The Secret of St Claire

by Robin Alexander

  “Oh, Nicole, how awful. I’m so sorry.”

  “If that gets out here, I’m screwed. So you see? You now have as much power over me as I have over you.”

  Lindsay looked down at her cup. “I’m ashamed to admit that it does make me feel better.” She held a hand up. “Not in the way you’re thinking. It just confirms my belief that sometimes no matter what you do, you’re just screwed in the public eye.”

  Nicole had pulled up an article proclaiming her innocence on her phone and handed it to Lindsay. “That’s the only piece the news did after Tyler came clean, but you can read article after article damning me before then.”

  Lindsay stared hard at the picture of Nicole. “How long ago was this?”

  “Last year.” Nicole took three big gulps of her coffee.

  “You look so different. Your hair is so much lighter here, and your eyes…they seem so blue in this.”

  “I dyed my hair after I left Butte.” Nicole ducked her head for a second and looked like she was rubbing her eyes. When she straightened, Lindsay was shocked at the brilliant blue pair that stared back at her. “Contacts.” Nicole held them up in her palm. After this conversation is said and done, you may have your doubts about me, but I’ll show you all the interview transcripts I have.”

  “I believe you,” Lindsay said sincerely. “You don’t have to prove anything to me, but why didn’t you sue the hell out of this little shit’s family?”

  “My lawyer and my family wanted me to, but I couldn’t.” Nicole smiled wryly. “I’d like for you to believe that I had mercy on a foolish teenage boy that made a mistake. The truth is, I didn’t want to have to relive that again. When it was over, I wanted to run and hide, and that’s exactly what I did. I know that makes me look guilty, and I only have Tyler’s sworn statement to prove that, but it does something to a person when they’re falsely accused.”

  “I understand that.” Lindsay nodded, unable to think of anything else to say.

  Nicole held out her hand. “Friends now?”

  Lindsay grinned as she shook it. “Friends.”

  Chapter Nine

  Lindsay lay in bed that night with her laptop, peeking into Nicole’s past. She read every article, but what she paid the most attention to were the pictures. Since Tyler was underage, there was none of him but plenty of Nicole. Had she not already met Nicole, she wouldn’t have recognized the down-trodden look in her eyes. There were quite a few of her leaving her home or going into what appeared to be her brother’s veterinarian clinic. Lindsay figured that she’d been forced to go back to her family business after the scandal broke—something that Nicole had admitted that she didn’t want to do.

  One of the things that disgusted Lindsay the most was that in just about every article, they interviewed the whistleblower, Sarah Harkin, and showed her picture. Lindsay had to wonder if Sarah was cashing in on her fifteen minutes of fame at the expense of another’s reputation. As a parent, I felt obligated to go to the police. I wouldn’t want my son suffering in the hands of a pedophile, male or female.

  Lindsay wondered if she would’ve handled it the same. What if she’d heard that someone was supposedly abusing one of Alexis’s friends? She would report it, yes, but would she want her face splashed all over the Internet and TV? She took one last look at Nicole’s image before shutting down her computer. She would keep Nicole’s secret because it was the right thing to do, but that wasn’t the only reason, and that bothered her. She was daring to let her interest in her new friend blossom.

  *******

  Nicole and Deana meticulously rearranged her schedule for the day. Deana did not ask why, and Nicole didn’t divulge her plans. She was sitting in the same chair on Lindsay’s porch as she had the previous night, waiting on Alexis and hopefully the McCreedy boy. Common sense told her that she should’ve told Lindsay what Alexis had said, but the chivalrous side of her wanted to spare Lindsay the wrath of the McCreedys. She’d already seen their handiwork on the cat, and that just pissed her off.

  In the distance, she saw three boys coming up the sidewalk. Two short pudgy ones and one tall decently built teen in the middle. “How much you want to bet that the big one is the McCreedy?” Nicole said to herself. She looked to the right at Rose’s porch and doubted that Rose had seen her pull into Lindsay’s driveway. If she had, Nicole had no doubt that Rose would’ve already come out. At dinner the previous night, Rose had commented on Lindsay being the one to get Alexis on the bus and Rose was the one to get her off. Nicole hoped that the boys and the bus would arrive at the same time and before Rose could spot them, so she would have a chance to chat with the bully.

  Nicole heard the unmistakable sound of a bus and the brakes screeching as it made a stop to her left. Children got off as the boys she’d spotted ran by the group. The largest of the three shoved a small boy to the ground as he passed and kept running. It was clear they were hustling to catch up to the next stop, and it would no doubt be Alexis’s. Nicole hopped off the porch and hid behind a tree, watching through the foliage as the bus stopped and kids began to trickle off. Four girls stepped onto the sidewalk, and the bus driver moved on. The boys were closing in fast. The girls began to run, but their small legs weren’t fast enough to outpace the teens.

  Before Nicole could step out of her hiding place, the tall boy had Alexis by the ponytail and yanked her to the ground. Nicole had meant to deter the daily happening with stern words of warning, but as the boy passed her laughing like a hyena, she grabbed a fist of his hair and yanked with all she had.

  “You bitch!” the boy said as he bowed but refused to go down to his knees.

  “You haven’t seen my bitchy side yet.” Nicole held on. “Back up, you little trolls,” she said through gritted teeth to the two others who moved in cautiously, “or I’ll kick your tiny nuts into your throats.” She gave the McCreedy boy’s hair a hard yank. “You get off on hurting little girls?”

  “Bitch, when I get loose, I’m seriously going to hurt you.”

  “You’ll do nothing of the kind.”

  Nicole looked up at Rose, who was standing nearby with Alexis and her schoolmates fanning out behind her like ducklings. “If you have any sense, you’ll walk away when Dr. Allen releases you.”

  Nicole was forced to tighten her grip when the boy wrenched his head toward Rose. “Shut up, you old crow, or I’ll kick the shit out of you after I’m done with her.”

  Nicole was wondering if she could hold her own against the teen when she heard a car door slam. “Daddy!” Alexis screamed and ran out of Nicole’s line of sight. She began rattling off what was happening in a high-pitched tone. A moment later, Nicole heard a deep voice but couldn’t turn to see the speaker.

  “Let him go, ma’am.” The voice was close. “If he makes one move, I’ll nail him into the pavement.”

  Nicole released the McCreedy boy and took a step back. The teen straightened with fury in his eyes. He stood there a moment as his friends pleaded with him to leave. The internal debate was evident in his stare as he sized up Nicole and the man standing next to her.

  “Go on home, boy, and tell your folks how you got your butt handed to you by a woman nearly a foot shorter than you,” Mike said.

  The boy’s face twisted into a sneer. “Fu—”

  “Shut your nasty yap before I put my fist in it. Start running before I decide to press charges against you for assaulting my daughter.”

  One of the smaller boys grabbed the McCreedy boy by the arm and tugged on him. “Come on, we’re on probation already.”

  The obstinate boy pointed a finger at Nicole but thought better of speaking when Mike took a step toward him. He turned and swaggered off like he’d beaten all of them.

  “You must be Mike, Alexis’s father.” Nicole put out her hand and the tall blond man with Alexis’s dimples shook it. “I’m Nicole Allen, a friend of the family.”

  “I’m sorry to go mother on you, but what were you thinking, Nicole? That boy was twice your size.” Ro
se’s pale skin was flushed red.

  “It was stupid.” Nicole held up her hands in defense. “When I saw what he did to Alexis, I snapped.”

  “Girls, you go on home now,” Rose said to the children still flanking her. “Everything’s going to be just fine. I’ll be outside when you get off the bus from now on.” The children scampered off, and Rose turned to Alexis. “You go on into the house. I have fresh cookies on the table with a glass of milk. Let me talk to the adults for a minute.”

  Alexis tugged on Mike’s hand. “Don’t go, Daddy.”

  He knelt and gave her a hug. “I won’t. I’ll be there in a few, and I’ll help you work on Grams’s cookies.” Alexis kissed him on the cheek, hugged Nicole’s leg, and took off in a sprint with her Justin Bieber book sack bouncing on her back.

  “Nicole,” Rose wagged her finger, “you’re gonna have problems with those boys from here on out now.”

  “No, she’s not.” Mike clenched and unclenched his fists. “I’m going to the McCreedy house. It’s about time someone talked to Kevin about his boys.”

  “No!” Rose shook her head emphatically. “You let Miles handle this, it’s his job. That boy had no business putting his hands on Alexis.”

  “That’s just my point.” Mike’s voice got a little louder. “I can’t be here all the time to protect her, and Miles is a coward with a badge. He doesn’t want to tangle with the McCreedys, that’s why they get away with so much.” He jerked a thumb toward Nicole. “This lady stepped up for my daughter. I’m not about to let that bunch of hooligans terrorize her.”

  “What the hell is going on?” Lindsay stalked across the yard. “Anna Tinsley just called me and said there was a gang fight out here.” Lindsay bent at the waist and put her hands on her knees to catch her breath. “The battery died on the truck, and I had to run six blocks.”

  “I was putting dinner in the Crock-Pot when I heard the girls screaming.” Rose looked at Nicole. “What exactly did happen?”

  Nicole felt like back-stepping to her car and making a hasty retreat. How could she explain why she was really there without betraying Alexis’s confidence? “I…uh…came to see the kittens and thought maybe I could catch Alexis when she got off the bus. When she did, that McCreedy boy grabbed her by the ponytail and jerked her to the ground.” Nicole shrugged. “I just reacted and grabbed a handful of his hair.”

  Lindsay’s face was a mask of rage. “He did what?”

  “He put his hands on our daughter,” Mike said. “I’m going to talk to Kevin.”

  “I’m going with you.” Lindsay stood up straighter. “You hit him high and I’ll hit low.”

  Mike grinned at Rose when she went off. “Neither one of you is going over there, do you hear me? We’ll call Miles and press formal charges if we have to.” She glared at Lindsay. ‘“Hit him low,’ are you crazy? The man is well over six feet tall and has got to weigh over three hundred pounds. One of you get out your cell phone thing and call Miles right now.”

  “He’s not gonna—”

  “Mike, don’t you argue with me!”

  “No, this is one time I have to respectfully disagree with you.” Mike looked at Lindsay before stalking off. “I’m going.”

  “I’m going to call Miles.” Rose marched off in the other direction, leaving Nicole and Lindsay alone.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “That brat hurt my daughter, don’t apologize,” Lindsay said with as much fire as Rose had shown. “Is she okay?”

  “She’s fine. Alexis is tough.” Nicole shook her head. “That’s not what I’m sorry for…I lied to you.”

  Lindsay put a hand on her hip like she did with Alexis. “About what?”

  “I didn’t come here to see the kittens. Alexis told me last night that the McCreedy boy harassed them every day at the bus stop.” She raised her voice when Lindsay opened her mouth to speak. “She also told me that he threatened them. If they told anyone, he and his brothers would egg their house and beat up their moms.” Nicole grimaced at the look on Lindsay’s face. “I didn’t know if he’d make good on his threat, so I tried to handle it myself.”

  Lindsay raked a hand through her hair. “I’ve never been so mad and thankful at the same time.” She shook her hands as if to stave off the urge to wring Nicole’s neck.

  “Alexis is going to be so disappointed with me for telling you this. She was taking his abuse because she thought she was protecting you.”

  Lindsay held up a hand. “That’s not helping. It’s making me madder.”

  Nicole had dug herself in deep enough. She pursed her lips and stared at the ground.

  Lindsay released a long, labored sigh. “Thank you for what you did, and thank you for why you did it. From now on, though, you have my permission to betray my daughter’s confidence when it’s something like this.” She waved her hand before replacing it on her hip. “Thank you, I mean that. Now help me rein in my mother before she lines up a posse.”

  *******

  Nicole felt fatigued from the day’s events. She gave her statement to Miles, who looked like Barney Fife. He’d nearly had to call in the state police for backup because by the time he’d arrived at the McCreedys with his one volunteer deputy, Mike and Kevin were squaring off. In the retelling, Miles made it sound like he was Superman, but after he left, Mike told them all Miles had hid behind the car and had to fire his gun in the air to get their attention.

  Nicole went back to the office and gathered up Ruby Crantz’s animals. Rose and Lindsay arrived after they had replaced the battery in Lindsay’s truck since Alexis was having dinner with her dad, who had just returned home from his shift on the oil rig. During the twenty-minute drive to Ruby’s house, Rose gave Nicole a lesson on the McCreedys. All of it sounded like page torn from a Mafia novel—a hick Mafia novel.

  After Ruby thoroughly inspected her pets and welcomed them home, Rose and Ruby went into the formal living room for a private talk. Lindsay and Nicole stayed in the den where they stared up at the bank of TVs. All were muted except for the one playing Wheel of Fortune.

  “Living the life of Riley.”

  Nicole looked at Lindsay. “Huh?”

  She pointed at one of the sets. “That’s the answer to the puzzle. Living the life of Riley.”

  “Ruby must’ve been married to Riley then.” Nicole looked around. “Have you ever seen so much shit? She’s got like a dozen car CD players stacked in the corner over there.”

  They turned when Rose and Ruby walked into the room. “Minx, I’ve seen a whole new side of you, thanks to Rose here. You’ve got some balls, girl.”

  “Oh, ah, thanks?” Nicole looked at Rose, who was squinting and pinching the bridge of her nose.

  “You let me know if those little shit birds give you any trouble.” Ruby jerked a thumb at her chest. “I’m your ally.” She handed Nicole a check. “That’s payment on your invoice. Good job.”

  Nicole sat straight up. The check was made out for three times the bill. “Mrs. Crantz, I can’t—” Lindsay thumped her in the ribs, but it was too late. Ruby had put in her hearing aid for the chat with Rose and heard the beginning of the protest.

  “Don’t let my praise go to your head, minx! I pay what I think is fair. I don’t give a damn what your bill says.”

  “Now, Ruby,” Rose began.

  Ruby softened her tone when she addressed Rose. “Let me handle this my way, dear.” She walked off and picked up a box, which she deposited into Nicole’s lap none too gently. “You take that check and this gift and carry your ass on back home. And the next time you come out here, your attitude better be different, or you’re gonna see my bad side.”

  Ruby walked over to a stack of boxes and tapped her chin. “Rose, I got something here for you. Let me find it.”

  The only person in St. Claire who could defy Ruby was Rose, and even she walked lightly. “Ruby, there is something I want from you.”

  Ruby lifted her chin high. “Name it.”

  “A hug. After a d
ay like I’ve had, all I want is a hug from a good friend.”

  Ruby actually looked embarrassed. “Well, shit.” She genuinely smiled when Rose stepped up to her and pulled her into a tight lingering embrace. “You’re cheap, Rose Strickland, but I like you anyway.” She patted her on the back awkwardly.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.” Rose released her. “Now I need to get my girls home, so I can have a glass of brandy and put an end to this day.”

  “You still drink that old stuff?” Ruby asked with a wistful smile. “I remember sitting around your kitchen table sipping that nasty swill.”

  “Come see me sometime. I have vodka, too.”

  “Don’t get out much as you know.” Ruby glared at Nicole as she walked by, then looked back at Rose with a sweet smile. “For you, I may just make an exception one day. Be safe on your way home.”

  *******

  “I warned you,” Lindsay said to Nicole as they pulled out of the driveway. “Take what Ruby gives you and don’t say a word. If Mom hadn’t have been there, she might’ve gotten a handful of your hair.”

  “It’s an elephant—a juicer,” Nicole said from where she sat in the backseat. “Put the fruit in his back and the juice comes out the trunk.”

  Rose laughed delightedly. “Oh, how adorable.”

  “It’s not going to match my décor. I’ll give it to you, Rose, but not until we’re on the road.” Nicole looked out the window. “I’m afraid that Ruby’s watching me on some elaborate surveillance system.”

  Chapter Ten

  The following evening found Nicole, Lindsay, Rose, and Alexis sitting around Nicole’s kitchen table with an empty pizza box. Nicole had a sleeping tabby in her lap, and Alexis was playing with a vivacious solid gray kitten. “What are you gonna name them, Ms. Nicole?”

  “I could do like Mrs. Crantz does.” Nicole looked down at the ball of fur. “Name them Gray and…Kinda Gray.”

  Alexis scrunched up her face. “Could you think of something else?”