by Carol Cox
Behind her, she saw Melvin McKinney locking the door behind one of the last customers. She had gotten there not a moment too soon!
Kate darted a surreptitious glance at the teller’s nameplate as she approached the counter.
“Hello, Georgia. I’m sorry for cutting it so near to closing time. I only need to make a deposit, though, so it won’t take long.” She pulled the check and deposit slip from her purse and slid them across the counter.
Georgia smiled and completed the transaction. “No problem, Mrs. Hanlon.”
“It’s always nice to see a cheerful face like yours at the end of the day,” Evelyn chimed from her perch on the high stool next to her sister.
Kate smiled her thanks and reached for the receipt Georgia handed her, trying not to show her excitement at the idea that just popped into her mind. The Cline twins were usually willing to talk about almost anything. Perhaps she could use that to her advantage now.
Taking the time to fold the slip of paper neatly in half before sliding it into her purse, she asked as casually as she could, “Do either of you know of a family who moved here recently? I don’t know their last name, but they have a teenage son. He’s very slender and seems to be a bit of a loner.”
The sisters blinked at each other, then turned back to Kate and shook their heads in unison. “That doesn’t ring a bell with me,” Georgia said.
“Me, either.” Evelyn scrunched up her lips. “Whereabouts do they live?”
Kate floundered, worried she had said too much. “I’m not sure. I don’t know much about them, actually. It’s just that I’ve met their son and...”
Evelyn bobbed her head as though Kate’s query made perfect sense. “And being the pastor’s wife, you want to welcome the newcomers to the community. If we hear anything about them, we’ll let you know.”
Kate drew in a grateful sigh. “That would be wonderful. I really would like to meet them.” She moved toward the exit, where Melvin McKinney was waiting.
“Thank you for your business, Mrs. Hanlon.” Ever the gentleman, he inclined his head in an old-fashioned bow, then turned the key in the lock with a flourish and opened the door wide.
Back outside, Kate hitched her purse strap up higher on her shoulder. With the last of her errands accomplished, she headed for the library.
Kate walked diagonally across the green and turned right on Main Street. The deep chime from the clock tower reminded her she had already taken far more time than she planned. If she didn’t hurry, she would be late for Paul’s game. Kate quickened her steps.
Was she being foolish for stopping to talk to Livvy now when they would see each other at the gym in only a short time? She tamped down her doubts and kept on walking. The gym was no place for a private discussion.
They wouldn’t have much time to hash things over before they headed to the gym, but she felt a deep need to discuss the situation with her friend in a less chaotic setting. Livvy, with her organized mind, had a way of unsnarling the most tangled situations, something Kate desperately needed at this point.
A rush of warm air greeted Kate when she pushed through the library door. She glanced around the first floor. A quick peek behind the door bearing the title Head Librarian showed her that Livvy wasn’t in her office, and Kate didn’t spot her anywhere among the shelves of the fiction collection. She decided Livvy must be upstairs and made her way up the stairs.
Sure enough, Kate found her on the second floor, helping a patron get set up on one of the library’s Internet computers.
Kate waggled her fingers to get her friend’s attention, then she fidgeted while she waited for Livvy to finish with the patron. She could only see the back of the young man’s head, but even from this angle he looked strangely familiar.
Curious, Kate studied him more closely: sandy hair and a scrawny frame...Her eyes widened when she recognized the boy she had just asked about at Betty’s and the bank.
Kate ducked inside one of the private meeting rooms, not wanting her presence to make him uncomfortable. She slipped off her coat and hung it on the back of the nearest chair. A moment later, Livvy joined her.
“It’s good to see you!” she exclaimed, giving Kate a quick hug. “I missed two days of work trying to fight off that cold, and I’ve been scrambling to catch up ever since. I can’t believe we haven’t had a chance to talk this week.”
“I’ve missed you too.” Kate stared out through the doorway. “That boy, Livvy. The one you were helping on the computer. Who is he?”
Livvy shrugged. “I really don’t know much about him. He hasn’t been around town long. He stops in occasionally to use the computer, but he doesn’t talk much. Why?”
Kate shrugged. “Just being nosy, I guess. It really doesn’t matter.”
She hadn’t lost her desire to learn more about the teenager, but that would have to wait until she had more time to satisfy her curiosity. At the moment, she had other priorities.
“I can’t stay long, but I wanted to talk some more about what happened at the diner. Do you have a few minutes?”
Without hesitation, Livvy closed the meeting-room door. Her hazel eyes took on a sympathetic gleam, and she rested her hand on Kate’s arm.
“Are you doing okay?”
Kate started to shake her head, then nodded, unable to speak for the sudden tightening in her throat. She swallowed hard, then continued.
“It’s so frustrating! People are talking about me all over town, and you wouldn’t believe the stories they’re telling. I’m worried about losing the ground we’ve gained here. We’ve worked so hard, and now to watch it all slip away...”
“Don’t go jumping to conclusions, Kate Hanlon.” Livvy tilted her head and took on the stern expression Kate thought of as her “librarian look.”
“You’ve never been a quitter as long as I’ve known you, and this is no time to start. There’s an answer to all this; we just have to find out what it is.”
Livvy leaned against the long table in the center of the room and folded her arms, as if she had all the time in the world to listen. “Start at the beginning and tell me what you know.”
Kate related the events of the previous week, starting with LuAnne’s late-night call. Her voice cracked when she got to the part about going to the sheriff’s office to pick up her wallet.
“He had Skip fingerprint me, Livvy. Like some kind of criminal. Can you believe it?” The stunned expression on Livvy’s face was balm to her wounded feelings.
“People were already acting funny while we were helping clean up at the diner that night. But since the news article came out...”
She took the tissue Livvy pressed into her hand and dabbed at her eyes.
“I’m sorry. The last thing I want to do right now is fall apart. What I really need is to find out the truth so I can put this whole nightmare behind me.”
“You’re absolutely right.” Livvy’s brisk tone was like a refreshing breeze, sweeping away the cobwebs of self-pity. “So let’s figure this out. How do you think your wallet got inside that Mustang?”
Kate shook off the despair that question always brought. This was no time to wallow in confusion; this was the time to go on the offensive. She tossed the tissue into the wastebasket and squared her shoulders.
“I’ve asked myself the same question over and over, and I have no idea. None at all.”
“All right.” Livvy tapped one finger against her cheek. “Let’s go back over what you did that Wednesday. Do you remember where you were and who you were with?”
Kate nodded. She had gone over those details so many times, they rolled off her tongue almost without having to think about them.
“I worked in my studio all morning and ran errands most of the afternoon. First, I stopped by the Mercantile to pick up a few things for supper. Then I had my nails done at Betty’s.”
Livvy nodded. “So far, so good. What else?”
“I checked in at Smith Street Gifts to see if any of my pieces had sold. They had
n’t,” she added, crinkling her nose.
Livvy’s eyes twinkled. “You can forget about making a bid for my sympathy. You’re a wonder with stained glass, and you know it. Now get back on track. Did you do anything else in town that day?”
“I stopped here. That was the day we were talking about the herb garden I want to put in this spring. You suggested a couple of books, remember?”
Livvy nodded. “What did you do then?”
“I went home.” Kate spread her hands wide, feeling as helpless as she did every time she went over her activities that fateful day.
“I fixed supper and then went to choir practice. When I got back, Paul wanted to tell me about some new strategy he and Danny were working on for the next game. We went to bed around ten, and the next thing I knew, the phone started ringing and kicked this whole crazy melodrama into motion.”
Livvy trailed her forefinger along the edge of the table. “So, when did your wallet go missing?”
“That’s the big question, isn’t it? I have absolutely no idea.”
Livvy stirred uneasily. “I hate to think of anything like this, but is it possible you and Paul had a break-in and didn’t realize it? Maybe the wallet was missing before you ever left the house.”
Kate shook her head. “I had my purse with me the whole time I was in town. That’s what makes this whole thing seem so impossible. It simply couldn’t have happened. But it did.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “All I can think is that someone stole the wallet right from under my nose, but that isn’t exactly a comforting thought.”
“No...” Livvy drew the word out slowly. “And I can’t imagine it happening in any of those places. Betty’s Beauty Parlor? Sam Gorman’s Mercantile? Smith Street Gifts?”
She looked over her shoulder in a melodramatic fashion and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Or how about right here at the Copper Mill Public Library, a well-known haunt for sneak thieves?”
Kate couldn’t help laughing at her friend’s antics. “All right, point taken. But that just leaves us back where we started.”
“Not necessarily. Why don’t we look on the bright side? Let’s say your wallet slipped out of your purse after you left here. Someone found it and planned to be a good Samaritan and return it to you.”
Kate shook her head. “And that same someone drove Roland Myers’ car through Loretta’s diner and then left the scene? That doesn’t seem very good Samaritan-like, does it?”
“You have a point.” Livvy sighed and looked at the clock on the wall. “Why don’t we keep talking while I get my purse and lock my office? Then I’ll follow you over to the gym.”
Kate glanced at her watch and flinched when she realized how much time had slipped away. Paul’s game was about to begin!
She snatched up her coat. “Thanks, but I’ve got to run. I promised Paul I’d be there for the start of the game. He’ll be wondering where I am. I’ll go on ahead and save you a seat.”
She had one arm in her coat sleeve and was reaching for the other when her cell phone started ringing. Kate dug it out of her purse and glanced at the Caller ID. “It’s Paul.”
Livvy grinned, shook her finger in a shame-on-you gesture, and mouthed, “Busted.”
Kate wrinkled her nose at her friend and scooped the phone from its pocket on one side of her purse. Feeling like a schoolgirl caught playing hooky, she pressed the button to receive the call, an apology forming on her lips.
“Hi, honey. I know I’m late, and I’m sorry. I’ll be there in—”
“Kate?”
She frowned at the unexpected voice. “Hello? Who is this?”
“It’s Danny Jenner. Paul told me to use his phone to call you.”
Kate tucked the phone between her shoulder and her ear while she shoved her other arm into her coat sleeve. “Would you please tell him I’m sorry to be late? I’m on my way to the gym right—”
“Paul’s been hurt. They’ve called an ambulance.”
Kate pressed her hand to her chest and dropped into the nearest chair. “What’s wrong? How did it happen?”
Livvy hurried over and knelt by her side. “What is it?”
“It’s Danny,” Kate whispered. “He says Paul is hurt.” She tuned back in to what Danny was saying.
“—going up for a rebound during warm-up and got tangled up with Jeff Turner. He must have come down on it at a bad angle. I don’t think it’s too serious, but they didn’t want to take any chances.”
Kate had to force herself to breathe. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”
“The ambulance is getting ready to pull out right now. That’s why Paul wanted me to call you. You might as well head straight to Pine Ridge and meet them at the hospital.”
Chapter Eleven
Kate rushed into the emergency-room entrance of the squat brick hospital. Guilt threatened to choke her like a hand around her throat.
Why hadn’t she gone to the gym with Paul? Bad enough to be running so late in the first place, but not to be there when he was injured? Unthinkable.
The dark-haired secretary at the desk looked up and gave her a compassionate smile. “May I help you?”
“Paul Hanlon. They brought him in by ambulance just a little while ago. May I see him?”
“And you are...?”
“His wife.”
The secretary summoned a nurse who smiled and gestured toward the large double doors. “Come on back. I’ll take you to him.”
Kate followed her down a short corridor that ended in a series of cubicles. The nurse stopped at the last one and pushed back the curtain.
The sight of Paul lying on the narrow bed, his face nearly as pale as the crisp white sheets, proved to be her undoing. Kate rushed to his side and took his hand, trying to fight back her tears.
This was no time to fall apart, she admonished herself. He needed support, not a weepy wife.
“Hi, honey. I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” The words came out calmly enough, but remorse wrenched at her heart.
I wasn’t there. The phrase echoed through her mind. He had supported her at every turn, and she wasn’t there when he needed her.
Paul gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. “I learned something tonight. I’m not Superman.”
Kate smiled at his attempt to make light of the situation, but she could see the pain that shadowed his eyes.
“Have they given you any medication?”
He shook his head. “Not until they find out whether I’ll need surgery.”
Kate brushed his hair away from his eyes, smoothing the salt-and-pepper strands back over his forehead. A blue plastic chair sat in the corner of the cubicle, and Kate pulled it closer to the bed. She settled into it, prepared for a long wait.
To her surprise, a woman in pale blue scrubs stepped into the cubicle almost immediately.
“Mr. Hanlon?” She consulted the chart in her hand. “Sorry. Reverend Hanlon. They’re ready for you in X-ray.” She unlocked the brake on the wheels of the bed and rolled it into the corridor.
Kate dropped a kiss on his forehead and turned to the nurse. “I’ll be out in the waiting room.”
Giving Paul’s hand another squeeze, she fled to the sanctuary of the waiting room, glad she didn’t have to spend one more minute confined in that cramped space.
A sea of concerned faces greeted her as she burst through the double doors into the waiting room. A dozen voices spoke at once.
“How’s Pastor Paul?”
“Is his ankle broken?”
“Is he going to be all right?”
Kate skidded to a halt and took in the sight before her. The waiting room was packed with people, many of them wearing jackets over basketball jerseys, and all of them looking her way.
Pastor Bobby Evans from First Baptist walked up and took her by the hand. “We decided to postpone the game. It just didn’t seem right to go on playing, knowing Paul’s hurt. When I announced it and said I’d be coming over here, both teams wanted to come too.”
He glanced around at the crowd and grinned. “Looks like most of the fans came along as well.”
Kate looked at the faces, some from Faith Briar, others she recognized from First Baptist, Copper Mill Presbyterian, and St. Lucy’s Episcopal, all of them showing genuine concern. Tears stung her eyes, and her vision misted.
“Thank you all for coming,” she managed to say before her voice broke. How could she have felt alone when so many compassionate hearts existed in Copper Mill?
Danny Jenner stepped forward and ran his fingers through his dark, curly hair. “We want Paul to know we’ll be here for him. And you,” he added with a warm smile.
“Would you like us to stay and keep you company?” Pastor Bobby asked. “Not all of us, though.” He surveyed the group and chuckled. “I get the feeling the secretary would be much happier if the waiting-room crowd thinned out a bit.”
Kate swallowed hard before she could speak. “I’ll be fine, but thank you.”
She raised her voice so the whole gathering could hear. “Thank you so much for coming. I know it will mean as much to Paul as it does to me. They just took him back to X-ray, but we’ll keep you posted when we know what’s going on. In the meantime, please keep Paul in your prayers.”
“Why don’t we do that right now?” Pastor Bobby signaled the group to join hands and form a circle, then he led them in a prayer for Paul’s quick recovery and strength for Kate during this time.
After the “Amen,” Kate watched the well-wishers disperse, for once grateful for the speed and efficiency of the small-town grapevine.
When the last visitor had straggled out to the parking lot, Kate turned back to the waiting room. She wiggled her fingers at the secretary, who looked relieved at the mass departure.
A security guard walked in and took up a post along the wall nearest the door. Kate smiled at him, glad the secretary hadn’t felt it necessary to call upon him to help their visitors on their way.