Come Rain or Shine: Rose Gardner Investigations #5 (Rose Gardner Investigatons)

by Denise Grover Swank

  I gaped at him. He was staging my story.

  “Why don’t you show me where you ran and hid?” He got out of the car and waited for me to do the same. Turning on a small flashlight, he pointed it at the ground. “Seems to me, you’d go in that direction.” The beam traveled from me toward the trees. “You’d run deeper into the woods, but likely not too far.” He cut the flashlight off and the trees went dark. “If you were hiding back there, I doubt he would have found you. Especially since he didn’t have a flashlight, right?”

  I stared at him, dumbfounded, then nodded.

  He walked over to me, shining his light on the ground. “Walk on out there and show me how far you went.”

  Tears filled my eyes. “Why are you doin’ this, Joe?”

  “You’re gonna share what really happened with me later, but right now, you’re gonna show me the official version, and we’re gonna make sure it’s airtight. Got it?”

  I nodded, swiping at a tear.

  “Good.” He flicked on the flashlight and pointed it at the ground. “Now start walkin’.”

  I headed into the woods until he told me I was deep enough. Then he turned off his light to be sure.

  “Hide behind a tree,” he called out.

  I did as he said, trying not to panic when it reminded me of that awful night in Sugar Branch.

  Joe moved to the edge of the trees, stomping around and pretending to look for me, then walked back to the side of the road.

  “Now come on out but stay on the shoulder.” He turned the light back on so I could see where I was going. “And from here you walked to the convenience store, right?”

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Why did you leave Muffy?” he asked.

  “I didn’t have time to get her out, and I figured she’d be safer in the car.”

  He nodded, then shone the flashlight on my legs. “We took care of the scratches.”

  I glanced down at the marks on my bare legs.

  “Did you recognize the guy?” Joe asked.

  I shook my head. “No. He wore a hooded sweatshirt. I never saw his face in the dark, and he barely spoke, so I doubt I’d recognize his face.”

  He gave me a short nod. “What kind of truck did he drive?”

  “An old red pickup. I don’t remember the make or model, but it had ripped-up, dark vinyl seats.”

  He winked at me. “That accounts for about a third of the pickups in Fenton County. Now, did he tell you why he forced you into his truck at gunpoint?”

  “No. Like I said, he barely spoke other than to tell me to get in, but I did wonder if he was the one who’d killed those men in the parking lot. He didn’t call out to me after I ran off, but I could hear him searchin’ for me at the edge of the woods, and it scared the bejesus out of me.”

  Joe nodded. “You’ve got at least an hour ahead of you givin’ statements. Are you feelin’ up to it?”

  That surprised me. “Do I have a choice?” He hesitated and I realized what he wasn’t saying. “I’m pregnant, Joe, not sick.”

  “I disagree, Rose. You forget I live with you. I’ve been worried for weeks. You don’t look well, and you’ve lost weight instead of gaining it. How far along are you?”

  “At least ten weeks.”

  His eyes widened. “You’re almost out of the first trimester.”

  I gave him a watery smile, remembering again that he’d been through this with Hilary. “You probably know more about pregnancy than I do.”

  “Hey,” he said, walking over to me and pulling me into a hug. “It’s gonna be okay.”

  “I haven’t been taking prenatal vitamins, Joe,” I said, starting to cry into his shirt. “What if my baby is messed up because I wasn’t taking vitamins?”

  “It won’t be,” he said with a smile in his voice.

  “I’ve been drinking caffeine. And taking ibuprofen. And I’ve lost weight. What if I’ve hurt my baby and I didn’t even know it was happening?”

  “Hey,” he said, rubbing my back. “You didn’t.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Then we’ll love him or her anyway.”

  That made me cry harder. This baby wasn’t even Joe’s and he was already including it in his life, while James… “He wants me to have an abortion.”

  His arms tightened before loosening again. “Malcolm?”

  I nodded against his chest.

  He was silent for a beat. “What do you want to do?”

  “I want to keep it,” I said without hesitation. “It’s the worst possible time, and this grand jury is making every criminal in the county crazy.” I shook my head, my cheek brushing against his uniform shirt. “I’m doin’ what I need to do to make things safe for him or her. I need to make sure no one is gonna come after us.”

  He hesitated, then said, “You’re not gonna tell them everything.”

  No, I wasn’t, which went against what James and Carter Hale had told me to do. “Joe, do you happen to know a good attorney I can hire?”

  He grabbed my upper arms and leaned back to examine me, shock on his face.

  “I can’t count on Carter Hale. I need my own attorney, but I have no idea how I can get a good one with such short notice.”

  A hard look filled his eyes. “I already found one.”

  “An attorney?”

  He nodded. “I don’t trust Hale, so I made some inquiries after I left your office this afternoon. Don’t be mad. I would have mentioned it earlier, but I didn’t have a chance.”

  “I’m not mad. I’m grateful.”

  Relief filled his eyes. “His name is Gary Hardisty and he’s from Little Rock. He’s comin’ down first thing in the morning.”

  “How’d you make that happen so quickly?”

  “A lot of money and the chance for Gary to stick it to Mason Deveraux.” When I gave him a look of confusion, he said, “There’s no love lost between Gary Hardisty and Deveraux, and he thinks it’s a miscarriage of justice for Deveraux to go toe to toe with his ex. Gary’s eager for the chance to one-up him.”

  “I thought my attorney couldn’t go before the grand jury with me.”

  “He can’t, but I doubt this will be the last time you’ll be dealin’ with Mason Deveraux.” He pushed out a long breath. “Gary’s coming to the farm at nine a.m., and seeing how it’s now after eleven, I say we head to the station to get your official statement so we can get you home. You’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”

  I started to get in the car, then stopped, watching him over the roof of his car. “Wait. You said it took a lot of money. I don’t have a lot of money, Joe.”

  “I know, but I do.”

  I shook my head. “I can’t take your money.”

  “I’m livin’ at your house, rent-free. It’s the least I can do.”

  “I suspect what little you might pay in rent equals five minutes of his time, and not only that, you’re sleepin’ in the study. I should be payin’ you to be puttin’ up with such poor accommodations, especially since you moved in to protect us.”

  His face softened. “Rose, you’re havin’ a baby you didn’t plan and its father wants you to get rid of it. Your sister’s dyin’. You’re about to face a grand jury, which I suspect is Mason’s attempt to use you to nail Malcolm to the wall. We can’t mess around with this. You need expert legal advice that is one hundred percent on your side. Please. Let me do this. Your baby needs you outside of prison so you can raise him or her, not Neely Kate and Jed.”

  My breath caught in my throat.

  “Yeah,” he said softly. “Prison.”

  I nodded, and he placed a call to a deputy to come out to survey the area where I’d supposedly escaped my abductor.

  CHAPTER 18

  J oe drove me home around one in the morning, and on the way, I told him what had really happened that evening. While I admitted Brox had forced me to pay a visit to his father, I left out the part about the duct tape.

  “You made a deal with Gerard Collard?” he aske
d in disbelief.

  “I’m not givin’ you any details of the meeting, and rest assured, the deal wasn’t much of one, but I’m confident they’ll leave me alone as long as I keep my mouth shut.”

  “You know about some criminal doin’s with the Collards?” He sounded a little too eager to suit me.

  “I know you and Mason were working together to build a case against them. But I’m not tellin’ you anything I might know. Not even in confidence.”

  “Rose.”

  “Not happenin’, Joe.”

  “We should bust them for kidnappin’, Rose. They could have killed you.”

  “But they didn’t. Because I promised to keep their secrets. And I plan to do just that. You know as well as I do that I don’t need any more trouble.”

  Deputy Randy Miller had brought Muffy back to the farm, and he planned on staying the rest of the night to keep watch. Once Joe was assured that I was comfortable with the arrangement, he headed back to the crime scene at the pharmacy. I headed up to bed and fell asleep within seconds of my head hitting the pillow. Muffy slept next to me, watching the bedroom door.

  The next time my eyes opened, soft daylight was streaming through the thin curtains, and Muffy wasn’t on the bed. I grabbed my phone and checked the time, bolting upright when I saw it was nearly eight thirty. Not only had I told Carly that I’d take care of Violet this morning, but Joe’s attorney was coming in a little over a half hour. But as I climbed out of bed, I realized how soundly I’d slept, for the first time in ages. I was still exhausted, but that seemed to be a continual state for me. I’d deal with it.

  I hurried to Violet’s room, worried that she had been left so long unattended, but when I reached her door, I heard Joe’s voice on the other side.

  I rapped on the door and pushed it open. “Good morning.”

  Joe was sitting on the edge of the bed, while Violet was propped up on pillows, beaming at him. She had more color on her face than she’d had the day before.

  “Looks like I’m interrupting something,” I said with a grin.

  “You most definitely are,” Joe said. “You’re supposed to be sleepin’ in.”

  “I did,” I countered. “I slept until after eight.”

  Joe rolled his eyes. “That’s pathetic. Besides, you need your sleep. Especially now.”

  As soon as the words left his mouth, he froze, realizing his faux pas.

  But Violet ignored his slip and turned to me. “I thought last night was a huge success.”

  So much had happened the previous night that I had to stop and consider what she might be talking about. “Oh, the dinner party,” I said. “Yes. We should definitely do it again soon.”

  “Of course the dinner party,” she said. “What did I miss after I went to bed?”

  Joe slid off the mattress. “I’ll finish the story about my youth in the Simmons household later.”

  She gave him a soft smile. “I’m gonna hold you to it.”

  Joe leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I’m countin’ on it.” He walked around the edge of the bed, and said to me, “Gary Hardisty sent a text that he’s runnin’ late. He won’t be here until closer to ten. He’s actually in the process of tryin’ to get your appearance postponed.”

  While part of me wanted to put it off, the rest of me wanted to get it over with. Stalling wouldn’t change much of anything.

  “I need to run into town and check on the investigation,” he said, purposefully keeping it vague, “but I plan on bein’ back by the time he gets here.”

  “Thanks, Joe.”

  He lifted a hand in acknowledgment as he walked out the door.

  “Who’s Gary Hardisty, and why’s he dropping by at ten?” Violet asked.

  “My attorney,” I said as I sat on the bed and situated myself. “Joe and I decided I needed a new one.”

  “For the grand jury?” she asked with a frown. “Are you in some kind of trouble?”

  “Of course not,” I said, trying to settle my own anxiety. “But I’m about to face Mason, and you know he’s holdin’ a grudge against me. Joe and I talked last night and decided Carter Hale was just a little too close to home for this, so Joe called Gary, and he agreed to help out.” I was making it sound a lot less fraught than it felt, but the last thing she needed was more stress. “Joe says he’s the best of the best.”

  Worry lines deepened on her forehead. “How can you afford the best of the best?”

  I cringed, refusing to look up at her. “Joe’s paying for his time.”

  When she didn’t answer, I looked up and met her gaze. Her expression was grim. Neither of us had to say anything more about that—she of all people knew how hard it was for me to accept charity. “Tell me about the grand jury.”

  I reached over and grabbed her hand then squeezed. “The grand jury is likely nothin’. Joe says they’ll be askin’ about my incident with the Sugar Branch police. Hiring Gary Hardisty is like havin’ insurance. Just in case.”

  “Just in case of what?”

  I tried not to squirm. “In case Mason starts askin’ about my involvement with Skeeter Malcolm last winter.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “You mean when you risked your life to save Mason’s sorry ass by takin’ on a role in the criminal world?”

  I couldn’t help grinning. My sister sure had a way with words. “Yeah. That.”

  She shook her head. “I have half a mind to go down to the courthouse and shake some sense into him myself.”

  My grin spread. “While I don’t doubt that you could, I think he’s basically doin’ the right thing. There is corruption in the county. It does need cleanin’ out. And who knows? Maybe he won’t let his personal bias get in the way of questionin’ me in front of the jury, but Joe and I feel like I need to be prepared.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “You know things about those criminals.”

  Her voice was so soft I barely heard her, but I held her gaze and gave a slight nod.

  “That’s not all,” she whispered, squeezing my hand. “I can tell there’s something else you’re not tellin’ me.”

  Tears stung my eyes, and I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. “There’s a lot I’m not tellin’ you.”

  “So tell me. There’s no time like the present, and it might be all we have.” When I glanced at our joined hands, she gave them a little shake. “I’m not that broken, Rose. I can handle more than you think.”

  I looked up at her teary eyes.

  “Do you realize how much I like bein’ your big sister? I want to help you with your troubles. You used to come to me for help all the time before.”

  Before.

  Before Momma died. When Violet was all I’d had. As I’d grown as a person, I’d distanced myself from her, realizing our co-dependent relationship wasn’t healthy, but after twenty-five years of being my everything, she’d struggled to accept that I had other friends. Other relationships. A life without her. That she was no longer the center of my small world. But it occurred to me that maybe I’d pulled back too far. Maybe I’d squandered time with my sister in the quest for independence. Time I’d never get back now.

  Pushing out a long breath, I squeezed her hand and held her gaze. “I’m pregnant.”

  Her eyes flew wide in shock. “Oh.”

  “I just found out last night,” I said in a rush. “I went to the doctor yesterday to pick up your prescription, and the new doctor said I had to make an appointment with her to get them. While I was there, she asked how I was doin’ and suggested I might consider anxiety medication—since I’ve lost weight and had stomach issues over the last couple of months. They took blood and made me pee in a cup. A pregnancy test was standard procedure before prescribing pills like that.” I paused. “It came back positive.”

  She still looked shell-shocked. “You didn’t know?”

  I shook my head, glancing down at the bed. “No. I’m on the pill. I’ve been faithful about taking them, but Dr. Arnold changed my pills back in Aug
ust, and Dr. Newton said I should have been on another type of protection for the first month.

  “August?” she asked in surprise. “How far along are you?”

  “I don’t know for certain,” I said, still looking down. “But at least ten weeks.”

  “Ten weeks?” When I didn’t say anything, she said, “Your mystery man is the father, isn’t he? The one you wouldn’t introduce to me. Who is he, Rose? You can tell me the truth. No judgment. I won’t tell a soul.”

  I lifted my gaze to hers again. “Skeeter Malcolm.”

  Her mouth dropped open and her eyes flew wide. “What? You were carrying on with Skeeter Malcolm and you didn’t say a word?”

  Pushing out a sigh, I said, “You know I was the Lady in Black last winter, but I’ve still been actin’ as her this summer. Some of our PI cases have involved the criminal element. Neely Kate and I stopped a couple of potential turf wars, but in the process, things between James and me…”

  “James?”

  My mouth quirked into a half smile. “That’s his real name. James.” I shifted my leg. “We stayed friends after that mess last winter.” I told her everything about our relationship, from the way we’d saved each other, more than once, to the friendship we’d struck up and the Tuesday night meetings that had led to something stronger and deeper. I told her about the way our relationship had fallen apart over the incident with the Sugar Branch police and my suspicion that James was now working with the FBI, although he wouldn’t tell me anything and had all but cut me out of his life.

  When I finished, she remained silent for a good five seconds before she asked, “Does he know about the baby yet?”

  “When Dr. Newton called to tell me last night—that was the call I took at the end of dinner—she said she caught one of the nurses sharing the test results with someone over the phone. That’s why she called me right away.” I paused, then said, “I’m pretty sure the nurse was calling Dena, so there’s a good chance half the town already knows. I told Joe and everyone who was here for dinner last night, to get ahead of the gossip. I would have told you then, too, but you were asleep when I came upstairs and I didn’t want to wake you.”