I grinned. “And Grandma’s secret wedding cake cookie recipe?”
“No. I’m giving that to you, not that you’ll know what to do with it.”
“I can bake cookies without burning them. Sometimes.” I picked up my fork and began to mix the dressing around my salad.
“Pick any old uniform, nothing special,” she said, focusing on assembling her burger, then looked up and pointed a finger at me. “But make sure it’s clean. I swear I’ll come back and haunt you if you bury me in dirty clothes.”
Looking at her now, I had to wonder how much time I had left with her. I’d held it together for our whole discussion, but now my chin started to quiver.
Momma’s eyes softened. “Everyone has to die sometime, Maggie Mae. I wouldn’t have planned on leaving yet, but I’ve made my peace with it.”
I picked at my salad, but I couldn’t summon much of an appetite even though my stomach was empty. “But I haven’t.”
She patted my hand. “I know. I know.”
“Can we go to Emily’s funeral together?” I asked.
She gave me a look of surprise. “Yeah.” She took a bite of her food, then said, “I think you two could have been good friends.”
“We definitely weren’t enemies anymore,” I said. “And I was torn up hearing about her death.”
“She knew how much your leaving hurt me. She asked all your friends if they knew why you’d left.”
My fork froze midair.
“Magnolia?”
Was that why she’d been chosen? Had the murderer found out about her investigation? Was it possible she’d finally dug something up?
“I’m sorry,” I said, putting my fork down and picking up my water glass. “It just makes me so sad.”
“Then let’s talk about something else for a little while. My side of the bargain was to tell you stories from your childhood. Let me tell you the story of when you were born.”
I smiled. “You’ve already told me, not that I mind hearing it again.”
“But I didn’t tell you how I almost killed you.”
My mouth dropped open. “What?”
She took a deep breath before launching into her tale. “I was two weeks late. I’d dragged your father to the hospital twice with false labor and vowed I wouldn’t look like a fool again. The night you were born I’d had contractions all day, and by that evening they were one minute apart. Your father was ticked that I still didn’t want to go to the hospital, so he finally picked me up and carried me to the car, not an easy task when I was as huge as a whale. But he was scared to death my stubbornness would risk my safety and yours.”
I smiled. “That sounds like Daddy.”
“I was fit to be tied, but I let him take me to the hospital. He wanted to carry me inside, but I told him that bein’ in labor didn’t make me an invalid. They wheeled me back, and by the time they got me to the labor room, I was already feeling the urge to push. But when they hooked me up to the monitor, your heartbeat started crashing with the contraction, so they rushed me off to the OR for an emergency C-section. I’ll never forget the look of pure terror on your father’s face when he thought he might lose us both.” She paused, her voice turning soft. “When I woke up, he was sitting next to my bed, his face pale as a sheet, and I was sure my stupidity had gotten you killed. I started to cry, but he leaned over and kissed me. He said, ‘I was sure I was going to lose you, Lila. Don’t you ever scare me like that again.’
“‘The baby?’ I asked.
“‘She’s fine,’ he said. ‘Perfectly healthy and a set of lungs that will rival yours. But we almost lost her too.’ Then tears filled his eyes and he said, ‘She’s a precious gift, Lila. We can’t take our responsibility lightly again. We have to do everything in our power to protect her.’” Momma looked up at me. “I don’t think I did a very good job of protecting you, Magnolia.”
A lump formed in my throat, but I pushed past it. “Don’t be silly. You raised me just fine.”
“Something happened that night,” she said, her words barely audible. “The night you disappeared.”
“It’s more of that water under the bridge.”
“I found the blood.”
We stared at each other for several long seconds without speaking. I finally scrunched my mouth to the side, a dismissive gesture, and said, “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“Roy tried to hide it, but I found the towel. And your dress. It was dark by the time you came home that night, so I told myself it was mud on your skirt—and it was muddy, but once I picked it up the next day, I realized there was a lot of blood on it too.”
I wasn’t sure what to address first. The fact that Roy had hidden my bloody garbage or that Momma knew something bad had happened. “I thought we agreed to leave the past in the past.”
Her troubled eyes held mine. “Were you raped, Magnolia?”
Her hand was shaking on the table, so I reached over and covered it with my own, holding her gaze. “No,” I said in a firm tone. “I was not raped.”
She looked relieved, although not unburdened. “But something bad happened.”
“What does it matter if it did?” I removed my hand and shrugged. “It’s done.” How could I ask her about Roy’s odd behavior without giving anything else away?
“I can—” Momma started to say, but my ringing cell phone interrupted her.
I grabbed it out of my purse, realizing I hadn’t checked in with Brady after leaving Ava’s. Sure enough, his name was on the screen. “Sorry, Momma. I have to take this.” I answered the phone and said, “I know, I was supposed to let you know when I left, but I’m fine. I’m eating lunch at Puckett’s with my mother right now.”
“I know,” he said. “I can see you.”
“What?” I glanced around the room, and sure enough, he was standing in the doorway.
He flashed me a grin, then started toward our table.
I stood to greet him. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m picking up a takeout order for me and my partner.”
“Late lunch?” I asked. “You must be really busy today.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t elaborate.
“Momma,” I said, turning toward her. “You remember Brady.”
“I believe I met you as Detective Bennett,” Momma said with a disapproving frown.
Brady gave my mother his full attention. “Our introduction wasn’t under ideal circumstances, but I hope you don’t hold that against me. I really like your daughter and hope to spend a lot more time with her.”
“You were doing your job,” she said, holding his gaze. “And I was doing mine.”
Brady had questioned her about the night of my father’s disappearance—and she’d told him next to nothing. I had no doubt her job, as she saw it, was to keep quiet to protect me.
“Would you like to join us?” Momma asked. I shot her a look of surprise. “What?” she said defensively. “I want to meet at least one of your adult boyfriends.”
Brady looked to me for direction.
I shrugged. “If you have a few minutes, I’d love for you to sit with us.”
His face lit up. “I’d like that.” He sat in a chair and I flagged down our waitress. After he told her his name, she headed back to the kitchen to check on his order.
“So,” Momma said, her back stiff as a board. “Your name is Brady Bennett, and you’re a Franklin police detective.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with a friendly smile. “I’ve lived here my entire life, so I’m fascinated by Maggie’s life in New York.”
“Because of her video?” Momma asked.
His smile fell. “No. I’ve never seen her video.”
That earned him a look of grudging approval.
“How long have you had your catering business?” Brady asked.
“Long enough,” Momma said. “Why did you decide to become a cop?”
Brady blinked, obviously caught off guard by her doggedness, though I wasn�
�t sure why—she’d ripped into him the day he interrogated her. “I planned to be an attorney, but realized I thoroughly enjoyed investigating.”
“Is your father a cop?”
“No. He’s an insurance salesman.”
She nodded again. “What did you find out from your investigation into my husband’s disappearance?”
He was surprised by this too. “Not much. Everything seemed to lead to a dead end.”
“Do you think it was a coincidence that that dentist crawled out of the woodwork after my daughter came home?”
Brady shot me a look before turning back to her. He must have thought this conversation would go very differently.
“No,” Brady said. “I think Magnolia’s questions drew him out.”
“Do you think it’s over?” she asked.
Brady stared at her for several seconds. “Yes, Mrs. Steele, I think it is.”
His answer surprised me, but not my mother. If he thought everything was settled, why was he so worried about my safety?
“You care about my daughter?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Then leave this in the past where it belongs. Just let it be, and it will all go away.”
Brady nodded as he grabbed my hand. “I’m glad to hear we’re on the same page.”
They might be on the same page, but I was in a different book.
Chapter 10
Brady stayed a few more minutes, chatting with my mother about his parents and his brother and sister. Then the waitress brought over his order, and he leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. “When will you be done tonight?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said, hoping my mother didn’t volunteer the information.
“Let me know when you do know.” Then he glanced at Momma. “Mrs. Steele, it was a pleasure getting to know you better.”
Her answer was a frown.
As he walked out the front door, her frown deepened. “I don’t like him.”
“What?” I asked, in shock. “Why?”
“I don’t trust him.”
I rolled my eyes. “You name one boyfriend of mine you ever trusted.”
She remained silent. Her assessment of Brady bothered me more than I wanted to let on, especially since she was generally a good judge of character.
“You didn’t even like Tanner. And everyone liked Tanner.”
“Tanner McKee was a weasel.”
Well, she wasn’t wrong there. “What about Colt?” I asked, choosing someone I knew she trusted—despite how most people felt about him. “Would you trust him?”
“With my business and my life, but I wouldn’t trust him for a minute with you.”
“I rest my case,” I said, though we both knew I hadn’t proven anything.
Momma pursed her lips and pulled out her wallet.
“No,” I said, pushing her hand away from the black folder. “Let me get it.”
“You don’t have a pot to piss in.”
“Maybe not,” I said with a laugh. “But I have twenty-five dollars to pay for lunch.” I tossed the cash on the table, satisfied there was enough for a generous tip. “Let’s head to the kitchen together.”
Momma got up and faltered, grabbing the back of her chair to steady herself. “We need to go by the bank first.”
I’d forgotten about that part. “Okay.” I reached out to grab her arm, but she shot me a glare. “I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own.”
Her steps seemed to loosen as we walked toward the bank, but her chest was rising and falling at an alarming rate given that we’d only walked a block and a half at a slow pace.
I had so many questions about so many things, but I figured out a way to possibly get my mother to answer one of them.
“I know I’m getting the house,” I said cautiously, “but what about all the stuff Roy has in the garage? If I sell the house, what should I do with it?”
“Let Roy get rid of it. I’ve been telling him for the last year to move it out, but he always tells me he’ll get around to it and never does, which is completely unlike him. I’ve even asked Belinda to do it a few times, because she’s one of the most organized people I know, but she always has an excuse.”
“Who does it belong to?”
“One of Roy’s friends.”
“That’s what Belinda told me—she said it all belongs to Roy’s friend who moved to Hong Kong. Tim or Todd . . . I’m pretty sure it was Todd.”
Momma stopped. “Did you say Todd? His friend Todd is married with two kids. He lives right here in Franklin.”
My breath caught and I stopped next to her. “Maybe Belinda was confused.”
She shook her head. “That woman never forgets a name or a face.”
“Why would she give me false information?” I knew my mother wanted me to stop digging, but I decided to take a chance. “I found something of Daddy’s in there with the rest of that stuff.”
She frowned and shook her head. “No. You’re mistaken. That’s not possible.”
I tugged her next to the windows of a clothing store and lowered my voice. “It is. Remember that plaster dog I gave Daddy for his birthday when I was a kid? I found it in the garage.”
“There must be a million of those dogs out in the world,” Momma said. Her tone was dismissive, but I thought I heard her voice quaver a little. “You found it at the surplus store, and they had ten or more of them.”
How far was I willing to go? How much did she want to know? I decided to be honest with her. “Colt saw me eyeing it, so he carted it to my new apartment.”
“Why in the world would he do that?” she asked, shifting her weight impatiently. She started to walk around me, but I blocked her path.
“Because it reminded me so much of Daddy. But when he got it upstairs, the bottom of it broke, and we realized there was something in it.”
Her eyes darted to the street before settling back on me. “Magnolia. You need to let sleepin’ dogs lie.”
“Pun intended?” I asked, which drew an exasperated sigh out of her. I pressed on. “I found a note, Momma. Addressed to me. From Daddy.”
Her face paled. “Let it go. Do you hear me?”
My back stiffened. “Why are you so dead set against me finding out the truth?”
Her fists clenched at her sides. “You know your father was involved in something illegal, so why in the Sam Hill would you want to unearth more of his crimes? We’re disgraced enough . . . why would you want to attract more?”
I took a step back, feeling like she’d slapped me across the face. “You mean me? My performance on opening night?”
“No,” she said, her tone softening. “I’m talking about your father. Tongues are wagging, and they’ll wag even more.”
“So?” I asked. “What do I care what people think? You sure as hell never have.”
“All the gossip is hurting the catering business, Magnolia. We’ve lost several jobs because of it.” She pushed out a breath and leaned her shoulder against the building. “I may be dying, and you may not want the business, but Tilly does. And those people we hire need their paychecks.”
“I had no idea.”
“I figured you didn’t.”
“But I still want to know, Momma.” I grabbed her upper arms. “I need to know. You always told me to never hide from the truth, even when it’s hard.”
She shifted her eyes to the street, then back to me. “When the hell did I ever tell you such a thing?”
“All the time when I was a kid. Pretty convenient of you to forget.”
“The stakes are a lot higher now,” she said, sounding weary. “There’s a big difference between being grounded and getting killed.”
“You also taught me to be strong in the face of adversity,” I countered.
“You’re supposed to outlive me, Magnolia,” she said with tears in her eyes. “I can’t let you get yourself killed over something stupid that your father did.”
“But I’m not doing it alone.” I didn’t
have Colt’s permission to tell anyone about his involvement, and something told me he’d particularly object to Momma knowing, so I lied and said, “Brady will help me.”
“He said he was leaving it in the past.”
“I’ll convince him. But even if I don’t, I have a right to know what Daddy got mixed up in. At least tell me what you remember and let me decide whether to pursue it or not.” Tears clogged my throat. “I’m not nearly as foolish as you think I am.”
Her jaw tightened. “I know you’re not foolish, Magnolia, and you have more self-preservation than I’ve given you credit for. Don’t look at me like that,” she said in disgust. “I might not know what happened to you the night of your graduation, but I’ve figured out that you left to protect yourself.”
My eyes flew open. “Momma . . .”
“Let’s make a deal. You quit lyin’ to me, and I’ll start tellin’ you what I know.”
I was sure I must have heard her wrong, but she stared at me with a look of determination. “Okay.”
She dug her cell phone out of her pocket and started typing.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Telling Tilly we’re gonna be late. Let’s go.” She started walking toward the catering office.
“Where are you going?”
“We can’t talk about it out here on the street, now can we?”
“No, I guess not . . .” I said as she took off without me.
She crossed to the parking lot and headed toward her car.
“Where are we going?” I asked as she unlocked her door.
“Somewhere private to talk.”
I suspected she meant her house, but when we were both seated and situated, she surprised me by pulling out in the opposite direction.
“Where are we actually going?”
“So impatient,” she said, but it lacked her usual bite. “You’ll find out when we get there.”
She headed south before turning west, out to the countryside to Leiper’s Fork. She turned again, this time down a country road, and then again, onto a private drive. I was sure she’d lost her mind, but I didn’t dare question her. Had her illness affected her mind?
Call Back: Magnolia Steel Mystery #3 (Magnolia Steele Mystery) Page 11