Not This Time

by Vicki Hinze

  Without it, she didn’t just fear for her business. She feared for her life.

  “It’s no wonder Clyde left this land. It’s a snake pit.”

  Sitting behind Nora under the white tent top, Beth heard Nathara’s comment and inwardly groaned.

  Nora patted her twin’s knee. “You should feel right at home, then, dearie.”

  She was sad but still Nora, and not a soul sputtered. Peggy winked at Beth. Sara stared at Clyde’s coffin, her stony expression unchanged. Where was her mind?

  Everyone from Crossroads was there—Mark and Lisa, Harvey and Roxy, Ben and Kelly, and Mel. Miranda Kent, the columnist, and the prayer warriors were manning the phones at the center.

  Reverend Brown performed the service, and Beth learned a lot about Clyde Parker she hadn’t known. Wasn’t that just a shame? Someone she thought she knew well, she knew so little. Learn from that.

  He’d been a vet, won a Purple Heart. Married his wife when they were teenagers, and he’d buried her and all three of their sons. Beth could only imagine that kind of pain.

  The bugler played “Taps.”

  Nora accepted the flag offered by a soldier in uniform. “… on behalf of a grateful nation …”

  Nora stiffened.

  Nathara sighed.

  Tears flowed freely down Kelly Walker’s face. She’d become a daughter to Clyde. Seeing raw pain in her got to Beth. She sniffled, swatted at her nose with a tissue.

  Clyde’s coffin was lowered into the ground. Nora, supported by Kelly and Ben, dropped in the first handful of dirt. Rose petals were mixed with it. Annie, Lisa, and Mark followed. Then one by one, the others paid their last respects.

  Nathara didn’t leave her seat. Neither did Darla Green or Tack Grady.

  Not sure what to make of that, Beth shot a glance at Jeff, who was looking at Mark. They too had noticed. It meant something to them; that was obvious. But what escaped Beth.

  She swiveled her gaze to the rusty tin shed. Nathara was cold. But Darla and Tack? Their reasons could be personal, but Beth doubted it. Clyde was a good man who hadn’t held a grudge his whole life. Even Race Miller, who had foreclosed on Clyde’s property in Magnolia Branch, stood red-eyed, paying his respects.

  That sense of dread and doom at the river washed through Beth again.

  Something significant had just been revealed.

  Something that carried steep consequences.

  But what? And to whom?

  11

  Wednesday came and went.

  No news. Nothing remarkable.

  At eight o’clock on Thursday morning, more than forty-eight hours after the drop, the money still floated in the river with no retrieval attempts. The pay phone still sat silent with no incoming calls. And there had been no further contact from the kidnappers. Robert’s disposition and location remained unknown. Sara hung on by a thread so thin that Beth put Harvey Talbot and Dr. Franklin on speed dial, and Beth wasn’t feeling far behind her.

  Haggard but freshly showered, Jeff showed up at Sara’s breakfast table with a bit of news. “While you were in the hospital,” he nodded, thanking Maria for the cup of coffee she placed near him, “we sent a sample of Robert’s hair from his brush in for DNA tests.”

  “Why?”

  “To cross-check against the blood found in the rental car.” Jeff gave her a second to absorb. “The results are in. They matched.”

  Sara twisted her pearls. “We expected that, what with his wedding band in there and the ransom demand.”

  “Yes, we did.” Jeff agreed. “But now it’s confirmed as fact.”

  Maria flipped pancakes at the stove. Why did she seem so nervous? And why wouldn’t she meet Beth’s eyes? Strange. In the three years she’d been with Sara, they had been close.

  “Sometimes we have to slow down to prove what we already know. Speculation is risky, and we can’t afford unnecessary mistakes.”

  Sara set down her teacup. “No, we can’t.”

  Beth sensed Jeff building up to more news. “So what now? Do we just keep waiting for them to make contact?”

  “We don’t have any choice.” He sipped from his cup. “They’ve got Robert and they could be anywhere now. We’re investigating all the usual—transportation, credit card purchases—but the possibilities are limited and limitless.”

  Shaking, Sara nicked her cup. It scraped against its saucer. “Can’t we do something? It’s taking way too long.”

  Jeff didn’t say anything.

  What could he say? They were doing what they could do. “Listen.” Beth shifted on her seat. “We’ve kept this low key and out of the press. Maybe it’s time to change that.”

  Sara frowned. “We agreed it was safest not to bring in the media. If NINA’s connected, they could want to push their ideology. That’s the last thing we want.”

  “We did agree, but things have changed.” Beth waited for Maria to set a platter of pancakes on the table. “Then, they were going to fish the money from the river and call with Robert’s location, but it’s been two days and that hasn’t happened. They’ve had two nights. If they were going to retrieve it, they would have by now.” There. She’d finally said what they’d all been thinking and hadn’t wanted to be the first to say.

  In her mind, the visions had played out. In the dead of night, guys wearing diving suits, slipping into the river and away with the money while agents watched from the bank and saw nothing. But that’s not what happened. Nothing happened.

  “Something scared them off, or happened on their end—I don’t know what, but it’s clear they’re not picking up the money.” When Beth had talked to Nora yesterday, she’d agreed that it was time to force them to act. Her honed instincts were sharper, and she had the emotional objectivity Beth lacked.

  “We don’t know that.” Sara stabbed a pancake.

  “The odds are with Beth, Sara. The money’s in the Gulf and they haven’t moved.” Jeff thumbed the rim of his coffee cup, watched the steam rise from it. “Historically, the more time that passes, the less the odds of a safe return.” Regret laced his voice.

  Tears welled in Sara’s eyes. She set down her fork.

  “That proves we need a game-changer.”

  “This is my husband’s life, Beth. Not a game.”

  “We can’t just wait and let the odds stack up against him. We need to act.”

  Sara dragged a hand over her hair, clasped in a barrette at her nape. “What can we do that isn’t already being done?”

  Beth had mulled over that very question with Joe on the phone just after dawn. No matter what scenario they spun out, being stuck on terminal hold was worse. “We can hold a press conference and appeal for Robert’s safe return.” Beth lifted a hand. “You know whoever abducted him is monitoring the news. Maybe someone’s seen Robert and will call in.”

  “He is high profile,” Jeff said. “The kidnapper knows that. He’s probably secured at a remote location.”

  “So it’s a long shot.” Beth shrugged. Nora and Joe agreed, yet they also agreed with Beth’s suggestion, which hopefully Sara and Jeff would too. “But, Sara, you two have been plastered on society pages for a year—you’re celebrities. That might be beneficial now.”

  “Robert’s the celebrity,” Sara said around a bite of fresh raspberries. “I’ve participated because he insisted.” She glanced at Jeff without apology or emotion. “I’m a recluse—well, almost. I don’t like to socialize.”

  “Why didn’t you tell him no?” Jeff asked.

  Maria coughed. Beth looked over and Maria turned away. Something was up there.

  “Why doesn’t any wife or husband just say no? I wanted peace in my home.”

  A sad empathy lit his eyes. Jeff glanced to Beth. “Celebrity status means we’ll get ten times the usual crank calls—and that’s a lot.”

  “So if not this, then what do we do?” Beth asked. “Last I checked, no problems resolved by solutions appearing out of thin air. We didn’t build SaBe that way.”

&
nbsp; “No, we did the seek-and-you-will-find method,” Sara admitted. “You’ve been thinking about this for awhile. Did you run it by our secret weapon?”

  “What’s your secret weapon?” Jeff asked.

  “Sorry.” Beth wrinkled her nose. “Secret means secret.”

  “So did you?” Sara snatched more raspberries, then spooned yogurt over them.

  “Earlier, yes.”

  “Update and ask for suggestions.” Sara shoved at the berries with her spoon. “We’re too close and this is too gnarly. We need a fresh perspective and I trust her judgment.”

  “Your secret weapon is a woman?” Jeff asked.

  “I’m on it.” Beth stepped away from the table, snagged Maria, and pulled her into the butler’s pantry. “What’s up with you?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Maria, I know something’s worrying you. What is it?”

  She compressed her lips, refused to speak.

  “Do you think I did this to Robert?”

  “Did you?”

  “No. Did you?”

  “No, but I wanted to.”

  “Why?”

  “He—he’s not nice to Sara.”

  No news there. “How not nice wasn’t he?”

  “I don’t know. But she hasn’t been happy with him for a long time, Beth.”

  That was news. “Was he … mean to her?” No way could she make herself be any more specific than that.

  “I never saw him do or say anything mean,” Maria said, but she didn’t look at Beth when she said it.

  “You suspect he was mean to her.”

  “I only know she wasn’t happy, and she should be happy.”

  Beth digested that. “Do you know anything you’re not sharing that could help?”

  “No.”

  “Then why are you acting so distant? You’ve never been that way with me.”

  She dipped her chin. “I feel guilty.”

  “Why?”

  Maria forced herself to meet Beth’s gaze. “Because I’m glad he’s gone and I hope he never comes back.”

  Beth wished she didn’t feel the same way. She squeezed Maria’s arm lightly and let her empathy show in her eyes. “I understand.”

  “You’d better make your call. I don’t want Sara upset anymore. She’ll know we’re talking about her.”

  Beth grabbed her cell and dialed, walking back to within Sara’s line of vision. When Nora answered, Beth filled her in on the latest and ended with, “Sara asked for your advice.”

  Sara sat staring at her. Beth backed against the kitchen counter and listened, but Jeff’s expression was most telling. Stunned.

  “Have some berries and pancakes.” Sara shoved an empty bowl his way. “This could take a minute. They get into details, which is probably why the advice is so good.”

  “No thanks.” Jeff sipped at his coffee. “I’m a little … well, surprised.”

  “About what?” Sara dabbed at the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

  He shrugged. “You two are megabusinesswomen.”

  “Ah.” She set her napkin back in her lap. “So we shouldn’t need or seek advice—especially not from older or wiser ones who’ve successfully negotiated business trenches longer than we’ve been alive?” She smiled. “Jeff, our mentor is a business genius. It’s in her genes. She’s also a good and honest woman willing to share her wisdom with us. We’re good at computers and software, but business is a mean maze.”

  “You’re both so smart.”

  “Smart enough to know there’s way too much we don’t know, and far too smart not to seek help when it’s there for the asking. We have no illusions about our strengths and weaknesses.”

  “But—”

  “Look,” Sara interrupted him. “We created some dynamite software. We hired some very sharp lawyers to create really good licensing agreements, but we’re not the brightest business brains on the block. We’re just good enough to seek advice, hire smart people, and trust trustworthy people. We deal straight, do business with people who deal straight, and we’ve been blessed.”

  “You’ve made a lot of money.”

  “A whole lot of money—because we know our limitations.”

  He took that in and swallowed another sip of coffee before responding. “That’s why having faith in people is so important to Beth.”

  “No, that’s a God-thing. How do you love one another if you lack faith in one another? But it is why knowing we should have faith in people is important to us both. We’ve experienced its value firsthand.”

  “I haven’t had that experience, but I learned a hard lesson on it from Darla Green.” Jeff flushed, obviously speaking before thinking and wishing he hadn’t. He looked away.

  “Don’t beat yourself up about Darla. We experience what we experience for reasons.” Sara waited until Jeff looked back at her. “Here’s the thing. Lessons about faith can come at any time from any direction. So one day you didn’t know you couldn’t trust her, and a different day you do know it. Knowing the truth is good, right?”

  “I guess. But if I’d known earlier, then John might be alive.”

  “He wouldn’t. When it’s time, it’s time.”

  “So you think Darla killed him too?”

  “Beth doesn’t.”

  Jeff sent her a level look. “Darla killed John Green, Sara. I know it.”

  “I think so too, but I don’t know it. Until I do, I’ll believe the best.”

  “Why? She’s dangerous. She could be with NINA.”

  “Or not, and then she’d be falsely accused. Believing the worst is easiest but cowardly.” Sara covered his hand on the table and gently squeezed. “I know you’re no coward, Jeff. Thinking the worst carries no risk of being disappointed. Who needs faith to think the worst?”

  “I see what you mean, but she is guilty, so be prepared for the fall.”

  Sara smiled, bittersweet. “You’re a good man. It’s nice to be around a good man.”

  That snagged Beth’s ear and she nearly dropped the phone. “Nora, hold on a second.”

  “ ’Course, dearie.”

  Beth focused on Jeff and Sara. There were sparks between them. Good sparks. The I’m interested in you kind of sparks. What was going on here? Sara might be upset with Robert, but even if she hated him, she wouldn’t cheat—and he’d been kidnapped.

  So many weird actions and reactions, Sara was making Beth dizzy. Everything was upside down.

  Jeff smiled at Sara. It touched his eyes. “I could say I shouldn’t have brought it up. It wasn’t professional. But I can’t regret it when good came from it. Instead I’ll apologize for the professionalism lapse.”

  “No,” Sara said. “You are a professional—a very good one. There’s nothing wrong with letting people see that you’re human. It’s reassuring, and I’m ashamed to admit how badly I need reassurance right now.”

  “I’m sorry for all you’re going through, Sara.”

  “Me too.” A sad smile touched her lips, shone in her eyes. “Thank you for caring.”

  Beth glanced at Maria. Tears were in her eyes. Tender, happy tears. She approved of what was happening between Sara and Jeff? Had she forgotten Sara was married?

  No way. She and Robert were oil and water too. “Maria?”

  She turned and fled the kitchen.

  “Beth?” Nora said through the phone. “You there, girl?”

  “I’m here. Sorry to keep you holding so long, Nora.”

  “Did you need anything else, dearie? I’ve got to go. Nathara is harping at Kelly about Clyde not really being her family. If you find her bound and gagged, I did it. Have my boys come bail me out.”

  Beth half hoped she’d do it, then shamed herself for it. “I’ll bail you out myself. Thanks for the help.” Beth hung up the phone, snagged the coffeepot, and refilled her cup at the table. “Our secret weapon says this is war.”

  Sara set her napkin on the table. “Empty the arsenal?”

  Beth nodded and they shared a lo
ok they had shared before. “Full assault.”

  “All right, then,” Sara said. “Jeff, any better ideas?”

  “No. I can’t see other options.”

  Now he was thinking. “We have to flush them out. Make them want to talk to us.”

  “It’ll be a frenzy,” Jeff warned Sara. “You up for that medically?”

  It would be frantic. On arrival in the village, Robert had jumped into the social world with both feet, and because he was married to Sara, locals welcomed him with open arms. The media would be relentless.

  “Absolutely,” Sara said with a conviction that surprised Beth.

  Jeff nodded and scooted his chair back from the table. “I’ll arrange it.”

  “I’m sure Peggy and the Crossroads folks will help field the calls.”

  “Counting on that.” He looked at Sara. “Will Beth be speaking for you?”

  “No, I’ll do it myself. It’ll be more effective, the frantic wife and all that.”

  That comment shocked Beth, and it must have showed.

  “You know what I mean, Beth.” Sara lifted a more determined gaze than Beth had ever before seen on her face. “Set it up for noon, Jeff.” Sara refilled her cup from the teapot. “We’ll catch the lunch crowd.”

  “That might be kind of tight for the networks,” Beth said. Who is this woman? She seems nothing like Sara.

  “They’ll get it before the evening news. That’s most significant.” Sara stopped pouring, the pot in hand, spout above her cup. “Tell me this is caffeine-free Earl Grey.”

  “It’s unleaded,” Beth assured her. “Drink at will.”

  12

  Sara handled the press conference like a pro.

  She pleaded earnestly, shed the requisite tears to capture the attention of even the hardhearted, and eloquently conveyed her fear for her husband that made it all too easy for any wife watching to imagine herself in Sara’s shoes—at least, that’s what Mark Taylor whispered to Ben, Roxy, and Jeff, and Beth pretended not to overhear.

  Later that night, Mark proved accurate. The story had played over and again on the local news and was picked up by the networks, and the coverage had been constant on all the cable news channels. Sara’s phone rang nonstop, and at ten thirty that night, Beth insisted Sara stop answering it, take Dr. Franklin’s pills, and go to bed. Beth unplugged the bedroom phone and set it on the kitchen counter. For once, Sara hadn’t complained about being handled.