Chapter 5
I told Jed to pick me up from the farmhouse the next day.
Since I’d told Rose I wasn’t feeling well, she’d left her dog, Muffy, to keep me company. I’d spent the entire hour before Jed showed up taking her outside for a walk—partly out of guilt, partly because Muffy had a way of making me feel better. She was such a happy dog, so full of love. As silly as it sounded, she gave me hope.
I felt like a snake oil salesman, sneaking off like this, but I knew she’d never let me go alone, and there was no way in Hades I’d let her anywhere near my past. Still, I couldn’t take off without a word and worry her half to death, so I had left her a note on the kitchen counter saying I needed to take care of a few things and I’d be back when I could.
I expected to hear from her early this evening when she found it . . . probably sooner if I stopped responding to her calls and texts.
When Jed’s car pulled up to the house, I scooped up Muffy and headed into the house, but she started to whine as soon as we crossed the threshold.
I rubbed her head and looked into her eyes, and I could tell she knew I was leaving.
“I’ll come back when I sort this out,” I whispered as I rubbed behind her ears. “I promise. Take care of Rose until I get back.”
She licked my nose. I hugged her before lowering her to the floor. My heart gave a little pang as I shut the door and locked her inside.
I picked up my duffel bag and my purse from the wicker chair on the front porch and walked down the steps to Jed’s car. He was leaning against the closed driver’s door, his sunglasses hiding what he was thinking.
Who was I kidding? I rarely knew what Jed was thinking, sunglasses or not.
He was dressed in his usual jeans and a gray T-shirt that was tight on his arms, showing off his biceps.
Right or wrong, I was glad that I was wearing my blue and white summer dress and my white strappy sandals. My makeup was minimal, giving me a wholesome look, and my hair was down—putting it up hurt the back of my head too much, even after the over-the-counter medication I’d taken a few hours ago. I knew I looked good. I was counting on that for later.
He stepped away from the car and met me in front of the hood.
“What’s with the bag?”
I gave him a lazy shrug. “I like to cart a lot of things around. You should have seen me when I was pregnant. You wouldn’t believe what I had in my huge purse . . . and that was just here in Fenton County. We’re heading up to Little Rock.”
“It’s a six-hour round trip, tops.”
“Hey, you wear T-shirts that show off every bulging muscle,” I said, flicking his bicep.
“I can cart a bag with me to Little Rock. If we start questioning each other’s every decision now, it’s gonna be a long trip.”
He grinned, an honest-to-God happy grin. “Okay.”
His smile caught me off guard. “Well . . . okay. Let’s go then.”
I headed toward the passenger side door. Jed followed me and grabbed the door handle before I could reach it.
“I can open my own door, Jed,” I said, trying not to sound breathless. For some reason, he was affecting me more than usual. Maybe because I knew I’d be spending the next few hours within a couple of feet of him. Or maybe it was because we’d been at odds more often than not over the last month or two, but I had to admit that I was the one who’d made it that way. How would I handle being trapped in a car with him?
He took my bag from my hand, holding my gaze as he said, “I need you to know I’ll make sure nothing happens to you today.”
“Jed. You’re not responsible for what Merv did.”
He didn’t respond, just opened the door wider, leaving me to wonder—yet again—what was going on in his mind.
I knew Jed was attracted to me. He’d pretty much told me so a few months before, but Jed worked for Skeeter Malcolm. If I could ignore the fact that I wasn’t divorced yet, it would be absolutely insane for me to hook up with a guy who had his feet so firmly entrenched in the criminal world. Especially since I was trying so hard to escape my own past.
Jed was quiet as he pulled out onto the highway and headed north, not that his silence was unusual, but he seemed tense.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, turning to look at him.
“Fine.” But his tight grip on the steering wheel suggested otherwise. His scraped knuckles caught my attention.
I considered asking how he got them, but I didn’t want him to confirm my suspicions. I couldn’t afford to have someone fight my battles for me. The only person I could rely on was myself. My husband Ronnie had driven that point home. But that wasn’t entirely true. I could count on Rose, but I didn’t want her fighting my battles. Especially not this one.
I’d chosen Ronnie Colson because he’d seemed uncomplicated. Hardworking. Devoted. Trustworthy. Easy. But somehow, unbeknownst to me, he’d gotten mixed up in the crime world, something I’d only figured out after he disappeared.
I’d presumed Ronnie was dead—why else would the man who had acted like the sun rose and set on me disappear? But Joe had seen him boarding that bus in New Orleans, and he had the photographic evidence to prove it. That alone had kicked me in the teeth—worse, Ronnie had been with another woman. And he had been wearing a wedding ring on his hand. A ring I hadn’t given him.
If I couldn’t count on Ronnie Colson, no man was trustworthy. I’d do best to stay away from all of them, and from Jed in particular.
But after ten minutes, the silence started driving me batty.
I turned sideways in my seat. “What kind of music do you listen to?” I lifted my hands. “No. Wait. Don’t tell me. You’re a Dolly Parton guy.”
He turned and grinned, and I realized how much I liked his smiles.
That was a bad, bad thing. But I was stuck in this car with him for at least the next two hours. I could be a bitch out of self-preservation—which in all honesty was why we’d been at odds—or I could allow myself to enjoy these next couple of hours in a decent car with a handsome man. Fool that I was, I decided on the latter.
“Okay . . . no Dolly Parton. No. I would guess you’re not a country music guy. Am I right?”
He gave me a hesitant look, not that I could blame him. Lately I’d jumped down his throat every time we were near each other. “Correct.”
“Okay. Let me think . . . You’re a simple man . . . I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in anything other than jeans and T-shirts and Henleys . . . Oh, my stars and garters, please tell me you’re not into Nirvana.”
He laughed. “Do you want me to tell you?”
“Where’s the fun in that?” But I didn’t want to guess anymore either. That required me to think about what made Jed Carlisle tick, and I wasn’t ready to dig too much deeper beneath the surface. “How about we turn on the radio?”
“That works.”
We spent the rest of our time without conversation while I sang top twenty country songs and played the alphabet game in my head. But my good mood began to erode the closer we got to Little Rock. I was about to confront my half sister—without Joe’s support this time—and I suspected she would make mincemeat out of me.
I turned down the volume. “Skeeter suggested you would be an undocumented visitor. How will you manage that?”
“We’ve made a connection with a nurse. She’ll be there today to let us in.”
“Us?”
“After some discussion, we don’t think you should be on the record either. This way she can claim you were there with me, but if there’s no record of it, they can chalk it up to her lunacy.”
I nodded. “That’s a good idea.” I turned to him. “So the nurse in Skeeter’s pocket has been watching Kate?”
“Yeah. There haven’t been any unusual visitors, but the nurse says she thinks she has something, so we’ll have a chat with her before we go in to see Kate.” He paused, then added, “It sounds like Kate has someone on the inside too, but we’ve checked her bank accounts. We haven’t seen
any transfers.”
“Wasn’t her money frozen when her father’s estate and Joe’s money was frozen?”
“No. Joe’s personal money wasn’t frozen, just the estate’s, so neither was Kate’s. Maybe she was saving her monthly allowances or doing some creative investing. Either way, she has quite a bit of money, but she’s hidden it pretty well.”
“Not well enough, if you managed to find it.” When he didn’t answer, I asked, “Could money be coming from somewhere else?”
“Possibly. Or she might be offering something other than money.”
“Like what?”
“That’s what I’m hoping to find out.”
“Why didn’t you come talk to her before now?”
“She doesn’t know me from Adam. She’s far less likely to talk to me alone.”
“You think you’ll have a better chance because she’ll be distracted by tormenting me.” If they had someone on the inside watching her . . . “You knew she was sending me letters.”
“No, Neely Kate. I promise we didn’t.”
“Did you know she was sending out mail?”
“No. We suspected she was up to something, but we also think it’s bigger than you.”
I let that sink in. Bigger than me. Even my own personal nightmare was insignificant to the big picture.
Jed shot me a questioning glance, but in typical fashion, he didn’t press me.
The back of my head began to throb, so I grabbed my purse off the floor and pulled out a bottle of water and a bottle of ibuprofen.
Worry filled Jed’s eyes when he heard me shake out two tablets. “Are you feeling bad?”
“A small headache. I’ve had it all day. Just keepin’ it at bay.”
I expected him to comment, but he turned his attention forward, his eyes on the road. Still, he seemed tenser than before.
As he pulled into the parking lot, I realized I hadn’t worked out a plan to get the answers to my questions, but was there really any planning when it came to Kate? I’d be lucky to get anything out of her other than taunting and vague hints. But I also knew that Jed was going to hear whatever Kate told me. I shouldn’t care . . . yet I did.
When Jed parked, I reached into the back seat and grabbed my bag. I suspected this was where I’d be parting ways with Jed. He just didn’t know it yet.
“Why don’t you leave the bag in the car?” he asked.
“What would be the point of bringing it just to leave it in the car?” I asked, hauling it onto my lap.
“Exactly. What was the point of bringing it?”
I released a sound of frustration. “And what’s the point of wearing sexy T-shirts?”
“That’s twice now that you’ve mentioned my shirt,” he said with a satisfied grin.
“And that’s twice now that you’ve mentioned my bag. What’s your point?”
He just watched me with a cocky look, and I felt my resolve weaken.
Dang it. What was it about this man that got under my skin? I pushed the door open, my usual irritation around him resurfacing. “Let’s get this over with.”
I started toward the hospital entrance with Jed on my heels. I was getting hit with anxiety from all fronts—facing Kate, especially with Jed at my side, was worry number one. But after our visit, I needed to figure out how to ditch Jed and get to the bus stop. I’d mapped the route from a nearby bus stop to the Greyhound station. But on top of all that, I was beginning to worry about how Rose would react when she found the note. How would she take me leaving? Would it hurt her feelings? Would she try to find me?
One worry at a time.
Jed’s long legs helped him catch up to me in seconds. By the time we were in the hospital, he was leading the way. He even knew which floor to push on the elevator.
When we reached the psych floor, he pulled out his phone and sent a text. Then he ushered me down a hall and away from the entrance. Less than a minute later, a door opened and a young woman’s head popped out.
Jed saw her as soon as I did. He put his hand at the small of my back and hurried me through the door.
“Did you get it worked out?” Jed asked as the door shut behind us, enclosing us in a short hallway.
The woman smiled at him. “Yeah. I’m going to take you to the room before I bring her in.”
Jed nodded. “Did you find out anything about the letters?”
“Not specifically about the letters, but I think I know how she’s getting them out.”
Jed gave her a look that suggested she should go on.
“There’s an environmental services employee who started working this unit about a month ago.” She glanced up at Jed. “You said that was when mail started arriving from her?”
“Close enough. I’m going to need a name and any information you have on him.”
Her hand slipped into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. “Already done.”
She was pretty—a dark complexion with dark hair and eyes. I shouldn’t have been surprised by the look of appreciation that filled Jed’s eyes as he took the sheet and opened it, but jealousy burned through my veins anyway. I quickly stomped it down. Even if I was interested in Jed, I wasn’t stupid enough to think it would be more than a fling. Jealousy was . . . unwise, to say the least.
“Can we just get this over with?” Irritation seeped into my words.
Jed narrowed his eyes, but he folded the paper and stuffed it into his pocket. “Show us to the room.”
It was showtime.
Chapter 6
The nurse checked the door opposite the one we’d used to enter the small space, then motioned for us to follow.
We slipped out the door and into a longer hallway, moving away from the waiting room. She opened a door and motioned for us to go in. As soon as we did, she shut us inside, and I couldn’t help but feel trapped.
We were in an office. A desk sat in front of the window, and a wall of bookcases lined the wall to the left. Several diplomas lined the wall to the right. I took a closer look—Kristy Anne Tilton was a psychologist with a PhD from the University of Arkansas.
Jed motioned to the desk. “Take a seat.”
“Behind the desk?”
“We’re here for you.”
That wasn’t entirely true, but I supposed he wouldn’t be there without the excuse of accompanying me.
I tossed my bag behind the desk and had barely gotten settled in the chair when the door opened and Kate appeared. Just like the last time I’d seen her, she was wearing yoga pants and a fitted T-shirt. Her eyes widened when she saw us, and a rough laugh escaped her.
“This is a surprise, and those are so few and far between these days.”
Jed stood behind me as though he was my bodyguard. “Come in and have a seat, Kate.”
She looked amused by Jed’s command, but she walked in and let the door close behind her. Flopping down in one of the chairs across from the desk, she gave me a smirk. “Got yourself a new beau, Neely Kate?”
I kept my emotions hidden. “You wanted me here, so I’m here.”
“But not in the waiting room . . . I told you that we’re alike. Much more alike than you and Joe.”
I saw no reason to beat around the bush. “What do you know about Beasley?”
She laughed, a hysterical sound that bent her forward at the waist, making her look downright crazy. My back tensed as I waited for her to calm down. “Have you ever heard of small talk, sis?”
“I don’t see the point in making small talk about the weather. Especially since you only get to see it through a window.”
“Good one.” Her smirk spread. “How about girl talk? What do sisters normally chat about?”
“I have no idea,” I said, piercing her with my gaze. “I don’t have a sister.”
She covered her chest with her palm. “Ouch, Neely Kate, and here I thought we were bonding.”
“Bonding?” I spat in disgust. “This is not bonding. Sisters build a relationship based on love and trust. We have n
either.”
“We could have love, little sister,” she said, her eyes lighting up with excitement. “But you refuse to love me. I love you.”
“You don’t love me. I suspect you’re incapable of love, let alone unconditional love.”
Her mouth scrunched into a mock frown, but her eyes twinkled. “Poor, poor Neely Kate. You of all people should have learned that unconditional love doesn’t exist.”
“What do you know about Beasley?”
She flung her arm wide and rested it on the arm of the chair. “The real question is what do you know about Beasley.”
Banging my hand on the desk, I lifted my butt out of my chair as I leaned forward. “Enough with the circular talk. What the hell do you want?”
A triumphant grin spread across her face, and I knew I’d messed up.
“Glad to see you finally realized who’s in control here,” she said.
I sat down and stayed silent.
“Good girl,” Kate said as though I were a disobedient dog. She waited several seconds before speaking, no doubt to get her point across. “I have to hand it to you, Neely Kate. You were good at covering everything up, very good, but you misjudged Beasley.”
I tasted bile on my tongue.
“Go ahead and ask me, Neely Kate.”
“Ask you what?”
“Ask me how Beasley got out of jail.”
Beasley was out of jail? How? “What do you want, Kate?”
“I want you to be a better sister. I want you to visit me more often.” She glanced up at Jed and licked her upper lip. “Mmm . . . and bring him back with you.”
“You’re doin’ this because you want me to come visit?”
“And tell me about Joe. How’s he doing? I haven’t seen him since you both came together.”
“I’m not spying on Joe for you.”
“Spying? What are you talking about? He’s our brother. I want to hear about his life. Is he dating anyone?”
I shook my head in disgust.
“Is that a ‘no, he’s not dating anyone’?”
“How did you know about the azaleas?”
She leaned closer and tapped the desk with her index fingernail. “That was a tough one, I’ll give you that. And you have no idea how hard it was to get those flowers out of season.” She gave me a patronizing smile. “See what a good sister I am?”
Trailer Trash (Neely Kate Mystery Book 1) Page 4