Thirty-Three and a Half Shenanigans

by Denise Grover Swank

  Bear stood, grabbing my hand and holding onto it. “And where does your loyalty lie, Lady?”

  Jed tensed, but remained in his seat.

  I kept my rising panic at bay. “It lies with Skeeter, of course.”

  “Then why do you hide behind this veil?” His free hand lifted toward my face, and I grabbed it.

  “Bear, do you have secrets? Something you want to keep hidden from the world?” I laughed, but it was a humorless sound. “Of course you do. Everyone does. Mine is surface deep. Would you like me to start prying to find out what you’re hiding? Because I assure you that it would be fun to start digging around. Maybe I won’t have to dig very deep. Maybe you haven’t hidden it very well at all.”

  His hands dropped. “What do you want?”

  “I want to know where your loyalty lies.”

  “Do you really have to ask?”

  “Yes.” I moved over to the desk and leaned my butt against the edge, grateful when he followed me. He sat in the chair in front of me. I put my arms onto the desk behind me to prop myself up.

  “And if I said my loyalty lies with you?”

  I pulled myself up so I was sitting on the desk. “I wouldn’t believe you.”

  “And if I said Skeeter?”

  “Then I’d argue that you’ve taken an awfully long time to admit it.” I paused.

  He stood and moved in front of me. “I want to see your face.”

  “Then tell me your deep dark secret, and I’ll show you mine.”

  Jed stood but hung back by the chairs.

  Bear glanced over his shoulder at him before returning his gaze to me. “Why is Jed here as your bodyguard?”

  “Maybe I need one with you.”

  He laughed.

  I wasn’t going to get anything out of him, and the longer he stayed in here, the more dangerous our interview was becoming. I was glad I’d decided to try both questions at the same time when I forced a vision, because there was no way Bear would let me do this twice.

  I reached for his hand and traced the lines on his palm with my fingers. “You have very big hands, Bear.”

  “I can show you what I can do with them if you’d like,” he said in a low voice.

  I concentrated on whether he was behind Mason’s attempted murder and if he was betraying Skeeter.

  A vision slammed me hard, and I was plunged into a dark room.

  “Is this going down or not?” Bear asked.

  I could barely make out the man in front of me. He stood in front of a window, his back to me. “I told you it was.”

  “I didn’t sign on for murder. I need extra for this.”

  “You’re getting what you want. What are you griping about?”

  “It’s a bigger risk if I get caught.”

  “Great reward comes with great risk.”

  Then I was back in Skeeter’s office, clutching Bear’s hand in a death grip. Bear was trying to pry my hand off, while Jed was trying to pull him off me.

  “You’re gonna kill someone,” I said.

  “You’re damn right!” Bear shouted. “I’m gonna kill you if you don’t let go of my hand.”

  I dropped my hold as though he were on fire.

  “You’re one crazy-ass bitch!” He lifted his now freed hand as if to hit me, but Jed stepped between us, his chest heaving.

  “Get the hell out of here right now, Bear.” I heard the threat behind his words even though he didn’t raise his voice.

  “Gladly!”

  He stormed out of the room, and Jed shut the door behind him and locked it. I could hear Bear raising a ruckus in the other room.

  A sharp pain throbbed in my temples, and I leaned forward, clutching my head.

  “Are you okay?”

  I wanted to say I was fine, but I figured the fact that I was seeing two of Jed wasn’t a good sign. “Give me a minute.”

  “What did you see?”

  “A man wanted him to kill someone. Bear was reluctant, and he said he wanted more money. The other guy told him that he was already getting what he wanted, but Bear said it was too risky. The man said great reward comes with great risk, and that was it.”

  “Did you know who the other man was?”

  “No. His back was to me.” The pain in my head was getting worse. “I think I have to throw up.” I ran into the bathroom and lifted the veil in time to lose my meager dinner in the toilet.

  Jed followed me in, holding my glass. “I’m going to go talk to Skeeter, but as far as I’m concerned, you’re done.”

  I shook my head, bringing a fresh wave of nausea. “We’re not done yet. I still need to read Neil Winn.”

  “There’s no way in hell you can handle him like this.” He dumped out the whiskey and filled it with water from the faucet.

  “Just give me a few minutes.”

  He set the glass on the counter. “You have until I get back from talking with Skeeter.”

  “Skeeter said not to leave me alone.”

  “I’ll lock you in.”

  The thought should have scared me. Jed was locking me in a windowless room, in essence holding me hostage, but all I felt was relief. When had I reached this place of trusting criminals so blindly?

  But I didn’t have the energy to think about it. I barely had the energy to lift my head off the toilet seat. Thank God it had been clean. Who would have thought Skeeter knew how to aim?

  I closed my eyes and only opened them again when I heard Jed and Skeeter’s voices in the office.

  “We have to get her out of here,” Jed said.

  “I agree, but she has to walk out on her own, or this was all for nothing,” Skeeter said, moving toward me.

  “I can walk,” I said, trying to lift my head.

  “You can’t even stand,” Skeeter said, squatting beside me. I expected him to be angry with me for not finishing with all of the readings, but his voice was surprisingly gentle.

  “I can, just help me up.”

  Skeeter put an arm around my back and lifted me to my feet.

  I wobbled in my heels. “See? I’m standing.”

  “You look like you’re drunk, but there’s no way you drank enough of my twenty-five-year-old whiskey to get that way.” I heard his irritation.

  “Sorry.”

  “Jed told me what you saw with Bear. It was worth the information.”

  I took a deep breath. “If you give me a few minutes, I can try to talk to Neil Winn.”

  Skeeter shook his head. “As much as I want you to do that, we just can’t risk it.”

  I walked over to the sink. Skeeter stood behind me, his tanned face a sharp contrast to my pale one. “But I want to try—”

  “No,” both men said.

  I grabbed the glass off the counter and rinsed out my mouth. “Then I’ve failed.”

  “How can you say that?” Skeeter asked, staring at my reflection in the mirror. “Bear’s the one. We know that thanks to you.”

  “How do you know there aren’t others in on this with him? We don’t know who was giving him orders. That’s the person who’s in charge or at least higher up than Bear. We need to find him.”

  Skeeter put his hands on my shoulders, searching my face in the reflection. “And I will, Rose. You did your part, now I’m going to do mine. We know Bear is involved now, so we’ll follow him everywhere he goes.”

  “But how do you know the person following him isn’t one of the guys who’s in on it too?”

  “I’ll use one of the guys you’ve already read.” Skeeter’s tone left no room for argument. “You look like you’re feeling well enough to walk. What do you think?”

  “Do I smell like barf?” I could only imagine what that would do for my image.

  He grinned and bent his face into my neck, his mouth and nose less than an inch from my skin. He breathed in, then out, his breath warm on my skin. “You smell good.”

  I elbowed him in the stomach.

  He gasped and stepped back, laughing as he clutched his gut.
“What the hell was that for?”

  “For messing around. It’s never gonna happen with me, Skeeter, so let it go.”

  He backed out of the bathroom, his hands raised. “You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

  I lowered my veil and studied myself in the mirror. With the veil down, I looked no worse for wear. “If I’m leaving, then let’s go.”

  “Let me leave the room first,” Skeeter said, “then follow me. Lady, can you say something about having to leave due to an emergency? Then Jed will take you to the car.”

  “I can do it.”

  I followed Skeeter into the room full of men. I noticed Bear wasn’t in the room and neither was Neil Winn. Did that mean Neil was the other man in my vision?

  Skeeter stopped in the middle and plastered on his cocky grin. “Gentlemen, I know you were all looking forward to meeting Lady tonight, but unfortunately, she’s been called away.” He turned to me.

  “Yes,” I said, fighting a fresh round of nausea. “Something has come up with one of my warehouses, and I have to get back to address it. But thank you to those I met. I look forward to meeting the rest of you when I return.” Even if I had no intention of voluntarily returning.

  Jed gave me a tiny push on my back, and I headed for the door to the hallway. We moved down the hall toward the exit, Jed in a bigger hurry than I thought necessary, but I wasn’t about to argue.

  The car wasn’t in front of the building where Jed had dropped me off. He silently pointed it out to me across the lot, but when we reached it, Neil Winn stepped out of the shadows of a truck, a twisted grin on his face.

  “Lady, you aren’t leaving already, are you? We haven’t had a chance to chat.”

  “She’s been called away for an emergency,” Jed said, stepping between us. “You can talk to her the next time she’s in town.”

  “I don’t think so.” Neil lifted a handgun and pointed it at Jed’s chest. “I think we’ll talk now.”

  The fear coursing through my blood added to my nausea. Neil Winn looked prepared to use the weapon in his hand, and Jed looked prepared to call him on it. “Jed, it’s a long drive back to Louisiana. I think I can spare a few minutes for Mr. Winn.”

  “You know my name?” Neil asked.

  “Of course. I know all of Skeeter’s top men.” I moved next to Jed, my heart racing. “But I’m not gonna say a word to you unless you get rid of that gun.”

  Neil hesitated. “Fine, but I want to talk without Skeeter’s boy listening. He steps away, and I’ll put the gun away.”

  Jed shook his head and said in disgust, “There’s no way in hell—”

  I put my hand on Jed’s arm. “Jed, I’ll do it.”

  “No.”

  Neil took a step closer, aiming his gun at me now. “I’ll shoot her, Jed. I know how important she is to Skeeter. Do you want to risk that?”

  “Skeeter’s gonna kill you, Winn. You know that, right? You hurt a hair on her head, you’re a dead man.”

  “I’m only gonna hurt her if you don’t back away.”

  Jed searched my face, not that he could see it through the veil. I felt like crap and wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep for the next day and a half, but I couldn’t let Jed get hurt, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to find out if Neil was the guy in Bear’s vision.

  I lifted my chin, trying to reason through this. “Jed only backs up enough so that he can’t overhear you. He’s not leaving.”

  Neil laughed. “Fine. But if you act like you’re gonna do something stupid, Jed, I’m gonna kill her and you.”

  “Jed, go,” I forced out, trying not to shake with fear.

  Jed leaned closer and lowered his voice. “You don’t have to do this.”

  “We both know I do,” I whispered, still keeping an eye on Neil.

  Jed turned his head slightly so his mouth couldn’t be seen. “I have my own gun, and if I think he’s about to hurt you, I won’t hesitate to kill him.”

  I nodded.

  Jed lifted his hands as if in surrender. “I’m stepping away.”

  “About damn time,” Neil muttered as Jed continued to walk backward. He stopped in the middle of the parking lot and dropped his hands to his sides.

  “He’s far enough,” I said. “Put away the gun.”

  He stuffed it into the waistband of his jeans. I had the fleeting hope that he’d accidently shoot his foot or an appendage even closer to the gun tip and undoubtedly more cherished, and I didn’t even feel bad about it.

  “What do you want?’

  “I want to know why you’re so damned special to Skeeter.”

  “You had to send Jed away for that?” I snorted. “I’m special because Skeeter says I am. His reasons are none of your damned business.”

  “You just popped out of nowhere at that auction. He wasn’t supposed to win it, you know.” He moved closer and wobbled. He let out a huff, and I was engulfed in a cloud of alcohol.

  He was drunk. I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad one.

  “So I hear. A group of amateurs robbed a bunch of places and gathered the money to outbid Skeeter. Only they didn’t.”

  “They got interrupted.” He stood in front of me. “What do you know about that?”

  “I know the sheriff showed up. As for the rest? I only know what Skeeter told me.” I looked up into Neil’s cold eyes. “What do you know about Gems? Are you the owner?”

  He laughed. “No.”

  “Do you know who is?”

  His grin turned evil. “No. I wish I did. I’d offer to help him.”

  “Why do you hate Skeeter?”

  He shook his head. “That’s none of your damn business.”

  I felt like I was talking in circles. He was never going to voluntarily give me the answers I wanted. Which meant I needed to have a vision, despite the fact that I was risking my life to do it. He was drunk and had a gun he wouldn’t hesitate to use.

  I grabbed Neil’s arm and concentrated on his connection to Mason and Skeeter.

  My peripheral vision faded, and a vision hit me hard, making me stagger back into the side of the car. The night faded to someplace sunny, then a stabbing pain filled my head.

  Everything went black.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  When I opened my eyes, I was in the backseat of a moving car. I experienced a moment of confusion before remembering the last few moments before I’d passed out. Jed’s voice was the only thing that pulled me out of a panic.

  “We’re almost to the feed store.”

  “Jed?” I asked, trying to sit up, but the pounding in my head kept me down.

  He glanced back over the seat. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like someone smashed a sledge hammer into my skull. What happened?”

  “You were talking to Winn, and then you grabbed his hand. You had a vision, didn’t you?”

  “I tried. Why do you sound so mad?” I asked, grabbing hold of the seat back in front of me.

  “Skeeter told you no more visions tonight. You disobeyed him.”

  “Skeeter’s not the boss of me. I saw an opportunity, and I went for it.”

  “You insisted I leave you alone with that maniac. Are you crazy?”

  “I needed to talk to him, Jed. I had to do it. You could still see me.” What was it with all the bossy men in my life? “Besides, I think he would have shot you if it had gone down differently.”

  “You’re lucky he didn’t shoot you.”

  “So what happened after I passed out?”

  “He pried off your death grip, then took off running. I picked you up off the hood of the car, threw you into the backseat, and called Skeeter.”

  “How long was I out?”

  “About fifteen minutes.”

  That didn’t sound good.

  Jed pulled into the parking lot, and I dug out my keys and reached for the door.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Jed asked.

  “Home.” I jiggled the handle,
but the door wouldn’t open. “Let me out, Jed.”

  “Not until Skeeter gets here.”

  “No, I need to go now.”

  “What’s your hurry?”

  I let go of the door and slumped back in the seat in exhaustion. What was my hurry? Mason was locked up in a hospital room, and I still had to figure out how to sneak back into Maeve’s house.

  “Skeeter is only minutes behind us.”

  What did it matter? I leaned my head back on the seat and unpinned my hat, laying it on the seat next to me as I blinked to stop the tears that were blurring my vision. Everything I’d done tonight suddenly became overwhelming. I just wanted to go home and crawl into bed with Mason, Muffy plastered up against me. Only Mason was locked away, and I couldn’t even talk to him.

  The car door opened a couple of minutes later, but I didn’t sit up.

  “Lady?” Skeeter asked, sounding worried as he slid in next to me and shut the door.

  “My name is Rose.” I lifted my head, but it took tremendous effort, like I’d been drugged and every movement was delayed.

  “Why did you talk to Winn?”

  “Maybe because the gun he pointed at me was pretty convincing.”

  Jed must have described that part of the situation to him in some detail, because he didn’t seem surprised. He just said, “What did he tell you?”

  “He wanted to know why you were so interested in me. Somehow he figured out that there was a connection between me and the guys who tried to outbid you.”

  “What did you say?”

  “I asked him what his connection was to Gems.”

  Confusion flickered in Skeeter’s eyes. “Why would you ask him that?”

  “It was a hunch. He denied being the owner, but when I asked him if he knew who it was, he said he wished he did so he could help him. Then I tried to have a vision and passed out.”

  “So you risked your life for nothing,” he growled.

  “Not for nothing. I think he helped the guys who tried to take you down at the auction. I’m pretty sure he was the guy in Bear’s vision. And he admitted that he hates you. That’s something.”

  His jaw clenched. “So they’re both trying to overthrow me.”