by Sharon Sala
* * *
It was the witching hour.
The energy in the old farmhouse was magnetic. Love was happening, moving air through the rooms like breath in and out of lungs.
A floorboard creaked—even though no man trod the planks. The grandfather clock in the living room downstairs was striking midnight as the couple in the bed upstairs continued to chase their own kind of magic.
The house had come alive within the joy of the people in it, as if sensing the burgeoning love of Duke and Cathy, and the impending arrival of a new life with Hope and Jack. Another Talbot was to be added to the generations who’d lived and died beneath this roof.
The toll of the clock had struck ten previous times…and then eleven…and then the last.
Midnight.
Another creak…a small pop…and then silence, like the long exhale of a breath—the sign a new day was just beginning, even though the occupants within were still at rest.
* * *
Hope left the farm before daybreak to begin her shift and turn in her notice.
Jack went to feed the animals on his own, leaving Duke to get Cathy home.
“I don’t want you to go,” Duke said, as they drove away from the farm.
“I don’t want to leave you, either, but our lives together will begin when we move into the new place. Not moving in with Hope and Jack.”
“I know,” Duke said. “And I agree, which is even more of an impetus to get a crew into the house to start renovation. The only drawback is that legally it doesn’t belong to me yet.”
“What all will they have to do?” Cathy asked.
“The Realtor is drawing up the papers. Hopefully, they’ll be ready for me to sign soon, and once I hand over earnest money, that seals my intent to purchase. Then we’ll get an inspector in so everything is in writing. We’ll close as soon as we can.”
“Is there anything we can do in the meantime?” she asked.
“We can’t do anything to the house…but I’m going to take the tractor and brush hog over and knock down all the grass and weeds around the place. It hasn’t been tended in months.”
“This is where I miss having a purpose,” Cathy said. “I used to volunteer a lot in Vegas, but there’s not a lot of call for volunteering around here.”
“Well, there is the upscale side of Blessings. There’s a small country club, a golf course, and the high-end lifestyle that goes with it. I understand there’s a group of women who—”
Cathy shook her head. “No thanks. I’ve been there, done that, and I want no part of that anymore. I’ll figure something out. And when we can finally start tearing into the house, I can help.”
“You should get online and start looking for design and decor. I’m no good at stuff like that. All I know is I don’t want it to look sleek and modern, but I do want the modern touches that make living life easier. We won’t have the house done by Christmas, but we can have Easter there. How’s that?”
“Yes…Easter. That’s something to look forward to, and I can start on the decor. But the first thing on my agenda is buying a car. It’s time to turn in the rental.”
“Then there’s your purpose. As soon as you pick out the model you want, I’ll take you to Savannah to pick it up,” he said. Then he looked thoughtful for a moment. “I didn’t know love felt like this. I have assumed a lot between us, and it occurred to me this morning that I haven’t officially said the words.”
“What words?” Cathy asked.
He pulled over onto the side of the road and then took her by the hands.
“Mary Cathleen Terry, I cannot imagine the rest of my life without you in it. Will you marry me?”
Cathy grinned, and then threw her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly on the lips.
“I’m taking that as a yes,” Duke said.
“Yes, that is a yes,” Cathy said. “In the romance books, doesn’t the heroine always marry the man who saves her from the bad guys?”
“I don’t know about that. All I know is you are what was missing in my life.” Then he groaned. “Crap. I never do anything in the proper order. I love you like crazy, and a ring will be forthcoming.”
Cathy cupped the side of his cheek.“There is no order to love. Only a chaos of emotions and the feeling that you will die without each other.”
“Then I’m there,” he said, and this time their kiss was longer and sweeter before he finally got back onto the road and took her home.
* * *
There was an accumulation of newspapers on Cathy’s front porch, including the one with the story about her interview. She sat down and read it after Duke left, and then cried from relief and a release of the fear that had sent her running in the first place.
This was happening. This really was happening. She had her life back, and without the worry of ever being bothered by Blaine Wagner again.
* * *
Blaine was still reeling from the throes of his own revelation. Then seeing the ad that Gage Brewer had taken out in the Las Vegas papers admitting his unintentional part in frightening Blaine Wagner’s ex-wife, and the public acknowledgment that he was no longer associated in any way with Blaine Wagner and his enterprises, added to Blaine’s humiliation.
The ultimatum from the Chairman had been scary as hell, and now it felt like all eyes were on him in negative judgment wherever he went. He was getting a dose of what he’d done to his ex-wife, and it didn’t feel good.
It occurred to him as he was contemplating his demise that there wasn’t another Wagner in the wings. He was the last of the line. He’d refused Cathy’s desire for children, and now it dawned on him what that meant.
He’d already booked a flight to Rome and, at the invitation of a college friend, was going to spend a month with him and his family in their villa. Italy was as good a place as any to look for a new wife—one who was ready to give him babies.
His father used to tell him all the time to “straighten up and fly right.” He’d thought that was just an old-fogey saying from his dad’s childhood, but now it was making all kinds of sense. The threat of becoming coyote food and ant bait in the Mojave Desert had a way of doing that.
But Wagner wasn’t the only one in Vegas who was feeling the guilt. When Pamela St. James first read the story, then saw the video, she was horrified. She kept thinking back to that phone call she’d made to her friends the day she’d seen Cathy in Savannah. Not only had she given away where Cathy was hiding, but Pamela and her friends had made fun of her. If Cathy had been murdered, Pamela would have shared in the guilt of making it happen.
She hadn’t been to church in years, but on the day Gage Brewer’s public apology showed up in the local papers, she took herself down to the Catholic church where she’d been married and asked to confess her sins. It didn’t change what she’d done, but in her mind, at least God wouldn’t be mad at her anymore.
To celebrate the cleansing of her soul, she went shopping and slid right back into the shallow existence of her life.
* * *
Two days later, Cathy was dressed and waiting for Duke to take her to Savannah to pick up her new car. She liked driving the Jeep Cherokee she’d rented, so she had opted for a newer version of it, only in red and with four-wheel drive. If she was going to be a country girl, she wanted a car that could navigate bad roads and slick roads to get to and from town.
When she heard Duke drive up, she patted her hair just to make sure there were no flyaway curls. And moments later, he was knocking at her door.
Duke heard her footsteps and smiled. She was running. That’s how he felt trying to get to her. Like he couldn’t get there fast enough. And then the door swung open and she was standing there smiling—a vision in blue. He entered with a chill wind behind him and swept her up into his arms. Her lips were warm upon his cheeks, and then on his mouth, yielding to the pre
ssure of his kiss.
“Good morning, my love.”
“You are in a fine mood today,” she said. “What’s happened?”
He took a little black box from his pocket and handed it to her.
“Had to get it out of the safety deposit box. One engagement ring, somewhat late, but nevertheless important,” he said, and then opened it.
Cathy immediately gasped at the yellow rose-cut diamond in an antique setting. “Oh Duke! Oh my God, this is beautiful.”
“It belonged to my grandmother…the first Talbot woman to live in our house. If it doesn’t fit, we can have it sized, but she had long slender fingers like yours.”
He took it out of the box and then slid it on her finger.
“Look! It’s meant to be! It’s a perfect fit, and it’s stunning,” Cathy said. “I am so honored to be wearing it.”
“If you’d rather have something new, we’ll go—”
“No, no! Never!” Cathy said, and clutched her hand to her heart. “This makes me feel like I already belong.”
“And you do…to me,” Duke said. “Now let’s go get that new car. We’ll drop off the rental first.”
She put on her gray hip-length peacoat and grabbed her bag, and then out the door they went.
Chapter 17
The city workers were hanging Christmas decorations on the streetlights down Main as Cathy and Duke drove to the insurance agency. All of the businesses were in the act of decorating their storefronts and putting up signs in the windows advertising sales for Christmas shoppers.
Cathy went inside and turned in her Jeep, then ran out and got into the truck with Duke.
“Ready, set, go!” she said, which made him grin. Her happy spirit was contagious.
He made a U-turn and headed out of town. As they were going down Main, Duke pointed to a little girl with her face pressed to a window, looking in at the Christmas village being set up in a shop window.
“Look. She’s already in the holiday spirit,” he said.
Cathy nodded, but she was thinking back to her own childhood. The only holiday that was ever celebrated with great enthusiasm was her birthday. She was born on July Fourth. Her parents called her their little firecracker, even though she didn’t really know what that meant until she began homeschooling and learned about Independence Day and the American Revolution.
“I’m getting in the holiday spirit, too,” Cathy said, thinking about all of the good things ahead of them.
They drove out of town with the radio off, talking about the future.
“Do you want a big wedding?” Duke asked.
“I had a big wedding. It was a nightmare of planning and being careful to do and say the right things. I want what you want,” Cathy said. “You grew up here. If you want it, I’m on board. If you don’t, it won’t be a disappointment to me. All I care about is being with you for the rest of my life.”
“Then let’s play it by ear when the time comes,” he said.
Cathy hesitated, and then just blurted out what she’d been thinking about. “I want to remind you of something. You’re taking me into your family as your wife, but I come with a big-ass dowry. You bought the place that’s going to be our forever home, so I want to furnish the money to renovate it. We’ll just set up a renovation account, and every expense will come out of that and won’t impact the farming operation.”
Duke’s eyes widened. He’d actually forgotten her telling him about the money she got in the divorce settlement.
“Seriously?” he asked.
She frowned. “Of course, seriously. If we’re partners in life, we’re going to share stuff, mister. No mine and yours business.”
He grinned. “Yes, ma’am. And for the record, that’s probably going to be the unseen blessing in all of this. Not having to cut corners to meet a budget.”
“Our budget will be what it takes to make the place the way we want it,” she said. “The money came from the profits of gambling, but it’s going to be spent on us…and there’s no risk in that. I know in my heart we are a sure thing, Duke Talbot.”
Duke sighed. “I have a confession to make. Duke is a nickname I’ve had since I was two. My legal name is Jason Lee Talbot.”
Cathy’s mouth opened…and then she rolled her eyes in pretend dismay. “Thank you for letting me know before we got to the altar.”
He grinned. “Well, Grandpa grew up in the sixties. And there was this song he liked called ‘Duke of Earl,’ by a singer named Gene Chandler. He was always playing it on Grandma’s old record player, and they said the first word I learned to say was Duke. Not Mama. Not Daddy. Duke. And it stuck.”
Cathy laughed, trying to picture this man as a tiny little boy, and wished she’d known him a long time ago.
They kept talking about the house renovation and colors and designs until they were finally at the outskirts of Savannah. Christmas had already hit that city as well, and everything seemed to be in full holiday flow.
“Do you know where the Jeep dealership is?” Cathy asked.
Duke nodded. “I make it my business to know where I’m going at all times…except when I’m with you. In those times, I am just going crazy.”
“You are impossible,” she said, then felt that silly smile creeping back on her face. He had a way of doing that to her—feeding her ego and flashing her those sexy looks at the same time.
They reached the dealership and got out. Her car was ready and waiting, and the only thing she had left to do was sign papers and pay for it. They sat in the sales office for almost thirty minutes, and Cathy kept thinking of all the things Duke probably had waiting for him back at the farm.
“Duke, honey, I know you need to go home. I needed a ride, and you provided it. Why don’t you go ahead and leave?”
“I don’t want to leave you on your own like this,” he said.
She shook her head, unsettling a few curls. “I’ll be fine. I do not need a keeper. Backpacked…slept under the stars…fed myself…kept myself alive…remember?”
He sighed. “I will never not want to take care of you.”
“And I will love every moment of it, too. But right now, I’m about to sign my name on a check and on a bill of sale, and then swing by the mall before I leave town.”
“Okay. But will you promise to call or text before you leave the city, just so I’ll know you’re on the way back to Blessings?”
“Yes. I promise.”
He leaned over and kissed her, brushed the tip of his finger across one of her curls, and then left.
She watched him leave, thinking to herself as he walked out the door that he looked just as sexy going out a door as he did coming in one. And then she leaned back and sighed…still waiting for the papers she needed to sign.
It took another twenty minutes of patience before the salesman came back with the papers and apologies. But her brand-new keyless-entry, push-button-start Jeep Cherokee was fueled up and ready to go, and when she left, she headed straight to the mall. She was going to the men’s Big and Tall shop to look for a Christmas present for Duke.
She’d already checked out his sizes while she was at the farm for Thanksgiving, and now she wanted to find him something special.
She parked farther back in the lot just so she wouldn’t have to worry about getting a door ding on her new car and was walking toward the front entrance when she saw two men getting out of a white van.
The first thing that alerted her something was off was how they were acting when they got out. The weather was cool, and the wind was brisk, so their long trench coats weren’t out of place, but they were both clutching at the front of their coats, as if they were holding onto something beneath.
And even as she kept walking, there was a sense of warning washing over her. She was only feet behind them when they paused at the entrance. When they pulled masks up over the
bottom half of their faces, Cathy gasped.
They heard her and spun around.
Cathy turned and ran, zigzagging across the lot toward the cars.
The rapid fire of one weapon kicked up concrete beneath her heel, and another shot went through the purse swinging on her shoulder.
She was running and screaming when she tripped and fell, sending the last of the burst of bullets over her head into the car in front of her. She was crawling on her hands and knees to get out of the shooters’ line of sight when they quit her and ran inside.
Cathy was still shaking as she grabbed her phone to call 911. And even as the dispatcher was answering, she began hearing the rattle of automatic weapon fire and the screams of unsuspecting victims.
“911. What is your emergency?”
“I’m in the parking lot at the Savannah Mall. I saw two white men in long gray trench coats and masks get out of a white van. They shot at me and then entered the mall. I can hear screams and gunfire of automatic weapons.”
“Are you injured, ma’am?” the dispatcher asked.
“No, all of the shots missed me,” Cathy said.
The dispatcher was taking down the information as fast as Cathy was giving it, and at the same time, more calls were coming in to 911 from people inside the mall.
“Ma’am, you said you saw them and what they were driving… Did you see the tag?” the dispatcher asked.
“Yes, yes,” Cathy said. She saw the van a short distance away and gave her the tag number. “I don’t know anything more to tell you, and I’m getting out of here,” Cathy added, and then got up and started running toward her car.
The moment she was inside, she called Duke because she knew if he heard about this shooting, he was immediately going to think she was inside the mall.
When he answered, she could hear the delight in his voice.
“Hi, honey! Missed me already?”
She couldn’t tell him over the phone that she’d been shot at. She couldn’t even say it aloud without screaming.
