by R. P. Dahlke
“Lalla, I laid awake most of last night thinking about us. I always knew you were a risk taker—hell, nobody would fly cropdusters if they weren’t. And it’s natural for a man to want to protect the woman he loves—”
My breath hitched in my throat. “You think—you think you still love me?”
“Of course I do, silly. I’m trying to explain, if you’ll let me. As I was saying, I keep trying and you keep resisting. Nothing’s going to change, just ’cause we’re getting hitched.”
“You know, you’re not exactly in any position to criticize. Your job could get you shot and killed.”
“Yes, yes, I know. The thing is, I figured I had a choice, we could go our separate ways, I could leave you to your life, or I can change my attitude. ’Cause it doesn’t look like you’re going to change yours.”
“But Caleb, I’m not some Stephanie Plum chasing bad guys. This is me, Lalla Bains.”
“Yes, and the name Lalla Bains in this town has become synonymous with a woman who solves crimes, so I might as well get used to it.”
“You think I should become a policewoman, or what?”
“After we’re married, you’ll have plenty of time to think about what you want to be when you grow up.”
“Pearlie’s suggested we get ourselves a PI license and open shop in Modesto. Me? A PI? Nah. That’s just too crazy. And, get this, she wants to call it ‘The Blonde Jobs.’ How silly is that?”
He slapped my bottom and said, “In the car and to the eye doctor, woman.”
Chapter Twenty-four:
Caleb and I drove out to the ranch in his pickup. We talked the whole way, laughed some, and held hands. When we walked into the kitchen, I was pleased to see Nancy and Jim sitting around our kitchen table with my family. My dad surprised me by standing up and hugging me.
Aunt Mae sniffled once or twice. “Did y’all eat? Okay, then how about coffee, or some ice tea?”
Caleb insisted I sit while he went to the cupboard for the mugs and poured us our coffee.
“That boy certainly does know his way around a kitchen, Lalla,” my Aunt Mae said as she admired Caleb’s rear end in his faded jeans. She saw me looking and laughed. “I’m old, not blind.”
I greeted Nancy and Jim.
“We came today,” Nancy said, “because your dad has something to give Jim.”
My dad held out a letter for me to read. “This was in the package you brought back from Burdell’s. After I told him about Arthur dying at our place he knew he’d done the wrong thing, so he enclosed the bribe money he’d accepted and put it in a hollowed out paperback. He said if something happened to him, I’d know his suspicions were right.”
“But I thought Jinx was the one who told Jack where Arthur was working.”
Jim said, “I told you he was always had two plans in play. He had Jinx in Fresno and Burdell in Sacramento. All of it was meant to keep us chasing our tails. And Jinx was the one who got Jack Carton to your party where he could easily kill Arthur.”
“Was it his plan to frame Nancy all along?”
“He had cased their home looking for the right opportunity, and picked up the spare syringe out of their medical supply kit thinking he’d use it somewhere. He’s a very weird guy. He likes phenol and planned to use it on both of them. But when the opportunity came up, he only managed to get to Arthur. So kidnapping Nancy later was the next best thing. But when that didn’t work out, he decided to start cutting his losses, which meant killing everyone who could identify him. He’s already rolled on the Las Vegas partners in exchange for some kind of leniency. God knows what kind of deal he’ll get for that.”
I looked at Nancy. “What will you do now?”
She smiled shyly. “Your Aunt Mae has offered me and Jim positions in her company. I’m going to keep her books, and Jim is going to be in charge of security for her ranch.”
“Jim,” I said, “that’s a pretty big change from the marshal’s service.” What I meant was, it was a huge step down from his position as a federal marshal.
He smiled. “It was a much easier decision than you can imagine. I lost my enthusiasm for my career when they could’ve helped keep Nancy safe but wouldn’t. Besides, I grew up on a cattle ranch in Florida, so this is an easy transition for me.”
“Okay, but Nancy will keep Aunt Mae’s books? Isn’t that what Pearlie does?”
My Aunt Mae reached up and poked at her wig with a fingernail. “I think I may be losing my best bookkeeper to Mad Dog. At least that’s what she shouted at me over the phone when I reminded her we were going home after the wedding.”
“Then your godfather’s Las Vegas partners will be convicted and you no longer have to be in WitSec?”
Jim took Nancy’s hand. “We’ve turned down their offer to take her into the program again. We’re going to be living under the radar out in East Texas, and I’ll be there to watch out for her.”
That’s when I thought of the photo I’d taken of Nancy the night of the attempted kidnapping. She was sound asleep, face down on my cot, looking as if she were dead. “Jim, I have a going-away gift for you and Nancy that I think will help you stay clear of any future problems.”
“Oh?”
“I’ll e-mail it to you today.”
My dad stood up, and hitching up his pants, said, “Shirley and I are gonna go look at some goats.”
“More goats?” I asked.
“I was going to get a nanny for Bruce, to keep him company. But Shirley is allergic to cow’s milk, and I need something to do with this place, so we’re going to start a goat farm and sell the milk products.”
At the look of shock on my face, he said, “Well, what else am I supposed to do with all this land? You’re getting married tomorrow, and Bains Aero Ag will be shut down, so why not?”
“Tomorrow’s the wedding.” I turned to Caleb. “Caleb?”
“If you’ll still have me,” he said, his easy smile lifting my spirits.
“I do,” I said, and meant it with all my heart.
THE END