by Ann Mullen
“Yeah, and I’m an old man. I’m not as strong as I used to be.”
I lay on a blanket Billy had put down on the floor for me while Chief Sam pressed his hands on my spine and twisted my body like a pretzel. When he was finished, I stood up and the pain was almost gone.
“What did you do?” I gushed. “I feel much better.”
“I adjusted your spine.”
“It sure does feel better.”
“It might bother you for a while, but I’ll be right up the road if you need me. Just give me a holler.”
“Thank you so much.”
“How about staying for dinner?” Billy asked.
“No thanks, we ate earlier. Your mom has been cooking all day.”
“You are coming to dinner tomorrow, aren’t you?” Sarah asked, looking over at me.
I didn’t know what to say since I hadn’t been invited.
Billy spoke up. “Sure, we’ll be there.”
As soon as his folks walked out the door, I growled at Billy.
“You told my mom we’d eat at her house.”
He held his hands up in the air.
“Hold it, Missy. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. Festivities go on all day, but we don’t eat until later in the afternoon around six or seven. We’ll have plenty of time to do both. We’ll go to your Mom’s house in the morning, and come back here later.”
I calmed down a little.
“Dinner’s about ready. All I have to do is boil some noodles. I think you will like it. I made spaghetti.”
“An Indian making spaghetti; this ought to be good,” I sneered at him and went to the kitchen. “I can’t wait to try Indian spaghetti! Yum... yum!”
“You’re going to love it, I promise,” Billy said.
I had to admit that the spaghetti was delicious. “How’d you make it so fast? Mom simmers hers for hours.”
“I cheated. I used Five Brothers.”
I must have had a dumb look on my face because he added, “It’s a sauce that comes in a jar and you just add it to cooked hamburger. It’s simple, easy, and delicious, and even you can make it.”
“Don’t look at me like that. I know who the Five Brothers are.”
He didn’t say a word, he just laughed.
“Are you making fun of me?”
“No, of course not, well, maybe I was, but it was directed at your cooking. You see, I know that your cooking abilities aren’t what they should be for a grown woman. Didn’t your mother teach you anything at all or did you just not pay attention? Actually, I was really impressed the first time I saw you trying to make boiled eggs. Do you remember that day? That was a funny sight. Did you really think that was the way to do it? What a disaster! I’m going to teach you how to cook.”
His laugh echoed throughout the house and it was that laugh that started it all. It was then that I realized Billy Blackhawk was an exceptional man. Even though he was much older than me, he was easy to talk to, and I liked being with him. Sometimes he could make me laugh when I felt like crying, and when he made me mad, I couldn’t stay that way for long. At first I thought it was a father thing, but after my second glass of wine, I knew it wasn’t. I was attracted to him. I probably had been right from the start, but I never wanted to admit it. The idea of someone my age being interested in someone his age was outrageous. What would people think? Why would he have an interest in me? I’m sure that a woman his own age would be better suited to him. They would have more in common. All those thoughts came into my head, but it didn’t matter, it was too late. He had been my boss and my friend, but now he had become much more. I had a warm, fuzzy feeling growing inside, and it wasn’t from the wine.
After dinner, we sat by the fireplace and had another glass of wine. Billy moved the coffee table to the side so we could lean back against the sofa and warm ourselves by the fire. He got a blanket to cover my legs. The flames from the fire created a warm glow that lit up the whole room as I nestled in the crook of his strong, muscular arms. He told me tales about his people while I filled him in on the parts of my life that he didn’t know about. It felt so right to be sitting next to him, cuddled up and talking about the things that meant the most to us in life. He told me his family came first. I agreed.
“They’re the ones who are going to love you no matter what,” I whispered. “Look at me—I’m living proof. I’ve screwed up too many times to count, and they still love me. I’ve put my poor mother and father through some bad times. God, I don’t know how they ever survived my childhood. I was a holy terror. It didn’t matter what it was that I did, they still stood by me. They were always there for me. If I ever have children, I’m going to treat them the same way my parents treated me. I’m going to love them with all my heart and soul. I’ll never desert them.” I looked over at Billy and smiled.
“What brings that smile to your face, `ge ya?” Billy asked as he leaned over close to me. “I hope it’s because you’re sitting here with me.”
“I just wanted to see if you’d fallen asleep. I was really going on for a minute there. I hope I wasn’t boring you. That would be the pits. Alcohol makes my lips loose, if you know what I mean.”
“I find you fascinating, even when you’re drinking.”
“Please tell me that I haven’t been slurring my words.”
He leaned toward me and his lips slowly touched mine. He kissed me again and again, until my body exploded with warmth and excitement. I couldn’t stop. I had a hunger inside of me that so desperately needed to be fed. I wanted Billy to make love to me. Nothing else would matter until we had become one. It was our destiny. We were meant to be together.
He lifted me in his arms and carried me to the bedroom. I was lost in passion, until finally, every need I had was fulfilled. Billy showed me what real love was truly all about.
Chapter 9
Thanksgiving morning I woke up in purgatory. My life was over. I had really made a mess of things this time. How could I’ve been so stupid? Billy and I were friends and now all that was about to change. I sat up in bed and instantly felt sick to my stomach. Billy was nowhere in sight. I threw the sheets aside and crawled out of bed, my naked body shivering in the cold air. My clothes were scattered about as if I had stripped down in a hurry and just tossed them through the air, letting them fall where they may.
“Oh, Lord,” I said out loud as I picked up my clothes, one at a time and piled them on the bed. A pain shot through my back all the way down to my calf. “I’m going to burn in hell for this one.” I had really fouled things up this time. What was I thinking?
I heard a door slam and footsteps coming down the hall. I grabbed the sheet off the bed and wrapped it around me just in time. Billy walked into the bedroom. He was his usual cheerful self.
“Good morning,” he said, smiling. “I see you’re up.” He walked over and stared me in the face, looking straight into my eyes. “Now before you go off the deep end about last night, I just want you know one thing: nothing changes between us unless you want it to.” He reached out his hand and placed it on my bare shoulder. “Sometimes people do things they later regret. I don’t regret one thing about last night, but I know you may have some reservations. If you want to talk about it, we can. If not, we’ll put it aside until you’re ready. I can wait.”
I couldn’t find the words to say to Billy. I cared about him, but I wasn’t ready to deal with last night. I was still reeling from my break up with Cole. My insides were crumbling.
“Can we just table this for the time being?” I dropped my head. “I’m too embarrassed to talk about it. Maybe later I’ll be ready.”
I gathered up just enough nerve to look up at him. The look in his eyes was so warm, I wanted to cry. How could any woman let this man slip by?
“If that’s what you want,” he said.
“I think so.”
The tension in the air faded.
“I made coffee, your computer’s plugged in, and I hooked up your TV to the satellite box. All you ha
ve to do is push a button.”
“You did all that this morning? What time is it?”
“It’s eight o’clock! The day’s almost over!” He turned to leave. “Do you want some breakfast?”
“Yuck, I’ll pass. All I need is a shower and a cup of coffee.”
“You know there’s a bathroom over there,” he said and pointed to one of the two doors against the bedroom wall. “I’m going to go ahead and get on the computer and see what I can dig up on our dead woman.”
A sigh of relief escaped my lips.
“Don’t worry, Jesse, everything’s going to be fine.” He leaned down and brushed the side of my face with a kiss. “Go take your shower.”
The hot water beat down on my face as I tried to get my head together. I was confused by Billy’s lack of concern about what had happened last night. Should we both just chalk it up as a mistake? People can do some weird stuff when they have a broken heart, can’t they? Couple a broken heart with a few glasses of wine, and there’s no telling what will happen. I put everything out of my mind and finished my shower. This was going to be a weird day.
Billy was pecking away on the keyboard when I walked into the living room twenty minutes later. He had on a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt rolled up at the sleeves. His hair was tied back in a ponytail, and there was a smile on his face. He was the same old Billy, but I wasn’t the same old Jesse. I had feelings now that I didn’t have yesterday, and I had to figure out what to do about them. I had to clear the air.
“Billy...” I walked over to where he was sitting. “I guess we should talk about what happened last...”
The computer screen lit up, the cell phone on the table went off, and Billy let out a yell.
“All right, I knew it! Look at this, Jesse.”
I picked up Billy’s cell phone and said, “Hello,” as my eyes wandered over to the screen. A picture of Billy and me popped up. We were sitting at a bar in a restaurant. It looked like I was talking to a woman sitting next to me, and both of us had a smile on our face.
“That’s the Rising Sun. That was the day I lost my watch. But who’s that woman, and why are we smiling like we’re old friends?”
“Have a look at this.”
Billy hit a couple of keys and the screen split. Two different pictures of the same woman appeared.
“This is the woman you were talking to at the bar and this is Mary Keen. It’s the same woman.”
“No way! I don’t believe it. I remember her. She told me I had pretty hair. You were talking to Robert at the time.”
I heard someone talking on the cell phone that I had been holding away from my ear. I had forgotten all about the caller.
“Jesse, are you there?” Mom’s voice blasted through the receiver.
“I’m sorry, Mom, I was talking to Billy when you called.” Then I realized I was on his phone. “Did you want to talk to him?”
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t have your new number. Your cell phone’s not on so I called Billy.”
“Well, he’s here. What’s up?”
“I just received a call from a man named Roy Keen. He said he was looking for you, and he sounded hateful. Jesse, I’m worried. I’m afraid he thinks you had something to do with his wife’s death and he’s out to get you. I’m worried that he might come looking for you.”
“What did you tell him?”
“I didn’t tell him anything,” she cried. “I told him you didn’t live here anymore and that I didn’t know where you were, because I don’t. I mean, I’ve never been to Billy’s house.”
“If he calls again, tell him that you relayed the message, but you forgot to get my street address. That’ll buy me a little time.”
“What are you going to do? Jesse, this man could be dangerous.”
“Billy and I’ll check him out and see what the deal is. In the meantime, if a stranger comes to your door, don’t let him in. Call the police. We’ll be there around twelve. Are you going to be okay?”
“Hey, I have a gun. Don’t you worry, he isn’t going to mess with me. Let me talk to Billy, please.”
I handed the phone to Billy and said, “She wants to talk to you.”
“Hello,” he said. “Am I going to have to kick someone’s butt? Is somebody giving you a hard time? Don’t you worry, everything will be fine. We’ll see you soon.”
Billy closed up the cell phone and threw it on the table.
“I need to have a talk with our friend.”
Billy hit several keys and a picture of Royce Allen Keen appeared on the screen, accompanied by a full workup of his life’s history. His secrets lay spread out before us.
“Excuse me for being nosey,” I said, leaning over his shoulder, “but how did you get all this information?”
“I have this friend...”
“Never mind.” I cut him off. “I don’t want to know.” I quickly changed the subject. “How did Roy Keen get Mom’s phone number? It’s not in the book, yet.”
“Remember, he used to be a cop. They have their ways.”
I stared at the computer screen. The bio of Roy Keen was impressive. It consisted of a list of numerous awards and commendations from the police department; involvement in several community activities; head of the Drug Task Force program in the schools in Greene County; Parents against Drugs, and on and on. Finally, at the end of the report, his recent criminal activity read like a career nightmare. Internal Affairs had been all over him, and it appeared that the judicial system was sure to get a piece of his butt. Eventually, he was cleared of all charges, but subsequently, dismissed from the force. What does that tell you?
“Mr. Keen has been a pretty busy fellow,” I said. “Talking about a major fall from grace...”
Billy turned around, looked at me and said, “Check this out.”
He scrolled down until he came to a black and white photo of me. The heading read: Murder Suspect—Jessica (n/m/n) Watson. I had been tagged.
“Billy, this is a police report. Please tell me you didn’t hack into the Greene County Sheriff’s Department! Not only am I the prime suspect in a murder investigation, but now they can also add another felony charge to my arrest warrant—computer hacking.”
“Slow down, girl! I do this kind of stuff all the time, and you know it. You also know that I know what I’m doing, and I would never do anything that would hurt either one of us.”
Billy was a Cherokee Indian—a man of honor and pride. He had his own set of rules he lived by, and so far, they’d proven to be better than any I had ever come across. He did his best to do the right thing and if somewhere along the line he had to sidestep, he did it gently.
“Sorry... I just have this real bad feeling about going to jail,” I whined. “It’s not something I want to do.”
“Stop worrying about this jail thing! You’re not going to jail. But if you do, I’ll be right there to bail you out.” He laughed.
I didn’t find this the least bit funny. I ignored his remarks as I said, “What’s the worst case scenario we’re dealing with here?”
“There’s no arrest warrant out on you, yet, but the day’s still young.”
He got up from the computer and went to the kitchen.
“Do you want some coffee?”
He opened a cabinet door, retrieved a mug, and filled a cup for me.
“The way I see it, we have two options here. We can wait and see if they try to pin this murder on you or we can find the real killer first. Do you remember where you were the day Mary Keen disappeared?”
“No, not off hand, but that was over three weeks ago. I can’t remember what I did yesterday,” I answered. “However, I will as soon as I find my journal. I’ve been making notes.”
“You need to do that right now. I think we were on the Jordan job around that time. Check it out.”
I sat my cup on the kitchen table and went to the bedroom. In one of the boxes lined up against the wall, I found my briefcase, opened it up, got my jo
urnal, and headed back to the kitchen.
Billy was standing by the window over the sink looking outside. When he turned around, I walked up and put my arms around his waist and lay my head on his chest. I felt the need to be close to him. I was tense.
“I’m really scared this time, Billy. Somebody’s setting me up, and doing a pretty good job of it.”
His arms went around me as he looked into my eyes.
“I know, but I can’t figure out why. Why would someone want to set you up?”
“That’s what I want to know. I’ve only lived here for six months. That’s not nearly long enough to get on someone’s bad side.”
I made the mistake of looking into Billy’s eyes. The way he was looking at me was so electrifying, I had to make myself walk away. I didn’t want to have those feelings again—at least not now.
I went over to the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down. I opened the journal and flipped through the pages until I came to the page I was looking for... the eighth of November.
“Let’s see,” I started to read. “November the eighth was a Thursday, and you and I were together all day. We were on a stakeout at the Jordan residence that morning, and later that evening we had dinner at Mom’s.”
I looked up at Billy with surprise.
“That was the same day my car was in the shop. Remember, it still had that leak in the windshield, and Daniel was going to fix it? I didn’t get it back until the next day. Oh, boy! We’ve got them!”
I jumped up from the table. The minute I did, the pain in my back returned, and almost brought me to my knees.
“Whoa!” I said. I grabbed my back and lowered myself back down into the chair.
“Don’t move, Jesse. I’ll call the chief.”
An hour later, I was back to my old self. Chief Sam had worked his magic and my pain had gone away.
“I’m glad I live so close to your dad,” I said to Billy after the chief left. “I have a feeling I’m going to need his expertise for a few days.”
“You live among the Blackhawks. We take care of each other.”
“I know, you’ve told me that many times, and I’m glad to hear it.”
