Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4)

by Olivia Jaymes

  "So they've arrested that young man?" Anita asked. "He's in jail?"

  "No, he's not in jail," Jenna explained. "He's in a psychiatric hospital under observation. They need to see how mentally ill he is. They're hoping they can talk to him and get him to admit what he did."

  Anita shook her head, sadness in her eyes. "We may never know where our Lori is."

  "We'll find her," Jenna said. She and Knox had had this very same conversation last night and he'd convinced her to have faith. "It just may take some time, that's all. I'm not giving up."

  Michelle pursed her lips. "You can't trust anything that man says."

  They chatted for a little while, bringing up old memories of Lori and the fun things they'd done and the places they'd gone. They were all a little teary-eyed as they reminisced about the good times as a family. Jenna was particularly affected as she thought about what her life would be like if she'd never met Lori. It would all be so different and sad. She was lucky she'd had her sister for as long as she did.

  Jenna kissed and hugged Anita goodbye and promised to keep in touch better than she had in the past. As she and Michelle were walking to their cars, her phone buzzed and she saw that a message had come in from Knox. She read through it twice to make sure she understood.

  "Michelle, did Tom ever mention meeting Brett Hedgcock? They both might be in the same history club."

  Michelle shook her head and shrugged. "No, of course not. Why would you think that they knew each other?"

  Jenna held up her phone. "Because according to Knox, Brett's only hobby was an online history club. They're both World War II buffs."

  "So? I still don't know why you think that they would know one another."

  "You don't think that's strange?" Jenna asked. "It's a bizarre coincidence. They both love World War II."

  "I think Tom would have mentioned it. It's weird but life is full of weird things. I wouldn't give it any more thought. There must be tens of thousands of people in history clubs, especially online."

  There probably were that many or more but she hadn't met anyone - that she knew of - and now she knew two people who loved to study World War II. Knox had said in his message that he didn't like coincidences. He was going to find out the names of the people in the history club, just to be sure.

  "If Tom knew Hedgcock," Michelle went on. "Why would he not just say so? If he knew him he would have told us."

  "That's true. It's just so...strange."

  Michelle sighed. "Everything about this is strange, Jenna. All of this. The whole situation. At this point, I'm not sure anything could surprise me."

  "You're right," Jenna replied with a groan. "It's all beginning to get to me. And to Knox too."

  They both stopped next to Michelle's vehicle. "What is he going to do? Aren't you guys leaving in the morning?"

  "He's going to try and get a list of the members of the online club."

  "Can he do that?"

  "I don't know. He's going to try."

  Tapping her chin, Michelle smiled. "Why don't we both just go and ask Tom? He's at home right now. I know because I got a text from him earlier. We can ask him and get the answer instead of standing here wondering about it."

  It would be more efficient just to ask Tom about the history club. For all she knew, there were thousands of people in the club and they might not even be there under their real names. They might have social media personas to hide their real identities for privacy reasons.

  "Fine, I'll follow you there."

  Rolling her eyes, Michelle popped the trunk open on her car. "I can drive but it's fine if you want to drive yourself. But you need to get a package that came to the house for you. It's in the trunk."

  "What is it?"

  "I have no idea but it's heavy as hell. Did you order an anvil?"

  "Not that I remember, but late-night television, a credit card, and an inability to sleep..."

  "I'll get it while I remember and we can put it in your car."

  Michelle walked to the back of her vehicle and rummaged in the trunk. "Can you give me a hand? This really is heavy."

  Shit, what did I order?

  "Of course, I have no idea what it could–"

  There was no time to react to what happened next.

  Michelle's arm swung wildly in the air, in her hand a heavy tire iron. Before Jenna could jump away or even call for help it came down on her temple, the pain bursting through her head like a bomb exploding. She felt her legs give way under her as her hands went instinctively to the wound. There was a sticky wetness between her fingers and her stomach tumbled and twisted, making her want to retch from the blinding pain.

  She tried to focus but the world was a blur.

  "Michelle, I–"

  She couldn't get the words out; her tongue wasn't taking direction. It was too difficult. She couldn't keep her eyes open, her lids far too heavy. She let them close, her sister's blurred visage the last thing she saw before falling into unconsciousness.

  Jenna wasn't answering her telephone or replying to messages and Knox didn't like that one bit. That tingling on the back of his neck was getting stronger and there was no way he could ignore it. So he got into his SUV and drove to her mother's house to find her, watching the opposite direction along the way in case she was stranded with a broken-down car. Out in the middle of nowhere it wasn't that uncommon to be between cell phone towers but it had been too long, in his opinion. He wasn't going to wait any longer.

  Eli had insisted on going with him in case they needed someone to stay with the vehicle on the side of the road while waiting for a tow truck. He also knew a bit about cars and said that if she was broken down, it might be something simple and he could get it up and running without too much effort.

  When he pulled up in front of Anita's house, he was relieved as hell to see Jenna's car still parked there. His pounding heart could go back to a normal pace.

  "I worried for nothing, I guess. She's still here."

  Eli frowned. "Then why isn't she picking up your calls?"

  "Maybe her phone is dead? Let's go in and find out. You can meet Anita. She's a really nice woman."

  Anita answered the door when he rang the bell, looking surprised to see him.

  "Knox, I didn't know you were stopping by. Come in."

  They entered and he introduced Eli.

  "This is my friend, Eli Hammond. Eli, this is Anita Waters, Jenna's mom."

  "It's nice to meet you, ma'am."

  "It's nice to meet you, too." Anita turned her attention back to Knox. "To what do I owe the pleasure? Come in and have a seat. Relax a little."

  Knox's gaze scanned the empty living room. He didn't see or hear Jenna at all.

  "Actually, I came to see if Jenna was still here. She's not answering her phone."

  Anita frowned and shook her head. "Jenna left quite awhile ago. She's not here."

  "Her car is still parked outside."

  Anita walked over to the front window and moved the drapes so she could see out. "That's strange. Maybe she left with Michelle."

  Michelle? Michelle was in Miami. Knox remembered how Anita could get confused every now and then.

  "Michelle is in Miami," he reminded her gently, pulling out his phone and thumbing the screen to call Jenna. The phone rang but there was no answer. "So she couldn't have left with her."

  "No, Michelle flew back," Anita said firmly. "Michelle came to see me today and she and Jenna walked out together. We all had iced tea and cookies and talked about Lori."

  Knox wasn't sure what to believe. On one hand, Anita seemed quite sure about what she was saying, but on the other, Michelle wasn't supposed to fly back from Miami until tomorrow.

  Eli nudged Knox with his elbow. "There are three glasses in the sink."

  Okay, that was an indicator that Anita wasn't confused. But why had Michelle flown back without telling anyone? And why wasn't Jenna answering her phone? He tried calling a second time but once again he ended up being sent to her v
oicemail. He didn't like this. That tingling in the back of his neck was growing with every passing minute.

  "Did Michelle say why she flew back early, Anita?"

  "Jenna asked her that. Michelle said that she couldn't stay in Miami forever. I think that she just missed her family. She and Tom have grown so close since they moved in together. It's wonderful for a mother to see that. When they were younger Tom barely acknowledged his sisters, so it's nice to see things change."

  Knox had questions about Tom Waters. Anita might be an excellent source for answers.

  "I'm surprised to hear that. You all seem so close, especially with Michelle moving in with Tom."

  Anita laughed. "No one was more shocked than I was when that happened. When my husband and I got married, Tom Junior didn't like Lori and Michelle at all when they came along about a year later. He was terrible to them as they grew up, calling them names and generally being mean. His father sent him to therapy, of course, and over time things did get better. However, Tom still didn't spend much time with the family, preferring to be on his own. He was starting his career so it actually wasn't that inappropriate. Why would he want to be around young girls? He had his own life and friends. After my husband died, Tom came around more often and seemed to soften some. Then a few years ago, Michelle moved in with Tom. I was happy to see them grow so close. It's wonderful to see all the children together on holidays and truly enjoying each other's company."

  At some point Eli had gone outside to check Jenna's vehicle - see if it was locked or if she'd left her purse or phone, since she wasn't answering. He came back inside, wearing a grim expression and holding up Jenna's handbag.

  "I found this on the curb by the mailbox. There are blood droplets on it and the grass."

  Fuck. That tingle in the back of his neck was now a voice screaming in his ear to find Jenna. Now. Something was wrong. He didn't know what yet, but clearly, she wouldn't walk away from her purse willingly and leave it on the side of the road. And Michelle? How did she fit into this? Was that blood Jenna or her sister's? Or both?

  "We need to make sure Hedgcock is still locked up," Knox stated. "We also need to try and get a BOLO out on Michelle's vehicle. Anita, do you know where Tom is?"

  "He should be at the office," she replied, her brows pulled together. Her cheeks were red and she was becoming agitated. "Are my girls in danger? Do we need to call the police? I thought they had him behind bars."

  "That's what we thought," Knox said grimly. He needed to find Jenna, and he didn't have a clue as to where to start. "Did Michelle say where she was going?"

  "Home...I think." Anita's eyes widened, and she reached for her phone on the end table. "About a year ago, Michelle and Lori said that I needed more security for the house. They had one of those doorbell cameras installed. It can see the street where the cars were parked. I can see the video on my phone but I don't think I've tried to since that first day."

  Knox said a silent thank you for modern technology. It had saved his ass more than a few times.

  "We're going to need to see that footage, Anita."

  Eli's phone beeped and he checked the screen. "That's a text from Logan. They tracked Michelle's phone back to her house. That's where she - or it - is now."

  "Then that's where we're going, just as soon as we see what happened."

  Somehow Tom and Brett were connected. And now Michelle and Jenna weren't where they were supposed to be, plus there was blood.

  He had to get to Jenna. Right now.

  30

  Groggy and disoriented, Jenna pried her eyelids apart and blinked against the lamp shining in her eyes. Her head hurt like a bitch, the pounding at her temple relentless. She lifted a hand and touched the wound gingerly. Wincing, she muttered an expletive under her breath as her fingertips came away red and sticky. Even the pillow she'd been lying on had spots of blood on it.

  Dragging herself into a sitting position, her gaze ran around the room as she fought to shake the brain fog away. She was in the guest bedroom back at Tom and Michelle's, lying on a bed all alone. That realization, however, raised more questions than it answered.

  How did she get here?

  Why was she here?

  And the biggest one - why the fuck had her own sister hit her in the head with a fucking tire iron?

  What in the hell was going on? None of this made any sense. Had Michelle lost her mind? Had the stress of the situation gotten to her and she'd snapped somehow? She and Michelle had never so much as yelled at each other, and now her sister had tried to kill her.

  There were more questions but she first needed to tell Knox where she was. He had to be worried if he hadn't heard from her by now. Looking around the room, she didn't see her purse or phone.

  Maybe I dropped it when Michelle hit me? And that leads to the question again...Why did my own sister hit me? The world doesn't make sense right now.

  Head pounding, she slid off the bed and walked quietly to the bedroom door, turning the knob and peeking out. She could hear loud, angry voices and she recognized them immediately - Michelle and Tom. They were arguing, another rare occurrence. Jenna couldn't remember the last time that had happened. The two siblings barely used a harsh tone with each other. The Waters’ family didn’t argue or raise their voices.

  Everything was topsy-turvy and Jenna didn't quite understand what was going on in her world. But one thing was clear; her intuition was telling her that she needed to tread carefully here. Her heart was pounding against her ribcage so loudly she was sure her brother and sister could clearly hear it over their heated disagreement. Her muddled brain was finally beginning to function again and it was telling her to be suspicious. Tom might have known Brett through a history club and now Michelle had become violent. Her heart kept saying one thing, but her head was saying something far different.

  Quietly, Jenna crept to the end of the hallway, not wanting Tom or Michelle to hear her moving upstairs. She knelt down and leaned against the wall, listening in to their argument.

  "I can't fucking believe you could be so stupid," Tom yelled, his anger clear in his tone. "You stupid, stupid cunt. You've ruined everything. Now I'm going to have to fix it all."

  "It's only a matter of time of time before that boyfriend figures it all out," Michelle screamed back. “He's already figured out that you’re connected to Brett. He'll figure it all out and then we'll both go to jail."

  Jail?

  Jenna's heart dropped to her stomach, the bile rising in her throat. Clearly, Tom and Michelle were somehow mixed up in some bad situation. And Lori? How did she fit into this?

  "We're not going to jail," Tom replied, sounding exasperated. "If you hadn't fucked up and knocked her out, I could have talked our way out of this. I could have explained it and blamed it all on Brett. But shit, now we've got that bitch passed out upstairs and when she comes to, she's going to run off to her cop boyfriend. This is all on you. You did this."

  I'm guessing I'm the bitch. So much for familial love.

  "I was only listening to you. All of this was your idea. I was just doing what you told me to."

  "I never told you to hit Jenna and knock her out. You should have come to me and we would have figured it out. Just like we figured it out with Lori. I handled that, didn't I?"

  Jenna's ears perked up at the mention of her sister. Just what had they figured out?

  "You didn't handle it so well if that ex-cop can connect you with Brett."

  "He can connect Brett with hundreds of people in that club. It doesn't mean anything. It's all just circumstantial. There's no evidence linking us to Lori's disappearance. I made sure of that."

  Her blood running cold, Jenna had to clap her hand over her mouth not to be sick right then and there.

  They'd said it out loud. Out loud. They'd admitted it.

  Tom and Michelle were responsible for Lori's disappearance. Not Cal. Not Brett. Not some unnamed stranger. Lori's own flesh and blood.

  But why? Why would they do that
to their own sister?

  "Now I need to clean up after you because you're a fucking idiot," Tom went on. "We can't let Jenna run to her boyfriend or the police. We're going to have to make sure she can't do that."

  "If something happens to her, he'll never let it go."

  "Then we damn well need to make sure that it looks like an accident."

  They were going to kill her and try and make it look like an accident. And Knox thought he had a shitty family. It turns out her family was far worse.

  Survival was priority number one. Knox had no idea where she was so she couldn't depend on him to ride in like the cavalry and save her. She had to save herself. She didn't have the luxury of sitting around and pondering why Tom and Michelle had become killers. She could think about that later. She needed to be concentrating on how to get out of the mess she was in currently.

  She was stuck on the second floor of the house and it was too high to jump from a window. She'd likely break an ankle and then really be at their mercy. Could she sneak down the stairs and run for the door? Depending on where her siblings were located - and she couldn't see them from her position in the hallway - she might make it. Or might not. There were two of them and Tom kept himself in good shape. She wasn't sure she could outrun him if it came down to a sprint for the road. Several possible scenarios played out in rapid succession in her brain but she tossed each one aside. Every one of them sucked and would surely get her killed.

  She couldn't talk her way out, run her way out, and she sure as hell couldn't fight her way out either. It would be two against one.

  I'm fucked. What now?

  Too late. She could hear the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Instinct took over and she lunged down the hall blindly, not even sure where she was headed but knowing she needed to get away and fast.

  Her head still hurt, her lungs were painful as she gulped in oxygen, and her legs were wobbly but she made it to the end of the hall. Her only hope was to lock herself inside the master bedroom and then again in the ensuite bathroom. There would be two doors between her and danger. She didn't know how long they'd last but hopefully by then she'd have figured something else out. She wasn't thrilled that she'd basically be cornered, but she didn't have any other ideas. Every option was shit.