Blazing Summer (Darling Investigations Book 2)

by Denise Grover Swank

  After lunch, Dixie headed to the office with Bill, although in hindsight, I wasn’t so sure I should have left the two of them alone together. Bill undoubtedly had questions about Trent’s and Dixie’s involvement, and my cousin was liable to tell him the truth, no matter how hard that might be to hear. I was sure she had feelings for Bill, but her loyalty to Trent had been stronger. Thankfully, his sample party may have cured her of that. But at what cost? Had she pissed off Trent enough for him to set her up?

  We headed to my truck, but I stopped and took a long look. While the county was full of older trucks, most weren’t as old as my pawpaw’s farm vehicle. “I think we need something more subtle.”

  “What have you got in mind?” Tony asked.

  “My car. It’s out at the farm, but I’d like to talk to Teddy while we’re there. I think he’s out working the fields today, so he should be around.”

  “You want to get some clips of your personal life?” Tony asked as he turned onto the four-lane highway.

  I started to say no, then realized this could be part of the show—not to mention it would give Teddy more screen time, something fans were begging for. “I hadn’t considered that. This is for the case. Teddy knows a lot of people in this town, and with his work with the sheriff’s department, I have a feeling he has a better feel for the baser elements in the county than Dixie does.” Thank God for small favors. “I’d like to ask him about all the people we know were at the party. Hopefully, Dixie will have texted her list by the time we get there.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “We’ll have to mike Teddy,” Chuck said. “And I need to switch out your battery.”

  I nodded and sent Teddy a text.

  I’m coming out to the farm to trade the truck for my car. Are you around? I need to ask you some questions.

  His response came a few minutes later.

  I’m out in the back field. Can you come out here? Bring your camera guys.

  I relayed the message to Tony and Chuck, and they looked worried.

  “What do you think it means?” Tony asked.

  “Maybe he got the results of Dixie’s drug test.”

  “Does he know you’re investigating this for the show?” Chuck asked.

  I frowned. “No.” And I wasn’t sure how he’d take it. I’d just push the proving-Dixie-was-innocent pitch and hope he’d go for it.

  When we reached the farmhouse, Tony pulled over. Chuck switched out the battery pack for my mike, then climbed in the back of the truck so Tony could film me while I drove.

  I steered down the dirt road, past the fields and the overseer’s house, toward the back corner of the property. Teddy’s truck was parked at the beginning of a curve in the road, and he was a good twenty feet behind it, watching for me.

  I pulled to a stop about ten feet in front of him. My nerves were about to get the better of me. Why had he asked the cameramen to come?

  “Stay in the truck,” Chuck said as he hopped out of the truck bed. “Let me mike up Teddy.”

  “Okay. But hurry.” I wasn’t sure I could wait much longer to find out what he had to tell me.

  Chuck hurried over to my cousin and clipped the box to the back of his jeans before quickly threading the cord up his shirt. Teddy helped get it clipped, keeping a serious face, then shooed Chuck away.

  As soon as Chuck got behind the cab, I opened the door and ran to Teddy. “Is everything okay?”

  A grin spread from ear to ear. “Better than okay.” He put an arm around my lower back and started ushering me toward his truck.

  I tried to guess what he was so happy about—specifically in regard to Dixie—but I couldn’t think of anything related to Dixie that would make him smile like that right now. Whatever the outcome, there was no reason for either of us to be happy about the results of her drug test.

  Before we reached the front of his truck, he said, “Close your eyes.”

  “Why?”

  “Just do it.”

  Wanting to make him happy, I closed my eyes and felt him grasp my wrist and tug.

  “I won’t let you fall.”

  “Now I’m really scared,” I teased. “You told me that once when we were kids. We climbed the oak tree out back, and I had to get a cast on my arm a few hours later.”

  He chuckled. “We’re not climbing any trees this time.”

  We continued to walk for nearly half a minute, and I asked, “Are we walking to the Georgia state line? Because I would have changed out of these sandals.”

  “Stop your griping,” he said good-naturedly and stopped moving. “Besides, we’re here. Open your eyes.”

  My eyes fluttered open, and I gasped. We stood on the gravel road between two cotton fields, and on either side, the lower branches of the plants were covered with white flowers. Only white flowers. Acres of them.

  “The cotton plants are blooming,” I whispered, realizing how much I’d missed this.

  “When I planted in April, I started in this back corner, so that’s why they’re blooming first, but the weather’s been perfect—hot and dry, but not too dry—and while they’re a little early, the plants seem to have set well. Not too many leaves, and the squares are good. Barring any issues with Mother Nature, this could be our best crop in years, Summer. The best crop I can ever remember.”

  I walked over to the side of the road and squatted to get closer to the delicate white petals that contained both male and female parts. They would only stay white while they pollinated themselves. Tomorrow they would turn pink, then one or two more flowers on each branch would open and greet the world a day or so later. But today was the only day the field would be entirely white, and it was magical.

  To see the first flowers . . . I turned to Teddy with tears in my eyes. When we were little, Pawpaw used to tell us they’d been touched by fairies, and if we saw the very first flowers on the day they bloomed, we’d be touched by magic too. Every year after that, Pawpaw had brought me out to see them . . . until my mother took me away.

  Teddy had remembered.

  “Thank you,” I said, forcing the words past the lump in my throat.

  “I’ve been checking them and thought they were close. I meant to tell y’all at dinner last night, but things got out of hand, and then I stomped out. I’m sorry.”

  “That’s okay. I liked finding out this way better.”

  He gave me a tender smile. “You saved this, Summer. You did what you had to do to save a farm you hadn’t been to in over a decade. This would all be gone if not for you.”

  I shook my head, wiping a stray tear. “No, Teddy. You would have found a way. We Baumgartners are stubborn folk.”

  He leaned over and hugged me. I rested my chin against his shoulder, so thankful that I was back in Sweet Briar. That he and Dixie and Luke and even Meemaw were back in my life. But it wasn’t just that—I was happy to be back at the farm too. I’d forgotten it was an entity of its own, one that had seeped deep into my bones before I was old enough to realize it. It was part of Teddy too. I tried not to think about what he would have done if he’d lost the farm. Other than Dixie, it was his everything.

  I pulled away and looked up him. I had to tell him about my plan to help Dixie, and I was ready to fight him on it if necessary.

  “Teddy, I’ve figured out my big investigation for the show.” I paused to make sure I had his full attention. “I plan to find out what happened to Dixie. This morning she heard that April Jean’s trailer had burned down, and now she’s scared to death that she started it. I aim to prove that she didn’t.”

  His body went rigid, and his smile fell. “You’re gonna film it and put it on TV?”

  “Only if it helps her. If it hurts her, no. I’ll dump all the footage.”

  “How will you control that?” he asked, getting pissed. He turned toward Tony, as if only then realizing he was still filming. “Turn that off.”

  Tony looked to me for confirmation, and when I nodded, he lowered the camera and walked back toward t
he trucks.

  When he was out of earshot, Teddy lowered his voice and asked, “How can you be sure it won’t get used?”

  “We’ll treat it like we did the footage we got on our own back in April. Bill used his own cloud storage and dumped the recordings every night. We’ll do the same thing this time. Lauren will never see this unless I show it to her.”

  “What about those two?” Teddy asked, gesturing toward them. “They weren’t any part of helping you last time. How do you know you can trust them?”

  “The only reason they didn’t help last time was because I never asked them. Bill and Dixie cooked up the secret investigation while I was in the hospital. We kept it between the three of us to be safe. But Tony and Chuck are firmly on board. They want to do this too. They won’t tell Lauren.”

  “And what if it falls through?” Teddy asked, looking like he was about to be sick. “What if you find evidence that incriminates her?”

  I leaned closer and lowered my voice. “Then I’ll bury it. I won’t hurt her.”

  “And those guys?”

  “They’ve agreed to do the same.”

  “What about Luke? He’d arrest her in a New York minute.”

  I shook my head. I couldn’t deny it because I knew he was right. “He doesn’t know what I’m investigating, and I won’t tell him. Dixie comes before Luke, Teddy. I swear it on Pawpaw’s grave.”

  He drew in a deep breath and ran a hand over his head, then dropped his arm to his side. “I’m scared, Summer.”

  I grabbed his forearm and held on tight. “I am too, but I believe she’s innocent—on both counts. She’s lived with far too much guilt for far too long. I want her free of it.”

  “You don’t think she started the fire in the barn?” he asked in a guarded tone.

  “No. I just can’t see her doin’ something like that.” I paused. “Even if she was out of her mind on drugs.”

  He was silent for a moment. “Why does she think she burned down April Jean’s trailer? Does she remember bein’ there last night?”

  “No. She remembers telling Trent she wanted to come home. Then he handed her a soft drink and told her to lighten up and enjoy herself.”

  His face went rigid. “Trent Dunbar drugged my sister.”

  “We don’t know that yet.” But I’d bet my entire season of earnings on it.

  His jaw clenched so tight I was afraid he was going to grind his teeth to dust.

  “She remembers an argument with April Jean over Trent, and then nothing until she woke up this morning.”

  “Not even the shower?” he asked, sounding worried. “She was standing and moving around. She was talkin’ to you.”

  I knew what he was thinking—if she could take a shower and not remember it, what else could she have forgotten?

  “I still believe she’s innocent, Teddy.”

  He nodded and stared out into the fields. “I can’t lose her again, Summer. I can’t.”

  I grabbed his hand and squeezed. “You won’t. We won’t. You have me to help this time around, and remember that Baumgartner stubbornness? I won’t stop until we know she’s safe.”

  He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he nodded. “Yeah. You’re right.” A grin tipped up the corners of his mouth. “You were always the most stubborn out of all of us.”

  I grinned. “That’s right. I won’t stop until we prove she’s innocent, but we’ve got a fight ahead of us, Teddy. I’m pretty sure Trent’s trying to set her up, and he’s got help on the police force to do it.”

  His eyes widened as I told him about my encounter with Elijah.

  “Do you trust me?” I asked. “You and I worked different sides of the same case last time. Let’s work together to free Dixie from her demons.”

  He hesitated, then nodded. “Okay.”

  I threw my arms around his neck and squeezed tight. “Thank you, Teddy.”

  “No.” His voice was muffled in my ear. “Thank you, Summer.”

  I released him and said, “As much as I hate this next part, I have to get it on camera.”

  He nodded with a resigned look. “I know.”

  I motioned to Tony and Chuck to head over as I said to Teddy, “I’m going to tell you that I’m investigating Dixie, and you react however you want. If you want to fight me on it, go ahead. Just remember that this reaction is the one people are going to see. It might not ring true if you immediately agree.”

  “Okay.”

  Once the guys were ready, I repeated that I wanted to investigate what had happened to Dixie, although this time I didn’t mention it was for the show. Following my lead, Teddy protested, arguing it would open old wounds, but he ultimately caved. I hugged him again, amazed that he played his role so convincingly, but then again, he’d been an informant for the sheriff’s department. He’d already proved that he knew how to convince people to believe what he wanted.

  “So I think we should work together,” I said, reiterating what I’d said before.

  He rubbed his chin and stared out into the fields. “Yeah. That’s a good idea. My contacts are somewhat compromised since word got out that I was working for the sheriff, but I can still get information.”

  “What do you know about Elijah Sterling?” I asked. “Luke told me his application was pushed through by the mayor and city council, and now Luke’s stuck with him.”

  Teddy gave me a disgusted look. “Cry me a river.”

  “He says Elijah and Trent were buddies.”

  Luke hesitated. “Yeah, I guess they were, but I’m not sure how close.”

  “Close enough for him to plant evidence at Trent’s request?”

  His eyes bugged out. “What?” He was playing his part well.

  I repeated my encounter with the officer that morning. “It’s suspicious,” I finished.

  “But not conclusive.”

  “So you think I’m overreacting?” I asked defensively.

  “No, we just need harder evidence to prove he’s crooked.”

  But all this talk about Officer Sterling reminded me about something else. “Oh, crap! Luke wanted me to file a report at the station, and I haven’t done it yet. Maybe he’s hoping to use it to fire him.”

  “More likely suspend him. If the mayor pushed him through the hiring process, he’s not going to let Luke just fire him. He’ll put up some kind of bureaucratic fight.”

  I frowned. Teddy was probably right.

  His eyes hardened. “But I do know if he lays hands on you like that again, he’ll be dealing with more than just a suspension.”

  “Teddy, don’t do anything to get yourself in trouble. Save your outrage for Dixie.”

  “I have enough outrage to use on behalf of both Baumgartner girls, Summy.”

  “Well, venting your rage on a Sweet Briar police officer could land you in jail, so keep it under control.”

  He grinned but said nothing.

  I narrowed my eyes. “Moving on . . .”

  “Okay. What else?”

  “What do you know about a guy named Rick Springfield? He lives off County Road 46 and has an alligator named Kitty in his backyard.”

  “Rick Springfield is trouble with a capital T. Stay away from that guy.” He paused. “Does he have a connection to Dixie?”

  “She said he was at Trent’s party.”

  He gave me a suspicious look. “And how do you know about the other information?”

  “He was part of a case we worked on this morning.”

  His voice hardened. “What case was that?”

  “It’s not important.” I waved my hand in dismissal. “His alligator ate my client’s chickens. What’s important was that Big D was at the party, and I think his cousin was there too.”

  He looked confused. “His cousin?”

  “Nash Jackson. He was at Rick’s house when we asked him about his alligator.”

  Teddy was quiet for a moment. “I don’t know him. The only cousin I know about is Herbert.” His mouth twisted. “Why do
you think his cousin was at the party? Did Dixie recognize him?”

  “No. I think he recognized her, though. He did a double take when he saw her, like he was caught really off guard.”

  A grave look filled Teddy’s eyes. “I’ll ask around and let you know what I find out.”

  “Don’t talk to him without me,” I said.

  “Without your cameras, you mean.”

  “Teddy . . .” I almost stopped him and restarted the question so we could cut it out, but I reconsidered. It seemed disingenuous not to acknowledge the cameras were part of this.

  “Fine,” he said, but he didn’t look happy about it. “If I find out something big, I’ll call you, and we’ll look into it together, but I’m worried that both of us are too recognizable to be effective.”

  I hoped that wasn’t the case. “What do you know about April Jean Thornberry?”

  He looked uncomfortable. “Not much.”

  “She had a drawing of you hangin’ on her livin’ room wall that made me want to poke my eyes out.”

  “That thing’s still up?” he asked in dismay.

  “So you’ve seen it?”

  “God, no. Not in person anyway. A friend of mine saw it and sent me a photo.”

  “A friend?”

  “Never mind who.” He held off a few seconds before he said, “April Jean’s mother died a few years back, and her father left town when she was a baby. She has grandparents, but they practically disowned her when she started her career as an artist.”

  “She said Trent’s stayed with her multiple times. She said they go way back.”

  His mouth twisted, and he partially shrugged.

  “What’s that mean?”

  “It means she sleeps with multiple guys.”

  “So? It’s the twenty-first century. Women can sleep with whoever they want.”

  He held up his hands in defense. “It means I don’t know firsthand about her relationship status with Dunbar, but I do know that she’s slept with a lot of guys, usually ones who have something she wants.”

  “What’s that mean?”