by Judi Lynn
“And Gil?”
“Jarrett never worked with Gil. Those two didn’t get along. Gil had a grudge against him for something personal. That’s all he’d say.”
“Something personal?” Gaff scribbled that in his book.
Brianne shrugged. “I figured it had something to do with Didi. Jarrett had the hots for her, but she didn’t want anything to do with him.”
“But you didn’t mind that Jarrett was a criminal? That never bothered you?”
She unzipped her purse and searched until she found a stick of gum. “It’s not like I go to Sunday school, is it? Jarrett was always good to me.”
“And Donovan wasn’t?”
“Donovan thought he was doing me a favor, letting me live with him. Who needs that? Jarrett loves me the way I am.”
She had a point. Jazzi still didn’t like her, but she understood her a little more.
“Was Jarrett with you Saturday night and Sunday morning?”
Brianne quit fiddling in her purse and stared at Gaff. “Why?”
“Ronnie didn’t come home from work Sunday morning. He left the restaurant he worked at around one a.m. and disappeared. His grandma’s worried about him.”
“Is that old lady still alive? She should be dead by now, shouldn’t she?”
Gaff’s tone grew sharp. “She’s alive and worried.”
Brianne shrugged. “Maybe Ronnie got in hot water again, and he’s hiding out.”
“You didn’t answer my question. Was Jarrett with you Saturday night and Sunday morning?”
Brianne ran her hands up and down her body. “He sure was, and we hardly got any sleep.”
“Right.” Gaff waved her to the door. “If I have any more questions, I’ll let you know.”
Brianne jumped off the counter and looked at Jazzi. “Jarrett says you have one big, ugly boyfriend.”
Jazzi chuckled. “Big, yes. Ugly? Hardly.”
“Does he look like his brother, the guy who lives in this building and knew Donovan?”
“He’s better looking. And taller.”
“Doggone, girl. You got lucky.”
“Don’t I know it.”
Brianne paused at the door. “If he gets tired of you, let him know I’m not married. Jarrett and I don’t have any strings attached.”
“I’ll tell him.”
Brianne laughed. “That means you’re not worried. He’s all wrapped up, isn’t he?”
“When we put our rings on our fingers, his options were over. He’s stuck with me.”
“Stuck with you. I like that.” Brianne winked at her and left.
The girl was being too chummy. What was up? It made Jazzi suspicious.
Chapter 19
Tuesday morning, Gaff called when they were putting up drywall in the attic. “Hi, Jazzi. Can I talk to Bain?”
She handed her phone to Ansel’s brother. He listened, then grinned from ear to ear. “And I don’t have to wear an ankle bracelet?” A pause, then, “You’re right. The sheriff and his deputies know where to find me.”
When he handed the phone back to her, Bain looked at Ansel. “Gaff says I can go home.”
“Now?”
“If you drive me to your place at lunch, I’ll pack my pickup and take off. Gaff’s keeping my gun for now. Evidence. But the sooner I get to the farm, the better. Dad needs me. Every night I call home, things have gotten a little worse.”
Dalmar would make sure it sounded that way. He was a pro at guilting out his boys.
Ansel hesitated. “You’re going to stick up for yourself this time, aren’t you? Make Dad let you make the changes you want on the farm?”
“I’ll try. And I want to check on Mom, maybe take her into town to the doctor.”
Ansel nodded. “We’ll take you home after we eat here. We’ll both want to see you off.”
Bain shook his head and turned to Jazzi. “If it’s okay, I’d rather not have to say goodbye to you. It’ll depress me. I know you didn’t really want me here, but you were nice to me anyway, so thanks for taking me in.”
He’d surprised her, so she surprised him with a hug. “Come back anytime. We’ll miss you.”
He barked a laugh. “Hardly. I’m not easy to like, but I’ll miss you. I’ll miss Radley, too. I’ve missed him ever since he left the farm.”
She shook her finger at him, suddenly serious. “Start being nicer to yourself. You love the farm, but there’s more to life than milking cows.”
“I get that now. I’ll try to remember it.”
The next hour was awkward while they worked, and Ansel took mercy on them by grabbing two sandwiches for him and Bain to eat while he drove him home. “I’ll be back soon,” he told her and Jerod.
The two of them ate a quick lunch and finished the three walls before Ansel returned. Her Norseman looked sad.
“I usually want to punch Bain, but I feel a little sorry for him this time.” He motioned toward the stairs. “I need another sandwich. Are there more?”
They trotted down to the kitchen with him and Jerod and Ansel ate a second round of lunch while Jazzi drank more coffee. They were getting ready to return to the attic again and plumb the fourth wall for the bathroom when Radley called.
“I’m not going to make it to your house for supper tonight,” he told Ansel. “I called Donovan’s steady, Elspeth, to check on her, and she invited me for supper at her place instead.”
“So you’re cancelling on us to go to Elspeth’s?” Ansel’s blue eyes sparkled as he studied Jazzi.
She pressed her lips together, trying to look innocent, and he grinned.
When he hung up, he cocked an eyebrow at her. “Radley said you mentioned that Donovan’s girlfriend, Elspeth, was struggling since she lost him. Radley’s going over there to comfort her.”
“That’s nice. They’ve both missed him, and she could use a friend.”
Jerod smiled, too. “My cousin, the altruistic matchmaker. You must have liked her.”
“I did. I think Radley did, too, so why shouldn’t they cry on each other’s shoulders?”
Laughing, Jerod started up the stairs. “If she feeds him, she’ll never get rid of him. He’s like a stray. One bowl, and he comes to your door every night.”
A stray reminded her. “Did Bain take his cat?”
“Even took a leash for him so that he could stop on the drive home to let him do his business.”
Stubs had never gotten friendly with Inky and Marmalade. “I hope Stubs is happy on the farm with the other barn cats.”
“He’s an outdoor cat. He’ll have a barn to live in, fields to roam, and free food. I’m guessing he’ll get preferential treatment, too.”
Feeling a little smug, Jazzi left the guys to the plumbing and started taping the drywall seams they’d installed. She couldn’t do the ceiling drywall herself. It was too heavy.
By four, they were more than ready to call it quits a little early. Even George kept walking to the door and looking back at them, ready to be carried to Ansel’s van. People were coming to bake cookies and make candy tonight. Jazzi had made a pot of Manhattan clam chowder before they left in the morning, and she had a variety of crackers and cheeses to go with it.
Ansel had just settled George on the backseat when Jazzi’s cell phone buzzed.
Radley sounded upset. “Could you and Ansel meet Elspeth and me at Donovan’s parents’ house? His mom’s shaken and scared. Ray doesn’t know she called us, and he won’t be happy to see us, but she doesn’t know what to do.”
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure. She was crying and hard to understand, but I think Ray’s had an accident.”
Jazzi wasn’t sure why Donovan’s mom would want them there for that, but she agreed to meet them and gave Ansel directions to their house. When they got there, Don
ovan’s mom was holding the door open for Radley and Elspeth, and Ray was yelling in the background. They all looked at each other, a bit leery, but his mom saw Jazzi, reached for her hand, and pulled her into the house. The rest followed.
“You’re that detective’s friend. I couldn’t call him. Ray would have my hide, but someone’s hurt him, and he won’t admit it. Says that a refrigerator started to slide off the back of the truck, and when he tried to catch it, he got the wrong end of the deal.”
Ray stomped into the room to glare at his wife. “Maureen had no business calling anybody. I did something stupid and ended up with a black eye and broken fingers.”
Jazzi stared at his hand. His left eye was swollen and bruised. All four fingers on his left hand were splinted and wrapped tightly. “Good, you saw a doctor.”
“Had to, didn’t I? I told the doc what I’m telling you. I caught the refrigerator wrong and barely kept it from hitting the ground. Broke my fingers and bumped my face doing it.”
Either that, or someone broke his fingers for him. Jazzi took a deep breath. “If someone did this to you, and you didn’t give them the answers they wanted, they can do it again.”
He grimaced. “Don’t go making something out of nothing. You’ve been hanging around with that detective too long. I had an accident. That’s all, but my fool woman got all crazy on me.”
“You’re taking a few days off and staying home, aren’t you?” Maureen asked.
“Will that make you happy so you quit harping at me?”
She nodded.
“Then I’ll take the rest of the week off. I have plenty of vacation days.”
Maureen calmed down a little. She sniffed and wiped at her eyes. “I’ll stay home with you.”
Ray groaned. “If you have to.”
She gave him a look and he shrugged. “Are we good now?”
She turned to them. “Thank you for coming. I saw Ray and panicked.”
Jazzi would have panicked, too, and she didn’t believe Ray’s story any more than Maureen did. She tried one more time. “If you have a problem and talk to Gaff, he could help you.”
Ray waved them away. “No problem. No cops. We’re going to be okay.”
There wasn’t much more they could do. They turned and started to their cars. Elspeth put a hand on Jazzi’s arm. “Thanks for coming. I wasn’t sure what to do.”
Radley nodded. “I’d never met either of Donovan’s parents. He said his dad wasn’t easy to work with, so I was worried.”
“Happy we could help. Are you going to have supper now?”
Elspeth laced her fingers with Radley’s. “I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes. He swears that’s his favorite.”
Everything was Radley’s favorite, but Jazzi didn’t mention that. They walked to their vehicles and went their separate ways. Jazzi had to hurry to take a quick shower and be ready when everyone came. She had to push thoughts of Ronnie and Ray out of her mind to concentrate on her friends. But it was too much of a coincidence that Ronnie was missing and Ray had been beaten up.
Didi and River came with Walker, then Gran and Samantha arrived. Gran, as usual, went for her red wine, then stopped and stared into space.
“Jarrett and Gavin are both violent men,” she told them. “Stay away from them.”
With luck, Jazzi intended to never meet Gavin. Jarrett was enough. She wondered if Ray had worked with both of them. When they all stood in line to ladle clam chowder into their bowls, she asked Didi, “Did Gil know Gavin?”
“He knew of him. He warned Ronnie that if he got involved with him, he was on his own. Gil would wash his hands of him. Gil wasn’t happy Gavin was his cellmate. He and Jarrett had reputations for being violent. Rumor was Gavin killed two people, but no one ever found the bodies.”
Jazzi shivered. Would anyone ever find Ronnie?
Ansel slipped an arm around her waist. “What are you baking tonight?” A subtle hint to lighten up.
Jazzi smiled. “I thought we’d make a few different kinds of chocolate chip cookies.”
“Yay!” River bounced up and down until Didi laid a hand on his shoulder.
“First supper, then baking,” she told him. “Are we making a candy?”
“Peppermint bark with Rice Krispies.”
Everyone seemed pleased, so they ate quickly. Walker and Ansel cleaned up after supper, and the women started mixing cookie dough. When they finished, they’d made ten dozen cookies, so there were plenty for people to take home. Not that River needed any more. Gran kept slipping him cookies while they baked. When Jazzi gave her a look, she said, “a cookie’s at its best when it’s still warm.”
By the time the last person left, Ansel and Jazzi sagged against each other on the sofa.
Ansel turned his head and listened. “It’s quiet. There’s no one in the house but us.”
She let out a long sigh. “Maybe we made a mistake when we designed this place for entertaining.”
He laughed. “Entertaining means you wine and dine people, then send them home. We’ve run a boarding house since Christmas. We’re finally alone. If I weren’t so tired, I’d carry you upstairs and have my way with you, but when my head hits the pillow, I’m done for.”
She snuggled against him. “That’s the nice thing about being married. I’ll see you again tomorrow night. And the night after that.”
He lowered his head to rest it on top of hers. “Until we’re old and gray. It’s all good.”
She couldn’t agree more. They sat like that, simply enjoying each other, until they couldn’t keep their eyes open. Then they finally called it a night.
Chapter 20
Wednesday blew in, starting March with its trademark winds. Small limbs littered the yard. Tree branches whipped back and forth in the woods behind their house. Jazzi packed ham and cheese sandwiches in the cooler, then added her panini maker to heat them at the fixer-upper. A warm lunch would taste good today. Before Jazzi and Ansel walked out the door, Gaff called.
“I’m going to check in on Ronnie’s grandma today. Mind coming along? She could use a friendly face.”
Jazzi had worried about the old lady. “When will you pick me up?”
“Two in the afternoon? I have a few things I have to do first.”
“I’ll be ready.” She explained to Ansel as they got ready to go. Ansel had decided that George was shivering more than usual, so he’d dressed him in a doggie sweater for the day. If the dog sneezed, Ansel worried about him. Her tough looking Norseman was a marshmallow inside.
When they reached the house, Ansel carried George up the steps to the attic, so that he could be with them while they worked. She, Jerod, and Ansel spent the entire morning lifting and nailing drywall in place for the ceiling. Along with the insulation, the area already felt more comfortable. Jazzi’s arms, however, felt like lead, like she might never be able to lift them again. They only took a short lunch break, even though the paninis were a big hit, so they could finish the ceiling by the time Gaff arrived. The guys were going to finish walling off the bathroom space while she was gone.
When she and Gaff reached Ronnie’s grandma’s house, the wind blew hard enough, Gaff put an arm under Jazzi’s elbow and they leaned into the sharp gusts to walk up the sidewalk. When they knocked, a small voice called, “It’s open.”
They entered, and heat hit them hard. The woman had the furnace set so high, the air was stifling. Jazzi knew old people did that. When she was a little girl and visited her great-grandma, the house was so hot that Jazzi always left with a headache. Today, Ronnie’s grandma sat in a high backed rocking chair, wearing a long chenille robe and heavy stockings with a blanket draped over her legs.
Jazzi’s heart sank. The last time they’d seen her, she’d reminded Jazzi of a pert, little bird—small and quick with bright, alert eyes. Now her shoulders drooped and it looked like all the
energy had drained out of her. She looked at Jazzi and shook her head.
“Ronnie wouldn’t just go off and not tell me. He’d call from somewhere to let me know he was okay.”
Gaff took a chair close to hers. “Did he talk about meeting anyone? Doing anything unusual?”
“He promised to bring me home some of them chicken wings from his restaurant. Knows how I like ‘em. He didn’t forget stuff like that. Somethin’ happened to my boy. Somethin’ bad.”
“Did he ever have to hide out from anyone?” Gaff asked. “Did he have a spot he ran to when he was in trouble?”
“He came here. He knew I’d take care of ‘im.” She lifted a handkerchief to her eyes. “I ain’t got no one else. His mama’s off who knows where. My son moved to Atlanta, close to retirement now. Has a house and family of his own. He don’t need me.”
Jazzi glanced at Gaff. Maybe they should call her son, tell him what happened. Gaff must have been thinking the same thing. He nodded.
“Is there someone we can call to stay with you?” Jazzi asked. “You look like you could use some company right now.”
The old woman smiled at her. “Ain’t you a nice girl? My friend Pudding from church is comin’ this afternoon. The church ladies have cooked me some nice casseroles and they’re meetin’ here for a prayer meetin’ tomorrow. Don’t think even prayer’ll help my Ronnie, though.”
“But it might help you.” Jazzi thought the woman had been through enough having her daughter take off, leaving her to raise her son and then having that grandson go to prison.
“Pudding always makes me feel better.” She pulled her blanket higher and rearranged it on her knees.
Jazzi leaned forward to pat her hand. “I’m being nosy, but how did your friend get the nickname Pudding?”
Ronnie’s grandma smiled again. “First off, she loves the stuff. Second, she eats enough of it, she kinda has that same, soft feel to her. Ya know?”
Jazzi grinned, but Gaff stood more abruptly than usual.