by A. C. Arthur
“Your little assistant friend, she was there getting sassy with Morgan and you that night,” Dave told him. “She was only wearing one earring.”
Gray frowned. “Kym? You think Kym did this?”
Dave shook his head. “Not by herself. You see that price sticker on the bucket—it’s from Harry’s Hardware down on Sycamore Street. The glove’s a big one, large or extra large, I suspect for someone with big hands. Harry used to wrestle when he was back in high school. Was good at it, too.”
The waitress came over then and Dave ordered another coffee. “Now, what do you think about that?” he asked Gray when they were alone again.
Gray sighed. “I have no idea what I think about everything you’ve just told me. None, except if we can prove this, I want their asses in jail for a very long time!”
* * *
“You’re not supposed to be here,” Sheriff Kevin Duncan said when Morgan walked up the path toward the stairwell leading to Harry’s apartment.
Kevin was a fourth-generation officer in Temptation, having just taken over from his father in the last four years. He was taller than his father had been at just about six feet, with close-cropped hair and a full beard. His second-in-command was Harlow Biggins, who was the complete opposite of Kevin, with his short, round build, pale skin and scraggly stubble at his chin.
“It’s a free country, Sheriff,” Morgan said as she came to a stop right beside Gray.
She was spitting mad, had been since receiving Gray’s call less than an hour ago.
“I just had lunch with the fire chief,” he’d said solemnly over the phone.
Morgan had been cleaning up her living room, throwing away wrapping paper and boxes and those annoying plastic ties that came in the boxes with dolls and action heroes. She loved Christmas, but the days that followed always kept her moving as she tried to keep some semblance of order in a house where her kids could think about nothing but opening the next toy.
“What did he have to say?” she’d asked with the phone clutched between her ear and her shoulder, both hands full of trash that she stuffed into the recycle trash can.
“It was arson. Someone intentionally set the community center on fire. Well, not just someone.” Gray had sighed then, but before Morgan could ask another question, he continued, “There’s evidence to support that it may have been Harry and Kym.”
“What? Are you serious?” she’d yelled so loud the kids had actually stopped what they were doing to look at her. Morgan had made a conscious effort to calm the ripples of shock filtering through her at that moment.
“Tell me what’s going on, Gray,” she’d said in a slower, much more relaxed tone. A small smile had even crept along her face as she nodded toward the kids so that they could resume their play.
She’d listened to him talk, all the while walking back to her bedroom, where she slipped on her boots. “I told the sheriff that since I’m the building owner I wanted to be there when they questioned Harry,” he’d informed her. “He didn’t like it, but I didn’t give a damn. We’re headed there now.”
“I’ll meet you,” she’d said in response before disconnecting the call. If he’d wanted to tell her not to come, it was pointless because she’d been in her car, dropping the kids off at Granny’s in less than ten minutes, and now she was there.
“This is not how it works,” Sheriff Duncan said, his brow furrowed as he stared at both Morgan and Gray. “My deputy is here to assist with this questioning. Civilians stay in their homes or at the station until I decide to brief them on what’s going on.”
“Except when it’s my building that was burned to a crisp,” Gray said sternly.
“And in my town, where some outsider and someone that I thought was a friend decided to burn that building to a crisp,” Morgan added.
Harlow scratched the top of his head as he looked questioningly toward the sheriff. “You guys really think Harry could do something like this? He’s lived here all his life. Hell, I used to play down at the lake with him and his sister when we were eight years old. His parents are as honest as they come.”
“And paint thinner from his store was found at the scene,” Gray said.
“Anybody could have bought that and left it there,” Harlow quickly retorted. “Including that mean-spirited vixen that rolled into town behind you.”
“And we’re not going to know which one of them did it for sure if we keep standing out here freezing our butts off,” Morgan added as she wasn’t really in the mood for another male pissing match.
On the drive over she’d thought about her last interactions with Harry. The ones that included her trying her damnedest to keep Gray and Harry from coming to blows. No, the next time two men wanted to puff up and act like teenagers, she was going to let them. Especially since the memory of punching Kym in the face was still very fresh in her mind.
When the guys still stood there looking at one another she moved past them and headed for the steps. Harry lived in the upstairs apartment over top his hardware store. The entrance to his place was in the back and faced a thick copse of trees, with the lake running on the other side. She was just about to take the stairs when the sheriff grabbed her arm to stop her.
“I’ll go in first,” he told her, his grip on her arm light, but insistent.
Gray stepped up to him then, pushing the sheriff’s hand away from Morgan’s arm. “That’s fine. We’ll be right behind you.”
The sheriff frowned and nodded toward Harlow. “Keep them at a distance while I do the talking,” he said before walking up the stairs.
Harlow stayed behind Gray and Morgan, so close behind that when they’d come to a stop in a single-file line at the top of the landing, Harlow had bumped right into Gray’s back.
Gray had stared at the deputy with irritation, while Harlow brushed down the front of his jacket as if it was somehow soiled at the connection. The sheriff shook his head in exasperation.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Sheriff Duncan let his arm fall to his side and waited a few seconds.
“He’s home,” Harlow said from the end of their little convoy. “There’s his truck over there.”
Sure enough, Harry’s older model beige 4x4 was parked at the end of the long grassy yard.
Knock. Knock. Knock!
They waited again, this time with the sheriff’s frown growing almost as deep as Gray’s.
“Open up, Harry Reed! I know you’re in there. Don’t make me call your momma over here with her key,” the sheriff finally yelled.
A few seconds later the clicking of the locks could be heard and the door opened slowly. Harry peeked through the crack and said, “Yeah? What’s up, Kevin?”
“This is official business, Harry,” the sheriff told him. “I need to come inside and talk to you.”
“Oh? What...” Harry began then looked around the sheriff to see Morgan and Gray standing there.
“What’s going on?” Harry asked.
The sheriff sighed. “Let me in and I’ll tell you what it’s all about.”
“No. I’m not letting all of you in my house,” Harry insisted. “Especially not them, get the hell off my property!”
That order was directed to Morgan and Gray, of course.
“Don’t mind them,” the sheriff insisted. “The quicker we can get in and ask these questions, the quicker we’ll be out of your hair. Is that smoke I smell, Harry?”
The sheriff was sniffing the air now, leaning in closer to Harry and the partially opened door. “You burning something in there?” he asked Harry, whose eyes had grown larger. “Let’s just take a look.”
Kevin Duncan was a lot stronger than his slim frame suggested. He’d gone into the marines right out of high school and had once entertained the idea of becoming an FBI agent. So he’d taken lots of classes at Qu
antico and still worked out feverishly to keep himself in shape. It was nothing to see him jogging through the streets of town in the early morning hours, or on the back porch of his house lifting weights.
Catching Harry off guard also made it easier for the sheriff to push his way inside Harry’s home. Morgan followed him immediately, even while Harry cursed and swore to have some other authority come and throw her and Gray out. Harlow came bustling inside, positioning himself between Harry and Morgan and Gray, even going as far as holding a hand up at Gray to keep him from saying or doing anything untoward. Gray, of course, hadn’t even acted as if that was what he was going to do. Instead, he held tight to Morgan’s hand.
“Somebody’s been in here smoking,” the sheriff said as he looked down into an ashtray. “You don’t smoke, Harry. Got company?”
Harry shook his head, his face angry and his hands fisted at his sides. “You got no right to be in here like this.”
The sheriff nodded. “Okay, let me just ask you this straight out, then. Did you happen to sell somebody about a hundred gallons of paint thinner on Christmas Eve?”
Harry’s lips trembled, his brow so furrowed it looked like all the excess skin from his head was rolled up there. “You got no right!” he yelled this time.
“Just answer the question, Harry. And then we can get going,” Harlow insisted.
“Paint thinner is what caused that fire at the community center,” Kevin continued as he walked casually around the living and dining room area of Harry’s open-concept place.
“A bucket of it was found behind the building. You know, after it burned to the ground,” the sheriff continued.
“I don’t have to say a word. I have rights,” Harry insisted.
“You do,” the sheriff said with a nod as he walked across the room, getting closer to one of two closed doors. “But I’ll just keep on asking questions. Do you know a woman that would wear a diamond-and-gold earring? A big ol’ hoop thing like the movie stars wear?”
Harry’s gaze shot to Gray.
“I don’t need you two here gloating. You got her all brainwashed and I lost. So what?”
“It doesn’t have to be this way, Harry,” Morgan told him.
She’d never seen him like this before. In fact, she wondered if this was even the same Harry she’d grown up with.
“Oh, yeah, it does. You made it that way. You went out and picked another outsider over me. He doesn’t give a crap about this town or you! But that’s for you to find out now. I’m done.”
“So done that you burned down the community center?” the sheriff asked. “Did you have help or did you operate on your own?”
Harry looked over to the sheriff. “I want you to go now, too. You want something else from me, you get a warrant.”
Harry moved toward the door, where Morgan guessed he was finally going to insist that they all leave without answering any questions. That’s when she noticed he was only wearing his boxer shorts. Before Harry could say another word, another door opened. The sheriff stood expectantly as Morgan figured he’d just noticed Harry’s state of dress, or rather undress, as well.
When Kym came through the door wearing leggings and knee-length black leather boots, flipping her hair up from the inside of the sweater in a motion that told them she was just putting the garment on, there was total silence. Until Harry spoke.
“It was all her idea!” he blurted out. “She came here and stayed in my parents’ place. Every night telling me about how her and Grayson were going to get married and make so much money. She said he was going to sell these buildings here and then they were going to elope. But that was all lies. That night she caught Gray and Morgan in bed together she was mad as a hellcat! Came banging on my door here saying I had to do something. That I needed to get Morgan away from Gray before something bad happened to her and the kids. So I proposed but you turned me down! You let that bastard toss me out of your place like he’d been the one to paint your kitchen and help plant that garden in the back.
“I was spittin’ mad when I left your place and when I got back here she was sitting on my steps, legs crossed wearing those high heels that’ll drive a man crazy,” Harry continued. “She said she had the best way to take care of this once and for all. That the fire would wake Gray up and let him see that nothing in this town was worth his time and effort. He’d sell the other buildings real quick and head back to Miami. I didn’t want to do it, my sister had her wedding reception at that community center. But I figured she knew Gray well enough that she’d know what his next step would be. She told me to go down to my store and get the paint thinner and then we waited until the play was over and everybody was out of the building. ’Cause I’d never hurt anyone. Not anyone in this town. We poured the thinner and—”
“Oh, for god’s sake, shut up!” Kym yelled at him. “Don’t you know you have the right to remain silent, you dumb country idiot!”
“You are officially fired,” Gray said to Kym through clenched teeth.
“Who gives a damn?” Kym spat. “I’m sick of this town and trying to convince you that the grass is definitely greener on the upscale side. You want to be here and play in the mud with them, have at it! I’m out of here.”
She took a couple steps but was pulled back by the sheriff, who slapped handcuffs onto her wrists. “Not so fast, Ms. Upscale,” he said to her. “You are under arrest for arson. You now officially have the right to remain silent.”
“I’ll let you get some clothes on first, Harry,” Harlow said quietly. “Then I gotta arrest you, too.”
“You did this!” Harry yelled at Morgan. “It was all your fault. We could have been happy, before he came here. You let him change everything, and for what? What’s he promising you? Nothing, right? He’s not offering to marry you, adopt your kids or even move here permanently.” Harry shook his head. “It’s all your fault!”
Harry kept talking even as Harlow ushered him into the bedroom to get his clothes. The sheriff walked out the door with a very angry, but now silent Kym, leaving Morgan and Gray alone.
“You do know that he’s crazy,” Gray said when Morgan had walked away from him to look out the window. “Nothing you or I did or said made them act the way they did. Absolutely nothing.”
Morgan watched as the sheriff held a hand to the top of Kym’s head as he lowered her into the back of his cruiser.
“I know that,” Morgan said and then turned back to face Gray. “But what I don’t know, Gray, is if everything that Harry and Kym said was totally wrong.”
She didn’t know what Gray’s plans were in regard to her and her family. She had no idea if his decision to keep the buildings in Temptation meant he wanted to keep her and the twins as well. Sure, she could simply ask the question, but right at this moment, Morgan wasn’t so sure she wanted to know the answer.
Chapter 16
Second week of January
“I think this has run its course,” Morgan said on a Friday evening when Gray had returned to Temptation.
The morning after Kym and Harry had been arrested, Gray had told her he needed to go back to Miami.
“I left a lot of things in limbo when I came here a month ago and I need to get back to my office. Especially now that Kym’s gone. I’ll need to see my attorney to confirm that all those ties are severed and I need to also work on obtaining legal ownership of the LLC account in the Grand Caymans,” he’d said as he stood outside her house.
He’d called her and asked her to come out, to avoid seeing the children, Morgan had assumed. It was very early and since they were still on Christmas vacation, the children had been still asleep, so there was really no need for them to meet outside like sneaky teenagers. But Morgan hadn’t bothered to say that.
“I understand,” she’d replied instead.
“An architect and construction manag
er will be here by the end of the week. I want the new community center up and running by the spring,” he’d continued.
“That’s a good idea,” Morgan had said.
“The hospital’s renovations and new programs are going to take a little more planning. But I’ll hire someone to spearhead that as soon as I get back to Miami,” he’d said.
His hands were in the pockets of his leather jacket. He wore black wingtips, the cuff of his navy blue pants falling perfectly over them. Gray was wearing a suit again. He was officially the Grayson Taylor once more.
“I’m sure everything will work out just the way your father had planned,” she’d told him.
“I’ll call you” was the last thing Gray had said to her.
Morgan had only nodded because she hadn’t believed him for one minute. And she’d been right to not believe him.
In the ten days that he’d been gone Morgan had not received one call. After the second day she’d stopped checking. Now, she was convinced it had all been for the best.
“Why don’t we sit down and talk about this,” Gray said.
Today, he wore his puffy coat and khakis. On his feet were black boots. His goatee had grown a little thicker, his complexion looked a little healthier. Or maybe that was simply because she hadn’t seen him in a while. She didn’t know, nor did she allow herself to care—too much.
Reluctantly, she let him into her house and walked to the dining room, where she sat at the table. Tonight was Disney movie night and since the community center was gone, the church board had approved hosting this monthly event in their fellowship hall. Granny had taken the twins, telling Morgan—in that not so polite but honest way that only Granny possessed—that Morgan looked like she needed some rest.
“There are some things I want to tell you,” he began once he removed his coat and sat down. “Things that it has taken me some time to get a grip on myself.”
Morgan immediately shook her head. “I’m not sure that’s necessary, Gray. And really, it’s not a big deal. We’re both adults and we knew all the facts before walking into this...um, affair,” she said and then had to clear her throat.
