The Texan's Return

by Karen Whiddon

  However, Hailey tried not to let the hard facts of life get her down. If she’d had enough money, she would have worked hard to get June into rehab. As things stood right now, June continued to deny she had a problem or that she needed help. Not a good situation for anyone.

  Hailey hoped her siblings considered her an example rather than their mutual mother. She’d hate to think any of them could grow up and develop June’s problems. In fact, she’d vowed to do whatever it took to ensure none of them did.

  No matter what she had to sacrifice, Tom, Tara and Eli would always be her first priority. She couldn’t let the resurrection of her feelings for Mac get in the way of that.

  Hailey resolved to talk to June and the kids about everything that night, including the most recent murder, so they wouldn’t hear about it from someone else.

  One day led into another. A week passed, and she spent an uneventful weekend at home with her family. She thought of Mac way more than she should, yet she couldn’t seem to stop feeling as though they were once again connected. But despite her feeling the need to shore herself up against him, nothing happened. Monday, as soon as she arrived at his place, Mac made himself scarce. He said he’d found work, and he spent a lot of time alone in the barn hammering and sawing.

  When the hospice nurse arrived, Hailey sought him out, standing in the doorway and watching him work. The less time he spent with her, the more she craved being around him. Friends, she reminded herself constantly, well aware she didn’t feel the slightest bit immune to his charm.

  The next week, the days fell into a steady sort of rhythm. Every morning, Hailey got up as usual and helped the kids get ready for school while June slept in, just as she always did. Once, Hailey had used to wish her mother would actually get out of bed and help. These days, she was glad June didn’t put in an appearance.

  She lived in dread of Trudy Blevins actually publishing her article. Legacy was a small town and news traveled fast. Since she didn’t get the paper and doubted something like this would make the television news, the only way Hailey would learn about the publication would be when someone mentioned it to her.

  When Mac handed Hailey her first paycheck, the amount nearly made her cry. Somehow, she held it together long enough to smile and tell him thank you, but she’d already begun thinking of all the food she could buy. They’d been running dangerously low on provisions. Grilled cheese sandwiches and stale potato chips could only carry them so far.

  “Wait,” she told him. “You forgot to deduct for the car battery.”

  “No, I didn’t.” The warmth of his smile made her toes curl in her shoes. “Consider it a starting bonus. Seriously, don’t worry about it.”

  Pride had her wanting to protest, but she held her tongue. While money worries were a constant in her life, without this job she knew she might have had to hit up the charitable food pantry. She hated taking charity and June refused to apply for food stamps, but Hailey would do whatever she had to so the kids could be fed.

  She stopped at the bank on her way to pick up the kids, using the drive-through so she wouldn’t have to make small talk with one of the tellers. Only when the money had been safely deposited in her account did she breathe a sigh of relief. Now, her mother couldn’t touch it. Even if June managed to find her debit card, she didn’t know the PIN.

  And, since Mac and she used the same bank, she figured the funds would be available immediately.

  After dropping all three of the kids off at home with orders to get started on their homework, Hailey headed to the grocery store. Though she hadn’t made a list, she knew she needed to stock up on the staples, as well as preplan some simple, inexpensive meals that would feed everyone for more than one meal. She had a Crock-Pot, which she used for soups, stews and chili. Chicken was cheap, especially the drumsticks, which the kids loved.

  For the first time since she could remember, she grocery shopped without a knotted stomach, almost enjoying herself.

  “Hey, do you have a minute?” Expression serious, Rod Bowers stepped in front of her in the cereal aisle. Hailey hadn’t seen him in years. He and her stepfather, Aaron, had been best buddies. Rod had claimed to be as confounded as everyone else when Aaron took off, abandoning his wife and family. He’d come around a few times in the aftermath of the murder, but eventually he’d moved on with his life.

  Slightly uneasy, but not sure why, Hailey nodded. “Sure. What’s up?”

  “I saw you from across the store and realized it’s been years since I saw you or your brothers and sister. How’s everyone doing?”

  “Pretty good, actually.” She managed a smile. “How about you?”

  “I’m good.” He scratched his head and then cleared his throat. “Listen, I heard something today, and I thought I’d ask you if it’s true.”

  Crud. Though she’d been anticipating this, she still braced herself. Chest tight, Hailey took a deep breath. “What do you mean?”

  “It’s about Gus Morrison. Rumor has it that you’ve been over there taking care of him. Taking care of the man who killed your sister. I can’t hardly wrap my mind around it, but I heard it from a reliable source. Hailey, tell me. Is it true?”

  Thanks, Ms. Caribiner. First Trudy, now Rod. Hailey lifted her chin and met his gaze. The best offense was a strong defense. “I fail to see how that is any of your business.”

  If anything, her defiance made him appear even more determined. Jaw set tightly, he fixed his gaze on her. “Well, see, it is my business. Ever since Aaron disappeared, I’ve made it my purpose to take care of your family. The only reason you’re able to buy groceries today is because of the monthly payments I give your mother.”

  Stunned, Hailey stared. “What are you talking about?”

  “Don’t pretend not to know. Every single month, on the first, I hand over three hundred dollars cash to June. I have for nearly ten years. June assures me that my money is put to good use.”

  Chapter 7

  As horror sank in, Hailey had the strangest urge to laugh. She suppressed it and tried for a concerned look instead. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t know about this. I’ve never seen a penny of this money and neither have my brothers or sister.” She took a deep breath, aware she’d need strength and bravery to say what had to be said. “You are aware my mother is an alcoholic?”

  Rod stared. “Yes, but...” His voice faded away as the full impact of what she’d told him sank in.

  “Three hundred dollars will buy a lot of booze,” Hailey said gently. “I’m only able to get groceries thanks to my new job.” She looked down, then raised her gaze to meet his. “So if you really want to continue to help my family, don’t give June any more money.”

  “You know I’m going to have to talk to her about that,” he said, his tone indicating he wasn’t sure she was telling the truth.

  “Good. I suggest you do it as soon as possible. And if she has any money left over from your last payment, ask her if she’d mind giving it to me. The kids need new shoes.” She managed a friendly smile and waved, before wheeling her cart away to finish her shopping.

  Muttering under his breath, Rod stomped off. Once he’d gone, Hailey let out a shuddering breath. June had sunk to a new kind of low. And while she knew intellectually that her mother had a disease, the idea of June blowing through three hundred dollars a month—plus her disability check—made Hailey feel ill.

  This had to stop. Determined, Hailey grimly filled her cart. She and June were going to have a long overdue chat before dinner that night.

  But when Hailey got home, Tara ran out into the garage, her skin pale and blotchy, eyes red as if she’d been crying.

  Alarmed, Hailey grabbed her and pulled her in for a hug. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “Emily McNair is missing.”

  Hearing this, Hailey’s heart sank. Blond-haired, blue-eyed
Emily had been over to the house numerous times. “What? When?”

  “She didn’t go to school today, but her parents didn’t know she skipped. When her mom showed up to pick her up, everyone went crazy. No one can find her. Even Betsy—that’s her best friend—says she has no idea where Emily is.”

  “Did her mom drop her off at school?”

  Tara nodded. “Yes. But Em just went to first period. After that, she left.”

  “Just left? How is that possible?”

  “It’s not hard.” Tara shrugged. “Lots of kids do it. She just walked out the door and went wherever.” Lower lip trembling, she sniffed. “What if the killer got her?”

  “Why don’t we think positive for now,” Hailey said firmly. “Maybe she’s just gone somewhere and she’ll come home when she’s done doing whatever it is she skipped school to do. Now help me unload these groceries. Keeping busy will help.”

  Silently, Tara grabbed a couple of grocery sacks and carried them into the house. Once the trunk had been emptied, Hailey asked Tara to help put the food away.

  Sniffing, Tara complied. As she began to unpack each bag, her interest piqued. “You sure bought a lot of food.”

  “I got paid today,” Hailey answered. Once everything had been put in its proper place, Hailey took her sister’s hand. “It’s five o’clock. Let’s go see if there’s anything mentioned in the news.”

  Of course the media had been unable to resist. A missing teenager, not long after one had been murdered? Add to that the fact that both girls resembled each other, and they were in a frenzy.

  Hailey listened for a few minutes, then used the remote and turned the TV off. Tara had begun hyperventilating, turning wide eyes to stare at her older sister.

  “They’re speculating,” Hailey assured her. She got up and pulled her sister in and held her.

  “She’s dead,” Tara whispered. “I can’t believe she’s gone.”

  “No.” Hand under her sister’s chin, Hailey raised Tara’s face. “Look at me. They haven’t found her. They don’t know if she’s dead or alive. She could be alive, you know. I’d much rather focus on that then think something awful.”

  “What’s going on?” Yawning, June wandered into the room. She wore a stained T-shirt and dirty yoga pants and looked like she hadn’t showered in days. In one hand she held a coffee cup, but judging from the overpowering smell of alcohol, it didn’t hold coffee.

  The flash of anger Hailey felt was no surprise. All this time, while Hailey had struggled to keep food on the table and the lights on, this woman had been receiving three hundred dollars a month and said nothing. For ten years. A quick estimate brought that total amount to thirty-six thousand dollars!

  “Tara, please go to your room,” Hailey said, her voice cold. “I need to talk to Mom in private.” She hated how she almost gagged over saying the word Mom.

  Still teary-eyed, Tara nodded and got up.

  “It’s going to be all right, honey,” Hailey told her, softening her tone. “Emily will be found.” She hoped and prayed she was correct.

  June narrowed her eyes. “Did another girl disappear?”

  “Yes.” Hailey indicated a chair. “Have a seat, Mother.”

  Though June tightened her jaw, she took a swig out of her cup and then sat, sinking down into the couch. “What’s up, buttercup?”

  The flippancy wasn’t lost on Hailey. “I ran into Rod Bowers today at the grocery store. I haven’t seen him in years.”

  A shadow of uneasiness crossed June’s face. She gulped down more of her liquid courage before meeting Hailey’s gaze. “How’s he doing?”

  “Why don’t you tell me? I know you just saw him on the first. Did you know, he was mighty surprised to find out that I never saw a dime of that money he gave you.”

  “Why would you?” Defiant now, June lifted her chin. “It was my money. Not yours. Why would I give it to you?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe because he intended it to be for keeping your children fed and clothed, that’s why. What’d you actually do with it?”

  For one heart-stopping moment, as confusion and pain and finally anger chased across June’s face, Hailey thought her mother might actually apologize.

  Instead, June jumped to her feet so quickly her drink sloshed out of her cup. “None of your business, chick.”

  Chick? Chick? “So this is what betrayal feels like.” Hailey didn’t even try to hide her despair. “I don’t think you have a clue how difficult this is. I’m trying to keep all of us fed and clothed, and to pay for this roof over our head. Do you have any idea how much three hundred a month would have helped?”

  The corners of June’s mouth turned down. “I needed it more,” she mumbled.

  “Mom, what you need is help.” Hailey took a step closer. “Your addiction is destroying not only your life, but your children’s, too.”

  “I...I can’t.” Tears welling in her eyes, June shook her head and backed away. “Please, stop judging me. You’re not the one who lost a child.”

  “Ten years ago, Mom. Ten years. I understand you still mourn, but you have other children who depend on you. You need to be there for them—for us. Please.”

  Mouth working soundlessly, June stumbled toward her room. “Leave me alone,” she said, closing the door hard behind her.

  Staring at the door, Hailey wanted to cry. She also considered storming in there and demanding June do something, get help and be there for her family. But Hailey had tried that in the past and been met with either stony silence or empty beer bottles being thrown at her. No, asking her mother to step up and at least try to beat her disease would accomplish nothing. Instead, desperately needing to talk to someone, Hailey pulled out her phone and called the one person she felt comfortable confiding in. Mac.

  * * *

  The instant Mac heard Hailey’s voice, he could hear the upset. Years might have passed since they’d been together as a couple, but he still could read the emotion reverberating in her words.

  “I need to talk to you,” she said. And that simple request was enough to make him drop everything.

  “I’ll be right there,” he told her.

  “Not here. Can I come to your place? We could sit on the front porch and talk. Or maybe take a walk, I don’t know. Anywhere but here. I’ve got to get away for a while. I left a note for the kids to eat leftovers.”

  “Okay,” he agreed, slightly worried. “But promise me you’ll drive carefully. Don’t let whatever it is you’re going through make you reckless.”

  Silence, as if it took her a moment to understand that someone actually cared what happened to her. Either that, or she found it odd that he did. Either way, after promising she would, she told him she’d see him in fifteen minutes and hung up.

  Hailey. Suddenly, the world seemed brighter, more interesting. She’d had some trouble, and the first person she’d thought of was him.

  While he waited, he wandered in to check on his father. Gus slept soundly, the television on with the volume low. Something the anchorwoman said caught Mac’s attention. Another girl had gone missing. Though as of yet, there was no indication of foul play, in view of the recent murder, the police were taking this disappearance very seriously.

  When a photograph of the fourteen-year-old girl flashed up on the screen, Mac couldn’t believe his eyes. Emily McNair could have been Lola Lundgren’s twin. And both of them bore a startling resemblance to Brenda Green.

  No wonder Hailey wanted to talk to him. His stomach roiled. Taking care not to wake Gus, Mac went outside to wait.

  Too restless to sit on the porch swing, he settled for prowling the front landscaping, pulling the weeds he hadn’t yet gotten around to removing. Staying busy helped pass the time while he tried to consider the potential ramifications of another girl missing.

  Th
e sound of a car coming down the street had him straightening. Eyeing his small pile of weeds, he wiped his hands off on the front of his jeans.

  Once she’d parked and killed the engine, she opened her door and rushed up the sidewalk toward him.

  For one, heart-stopping moment, he thought she might fling herself into his arms. Instead, she stopped a few feet from him, her gaze locked on his. Her mouth worked, but no words came out.

  “Hailey?” Taking a step toward her, he reached out and squeezed her shoulder. “Are you all right?”

  “No,” she managed, and then she bowed her head. “You know what? I’m thinking this was a mistake. I shouldn’t have come here.” Her voice wobbled, catching on the last few words.

  He knew that sound, too. She was fighting to keep from crying. The hell with attempting to keep his distance. Even friends hugged when offering comfort. Pulling her close, he tucked her head under his chin and simply held her while she wept.

  Tears of pain or anger or frustration, it didn’t matter. She’d talk when she was ready, tell him what had hurt her when she could. Meanwhile, he’d let her dampen the front of his shirt and try not to let his desire for her overrule his common sense.

  “Not a mistake at all,” he told her fiercely. “I’ll do whatever I can to help.”

  Finally, her quiet sobs eased enough that he loosened his grip. “Do you want to sit on the porch swing?” he asked. “Or would a walk around the farm feel better?”

  “I...” Swiping angrily at her eyes, she exhaled. “Swing, I think. I just needed to talk to someone before I explode.”

  He took her hand and led her up the porch to the swing. The crepe myrtle would soon begin blooming, the fragrant blossoms providing a colorful screen between them and the street.

  She took a seat, gently tugging her hand free. “Sorry about that.” Her rueful smile let him know how much her emotional outburst had embarrassed her. His heart squeezed.

  “Don’t be,” he said and nothing more. Instead, he waited, having learned a long time ago how important silence could be when someone needed to unburden themselves.