by Tara Nina
“I never asked. When she showed me these pictures, my anger took control and I threw her out.” She looked Emma Jean directly in the eye and said, “I know my husband is a good and righteous man. He wouldn’t cheat on me. But he refuses to answer my questions as to why you and he had a secret meeting in such a place of…” She paused and took a breath as if she had to gather her nerve to continue, “Poor reputation. I’ll tell you where to find Kimberly Stillwater, but I want to know what’s going on between you and my husband.”
Emma Jean looked across Penelope’s shoulder to Paul. He stood silent and nodded at her as if letting her know it was her choice as to whether to explain or not. From the tight-lipped look on Penelope’s face, she made her decision. They needed the information on Stillwater in order to help save Earl. Her part in this matter wasn’t important any longer.
“Paul and I have been meeting once a month for the past eight months.” She couldn’t help but hear Penelope’s surprised gasp. Emma Jean never intended for anyone to know this other than her and Paul, but at the moment she had no choice. She took Penelope’s hand and shot a glance at David and Jack. “This does not leave this room.”
She waited for their compliance before she continued. “As you know, the church fell short during its charity campaign to raise money for the new cancer wing at the hospital. I’m the mystery donor who provided the additional monies necessary for construction to begin. Paul and I have been meeting to discuss the plans and for me to give him a monthly donation. It was all supposed to be kept anonymous. I wanted it that way so everyone who needed help to fight cancer in this area would get it.”
She shot a sideways glance at Penelope as she continued. “As we know, there are so many misguided idiots who wouldn’t seek help there if they knew the money from a sex toy shop helped pay for it.”
Penelope grabbed Emma Jean in a tight hug as she sputtered through an onslaught of tears. “Thank you. Thank you for being such an angel of mercy. Your secret is safe with me.”
“I hate to break this up,” David interrupted. “But Emma Jean told you what you needed to hear. Now where’s Stillwater?”
* * * * *
David slid in behind the steering wheel while Jack entered the front passenger seat. Emma Jean refused to stay behind. Before either knew what happened, she jumped into the backseat and locked the door.
“Emma Jean, this is a police matter. You can’t come with us,” David said.
“Like hell I can’t,” she proclaimed. “Either I ride with you or I drive separately. Doesn’t matter which to me. Now stop wasting time and let’s go.”
Exasperated, David conceded. Pulling out of the parking lot, he shot a single command over his shoulder at her. “You can go, but don’t get out of the car.”
Like she planned to listen. Emma Jean huffed as she fell back into the seat when he stomped on the gas, floored it and headed toward the outskirts of town. It felt like an eternity before they reached the old Wilkinson’s Estate. According to Penelope, Kimberly claimed she was a long-lost relative and had been given permission to stay there. When Jack tracked down the caretaker via cell phone as they drove, he learned otherwise.
“Thank you, Henry,” Jack said, disconnected the call and turned to David and Emma Jean. “Henry Barnwell has been the caretaker for the Wilkinson’s Estate since they started wintering in Florida five years ago. He watches over it every fall and winter and opens it in the spring right before they return. Last week he checked on the place and noted someone had been there. He filed a police report. Since nothing was missing, it was chalked up to possible teenagers just hanging out and partying in the old house.”
“That’s understandable.” Emma Jean touted her two cents though she doubted they cared to hear it. “But wasn’t there evidence someone had taken up residence there?”
“Nope, not an item was out of place,” Jack reiterated. “It simply looked as if someone entered the place and left. Even the furniture was still covered with protective plastic and sheets.”
“Penelope said she visited her there.”
“No, she said she met Kimberly there,” David interjected, not taking his eyes off the road. “Kimberly served Penelope refreshments on the porch. I bet if we ask, Penelope didn’t enter the house. Kimberly probably made a point to keep her outside so she wouldn’t know the truth.”
Emma Jean’s insides knotted. What kind of torture did this woman have in mind for Earl? She closed her eyes and prayed for his safety. Please let him live.
Minutes seemed like hours before they reached the estate. Two patrol cars were positioned at the entrance of the driveway when they arrived. David and Jack both rolled down their windows and showed their IDs even though the officers knew them. They parked and got out. While the officers, David and Jack discussed the best plan of action, Emma Jean slipped out of the car unnoticed. If there was one thing she understood, it was psychotic women.
Living in the Dupree family taught her to deal with extreme personalities. Granny Dupree was known for being a bit strange and off her rocker at times. Many instances it landed in Emma Jean’s and her cousin Shelley’s laps to handle Granny Dupree and bring her back to reality when her mind wandered off into some outlandish fantasy world she’d created. Sometimes they succeeded, sometimes they didn’t. Either way, the experience gave Emma Jean wisdom into the psyche of an eccentric old woman.
The psyche of a nutcase couldn’t be that much different, she decided. With slow, deliberate steps, she hurried into the trees that lined the driveway. Behind her, she heard David softly call her name, but she didn’t stop. Earl was in this predicament because she didn’t warn him about Kimberly’s calls. She knew in her gut the calls were from Kimberly. No one else hated Earl enough to want to see him fired.
Quickly, Emma Jean made her way to the well-manicured row of hedges lining the front porch. She ducked down, using them as cover. Just as she was about to start working her way around the side of the house, a hand grabbed her arm as another covered her mouth. Emma Jean fell backward against David’s chest. He shook his head as he released her.
On a rushed whisper, he asked, “What were you thinking? We don’t know if she’s armed. You trying to get yourself killed?”
Emma Jean couldn’t stop her smile. She cupped his cheek and whispered, “You really do care.”
“Yes, I do care.” He captured her hand and planted a quick kiss in her palm. “Now please stand down and let us do our job.”
Over his shoulder, she noticed the officers spread out, working their way toward the house. Jack was several feet behind her and David. She returned her gaze to his.
“I can’t do that, David. Please understand, I have to do this.”
Silence fell between them and she sensed he struggled with what to say. “Since you won’t listen to me, please stay behind me and Jack. We won’t let anything happen to you. It would be even better if you stayed outside and let us apprehend the suspect.”
Emma Jean hesitated then answered, “I’ll stay behind you. If any shooting starts, I’ll duck. I promise.” She quickly kissed his nose for good measure and made him smile as he shook his head in exasperation at her.
When they reached the rear door, it nearly killed Emma Jean to sit still and not follow them in. David and Jack entered the unlocked door, guns drawn. Emma Jean sat back on her heels and chewed her bottom lip. The slide of a window caught her attention. On her hands and knees, she moved to a better position at the rear corner of the house. It didn’t surprise her to see a woman in hot-pink pumps and a black jumpsuit crawl out the window.
Emma Jean darted a gaze around the area, looking for any of the other officers, but saw none. This would not do. There was no way in hell Kimberly Stillwater would escape. Not on her watch. When the woman jumped over the porch railing, Emma Jean sprang and tackled her. They rolled end over end, entangled in a mass of limbs. The woman cat clawed, kicked and screamed, trying to remove herself from Emma Jean’s grip.
If Emma Je
an didn’t know better, she would have thought she had a hold of a greased pig. For a small woman, she had tremendous strength. Crazy strength, shot through Emma Jean’s head and there was only one way to deal with that. Crazy on crazy.
“Is that all you’ve got?” Emma Jean taunted as she rose to her knees and swiped the hair out of her eyes with the back of one hand, while still holding onto the woman with the other.
The petite-figured woman struggled to her feet, untangled herself from Emma Jean and attempted to run. Emma Jean lunged full force, grabbed her ankles and took her down again. Kimberly landed face first in the dirt, but it didn’t stop her. She jerked her legs, trying to stab Emma Jean with the sharp heel of her pumps. The woman fisted Emma Jean’s hair and tugged.
“I’ve had about all I’m gonna take from you,” Kimberly screamed. “Release me, you bitch, or face God’s wrath.”
Emma Jean jumped to her feet, grabbed the front of Kimberly’s jumpsuit with one hand and hauled her onto her knees. “If God decides to wield His wrath upon me, I doubt seriously you’ll be the delivery person.”
Before Kimberly had a chance to think, Emma Jean hauled back and landed a punch that knocked her on her ass. Kimberly sat on her heels for a second, her lips parted as if she were going to speak then her eyes rolled heavenward and she fell back, out cold.
A round of applause echoed in the air from behind her. Emma Jean turned. The officers stood in the yard in a semicircle as if waiting for her to finish so they could arrest Kimberly. David and Jack were on the porch, each with an arm underneath Earl’s as they helped steady him on his feet. Earl looked utterly helpless with a sheet tied around his waist as his only clothing.
Jack looked at David and quipped loud enough for Emma Jean to hear. “There’s nothing I like more than a good catfight.”
David simply shook his head but couldn’t hide his agreeing smirk. Earl tried to laugh, but it obviously hurt too much. Emma Jean rushed onto the porch. Sirens echoed from the road. She stood in front of Earl and gathered his injured face in his hands.
“Earl, I’m sorry. This never would have happened if I’d told you about her phone calls.”
“Emma Jean.” Earl tugged his arm from around Jack’s neck and cupped her cheek. “Nothing could have stopped Kimberly but me. If I hadn’t let myself believe my actions killed Charlotte, none of this would have happened.”
“But—”
“But nothing,” Earl said as he leaned forward, touching his brow to hers. “It’s over. That’s all that matters.”
On tiptoe, she placed a kiss softly to his lips. Then she balanced on her toes, leaned and kissed David’s lips just as tenderly. “There’s so much I wish to share with you two. I just hope you both will understand.”
“Emma Jean, I think this can wait. Right now we need to let the paramedics help Earl,” David said.
Earl slid his hand in Emma Jean’s hair and she turned to face him again. “Emma Jean, just promise me something.”
“What’s that, Earl?”
“No chains,” he said on a tired breath. “Don’t tie me up and don’t chain me to a wall. Other than that, I’m all yours.”
Chapter Eight
Emma Jean walked into the hospital emergency room waiting area. Earl had been under the doctor’s care for almost three hours without a word of the results. When were they going to tell them anything? They’d drawn blood, sent him for CAT Scans, X-rays and now they’d taken him for an MRI. They wouldn’t let her stay with him during that test, so she’d returned to the waiting area to sit with David, Shelley and Jack. Jack was the only one there when she entered.
“Where’s everyone?”
“They went to get coffee.” Jack stood and greeted her. “They should be back any second. You okay?”
“Yeah, fine.”
“Earl?”
“He’s as well as can be expected. They had to stitch the gash in the side of his head. Once they cleaned the cut on his cheek, it wasn’t as bad as it looked and didn’t need stitches. They’ve sent him for every test in the book and drawn about a bucket of blood. When the hell are they going to let him go?”
“As soon as they’ve made sure they don’t miss anything like a brain hemorrhage,” David answered as he returned to the room with a fresh cup of coffee for her in his hand and Shelley at his side.
“Thank you,” she said, accepting the cup. “How’d you know I’d be in here?”
“Got a text from Jack.” He smiled then kissed her forehead. “Knew you could probably use a cup by now so I got you one while I was there.”
“How’s Earl holding up?” Shelley asked as she placed an arm around Emma Jean’s shoulders.
“He looks pretty rough. How could someone her size hurt a well-built man like Earl so badly? Why didn’t he fight back?”
“I can answer that,” Jack said. “The boys went through the house and found a liquid form of GHB, commonly known as ruffies, the drug used in a majority of date rape cases. It’s a strong sedative that weakens the victim and makes them unable to fight back. In most cases, they are unable to do anything but lie there while they’re assaulted. I bet it’s found in Earl’s toxicology screen. They also discovered an odd sort of misting device, which tested positive for the substance. We think she kept him drugged by misting him with it at timed intervals. It’s quickly absorbed through the skin, nose and mouth, keeping his limbs virtually useless.”
“The scenario we’ve put together so far is she got the jump on him in the alley behind the store,” David said.
“She must have been the one who rang the bell we heard.” Emma Jean interrupted.
David nodded. “That’s what we’ve guessed as to how she got him into the alley. She must have been watching him help load the delivery truck and waited for the perfect moment right after the truck left. She hit him in the head with the two-by-four and knocked him out. There’s evidence to prove she used a motorized utility cart to move his unconscious body and lift it into her car trunk. She borrowed this cart from behind the grocery store. They leave it there for the delivery personnel to move the heavy pallets without much of a struggle. It wouldn’t have taken Kimberly much effort to move him with that cart.”
“Is Emma Jean Dupree in here?”
“Yes.” Everyone stated in unison as they turned to find the doctor in the doorway. Emma Jean stepped forward. The doctor smiled then introduced himself to the group, before he stated Earl’s condition.
“Mr. Lightfoot is a very lucky man. Though he sustained multiple injuries to his side and back, no bones were broken and the contusions will heal. We ran several tests and found no major internal injury other than he has a concussion.”
“Were there any drugs found in his bloodstream?” Jack asked.
The doctor flipped through the results in Earl’s chart. “Yes, detective. Trace amounts of GHB were found indicating he had been drugged during this attack. It explains why there were no defensive wounds on his arms and hands. At the initial dosing, he couldn’t have fought back if he wanted.”
“Can we take him home now?” Emma Jean questioned.
“No, we’re keeping him overnight for observation. If all goes well, he can go home in the morning. Miss Dupree, he has requested you return to his room before they take him upstairs.”
Emma Jean simply nodded as relief washed over her. Kimberly may have beaten him badly, but she hadn’t broken him. Not physically anyway. She gnawed at her lower lip and hoped for the best. She returned to emergency room number one where Earl lay quietly on the stretcher. The monitors above his head showed a steady heart rhythm. A thick bandage covered the wound on his head. The cut on his cheek had bruised and glistened with antibiotic gel. An IV line was hooked to his left arm and fluids steadily dripped. He looked helpless, lying on his side with his eyes closed.
“Emma Jean,” he whispered as he opened his eyes. “You’re making me self-conscious. I know I look like I’ve been run over by a truck.”
“Not a truck, hon
ey,” Emma Jean joked as she moved to his side. “Just a crazy lady with a mean flogger and a wicked swing.”
A weak laugh escaped. He coughed and Emma Jean regretted making him laugh.
“Oooo,” he moaned. “It hurts when I do that.”
“I’m sorry,” she said as she gathered his hand in hers.
Earl tugged her over the rail and as close as possible to him as she could stretch. “Emma Jean, this wasn’t your fault. Never be sorry for something you didn’t do. I expect you and me to pick up where we left off. But do you think we could hold off on the flogging for a while?”
His gaze shone a wicked heat that thrilled her to her toes and his smile melted her heart. “I think I can be a little lenient on you until your backside has healed.”
“It’s not my backside I’m worried about.” He grinned. “It’s yours. You shouldn’t have risked your neck against Kimberly like that. She could’ve killed you.” He cupped her face in his hand. “You’re more precious to me than you know. It would have ended my spirit if you lost your life at her hands.”
“I’d do it again, Earl Lightfoot.” Emma Jean leaned in close and met his gaze. Heat filtered all the way down her spine to pool in her pelvis. Damn, the man had a set of hot, sexy eyes. Even injured he jumpstarted her libido with just a look. “You’re one of the two men I want now and forever in my life.”
His brows bunched and she read his instant confusion. “Two men?”
“Yeah.” She pressed a light kiss to his brow then confessed, “I love you both. Please don’t make me choose.”
“Mr. Lightfoot, it’s time to go upstairs,” the nurse announced as she and the orderly entered the room.
“Will you stay with me tonight?” Earl grabbed Emma Jean’s hand before she moved away. “I hate hospitals.”
“Of course, honey. I wasn’t planning to leave you. Let them get you settled and I’ll meet you upstairs.”