by Geri Foster
They both leaned back as Betty put down the pudding and served their drinks. As Rachel picked up her glass and was about to take a sip, Kendall put her forearms on the table and whispered, "He still loves you."
Thumping her glass down, her anger surfaced like a swimmer out of breath. "You've been making that claim for eight years. Isn't it strange that Lucas hasn't ever spoken those words to the woman he supposedly loves so dearly?"
"You wouldn't take his calls."
"Not after he took my dad to prison. What kind of daughter would I be to do something like that?"
"Well, if you won't take his calls, how can he talk to you?"
"Oh, Kendall, don't be naive. He hasn't tried to call me in years on top of years. He just tells you he loves me, so you'll stay friends," she waved away the question.
"He's never told me he loves you."
Her hand froze in mid-air. "What?"
Kendall shrugged her shoulders. "The words never actually came out of his mouth."
"You mean all the years you've been trying to convince me to take him back, he's never actually said he loves me? You made it sound like he'd confessed his undying love for me and could barely hang on to reality."
Kendall lifted her chin with a stubbornness that made Rachel grit her teeth. "I may have exaggerated a little. Came to my own conclusions and added a few extra assumptions, but I know he loves you."
Rachel shook her head, embarrassed to learn, after all these years, Lucas wasn't carrying a torch for her—not like she was him, albeit begrudgingly. Her tiny ego deflated faster than Tom Brady's footballs. All these years, she'd taken some comfort in believing he suffered, even a little, in the knowledge that he broke them and couldn’t fix it. Now, to find out that was all a lie? It was her alone that suffered? Sadness surrounded her pathetic heart with its silly notions.
She brushed her hair away from her face and stared across at her best friend. The woman who had her back through thick and thin. The woman who never let her down. The woman who lied to her. It was all too much.
Unable to handle it right now, she slid out of the booth and stood. "Goodbye, Kendall."
Just as she turned to leave, her face nearly collided with Lucas's chest. She stopped instantly, then gazed up into his handsome face. He looked good. He looked settled. He looked so much better than she felt. Horribly, in that moment, feeling utterly alone, she found herself battling back tears.
Clutching her upper arms, he urged, "You okay?"
Immediately, she pulled away from him. "Why do you care?" That said, she ran out of the diner to her car, emotionally raw and bleeding.
As she grabbed the car door handle, strong hands gripped her shoulders from behind. "Whoa there," Lucas said. "What's going on?"
"She's mad at me," Kendall offered.
She was surprised they had followed, to be honest.
"And you too." Thanks Kendall, anything else you want to share?
Lucas turned her around to where she faced him. "I can understand you being on the outs with me. I have a lot to make up for, but Kendall?"
"I sort of lied to her—but not really, because it’s true—and it pissed her off."
With his eyes still on her, Lucas asked, “What did you tell her?”
Kendal unabashedly replied, "I told her you love her."
His dark brows wrinkled. "Why would that make you mad?"
It didn’t escape her notice that he’d yet to let her go. She yanked away from him and crossed her arms to protect her heart. "Because it's a lie and I'm sick of them from everyone."
"I see. Well, if it makes you feel better, she didn't lie. I do love you. I've always loved you and I always will."
It took a moment for the words to sink in, but when they did, she was too stunned to reply as the world spun and she struggled to stand upright. It made no sense to her at all, so she took it for the lie it must be. "You have a bad way of showing it," she hissed. It felt like she'd waited a lifetime to say those words to him. "You left me high and dry."
"I did, and I apologize with all my heart. I wish I'd been the man you needed me to be during that time."
Shocked at his admission, she floundered for a second before shoring her defenses. "You weren't. Now, I don't need you to be anything. Just leave me alone." She glanced over at Kendall, standing next to Lucas, her eyes large and wet with pain. "Both of you."
Chapter 6
Lucas watched the only person he'd ever cared about, besides his parents, speed out of the parking lot without so much as a backwards glance. Their reunion hadn't gone anything like he'd expected. Maybe now he'd truly lost her forever.
He turned to Kendall. "Why did you tell her I loved her? That's something I should say."
She started to cry. "Don't you start griping at me, too. I didn't mean any harm. How else was I supposed to get you two back together?"
He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced into the darkness where Rachel disappeared. "I don't know." Putting his arm around her shoulder, he pulled her in. "I know you meant well. Don't cry, we'll figure out something."
"I've lost my best friend. We've been friends ever since I can remember. What do I do now?"
"You do what I’m going to do—figure out a way to get her back. That's all there is to it."
"But how?"
"I don't know, but I'll think of something."
" She looked so…lost. What if we've lost her forever and she never comes back?"
He didn't want to think about that. It was too depressing. He'd been trying for nearly eight years to let her go and it hadn't worked yet, no reason to think he could do it now.
Gritting his teeth, because the idea he came up with annoyed the hell out of him, but what choice did he have, he said "Come on, let's go get her." Walking toward his pick-up, he called over his shoulder, "She at her grandma's?"
"Yes, but—"
"Don't say anything else or I'll change my mind."
Kendall hurried to his vehicle and opened the door before he had a chance to do it for her. They drove to Grandma Mercy’s house on the lake in silence. Once there, they both got out and walked toward the door.
"You sure about this?" Kendall asked. "She might smack us both."
"And we'd deserve it. But after the conversation we had at lunch, there is no way I can let her go again. You said it—this is my second chance. I’m not going to mess it up."
She looked up at him, thankful and relieved. The second he knocked on the door, though, she hid behind him again.
After a minute, Rachel’s mom answered looking as attractive as ever. "Good evening, Lucas." She glanced around at Kendall. "Won't you two come in?"
"Who the hell is calling at this hour?" he heard Grandma Mercy say. "People got no respect these days."
"Mama," Rachel's mom said, "it's only 8:30. Plenty of time to visit."
When Grandma Mercy turned the corner and saw him, he thought, if she'd had a shotgun, she'd have blasted him. "Evening, Miss Mercy."
"What are you doing here, you traitor?"
"Mama," Shirley Snyder hissed. "That’s uncalled for."
"No, it’s not. He took your husband off to prison and looked mighty happy to be doing it."
"That's not true. There was no joy in it for me," he tried to defend himself. You'd think after all the time that had passed, Mercy wouldn't be so mean.
Must run in the family.
"What’s going on?"
Grandma Mercy and Shirley stepped aside, revealing a very angry Rachel. "So, you're the reason for all the yelling," she said to him.
"He sure is," Grandma Mercy gloated like she’d won a State Fair ribbon.
"What do you want?”
"Rachel!" Her mom’s hand covered her mouth. "That's no way to talk to Lucas. Remember your manners."
"I don't have any manners for him."
He chomped down on his back teeth hard enough to make his jaw hurt. "Can we talk to you outside, please?"
"Why?"
Her mom n
udged her on the shoulder. "Be nice."
Grabbing her jacket off the hook by the door, Rachel stepped onto the porch. "No matter what you have to say, I don't want to hear it." She glared at Kendall as she shoved her arms into the sleeves. "I can’t believe you’d lie to me like that. I'd never do that to you."
"Oh, for crying out loud. I was only trying to get you two back together, which you both obviously want. Stop acting like I caused a world war. You've lied to me."
"Have not."
"You knew about Rosemary and Bobby Joe."
Rachel lowered her head and studied the toes of her boots. "I didn't want to hurt you."
"I didn't want to hurt you either."
“I’m glad you two got that straightened out. Now, for you,” he pointed to Rachel, “and me. I know you're still mad at me because, for one thing, I'm the poor slob who escorted your dad to prison." He put his hands on his hips. "I did that as a favor, out of respect. I didn’t want a stranger to be the last person he talked to before being locked up. Is that so bad?”
Beneath the porch light, she shuffled from one foot to the other, her bottom lip quivering. “No.”
“I’m glad you agree. Thank you,” he said honestly, feeling like this was a good start. “You also act like I convicted him of the crime, which I had no part in. I didn’t bring forth any evidence against him. Hell, I wasn’t even called as a witness. I was just a deputy doing his duty."
She averted her gaze. "I know that."
"Then why wouldn’t you answer my calls? Why are you avoiding me like the plague now?"
Her gaze clashed with his. "I’m not—"
"You've been holding me solely responsible for the fact that your dad is sitting in jail when I had very little to do with it and you know it. So, get pissed, mad or anything else, but I'm through playing games. Talk to me, Rachel. Just talk to me."
“You want me to talk? Fine. You could’ve had the decency to warn my father. Tell him that Sheriff Townson planned to arrest him. That the bank suspected him of embezzlement. Instead, you clammed up tighter than a shoelace.”
“I was doing my job.”
She stepped closer. So close he captured the exotic scent of her perfume. “We were engaged. Going to get married. And you didn’t trust me enough to explain what was going to happen to my family?”
“I couldn’t do that and stay within the boundaries of my job.”
“Job over love, huh?”
“No, law and doing the right thing over emotions. Do you think I didn’t want to tell you? That I deliberately kept it from you and your dad? I respect Jim Snyder as much as I do my own father. But I also respect the judicial system.”
“You weren’t being honest.”
Kendall moved next to them. "Rachel, he does love you. That was never a lie."
"Humph. Not enough, I guess."
Lucas wanted to shake her until her brain rattled. "I do love you, Rachel. I always have. I put my job first back then, I admit it. And I regret losing you with all my heart. It was the worst thing to ever happen to me. But if you’re asking me to tell you I did the wrong thing…I don’t know that I can. I am proud to be Sheriff. I can’t say that it would have happened had I made other choices, so I can’t regret it. We will never know what could have happened had things gone down differently. You have to let go of this crazy grudge and move on with your life before it eats you alive."
"That's easy for you to say."
"No, it's not. But, I can't change things."
She turned to go back in the house.
"Rachel, I can’t change the past, but I am willing to help you find out if your dad is innocent."
Rachel stopped, completely still. What did he say? After a slow turn, she eyed him carefully to see if he really meant it. With the moonlight shining behind him, he looked enormously handsome, hot-damn sexy…and dead serious.
She licked her lips, afraid to ask. "You mean it?"
"I said it, didn't I?" His words were soft as a caress. "I want to try to make things right between us, but no promises it will change your dad’s situation, okay?" That last bit came out much harsher.
She thought about it for a second. Would it fix things between them? She didn’t know. There were a lot of angry years to get past. But if it had even a millimeter chance of helping her dad, she would take it. "When can we start?"
He let out a huge sigh of relief and smiled, holding up his hands. "Take it easy. Let's go back to Gert's and talk this out."
Holding up her finger, signaling for them to wait, she darted inside for her purse and phone, then returned.
Cold chills raced up her spine as Lucas opened the door to his truck and she and Kendall slid in. Once situated, she turned to Kendall. "I'm sorry,” she said to her friend. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
Kendall shoved in, so Lucas could shut the door. "I know. I know. All that with Bobby Joe is history now."
They didn’t exchange another word until they reached the diner, then Lucas opened the truck door and they both filed out and went straight to the booth she and Kendall had occupied earlier.
Coming up to them, Betty looked surprised to see them again. "You came back?"
"Yes. I’ll have coffee please" she said, before looking at Kendall and Lucas.
Lucas ordered iced tea and Kendall her usual Diet Coke. After Betty left, Kendall took out a notebook and pen from her purse. "Where do we start?"
Lucas glanced at them and shook his head, "It won't be easy."
"Perhaps if we took a fresh look at the evidence," she suggested softly, aware of their tentative situation.
Lucas folded his hands, lowered his head and frowned. "The FBI has everything."
She wrinkled her brow at that. "What are they doing with it?"
"Robbing a bank is a Federal crime. They handled the case, led the investigation and officially made the arrest."
Kendall shook her head, "That's going to be hard to get our hands on. It's not like we can go to the Feds and ask them to reopen the case, much less give us access to the evidence."
"They won't reopen the case unless something they didn't know then comes to light. Not just new evidence, it has to be something directly leading back to the ruling of the jury."
She nibbled her bottom lip and Betty placed their drinks on the table, requesting, "Let me know if you guys decide on dessert," before leaving again.
"Let’s consider what we do have," Lucas prompted. "Is there something that wasn't brought out in the trial?"
She shook her head, "No, not that I'm aware of."
He leaned back, an annoyed glare sparking in his eyes. "Then what the hell is this all about?"
"I know my dad didn't take that money."
He slapped the table and scoffed. "You want to prove your dad's innocence and you don't have squat? Nada?"
"You're right," she whispered, her heart on a downward spiral. "It's just a gut feeling."
"That won't stand up in a court of law," Kendall said. "There has to be something else."
"Okay," Lucas offered, "we know the President of the bank, Levi Burke, brought his suspicions to Sheriff Townson. I wasn't there that day but, according to the report, Burke noticed some funds had gone missing and your dad was the only one with direct access to them since he was the Accounting Supervisor."
"Was there anyone in the bank who didn't think my dad did it?"
His expression saddened. "Your dad was well liked. No one thought him guilty… in the beginning."
"What about the Vice President, Robert Spears?" Kendall put a straw in her drink. "Didn't he know what was going on?"
"From what I could tell, he did less harm to your dad's reputation than anyone else. During the interview, he kept saying he couldn’t believe it."
"So, maybe we should start with him. He could've had a reason for thinking my dad didn't do it."
"He wasn't that neutral,” Lucas replied. “He simply didn't believe anyone could take two hundred and fifty thousand dollars from the ba
nk and get away with it."
"But he didn't get away," she stated vigorously. "He was found guilty and sentenced to fifteen years in prison."
Kendall leaned forward. "I think what Lucas is saying is, Mr. Spears didn't think it could be done. Not that your dad didn't do it.”
She looked at her, confused. "How do you know that?"
"He told my dad. He said that your dad had to have been a genius to pull off the robbery."
"What did your dad say?"
Kendall cleared her throat. "He punched him in the nose."
She reached across the table and clutched Kendall's hand. "Your family has always been so good to mine."
Kendall smiled. "My mother loves Shirley. They're like sisters."
"I know, and I can't tell you how much I appreciate her kindness. Her friendship was a great comfort to my mom after dad went away."
Kendall’s smiled faded. "If only we could change everything. I've been muttering that for years."
Lucas let out a loud breath and reached for his iced tea. "Tell me about it."
Chapter 7
Lucas hated that he couldn't tell Rachel everything he knew. Like that the evidence they mentioned led straight to her dad—the books that he worked on everyday told the whole story. From what he knew, there was nothing out there to lead anyone to think her dad hadn’t committed the crime.
Yet, he didn't want her to lose hope. Not just because he loved her, but because she needed to believe in her dad’s innocence. It was clear that was the only way she was able to cope with everything.
The problem he faced was convincing Rachel to accept Jim’s sentence, while at the same time helping her to overcome his own involvement, or lack of involvement, in the situation, so she could, hopefully, love him again. If he told her how dire the situation really was, how unlikely it was that they’d get her dad released, she'd run away again, and he didn't want that. Not after waiting so long for her to return.
Rachel nibbled her bottom lip and twisted her fingers. "If we can't get the evidence, then let's retrace the crime. I mean, the bank must still have the records. Can't we check them out?"