Lily, wearing a black dress as beautiful as Nori’s, said, “You two are making me cry. It’s so good seeing you back together.”
Trent said, “She’s right. Tamar said you were out at Seminole Creek?”
Gary shook his head. There were no secrets in Henry Adams. “Yes.” And left it at that.
Lily said, “Oh Lord. Check this out.” They all turned to see Colleen walking in on the arm of Howie “It’s Howard now” Pratt. He had on a white tuxedo complete with tails. Colleen was dressed in a beautiful ruby-red gown.
Gary shook his head. “She’s in the market for a new husband. If Howie’s not careful, he may wind up as number three.”
Nori said, “They deserve each other. Prom night, I wound up punching him in the nuts because he couldn’t keep his hands to himself.”
Surprise showed on their faces.
“And on Friday night he tried to convince me I should come to his hotel room. Like maybe I was dumb enough to go anywhere with his drunk behind.”
Gary remembered seeing the drunk Howard having a conversation with her.
Howard and Colleen stopped at their table. Howard said, “Evening, everyone.”
They politely returned his greeting.
Colleen said, “Howie and I are dating.” She met Gary’s eyes and cuddled closer to Howie’s side. Gary didn’t care.
As if he hadn’t heard Colleen’s boast, Howie said, “Eleanor. Looking lovely as ever. Remind me to give you my card before you leave tomorrow. If you’re ever in Dallas, we could have dinner.”
Gary saw full-blown fury erupt on Colleen’s face.
Nori said, “Thanks for the offer but I won’t need your card.”
“But—”
Colleen practically dragged him off. “Hon, let’s find a seat.”
In their wake, Lily cracked, “Oh yes, they’re going to do real well together.”
Again, Gary didn’t care.
The rest of the night was great. They ate, danced, had an old-fashioned Soul Train line, exchanged phone numbers, addresses, and business cards. As he slow-danced with Nori to the last song of the evening, Gary didn’t want their time together to end. “I’m so glad you came,” he told her.
“So am I.”
He loved dancing with her again, the scent of her perfume and the idea that they’d thrown the dice on a second chance. “You want me to take you to the airport in the morning?”
“No.”
Surprised, he drew back so he could see her face in the dimmed lights. “Why not?”
“Because I may not get on the plane.”
He chuckled and eased them close again. “Is that such a bad thing?”
“Yes. I have to pick up my dog from the kennel tomorrow afternoon.”
“You have a dog?”
“Yes, a three-year-old Rottweiler mix named T’Challa. He’s grown so big he’s eating me out of house and home. I keep telling him he needs a job.”
“Can’t wait to meet him.”
They finished the rest of the song in silence. When it ended, the reunion was officially over. Lily walked up to the mic to offer a few parting remarks and she was thanked for her extraordinary organizational skills with a rousing round of applause and cheers. The group then spent a few more minutes saying their good-byes to each other with hugs, pecks on the cheek, and promises to stay in touch.
Gary drove Nori back to Trent and Lily’s and stayed to talk, reminisce, play cards, and bask in the force of nature that was Eleanor Christine Price. Around 2:00 a.m., Lily and Trent headed to bed and Nori walked Gary to the door. Holding her close, he said, “Text me when you get home so I’ll know you got there safely, okay?”
She gazed up at him. “Will do. I had a great time.”
“Ditto, and thanks for wanting to ride the Second Chance Train with me.”
“Ditto.”
Their grins met, they shared one more kiss, and Gary stepped out into the night.
The girls were asleep when he got home, but he looked in on them anyway because that’s what good dads do. As he went from Leah’s room to Tiffany’s he was overcome with how blessed he was having them in his life, and now Nori was with him, too. Entering his bedroom, he changed into his pajamas and got into bed. As his eyes closed, he smiled, content.
Chapter 13
At church on Sunday, everyone was buzzing about Mal’s encounter with Ruth’s brother. Although no one knew the true reason for the knockout punch, rumors were rife, everyone citing everything from his being caught with another woman to having helped himself to Ruth’s life savings. Moving through the crowded fellowship hall after the service, Bernadine tried to turn a deaf ear to all of it but found it difficult, because in a small town, gossip and drama were the main sources of entertainment, so she didn’t linger as she usually did and drove home.
The house was quiet. Tina had flown home yesterday morning and would be back soon, but Bernadine missed her presence. Going up to her room, she got out of her church clothes, put on a pair of soft comfortable sweats, and turned on the television. She was still miffed about her standoff with Reggie yesterday. Yes, he was a doctor protecting his patient, but she wasn’t accustomed to being denied; his citing her breakup with Mal as one of the reasons for his decision had been particularly irritating. Learning that Mal had been knocked out cold had filled her with concern. And now she had to decide if she should try to see him again. She didn’t want him or anyone else to think visiting him meant more than it did. And what did it mean? She wasn’t sure. In some ways, she felt like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Did she want to look behind the curtain for the truth? She was supposed to be strong, confident, tough. Mal had wronged her by taking up with another woman, and clinging to that as her defense salved her hurt and punished him, allowing her to step out of his life. Would she be undercutting her strength and betraying herself by admitting she was also punishing herself? Did acknowledging that as the answer behind the curtain make her appear weak, or worse, desperate? Would it appear as though she was willing to accept his failings in exchange for his love? She’d been having this inner debate since his return to town. Now that some of the heat had boiled off her anger and she could deal with the issue rationally, it was time to look behind the curtain and honestly confront the real answer waiting there.
Crystal stopped by to have dinner. She’d made new friends at school and when not working her shifts at the Dog had been spending her free time with them. Bernadine admitted to feeling neglected but would never be so selfish as to bring it up.
On the menu were shrimp tacos, something they both loved, and it added to Bernadine’s joy having her daughter all to herself.
“So, have you seen Mal since he got knocked out?” Crystal asked.
Bernadine hoped Crystal never lost her bluntness. “I tried yesterday, but Reg wouldn’t let me. He said Mal needed his rest.”
“Is he okay?”
“I think so. He’s recuperating over at Tamar’s. I may swing by tomorrow.”
“Between the hit lady and Mal, there’s been a whole lot of serious drama.”
“I know. How’s your new place working out?”
“I love it. I realized this is the first time I’ve ever lived alone. Has taken me a minute to get used to that, but I’m okay. Everybody keeps asking me if I know anything about the Millers, though.”
Bernadine could tell Crystal was fishing for information, so she replied, “FBI hasn’t shared anything, and they don’t plan to, so your friends will have to be in the dark with the rest of us.” No way was she going to share what she knew with Crystal. It would be all over the county as soon as Crys got in her car. “Have you heard from Eli?”
“Talked to him last night. He’s coming home for Thanksgiving. Says he’s homesick, which I found kind of surprising. He said it surprised him too, but he misses everybody.”
“Glad to hear he’s coming. I’m pretty sure Jack misses him, too.”
They spent a few minutes talking about how Eli was a
djusting to being back in California, where he and his dad lived before Eli moved to Henry Adams, and how he was doing living with Trent’s mom, Rita Lynn, and her cardiologist husband. “He likes them a lot. He’s working in Ms. Rita’s art gallery. He says they’re like really cool grandparents.”
Bernadine was glad to hear that.
Crystal said, “I was talking to Leah last night and she said Mr. Abbott is thinking about leaving?”
“Yes. The shooting has his parents worried, but according to Marie, he’s going to stay.”
“Good. Mr. James could use the help and Abbott’s really cute. All that dark chocolate. Yum.”
Bernadine chuckled. “Any chocolate in your life?”
“No. The guys I know are all looking for booty calls, and I am way too fabulous for that.”
“Good for you. Wait for somebody worthy.”
“That’s the plan.”
When it was time for Crystal to leave, Bernadine walked her to the door. They shared a parting hug. “I’ll see you soon,” Bernadine said.
“Yep. And you go see Mal and fix your life, Mom.”
Bernadine drew back. “What brought that on?”
“Just how sad you look.”
Bernadine’s lips tightened.
Crys kissed her cheek and said softly, “I’m just saying.” She added, “I love you.”
And she departed.
In her office on Monday morning, Bernadine made a follow-up call to the head of the community college’s culinary department about the coffee shop. He thought the idea of having the school temporarily take over the abandoned business would be a great opportunity for his students. Not only would they be given practical, hands-on experience by making the breads and pastries, they’d also receive college credits. He’d proposed contacting his counterpart at the business school to see if any of their students wanted to work the registers and take charge of the books and orders. She was on the phone with the dean of the business school when a woman knocked on her door. She was tall, dark-skinned, and wearing a gray business suit and heels. She had the air of an impatient Fortune 500 executive and appeared displeased to find Bernadine on the phone. Needing to finish her conversation with the dean and seeing as how the woman didn’t have an appointment, Bernadine gestured her to a seat, raised a finger to intimate she’d be with her in a minute, and finished up her conversation. Once she was done, she said to the woman, “Sorry, but I needed to finish that. May I help you?”
“Yes, I’m Janet Roxbury and I’m trying to locate my sister, Cynthia Hale.”
Bernadine took in the arrogant attitude and matching tone of voice and drew an instant dislike. “I don’t know anyone by that name.”
“You know her as Brenda Miller.”
Alarms went off in Bernadine’s head, but she kept her cool. “She and her husband left town.”
“Under what circumstances?”
“They were here one day and gone the next. I have no further information.”
“We both know they were moved here by the government.”
“Do we?” Bernadine surreptitiously pushed the small button on her desk to turn on the security camera. She wanted a record of the conversation and the woman’s face. “Ms. Roxbury, I have no other information. If you believe the government is involved, you might want to contact them.”
“I’d like to see where she and Sam were living. There might be a clue there.”
Bernadine had no intention of giving her anything, especially when she’d offered no verification as to her identity. “I can’t help you, Ms. Roxbury. If you’d like to leave your contact information—”
“No, I’ll keep looking.”
Bernadine found that telling. Sharing her contact info would be a no-brainer if Janet Roxbury was really who she claimed to be.
“Thanks for your help,” the woman tossed out sarcastically, and swept out.
Bernadine simply smiled. “You’re welcome.”
Bernadine quickly clicked on her laptop’s security app to view the parking lot. The camera kicked in just in time to see Roxbury entering a black SUV. A burly white guy dressed in black was behind the wheel. Bernadine grabbed a screen shot of him and the license plate. As the SUV exited the lot, she picked up her phone and called Kyle Dalton.
He called back an hour later and said his techs had run the plate and it came back as registered to a Honda hybrid belonging to an elderly retired postal clerk in Boise, Idaho. They were still trying to determine how it wound up on the SUV. As for Roxbury and her driver, their faces were being run through databases worldwide, but so far, no hits. She asked him, “So, should we be concerned here?” She had him on speaker so the rest of the people in her office— Trent, Lily, Luis, and Barrett—could hear the conversation.
“Not sure.”
“You’re not filling us with confidence, Agent Dalton,” Trent said.
“I know and I’m sorry. The woman you knew as Brenda Miller did have a sister, but she died at the age of fourteen. Once we find out who this Roxbury woman really is, we’ll be better able to assess the situation and offer advice. In the meantime, keep your eyes open. If any more strangers show up asking questions, call me right away.”
They assured him they would and Bernadine ended the call.
“So,” she asked her people. “What do you think?”
Barrett replied, “We do as Kyle suggested and keep our eyes open.”
Lily said, “And let’s hope the Bureau can figure out who this woman is before something ugly happens.”
Barrett said, “Should we alert the town about this?”
Luis replied, “I think we have to. Trent, what do you think?”
“I agree. The more eyes looking out the better. I also don’t want people thinking they’re in an innocent conversation with a stranger concerning the Millers that might not, in fact, be so innocent.”
Bernadine agreed. “I put in a call to Will, but Deputy Ransom said he left this morning for a conference in Boston. He’ll be back later in the week. I did let her know what happened and sent her the screen shots. She promised to let the sheriff know and asked to be kept in the loop. She’s going to call Kyle to make sure they are.”
Luis said, “Sounds like we have all the bases covered for now.”
Barrett added, “Keeping fingers crossed that it’s enough. I’m going to run a diagnostic on all the cameras. We’ll keep them running twenty-four/seven for the next thirty days. If anything jumps off it’ll probably be within that time frame.”
Bernadine was comforted by their plans but there were troubling uncertainties. They had no idea what might happen in the days ahead. She’d like to think Roxbury would move on and look for her alleged sister elsewhere, but she sensed they might not be that lucky.
An hour or so later, Gary Clark showed up at her office. “Hey there,” she said, “are you just stopping by on your way to see your buddies, or are you here to see me?”
“Here to see you, if you have a minute or two?”
“For you I have at least all day. Have a seat. What’s up?”
“I need a lawyer. My ex-wife wants custody of Leah and Tiffany. The girls and I were hoping you could recommend someone.”
She was surprised. Knowing Gary’s ex-wife hadn’t wanted the girls at all after the divorce, she wondered what had changed Colleen’s mind. “If you’re looking for a lawyer, I take it you aren’t down with the change. What about the girls?”
“They aren’t, either.”
“Then let me make a few calls. I know how much your girls mean to you and to their friends. My Bottom Women’s group has a slew of legal beagles on retainer for cases like this, and I’ll take care of the fees.”
“I can’t let you do that.”
“Sure you can. You save your money to send your girls to college. I have your back on this.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. Give me a call tonight after work, and I’ll have the name of someone you can speak with about your cas
e.”
He nodded. “Thank you, Bernadine.”
“You’re welcome. That’s how we roll here, you know.”
“I do, but it’s still surprising and humbling.” He smiled and got to his feet. “Well, that was easy. Guess I’ll get back to the store.”
“I’ll talk to you tonight.”
He left. She flicked on the intercom. “Hey, Lil?”
“Yeah?”
“What’s going on with Gary and his ex?”
“I’ll be there in a half a sec to tell you all about it.”
“Thanks.”
After hearing about Gary’s ex-wife, the reunion, and his rekindled love affair with his high school sweetheart, Bernadine bit the bullet and drove over to see Mal. Getting out of the car, she walked up the steps to the porch and knocked. Tamar answered, smiled, and stepped back to let her in.
“I’m assuming you’re here to see Mal?”
“I am, and please don’t say it’s about time.”
“Wasn’t going to say that, so drop your gloves, missy.”
Embarrassed, Bernadine apologized. “Sorry.”
“He’s in there.”
Bernadine went to the open door of the bedroom Tamar indicated and stood there a moment observing Mal. He was in bed with his eyes closed, and it surprised her how fragile he appeared with his two shiners and swollen nose. “Hey, Mal,” she called quietly.
His lids rose, and he looked her way. “Hey.”
“Wanted to come check on you.”
He wiped the sleep from his face. “Appreciate it. Not looking my best, but you’re welcome to come on in if you like.”
He sounded like a person plugged up with a bad cold. She guessed it was the broken nose. She took a seat in the rocker near the bed and set her handbag beside it. “How are you?”
“Been better. Head still hurts like crazy; nose, too. Reg said it will stop soon. Hope he’s right.”
“I won’t stay long. I know you need your rest.”
“What I need is to tell you how I ended up like this, and if I could get on my knees to apologize for the pain I caused you, I would.”
Silent, she held his bruised and regret-filled eyes and allowed herself to be touched by the sincerity he exuded. That allowance wasn’t a weakness. He’d hurt her on more levels than she ever thought anyone capable of doing since Leo, and it took strength to acknowledge that vulnerability, and to step out from behind the curtain anyway. “Tell me everything.”
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