Mason walked out the front door. He cleared his throat. “The police said the suspect escaped out the back window, which is how they think he got in.”
My stomach rolled. “That window’s seen a lot of action, huh?” I joked.
Joe didn’t look at me.
“They haven’t found the attacker yet, but they’re bringing Skeeter Malcolm down to police headquarters to question him.”
Skeeter’s name reminded me of Miss Eloise’s information. “Wait. I didn’t get a chance to tell you. I found out that Malcolm’s family had a pin like the one found at Frank Mitchell’s murder scene.”
Joe took two steps back. “Will you let it go, Rose? You are not qualified nor trained to do this. You’ve put yourself in danger, unnecessary danger, as evidenced here tonight.”
While I couldn’t argue with him, the anger in his voice strangled my heart. “I didn’t…” My voice broke as I tried to ignore the pain from Joe’s outburst. “I didn’t do anything dangerous to find that out.” I looked into Mason’s sympathetic eyes. “When I was at the Garden Club meeting, Miss Eloise was wearing an identical one and I asked her where she got it. It was her grandmother’s. She and three friends had them to symbolize their friendship. Miss Eloise didn’t know what they meant, but she knew that one had been in the Malcolm family, another in the White family and the fourth she wasn’t sure about.”
“That’s good, Rose. Thank you. I’ll pass it along, but the police will want to question you about it too.”
“I’m going to talk to Taylor.” Joe bounded off the porch.
I watched him walk away, trying to stuff down my hurt. “They want to question me? I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“No one thinks you did anything wrong. They need a statement about what happened.”
“I want a lawyer. I want to call Deanna.”
Mason squatted next to me, his face level with mine. “Rose, I assure you that you don’t need an attorney. If you like, I’ll sit with you during questioning, and if there’s anything I don’t think you should answer, I’ll let you know.”
“But won’t you be the one prosecutin’ me?” I was getting hysterical, but I couldn’t stop myself. Joe was leaving me.
Mason turned to watch Joe. “He’s coming back. He just needs to feel like he’s doin’ something.”
I didn’t want to be alone. I was more scared than I thought, but what scared me most was the thought that Joe had had enough of my shenanigans and wouldn’t come back.
Mason sat in the chair beside me and put his hand on my knee. “Do you remember when you were picked for the jury? You went through voir dire, right?”
I tried to settle down. Crying wouldn’t solve anything and it sure wouldn’t bring Joe back. “Judge McClary wasn’t very happy.”
Mason laughed. “That’s an understatement. I can’t prosecute you because I couldn’t be partial. Someone else would have to do it. But I promise you, you are not a suspect.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll find who did this.” His voice faded and his mouth stretched as if he was in pain.
There was more to his look than just worry about me. “You told me that you’re an assistant DA because you want to protect people. Did something bad happen to someone you care about? Is that why it’s important to you?”
He nodded, looking straight ahead.
“Who was it?”
A grim smile lifted one corner of his mouth. “My sister.”
“Was she okay?”
His face hardened. “No.”
“Did you find who did it?”
He turned to look at me, his eyes dark and brooding. “Yes.”
Mason sat with me until Joe returned several minutes later then he got up and walked away. I expected Joe to get angry that Mason had sat next to me again, but instead Joe sighed and pulled me into his arms.
“I love you, Rose.”
Nodding, I held back my tears.
The ambulance never showed up so Joe took me to the hospital himself. I spent an hour in the ER before going to the police station to give my statement. True to his word, Mason sat next to me during questioning, despite the fact it was well past midnight. Joe sat on the other side, not saying a word, but cringing when I gave the details of the attack.
The three of us stayed in the room when Detective Taylor left.
Mason put his hand on the table and looked at Joe. “Malcolm had an alibi.”
“Well, of course he did. He wasn’t going to do this himself.”
“Joe, Malcolm didn’t have anything to do with this and you know it.”
“How do you know that?” I asked, my fear rising at their seriousness.
“Because the intruder filled your tub with water and most likely intended for it to look like an accident.”
“I still don’t understand.”
“Malcolm would never send someone so sloppy. You have multiple contusions on your face and bruises on your arms and legs. Even if he had succeeded and staged your murder, the Henryetta Police wouldn’t have believed it was an accident.”
I wasn’t so sure about that. “So who was it?”
Mason swallowed then flexed his hand. “You might be onto something with your theory of Bruce Decker’s innocence.”
Joe slammed the table. “Don’t encourage her, Deveraux.”
“I respect her enough not to lie to her. Can you say the same thing?”
My heart skipped a beat. What did he mean by that?
Mason continued. “We don’t know who it is, but if the assault wasn’t tied to Malcolm, then we have to presume that you’ve upset someone else with your investigation. I’m going to ask the judge for a recess tomorrow morning so we can question you on what you know.”
More questioning? But Mason insinuated they would listen to my evidence for Bruce Decker’s innocence. Wasn’t that what I wanted?
“And then she’s done.” Joe said. “She’s out of this mess for good.”
Mason nodded. “Take her somewhere for tonight and bring her to the judge’s chambers at nine.”
Joe stood and took my hand. “Come on. You need some sleep.”
I doubted I’d ever sleep again. We got into Joe’s car and drove to a motel. If the clerk thought it odd that we were checking in at two in the morning, he never let on.
When Joe shut the door he locked both locks and looked around the room before setting his gun on the bedside table.
“Do you think you’ll need that?” I asked, pointing to the weapon.
“I will if I find the bastard who did this.”
Stepping toward him, I put my arms around his neck and pressed my body into his chest.
He buried his face on my shoulder. “If Mason Deveraux hadn’t shown up…”
“I know. But he did. How did you get to my house so fast?”
“Didn’t you listen to your message?”
“No, after I found out about the pins from Miss Eloise, accidently insulted the guest speaker, and then found out that Mike is leavin’ Violet, I got distracted.”
“So basically it was a normal night for you?”
I shrugged. “I guess.”
“My message was that I was comin’ tonight. I have something to work on in Magnolia tomorrow. Since it’s closer to Henryetta than Little Rock, I decided to come spend the night with you.”
I kissed him. “Lucky me.”
“Let’s get you undressed and tuck you into bed.”
“I don’t have any pajamas.”
“I’ll keep you warm.”
I almost protested that I wasn’t in the mood, but I was pretty sure that wasn’t his intent.
He helped me undress and climb under the covers then removed his shoes and jeans and slid in next to me, pulling me into his arms.
“Never a dull moment with you, Rose.”
I didn’t think it was a compliment.
We lay in the dark for a couple of minutes. Joe’s steady heartbeat in my ear.
; “So Mike left Violet?”
“Yeah.” Crappy doodles. I never called her to tell her what was going on. I hoped she didn’t find out from somebody else what had happened tonight.
“I know they’ve been having problems, but I never saw that one coming.”
“Me neither. She’s thinking about starting her own business, a nursery selling flowers and Christmas trees.”
He was silent for a moment. “Are you okay, Rose? Really?”
“Now I am. I’m always okay when I’m with you.”
“I don’t want to lose you.”
“I’m too stubborn to be gotten rid of that easily.”
He snorted, his breath blowing the hair on the side of my face. “I love you.” His breath evened and he soon fell asleep.
I lay awake for hours, trying to purge the images of the evening from my mind. As I finally drifted off to sleep, I saw Mason Deveraux’s face as he looked at Joe, saying, “I respect her too much not to lie to her. Can you say the same?”
Had Joe lied to me? What would he have to lie about?
When I woke up the next morning, Joe sat in a chair next to the bed, working on his computer.
“What time is it?”
He looked up at me then back down at his computer. “Nine.”
“Don’t I have to go meet the judge?”
“That’s been postponed to later today.”
“Oh.” I sat up, and groaned. My entire body ached. “Don’t you have to go to Magnolia?”
“Someone else is doin’ it.”
I closed my eyes, guilt washing over me. It was a wonder he hadn’t lost his job because of me. He was acting so strange, maybe he was mad about that. “I still have to go to the courthouse. I have that probate meeting at ten.”
“I have an appointment with the Henryetta Police so I’ll drop you off, and maybe you can go home with Violet.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
He spun around in his seat, leaning over his legs. “Why didn’t you call me and tell me what was goin’ on?”
“Which part?”
He stood up. “Rose, you shouldn’t have to ask which part. Why didn’t you call me with any of it?”
“I don’t know…”
He sat next to me. “Yes, you do. You knew I wouldn’t like it. You’ve been reckless and irresponsible.”
I wasn’t sure what to say. He was right.
“Thank God you’re movin’ to Little Rock so I don’t worry about you every minute of the day.”
The thought of moving away from Henryetta suddenly filled me with panic. How could I leave Violet? “Joe…”
His eyes widened. “You’re still movin’ to Little Rock, aren’t you?”
I looked down at my hands, twisting the sheet around my fingers. “It’s just that with Violet being all alone now…”
His voice hardened. “And whose fault is that, Rose?”
I closed my eyes. “I know.”
“I told you that one day you’d have to choose.”
My heart was breaking. How did I choose between the two people I loved most in the world? “I know you see the bad in her, but I promise you that there’s so much good. I wouldn’t have survived all those years with Momma without her. She protected me from Momma and from everyone else.”
His hand stroked my hair, his voice softening. “I know you both thought she was protecting you, but she was stiflin’ you. Hiding you away instead of havin’ you face your fears and the gossip around you. Keeping you sequestered only enforced that there was something wrong with you and there’s not, Rose.”
He was one of the first people to believe that. I released a sob. “She loves me.”
He leaned close, tenderness in his eyes. “I love you too.”
“I don’t know what to do. I’m miserable without you, but I’ll be miserable knowin’ what she’s goin’ through all alone.”
“You have to make this decision. I can’t make it for you and neither can Violet.”
Gently pushing me down, he kissed me with such tenderness, I cried harder.
“That wasn’t supposed to make you upset.”
I was losing him. I felt him slipping through my fingers. “I just love you so much.”
Leaning on his side, he traced the bruises on my cheek and my neck with his fingers. Tears filled his eyes. “I don’t think I can keep doing this. Worrying about you here. Worrying what trouble you’re going to get into. Worrying that someone is going to call and tell me you’re dead.”
“I’m sorry,” I choked out.
“I love you. Do you know how much I love you?”
The fear in his eyes last night had showed me how much he loved me.
“I didn’t… I tried…”
He smiled, but it was sad and forlorn. “I know. You can’t help it. This is you. This bundle of chaos is who I fell in love with. How can I ask you to change what makes me love you?”
“I’m sorry.”
He leaned down and kissed me, his hand caressing my cheek, careful to avoid my bruises. I kissed him back in desperation and fear. We made love with a tenderness we’d never shared before and I cried the entire time because I knew what this was.
Joe was telling me goodbye.
Chapter Twenty-Six
I was late to the probate meeting, not that I cared. Violet was the executor of Momma’s will and the only thing bequeathed to me was the box my birth mother had left me. I didn’t care about any of it. I’d been reluctant to move from Momma’s house, but I recognized it for what it was now—a fear of change. I’d spent most of my life living in fear. Why should I act differently with this?
I slipped into the room and took a seat next to Violet. She shot me an irritated look when she saw I was in the same clothes as the evening before, but she didn’t seem surprised by my bruises. Which meant she’d heard about the attack from someone else.
I was in for an earful later.
The judge however, took in my contusions and stopped the proceedings. “This is probate court, miss. The criminal court is on the third floor.”
“I’m in the right place. Agnes Gardner was my mother.”
His eyebrows rose, but he continued while I tuned him out.
My mind drifted to the pin Miss Eloise wore the night before. I decided to run by the library and look up Miss Eloise’s grandmother and her friends. The Henryetta Historical Society took great pride in recording the history of its citizens. If I could find out who the other women had married and who their children were, then I might be able to find the White family. Maybe they would know who might have the missing pin.
I knew I should stay out of it. Now that Mason believed me, I should let the police take care of it. I stifled a snort, getting another look from Violet. Letting the police take care of it was a terrible idea. Still, Mason might make them investigate the leads I’d found. Especially since he seemed so convinced that Skeeter Malcolm wasn’t involved in my attack.
Besides, was going to the public library a crime?
And I had to make a decision about my move to Little Rock, but Joe was right. I was a bundle of chaos and I suspected it didn’t matter where I lived, whether it was Henryetta, Little Rock, or Antarctica, I’d find trouble. The trouble I found was what drove a wedge between us.
Did I want to change?
I’d spent my entire life trying to make Momma happy. Did I want to spend the rest of it trying to make Joe happy?
I stifled a sob, knowing the answer. I didn’t want to accept it. Joe was the best thing that ever happened to me. Was I really going to throw that away?
The more immediate question was if I should go to Little Rock with Joe this afternoon. Did he even want me to come?
When the proceedings ended, Violet and I met the estate attorney in the hall. I realized that my life was packed full of attorneys and judges. Shoot, Joe was an attorney, even if he wasn’t practicing.
“I’ll keep in touch, Mrs. Beauregard,” the attorney told Violet, cringing at the sight of
my bruises.
After he went around the corner, Violet turned on me. “You have a lot of explaining to do, Rose Anne Gardner.”
“Okay, but not here in the hall.”
“Fine. We can go to the coffee shop across the street.”
“Okay.”
We crossed the lobby toward the exit as Mason entered through the front doors.
“Rose!”
Violet’s eyes darted from him to me as Mason walked toward us. “Do you know him?”
“Yeah, that’s Mason. Mason Deveraux. He’s the assistant DA.”
“You’re on a first-name basis with the assistant DA?”
Mason’s eyes widened in horror as he approached. “I didn’t think it was possible, but you look worse today than you did last night.”
I scowled. “In light of your previous heroic behavior, I’m going to ignore the rudeness of that statement, Mr. Deveraux.”
Violet gasped. “Rose!”
“It’s quite all right.” Mason laughed. “It has been well-established that the majority of my social interactions are rude and hostile.” He winked at Violet.
Mason Deveraux winked?
“Mason, this is my sister, Violet Beauregard. Violet, this is Mason Deveraux, my rescuer.”
Mason’s face reddened. Who would have thought?
Shaking Violet’s hand, Mason grinned. “Rose exaggerates.”
“Savin’ my life twice is far from an exaggeration.”
“I don’t think we can count the first time unless you actually planned to drink and drive. I prefer to think that you were calling my bluff.”
Violet studied Mason with a hungry look, as though he were a New York steak. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Deveraux.”
“And you as well, Mrs. Beauregard.” He grinned at me. “See, Miss Gardner? I’m capable of polite conversation. Be sure to tell your courthouse groupies.”
I laughed. This new Mr. Deveraux was a welcome change.
His expression turned more serious. “How are you today? Really?”
I’d never been more miserable in my life, either physically or emotionally. “I’m fine.”
“Are you still going to Little Rock tomorrow?”
Violet froze, waiting for my answer.
I stared at the floor, trying to figure out what to tell him. Finally, I looked up, tears in my eyes. “I don’t know.”
RG2 - Twenty-Nine and a Half Reasons Page 27