we order and I promise, no more questions."
Kelly lifted his arm and signaled the waitress to take their orders. "We'll have the blackened redfish with crawdad etouffé and a bottle of Llano Estacado cabernet sauvignon," he said when she approached the table.
"Thank you." Krystal turned back to Kelly. Her eyes shone with unnatural brightness but the tears were under control.
Kelly reached for her hand and stroked her fingers. "That was thoughtless on my part," he said. "We all have our hot buttons. After we get to know each other better—and I hope we will—you'll find I've got a few of my own."
"I'd like that." She smiled. “So tell me something about yourself. We've talked enough about me."
"There's not much to tell. I'm what they call a homegrown Texan. I was born in Fort Worth—lived here all my life. I married my high school sweetheart and joined the police force. Lynda, that was my wife's name, died a few years back and I kinda lost interest in things. I quit the force and took a job as security guard out at Indian Creek. I've been there ever since."
