His eyes widened in surprise.
“He took the information and ran. He set you up. Who do you think told him to do that?”
His body tensed and he fisted his hands at his sides. “You’re lyin’.”
The sirens grew louder.
“Am I?” I asked. “How did we know to come here at noon?”
“I’m still not tellin’ you nothin’.”
“What were you supposed to do with me?” I asked. “Where were you supposed to take me?”
Evil lit up his eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about. I mistook you for my girlfriend.”
“Then how do you explain draggin’ me out of there?”
“Mistaken identity. My bitch likes it rough.”
“I think I found his car,” Witt said, from behind me. “Texas plates.”
“Were you plannin’ to take me to Dallas?” I asked.
He flicked his gaze up to Joe. “I’m not talkin’ in front of the law man.”
“Joe,” I said.
“I’m not leavin’,” he grunted.
“I’ll play backup,” Witt said, walking up behind me. “I think you’re gonna want to take a peek at the backseat floorboard of Bozo’s car.”
Joe gave me a reluctant look, then walked toward the dark gray sedan.
“I’m not talkin’ in front of him either,” the guy said, motioning to Witt.
“I ain’t no law man,” Witt said. “I’m the damn opposite. I spent enough time at the Arkansas Department of Correction for armed robbery that I can assure you that you’re gonna love it.”
The guy’s eyes narrowed.
“Where the hell were you gonna take her?” Witt asked.
“Who are you to her?”
“Her cousin, but more like a brother,” Witt said, his voice tight. “And I wanna know too.”
The guy grinned. “I was plannin’ to take my time with her, you know?”
“No,” I said, playing dumb. “I don’t know.”
“I was supposed to find out where the money was, but they didn’t care how I got the information.”
Witt looked like he wanted to strangle the guy, and his tormentor was loving every minute of it.
I stared at the guy in horror, making sure my face was a mask of indifference, but then I became furious. He was just one more prick who thought he could do what he wanted to me because I had a vagina instead of a penis, and I was sick to death of it. “I doubt you could have gotten the job done,” I mocked. “You know what they say about big guys. They can’t get it up.”
Witt sent me a shocked look, then quickly caught on. “You’ll be popular in prison. They like to screw big guys like you.”
“Shut up,” he said through gritted teeth.
The sirens were right on top of us now, but I was pretty sure I’d gotten everything he was going to spill. This next part was for my own satisfaction.
“That was probably your last chance to ever screw a woman,” I said. “I bet they put kidnappers away for a long time. You’re gonna be all shriveled up when you get out.”
His face turned even more crimson.
“I’m gonna make sure they throw the book at you. I’ll be there in court when the judge hands out that long, long sentence. And just think, if you hadn’t bungled this so badly, you could have been takin’ your time with me right now.” I gave him a look of disgust. “And I would’ve taken one look at what you’ve got tucked in your undies and wondered how you planned to get the job done with that.”
He lunged for me then, but I was ready for him. I kneed him hard in the groin, then as he started to bend forward, I punched him in the nose. Blood spurted all over me, and he started to reach for my hair, but Witt was behind him and grabbed one of his arms to pull him away from me.
The guy spun around, recovering enough to take a swing at my cousin, but Witt was ready for him, getting in a punch to his gut and a counterpunch to his face.
The guy released a roar and went after Witt, but Witt was faster. He ducked a punch and got in one of his own before the guy clipped Witt’s cheek as he was squatting to get out of the way.
Grabbing my shoulder, Joe tugged me backward, out of the way of the brawling men.
“Shouldn’t you stop them?” I asked, worried about Witt even though he was holding his own.
“Witt’s got it covered, and I think he needs this. Besides, they’re here to handle it now.” He gestured to the group of sheriff’s deputies rounding the corner.
Two deputies grabbed each man, pulling them apart. They started to handcuff them both, but Joe made it clear Witt wasn’t guilty of anything.
One of the deputies gave him a questioning look. I was sure they were wondering why Joe hadn’t tried to stop them.
Joe held up his hands in surrender. “Witt was protecting his cousin. First the asshole tried to kidnap my sister from inside the diner, then while we were waitin’ for you, he attacked her again.”
One of the deputies’ eyes widened in surprise. “Your sister was here?” He spun around, looking right past me.
“Not Kate Simmons,” Joe said, then gestured to me. “Neely Kate Rivers. She’s my half sister. We only just found out in February, but we’ve kept it under wraps while the FBI was investigating my father. It was safer for her that way.”
The deputies studied me with open curiosity in light of this new information, and one of them asked, “Do you need medical attention?”
I swiped at my cheek and realized the guy had bled on me when I’d punched his nose. “It’s his blood.”
They turned their attention to my attacker and took in his bloodied face.
“That asshole tried to kidnap Neely Kate,” Witt said. A line of blood trickled down his cheek. “Joe and I chased him out here. There’s a restaurant full of people who can give statements that he grabbed her and forcibly dragged her out the back door.”
“Why isn’t he cuffed?” another deputy asked.
“We initially cuffed him,” Joe said, “but since he attacked my sister, I wanted to make sure there was no impropriety. So I uncuffed him and we waited for y’all to make it official. We just kept an eye on him to make sure he didn’t get away.” He gestured behind him. “Be sure to peer into the back windows of that gray sedan with the Texas plates. You’ll find some interesting evidence.” He lifted his hands again. “I didn’t touch a thing. I just looked in the windows.”
One of the deputies peeked inside the back window for several seconds, then said, “Hold him in the back of a cruiser while we take statements and get a warrant to search this car.”
“What’s in there, Joe?” I asked.
He shook his head but kept his eye on the kidnapper as one of the deputies guided him toward the corner of the building.
The guy turned to face me with a gleeful look. “It’s not over, pretty girl. Not by a long shot.”
Chapter 18
We spent the next hour at the diner, waiting around to give our statements. Witt was somber, refusing medical attention when the paramedics showed up. I’d tried to refuse too, but Joe had thrown a full-fledged fit and told me I had to wait to give my statement, so I might as well let them look me over. As I took in his pain-filled eyes, I threw my arms around his back and hugged him tight. “I really am okay, Joe, but I’ll let them look me over to ease your mind.”
His arms wrapped around me and held me close. I winced when his arm pressed against a sore spot on my back, and he pulled back like I’d scalded him. “See? You’re not all right.”
“It’s a bruise, Joe. I’m fine.”
He looked close to breaking down. “Witt’s right.”
I wrinkled my nose. “About what?”
“I was careless with you. I’m sorry.”
I propped a hand on my thrust-out hip. “Joe Simmons, you should know by now that I do what I want. And besides, I don’t regret bringin’ Muffy. She helped save me.”
A tiny grin played on his lips. “I’ve seen her do the same for Ros
e. You realize she’s just as much yours as she is ours.”
I glanced down at the dog lying on top of my foot. “She’s special to me too. Even before today.”
“Are you gonna call Rose and tell her what happened?”
“Shoot, no. There’s no way in Hades I’m ruining her weekend. She’s been looking forward to this all week.”
He scratched his head as his focus turned to the deputies surrounding my kidnapper’s car as they waited for their warrant. “That must be one heck of a special event she’s attending.”
“You have no idea.” I couldn’t hide my grin, but thankfully he wasn’t watching me.
The paramedics set me in the back of the ambulance to check me over, letting Muffy sit next to me while Witt stood guard next to the back doors. They declared me fine except for a few scrapes and bruises, telling me to put ice on my swollen knuckles from punching the guy. After a deputy took a few photos of me with the blood spatters on my face and shirt, they sent me inside the diner to clean up. I put Muffy back in my purse, and then Witt took it and carried it on his shoulder while he escorted me inside. “I’ll watch her.”
When I emerged from the bathroom with a freshly scrubbed face, the owner of the diner, an older man with a stained white apron over his paunch and salt-and-pepper hair was waiting for me. He introduced himself as Mel and insisted Witt and I stay inside until the sheriff’s deputies released us to leave.
“Thanks,” I said. “But we’ve got Muffy.” I gestured to Witt. Muffy’s head was sticking out of my purse.
“From what I hear, that dog’s a hero,” he said. “She can stay. I’ll even bring her a hamburger as a reward.” He pushed us into a booth. “I guarantee you’ll never get snatched from this place again, Neely Kate. I’ll personally shoot the next bastard who tries.” Then he showed us the gun tucked in his waistband.
Witt’s face pinched with anger, but I gave the owner a warm smile. “Thank you, Mel.” He insisted I needed his potato soup to help calm my nerves, and since I loved potato soup, I wasn’t about to argue. Witt refused any food, looking like he was a box of fireworks parked next to a bonfire. He’d set my purse next to him, opening it enough for Muffy to get out, but she stayed where she was, looking alert.
“Witt,” I said softly as soon as Mel walked away, “I’m fine.”
He glanced out the window of the parking lot, toward my kidnapper’s car. “I was right here, Neely Kate. Right here and he got you out the fuckin’ door.” He looked on the verge of tears.
Muffy let out a little whimper and climbed out of my purse, resting her head on Witt’s lap. His hand found her head and he began stroking absently.
I slid out of my seat and into his, grabbing his other hand and leaning my head on his shoulder.
Some of the tension left Witt’s body and he slipped an arm around my back, his fingers digging into my hip as though making sure I couldn’t slip away. We sat like that for nearly a minute before he said, “I failed you before, and I failed you again. Maybe I am just a worthless piece of shit.”
I jerked upright and twisted to look into his face, unsure which part of his statement to address first. “When did you fail me?”
“When you went to Ardmore. I should have been there for you. I fucked up my life and wasn’t around when you needed me.”
Witt had fallen in with the wrong crowd and he’d gotten arrested before I’d graduated. But he’d been there when I’d come home. He’d seen me broken—in both body and spirit—and he’d been the one to pull me out of it. Sure, our cousin Allen Jackson had helped, but Witt had been the one at my side through it all. Now I realized he blamed himself for not being there to prevent it from happening in the first place.
Pushing out a heavy sigh, I said, “Witt, I was bound and determined to go to Ardmore, whether you were there or not.”
“But you might have called me when you got into trouble if I’d been around.”
I gave it a moment of thought and said, “No. I was too proud. Too stubborn. Too young.”
Softness filled his eyes. “What happened to you, Neely Kate? This is all part of that, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” I said quietly. “It’s leftover Ardmore mess.” He was part of it now too. He needed to know. “But this isn’t the time or place to tell you. When we leave, okay?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Okay.”
An older woman walked up to our table. “Excuse me, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay, dear.”
I gave her a warm smile. “I’m fine. Just a little shaken is all.”
“I should say.” She gave Muffy an appreciative look. “I hear your little dog was a hero.”
“That she was,” Witt said, plastering on a good-natured smile that had to be fake, and I suddenly realized he did that a lot. “She saved the day.”
“You’re lucky to have such a loyal friend.”
I turned to Witt and gave him a tearful smile as I squeezed his hand. “Don’t I know it.”
She walked away, and I said, “You’re not a piece of shit, Witt. I know that the financing on your garage fell through, but there will be something else, okay? Don’t give up hope.”
He shook his head and returned his gaze out the window.
A deputy slid into the booth, across the table from us, just as a waitress showed up with my soup. We both gave our statements, but Witt seemed nervous, not that I blamed him. After his conviction, he’d done his best to stay away from law enforcement officials.
As soon as we finished, Joe showed up looking exhausted. “We can go. They’re booking the guy, but a cursory search leads us to believe he’s Alonzo Adkins from Irving, Texas. He’s not likely to get out on bail. Not after the high-powered weapons we found in his trunk.”
“What did you see in his backseat?” I asked.
He looked like he wasn’t going to answer, but he finally said, “Rope, a hypodermic needle.”
“A big knife,” Witt said in a deadpan voice, still looking out the window. “Some zip ties.”
“So your basic kidnapping kit,” I said in a teasing tone.
Neither man looked amused.
“Okay,” I said. “Enough mopin’. We still have work to do.”
Witt dug his phone out of his pocket and frowned. “You need to answer your phone. Jed’s having a fit.”
“It’s in my purse.”
He rummaged around until he found it and handed it to me. My phone had blown up over the last hour and a half. Calls and texts from Jed, Rose, Maeve, Jonah, and Granny. But the text that caught my attention was the one from Kate.
I see you found your surprise.
I held it up and showed Joe.
“She knew Adkins would be here,” he said. “How’d she know?”
“Franken,” I whispered.
Joe frowned and glanced around, then said, “Let’s go back to the landscaping office and we’ll fill you in. Neely Kate, you’re ridin’ with me.”
I expected an argument from Witt, and the tight set of Joe’s jaw suggested he did too, but Witt just nodded and handed me my purse. Muffy, who was still on Witt’s lap, shifted as he moved.
“Witt,” I said. “Will you take Muffy?”
His brow lifted in surprise. “Why don’t you take her?”
I nodded my head toward her. “I think she needs you right now.” Honestly, I suspected he needed her more—and Muffy knew it—but I wasn’t about to say so.
“Yeah. Sure.” He scooped her up and followed me out of the booth.
“I have a few calls and texts to return,” I told Joe as soon as we got into the car.
He nodded but remained silent as I texted Rose that I was fine, not to worry. Next I called my grandmother, but my cousin answered.
“Hey, Dolly Parton,” I said. “I saw I missed a call from Granny.”
“She’s in the bathroom right now and she just went in. She had wings from Big Bill’s, so it might be a while.”
“Do you know what she was
callin’ about?”
“Not a clue.”
Surely Dolly Parton would have known if it was important. “Will you tell her to call me back when she gets a chance?”
“Sure.” Then she hung up.
I rolled my eyes and sent both Maeve and Jonah texts assuring them I was fine. Then I called Jed.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice tight with worry.
“I’m fine. They took the guy into custody, so I’m safe.”
Joe shot me a dark look.
“Is he talkin’?” Jed asked. “Does he know anything about you?”
I told him what I knew, including his parting words.
“You’re not safe. You’re anything but safe.”
“Jed,” I said. “There’s more. I found an audio recording from Tuesday night of someone we think is Franken questioning Branson at what sounds like a bar.” I paused. “Franken had a photo of me that he showed Branson, and Branson told him who I was and that I’d likely come back to Arkansas.”
“Shit.”
“I know,” I said, my chest tight.
“Where are you now?” he growled.
“We’re on our way back to the landscaping office.”
“We who? Joe? Put me on speaker.”
Cringing, I did as he asked, then listened to him ream Joe up one side and down the other about risking my safety. Surprisingly, Joe remained silent until Jed finally stopped.
“You done?” Joe asked in a terse voice.
“For now.”
“Well, you didn’t say anything I haven’t already told myself,” Joe said. “And then some, so no argument from me.”
“Joe,” I said quietly.
He shook his head. “It’s not up for discussion. We need to focus on figuring out what the Hardshaw Group is doing here and how Kate is one step ahead of us. Have you made any progress?”
“No,” Jed grumbled. “I met with Denny Carmichael, but he claims he doesn’t know a damn thing.”
“Do you believe him?” Joe asked.
“No.”
“You might be barkin’ up the wrong tree anyway,” Joe said. “Brox Collard showed up to the diner, shortly before noon.”
“Brox Collard?” He paused for a moment. “Talkin’ to Gerard is gonna be tricky. He and Skeeter had a fallin’ out a few weeks ago, so he probably won’t be too receptive to meetin’ with me.”
In High Cotton: Neely Kate Mystery #2 Page 18