It All Falls Down: Rose Gardner Investigations #7 (Rose Gardner Investigatons)

by Denise Grover Swank

  “The powder room’s over here.” I pointed to the door on the other side of the kitchen.

  She rushed for it, barely getting the door closed before we heard the sound of retching.

  “I don’t like the idea of her stayin’ in our house,” Joe said. “I don’t trust her.”

  “I know,” I said. “She brought us the flash drive, but something seems off. One minute she’s belligerent, and the next she’s handing us this evidence.”

  “You said you’d protect her. Are you really gonna kick her out?”

  “No, I’m gonna stash her at Momma’s house. I’ve used it as a safe house before.” The idea had come to me from thinking about Joe and Violet, living next door to each other. Momma’s house was empty now, and it had been for months.

  He gave an astonished look, then shook his head. “No. Don’t tell me. At least not right now. Who are we gonna get to take her over?”

  “I’m presumin’ you called Jed,” I said.

  “Yeah. He and Neely Kate are on their way over.”

  “We can ask him who we should get to take her.” I moved to the living room window and glanced outside. “We’ll also need to figure out what to do with her car.”

  He frowned. “One more issue I never had to consider before.”

  I walked over and sat on the sofa next to him. “I’m sure you’re havin’ second thoughts.”

  He stared at the computer screen, then looked up at me. “I will do whatever it takes to protect you and Hope. You need to know that.”

  “I do,” I said with a soft smile.

  “But this…” He gestured to his computer. “Rose, this is important evidence. It needs to be turned over to either the sheriff’s department or the state police. And, depending what’s on it, possibly the FBI.”

  “I know.”

  “But does Jed?” he asked. “Or Dermot?” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m strugglin’ to believe they’ll agree.”

  “I know that too,” I said with a sigh. I leaned forward and took his hand. “This partnership only works if you’re comfortable.”

  He released a short laugh. “Do you think I was comfortable this morning when you were a hair’s breadth from gettin’ shot and killed?”

  My stomach fell. He already had regrets. “Joe…”

  “Don’t get me wrong, Rose,” he said adamantly. “I wanted to be there. I needed to be there, and I went with no regrets, but comfortable isn’t the word we’re lookin’ for.”

  “Okay,” I conceded. “Then what is?”

  “I don’t know,” he said in frustration. “Maybe it’s not a word, but a line in the sand. You say you work in the criminal world, but you’re not a criminal yourself. You’re a mediator, someone who helps keep the peace.”

  I nodded.

  “Don’t you ever come across anything that you think should be handled by the authorities? Something that can’t be glossed over or dealt with by vigilantism?”

  “It’s a fine line, Joe,” I said. “And sometimes I’m not sure I’m makin’ the right calls, but I’m tryin’ to look at the end game and what is best for this county.”

  “When did law enforcement become the bad guy?” he pleaded. “Why can’t you take everything to them? Why is there a decision at all?” His hand tightened around mine. “Let’s take this to the sheriff’s department. We’ll tell them Bobby gave it to us and try to get her protection.”

  “She doesn’t want protection, Joe,” I argued. “At least not from the sheriff’s department. She wants to hide, and how do you think it’s gonna look if you bring them that flash drive the day after you quit? You wouldn’t have a source for them either. I said I’d protect her, and I intend to keep my word.”

  “There’s another reason she won’t go to them,” he said. “We must have some outstanding warrant on her or something.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure. Some people just flat out don’t trust law enforcement,” I said. “Especially when they’ve dallied on the wrong side of the law.” Then I quietly added, “You said it again. You said we when you referenced the sheriff’s department.”

  “What are you suggestin’?” he asked, his tone tense.

  “I don’t know that I’m suggestin’ anything,” I said, getting to my feet. “I know better than to ask you if you’re undercover like you were when we met. You wouldn’t do that to me, but someone else might be more suspicious. And as for your ethical concerns, don’t you think I’ve wrestled with those same questions or versions of them myself? Some things might incriminate me or someone else I care about. Or sometimes I think a situation has been resolved and there’s no reason to involve the law. And let’s not forget I saw your death if we told them.”

  “And then you had”—he lowered his voice to an angry whisper—“a vision that showed I would be okay.”

  “If I told you, Joe. Not the sheriff’s department. That was after you’d left.”

  “Why didn’t you call the sheriff’s department when you were kidnapped by Buck Reynolds?” he asked in frustration. “Who were you protectin’ then?”

  “You’re bringin’ this up now? Why not last night?”

  Groaning, he got to his feet. “Because any minute now, Jed’s goin’ to show up, possibly with Dermot in tow, and they’re gonna want to bury this like a squirrel hoardin’ nuts.” He took a breath. “If we find out where this meetin’ is happening and when, we need to notify the Feds.”

  “Then let me look again,” I said, reaching for him. Without waiting for his confirmation, I asked my question. Will Joe be safe if we give this information to the sheriff’s department?

  I was immediately enveloped in an icy cold darkness that had always signified one thing. I jerked myself out of the vision and said, “You’re dead.”

  He started at me with pursed lips but didn’t say anything.

  I gasped. “You want to tell them anyway.” When he didn’t answer, my anger erupted. “You said you were on board with this. You quit your freakin’ job, Joe!” I argued. “Why are you changin’ your mind now?”

  Surprisingly, Hope wasn’t freaked out by our loud voices.

  “Because I want them brought to justice, Rose,” he said, his voice breaking. “Is that so wrong?”

  I pushed out a breath. The thing was, we weren’t as far apart on this as he might think. “No,” I said, gently, moving closer to him. “It’s not wrong at all, but not at the expense of your life.” Even if it meant withholding information that could help me see Violet’s kids again.

  The front door opened, and Jed walked in with Neely Kate behind him. “Trouble in paradise already? I could hear you both shoutin’ in the front yard.” He glanced over at the laptop. “Is it on there?”

  Joe hesitated. “Yeah…”

  “Let him look at it, Joe,” I said, standing in front of him. “We’ll talk about what to do with it after you get a better sense of what’s on it. Okay?”

  He wrapped an arm around me, searching my face. “Do you mean that?” he whispered. “You’ll consider handin’ it over instead of actin’ on it?”

  “I promise, but only if I can find a way to do it that won’t get you killed. But we need more information before we make that decision.” I stretched up on tiptoes and gave him a kiss. “We’ll talk more after you get a better look.”

  “Thank you.” He gave me another kiss, then turned to Jed. “There must be over a hundred files in there, possibly more. I haven’t had a chance to dig into all of it, but there are folders within folders. Violet was compiling a case against Mike, and that woman was very thorough.”

  “So you think this is what Skeeter had stolen from that safe?”

  “Bobby said it was a copy.” He glanced toward the kitchen. “Has she come out of the bathroom?”

  I moved to the doorway and glanced at the door to the powder room. “The door’s still closed.”

  “She’s been in there an awfully long time. Maybe we should check on her.”

  “Good idea,” I
said, handing a drowsy looking Hope to Neely Kate. “Take care of her while I check.”

  Neely Kate scooped her up, and then I headed to the powder room door and knocked. “Bobby? You okay in there?”

  “She just showed up at your door and handed you the flash drive?” Neely Kate asked in a whisper after she followed me into the kitchen.

  “Not exactly like that, but yeah, I guess that’s what it comes down to. She came on pretty strong, askin’ for protection, and then she up and gave us the flash drive. Joe and I were discussin’ it in the living room. She said she had to vomit, so I sent her in here.” I knocked again. “Bobby? Are you okay? Do you need anything?”

  I was met with silence.

  “Are you sure she didn’t come out already?” Neely Kate asked.

  “No,” I said. “I’m not.” I tried the doorknob and it turned. Raising my brow, I gave Neely Kate a questioning look, then pushed it in. Sure enough, the room was empty, and there was no lingering stench of vomit.

  Turning, I surveyed the kitchen and found the back door cracked. Bobby Hanover had chosen the only exit that could have gotten her out of the house unseen. If she’d gone out the front door or up the stairs, Joe and I would have noticed. “She’s gone.”

  “I thought you said she wanted protection,” Neely Kate said.

  Joe filled the doorway. “She left? I knew there was something strange with her.”

  “Well maybe all that talk about turnin’ her over to the sheriff sent her runnin’.”

  “Or maybe she was lyin’ through her teeth,” Neely Kate said, her face pale as she picked up a small, creased piece of paper off the table. She held it up. “Joe, it’s for you.”

  He strode over and took it from her, while I looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, it was addressed to him.

  Hey, Brother. I think it’s time to mend some fences. Consider this gift a package full of nails. I’m about to bring the hammer.

  Love, Kate

  Chapter 26

  “Kate sent her,” I said, looking up at Joe’s horror-stricken face. “Kate sent that woman to our house.”

  Joe ran out the back door, and Jed followed. I hurried to the front door and found Witt lounging in a chair on the porch. Bobby’s car was still parked in the drive.

  “Did you see Bobby come out here? She’s missin’.”

  He got to his feet. “No. Haven’t seen her since she went inside.”

  “Kate sent her here to give Joe the flash drive,” Neely Kate said while she clutched Hope to her chest. “Then she took off out the back door when they weren’t lookin’.”

  “What?” Witt barked. “I thought you and Neely Kate went to see her the other day. She said you offered her protection. How did Kate get involved?”

  “I don’t know,” I said, trying not to panic. While Kate had always seemed fond of Neely Kate (in her murderous sort of way), she barely tolerated her older brother and hated me.

  “If Kate sent her,” Witt said, “you need to assume everything she said came straight from her. She was a puppet.”

  He was right.

  “But why send her at all?” I asked. “Why not leave the flash drive and note on the porch or give them to Neely Kate?”

  Neely Kate shook her head. “You know how she likes to play games.”

  Guilt filled her eyes.

  “This is not your fault,” I said. “So wipe that look off your face right now. What is she up to?”

  Neely Kate tightened her hold on Hope as Joe and Jed walked around the side of the house, both wearing grim looks.

  “I take it you didn’t find her,” I said.

  “Nothin’,” Jed responded. “She must have run into the woods or along the path to Joe’s old property.”

  “But she left her car.” Neely Kate was bouncing Hope a little, and her eyes were nearly closed in contentment.

  “I’ll get Randy to run the tags,” Joe said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it was stolen.”

  “So her story about camping out in her granny’s car was a lie,” I said.

  Joe drew in a breath. “I don’t know. Maybe. I guess it doesn’t really matter. What we need to concern ourselves with is when she met with Kate and how Kate even knew who she was.”

  “Bobby’s boyfriend was part of Hardshaw,” I said. “I’m not surprised their paths crossed.”

  “Kate was the one who originally sent Hardshaw to Fenton County,” Neely Kate said.

  “And she claimed she’s tryin’ to root them out to protect me, so yeah, I think she knows everyone involved with Hardshaw.”

  “We need to look at those files,” Joe said, ushering us back into the house.

  Hope was practically asleep, so I took her from Neely Kate and brought her upstairs to put her down for her nap. After I got her settled, I pocketed the monitor and headed into my room to send Mason a text.

  Need to talk ASAP. Can’t come to you.

  Joe had gotten through to me more than he knew. He was right. We needed someone in a position of authority to know what was on that flash drive. And they needed to know about the meeting too, whether we had a time and location or not.

  He texted back immediately. Give me five minutes.

  I crept to the door to the hallway and listened. I could hear Joe and Jed discussing something about an audio file, and although I didn’t hear Neely Kate, I was sure she was with them. But in case one of them came looking for me, I ducked into my bathroom and waited.

  Several minutes later my phone rang with a call from an unknown number. “Hello?”

  “I don’t have long,” Mason said in a hushed voice.

  “Roberta Hanover came to my house a little while ago and asked me for her protection. Then she gave me a flash drive that contains a lot of files. I’m pretty sure it’s a copy of what Violet had her attorney keep in his safe.”

  “When you say a lot of files, how many are we talkin’?”

  “I don’t know, at least a hundred. Some of them are audio, so we know they’re not fakes.”

  “That’s good,” he said. “Have you had a chance to look them all over?”

  “No,” I said, “we’re starting to do that now, but there’s something else you should know.” I took a breath. “Right after she gave me the flash drive, she took off and left a note.”

  “Why’d she leave?” he asked, confused. “I thought you said she wanted protection.”

  “It was all a ruse. Kate Simmons sent her to me, Mason, and she left a note from Kate to Joe, saying the flash drive was a gift.”

  “Well, shit.”

  “Joe thinks we should turn it in to the sheriff’s department,” I said.

  Then, before I could tell him about my vision of Joe’s death, he said, “Don’t do that. They won’t know what to do with it.” His tone was surprisingly anxious.

  “This is important evidence, Mason. From the looks of it, it definitively connects Mike to Hardshaw.”

  “I suspected,” he said. “Mike brought evidence with him when he turned himself in to the state police.”

  “Wait…you knew what was on this?” I asked, my anger brewing.

  “I didn’t know it was on the drive, no. But I suspected some of it would be, and I’d heard rumors Bobby had a copy. I want you to hold onto it for now. Mike’s using that information as a negotiating tool, and if we have the evidence, he no longer has leverage.”

  “I thought you worked for the state,” I said, not quite trusting him. “It sounds like you’re tryin’ to help Mike.”

  “I’m trying to help you, Rose. But I’m asking you not to turn it over to the sheriff’s department. If you want to turn it in to someone, I’m asking you to give it to me.”

  I wasn’t sure what we were going to do with it yet—it wasn’t just my call to make—so I didn’t make any promises I might not be able to keep. “You know about Mike’s plea deal? Do you know where he and the kids are?”

  “I don’t know where he is. I’m sorry.”

  I hadn’
t really expected him to tell me, but I wasn’t entirely sure he was being truthful. “Was that why you told me about Bobby? Because you thought she might have it, and you were hoping I’d ultimately give it to you?”

  He pushed out a sigh. “No. I told you yesterday that you weren’t under any obligation to tell me anything.”

  “But you hoped I would,” I said, unsure how to react.

  “Let’s put it this way,” he said, sounding exhausted. “Out of everyone in the county who might get their hands on it, you’re the only one I trust to handle it the right way.”

  I wasn’t sure whether to take that as a compliment or a reason for suspicion. I needed to find out what all was on that drive before I made any decisions.

  But there was one thing I suddenly felt ready to make a decision about. I didn’t trust Denny Carmichael one iota, and the criminals in this county going up against Hardshaw and a South American drug cartel felt like cavemen with clubs going after a high-tech military force. It would be a slaughter. I couldn’t just let it happen, so I’d tell Mason and then figure out how to save Joe if telling Mason endangered him. “Do you know anything about a big meetin’ in Fenton County this week?”

  He paused so long that I wondered whether he’d hung up. “Big meeting?” he finally said. “I’m sure there are plenty of meetings this week, some of which might be considered big.”

  My shoulders sank with relief. “I’m gonna take that as a yes. You know about it.”

  “You need to stay as far away from that mess as possible.” Each word was enunciated carefully, his tone urgent.

  “Is the state plannin’ on getting’ involved?”

  “Rose, I can’t talk about this, but for your own safety and well-being you need to let this go.”

  Did that mean that the state police knew about the meeting and planned to raid it? If so, why didn’t the sheriff’s office know anything?

  “I find the timin’ of Kate Simmons’ reappearance in the county a bit suspicious given the meetin’,” I said.

  “Agreed.” He was quiet for another long moment. “Will you promise me you’ll stay away from that meeting?”

  “Attend a meeting between Hardshaw and South American drug lords? No thanks,” I said truthfully, because from where I stood, there was no reason for me to attend, and I was going to do everything in my power to avoid joining forces with Denny Carmichael. Still, I was well aware that he hadn’t mentioned who was taking part in this meeting, and I wanted him to know that I wasn’t bluffing. “I want no part of that, but I need more reassurance from you, Mason. Is this meeting being looked into?”