Wearing another slick suit, Ron Newson approached Donna. He placed a hand on her shoulder and appeared to speak. Donna trembled. Gathering her into his arms, Ron pressed her head against his shoulder and rubbed her back. He continued his murmurings but had cast his eyes to the ceiling.
His gaze dropped and fell on the crack in the curtain.
I froze.
Ron’s eyes narrowed and trapped me in his hardened gaze.
Donna’s head lifted, and he pulled his attention from the window to her.
I backed out of the hollies and ran to my truck.
Luke followed me from Donna’s subdivision to a nearby barbecue joint, The Speedy Pig. He grabbed sandwiches and Cokes while I settled into his Raptor 4x4. While I split up the BBQ booty, he slipped an arm over the seat back and waited, knowing I’d put food before factualizing.
“You were right.” I unwrapped a sandwich and took a deep bite of pulled pork. My words were muffled by porky goodness. “Ron’s with Donna. They looked chummy. She’d been crying.”
Luke caught a tendril of my hair and wound it around his finger. “What’d you tell her?”
“The truth. That she needed to help Molly. Which Donna refused to do.”
“Why’s that, do you think?” A soft smile played on his lips as he studied me.
“Because Ron was there, listening. Donna said people wouldn’t leave her alone and assumed I knew who she was talking about. She wouldn’t clarify. And she skipped the visitation to turn in her resignation.”
“Interesting.” Luke let me finish off my last bite of pulled pork but caught my fingers before I had a chance to lick them clean. “Promise me something.”
“What?” I curled my sticky fingers around his. “Don’t say drop this business about Belvia Brakeman. I’ve got to see it through. I promise I won’t step on your toes. I’ll tell you everything I learn.”
“That’s not what I meant.” He shook his head. “It’s about the information I left you the other day.”
Billy Branson’s arrest and parole records and current address. Luke’s secret investigation to get Shawna off our backs. Shawna, like the rest of Halo, thought her daddy had run away with my mother. Luke had found proof that Billy had landed in prison instead. Whether it had anything to do with Christy Tucker or to where she had disappeared was still a mystery. Ten months later, she sent us baby Cody. Leaving him with unanswered questions, namely his paternal parentage.
Unfortunately, Cody decided forcing Shawna to do a DNA test would give him the answers he wanted.
“Talk to Shawna about her father. Soon,” said Luke. “It might change her mind about her kidnapping allegations since it clears Billy Branson’s involvement with your mother. As law enforcement, let alone Cody’s arresting officer, I can’t reveal I got you this information from the DMV and warrant databases. That would complicate your brother’s case worse than it already is. I’m sorry, sugar, but you have to do this without me.”
Dammit. If I’d kept Belvia from dying, or at least solved Della’s murder first, this wouldn’t be an issue.
Shame flooded me. But I didn’t want to talk to Shawna about anything, let alone be the bearer of bad daddy news.
“About that. There’s been a development that makes this a bit trickier.”
He dropped the curl to slide his hand to the nape of my neck. “What development?”
My gaze flew to the window. “It’s Todd.”
“What about McIntosh?”
The air grew noticeably colder. Despite the heat blasting from the Raptor’s vents.
“Todd went on a date with Shawna.”
I looked over just as the expression on Luke’s face crossed from wet hen to crowing rooster. I couldn’t tell if he was choking or trying not to laugh.
A moment later a long breath wheezed from his nose. “Shawna’s going out with Todd? What is she thinking?”
“What is she thinking? What’s Todd thinking?” I jerked away from Luke’s hand. “Todd’s going bowling with the enemy. Shawna’s up to something and poor Todd got sucked in by her—” I gestured with my hand.
“Her what?”
I gestured again. With more swoops.
A bubble of laughter erupted.
I punched him.
“Lord Almighty,” he said. “I’d pay good money to see those two on a date.”
“It’s not funny. Think about what this’ll do to Cody. He’s sitting in jail while his best friend is consorting with the very woman who put him in there. Todd’s lost his mind and I’ve got to help him get it back.”
“Hold on one minute. Todd’s a big boy and if he wants to date Shawna, you’ve got to let him. This may be good for us. If Shawna’s getting—Ow.” He rubbed his arm where I slugged him. “What I meant to say is if Shawna’s happy, she’ll be more receptive to speaking with you. And drop the charges against Cody.”
“I don’t know how she’ll take the news that her daddy’s been in the state pen. Twenty years for criminal trespass and home invasion burglary? And now Billy Branson’s out and lives a county over? She’ll think I’m blackmailing her.”
“If you put it that way, yes. We need to work on your social skills. Why don’t you say,” he cleared his throat, “‘Shawna, this whole mess with the charges of Cody kidnapping you has been one big misunderstanding, and I wanted to get to the root cause so we can end it.’”
“I do not sound like that.”
Ignoring me, he continued in the falsetto drawl, “‘Cody wanted to know if y’all were a DNA match, but only because he found those photos of our mother with your daddy. He’s never known who fathered him. But I found out where Billy Branson’s been and why he hasn’t contacted you. Let’s put the past behind us. You don’t want a twenty-one-year-old to spend his life in jail because he’s just looking for his parents, do you?’”
I folded my arms. “Shawna will never believe I’m sincere.”
“You could try.” Luke caught my hand and kissed my knuckle. “For us.”
“It won’t work.” Luke was a fixer. He couldn’t help himself. But finding Shawna’s father wasn’t a magic bullet.
“Lay out the truth to her. If she doesn’t change her mind, at least it’ll be out in the open. Neither of you can move forward with your lives without knowing what happened to your parents. I know Billy Branson isn’t your mother, but now you know she hasn’t been with him for the last twenty years. That’s something.” He placed my hand on his shoulder and drew me closer. “Whatever happens, we’ll get through this.”
“I hope so.”
“I know so. Cherry, I—” His gray eyes darkened from gentle rain to summer storm. Pulling me closer, he bent his head. Soft lips slid over mine, tasting like barbecue with his special kick of heat. Strong yet gentle hands tangled in my hair and skated down my back.
I tightened my grip on his shoulders before sliding my hands into his luscious curls. “Luke.”
“I know.”
We couldn’t voice the words. Yet. We both hated the vulnerability. For different reasons. Our future was uncertain. But everything felt right in the world when he wrapped his arms around me. Here, walls between us fell and a new one emerged, surrounding and protecting us. Our own domain. We’d made progress. Getting my brother out of jail would help.
Our domain had an incredible furnace. I unzipped my coat.
Luke sighed and deepened the kiss.
I closed my eyes.
The gray-eyed baby appeared. Wearing a Georgia Bulldog onesie. And this time, he had a twin whose fair hair and cornflower blues matched mine. They giggled and cooed in JB and Wanda’s arms. And in my mind’s darkest place, I watched them take those babies away.
And never felt more vulnerable.
I jerked, ramming my forehead into Luke’s nose,
and slid off his lap. Scrambling for an excuse that didn’t include baby hallucinations, I said, “I expect you’ve got to get to the sheriff’s office and clock in.”
Luke rubbed his nose. The summer storm had quieted and winter clouds had crept in. “Something wrong?”
“Oh, no.” I swung open the passenger door and leaped from his truck. “Just don’t want to make you late. Thank you for the sandwich and good luck with the investigation. See you later.”
I swung the door shut, clambered into my Datsun, and cranked the motor.
It wasn’t until I was halfway home I realized I forgot to tell Luke that Ron Newson had seen me spying through Donna’s window.
Fourteen
The next morning, Hazel didn’t show for my drawing class. Neither did two of the four men who had signed up. Made apparent by the remaining women who pointed out that fact to me as I explained the day’s lesson.
Surrounded by the remaining women, Fred cheerfully picked up his charcoal pencil and focused on “planar analysis and line variation using drapery.” The class grumbled but arranged their cloth and began sorting shadow from light on the heavy paper I had passed out.
Except for Ada.
“This is not good, Chandra,” said Ada. “You lose the men and you’ll lose the gals too.”
“Ada, honey, I’m Cherry. Remember?”
Ada rolled her eyes. “I thought you wanted us to bring in material for modeling. Why don’t you use this stuff for togas instead? You’ll get the men back.” She hung the blanket over her shoulder and minced across the floor like she worked a runway.
“Y’all aren’t ready for the human form. I promised I’d take this job seriously. We’ll do gesture drawing soon though. I promise.”
“Ada, sit down,” said Fred. “All that moving around is changing my light.”
“Give me a break. Your light is the overhead fluorescents.” She held the blanket before her face and peeped around it. “Draw me, Fred.”
“You’ll break my paper.”
I fought off a shudder. Ada’s drapery peek reminded me of Ron Newson spotting me the night before. “That gives me an idea. Come with me, Ada.” I pulled her into the back of the room.
The students abandoned their drawing to watch us. I motioned for them to follow. “Ollie, you and Martha hold up these blankets like so. And Ada, stand back there.”
Ollie and Martha held their cloth above their heads. A small gap appeared between the hanging blankets. I stood before the crack and peered through.
“Ada, can you see me?”
Ada waved. “This beats drawing. What are we playing at, Chandra?”
“I want to know if I could be spotted peeking through a window.” As I said the words, I realized my mistake.
The class hooted. Martha dropped her blanket. Ollie turned bright red.
“It’s not what you think.” I held up my hands.
Ada glanced from Ollie to me. “Even it were true, you wouldn’t be the first, Chandra.”
Ollie beat a fast exit and a groan emerged from the females.
Ada smirked. “I think Ollie left to sign up for hot yoga.”
“Why?”
“He claims delirium from medication, but Ollie’s been known to peek at unsuspecting dressers in the women’s locker room.”
I slapped a hand against my face. “Y’all don’t live in a retirement home. Halo House’s more like an ongoing Roman bacchanalia.”
“Then let us draw that and be done with it. Ancient Rome is classical, ain’t it?”
I stopped my eyes from rolling to watch my students and their blankets leave.
Ada waited until only Fred remained, shading in drapery folds by his lonesome. “Chandra, what was that thing with the blankets really about?”
I hesitated, knowing Ada’s gossip superpowers, but she seemed serious. Unusually so. “I went to see Della Brakeman’s assistant last night. She was upset, but someone was with her. I took a peek to see who it was and that someone might have seen me through the living room curtains.”
“And that someone was Della’s husband?”
Fred looked up from his drawing. “You’re pretty sharp, Ada.”
“Ron might not have seen you if it was dark outside. Or at least, he might not be able to identify you. You’re lucky they didn’t call the police though.”
“There was a deputy in the neighborhood. He actually sent me to check on Donna.”
“Is that your Romeo?” She winked. “What’s he think about having a Peeping Tom for a girl?”
“I’m not a Peeping Tom. But he doesn’t know about Ron seeing me either.”
“I’d be careful,” said Fred. “Ron’s got money and clout. If he thinks you know about his affair, he may try something. Plus, he’s waiting on Belvia’s will. She could be vengeful. I wouldn’t doubt she’d have some clause in there about fidelity for her daughters’ spouses.”
Belvia was vengeful enough to hire a suspicious-minded artist to find her daughter’s killer. I nodded in agreement. “Do you think Ron is dangerous?”
“Even a lapdog will snap if you try to take away its bone, hon.” Ada patted my back. “You watch yourself. And not just with Ron. Anyone with a stake in Belvia’s empire will be doing whatever they can to protect their claim.”
“I made a promise to Belvia to help her with something.”
“Anyone with any sense would stay away from the Brakemans.” Ada shrugged. “But go on, do-gooder. It’s your funeral.”
My suspect list wasn’t getting any shorter. In fact, by adding the Brakemans, it had grown in length. I itched to whittle down the list. The Meemaw’s Tea bigwigs would’ve returned to work by now. I pointed the Datsun in that direction and hoped at least one would show obvious signs of homicidal mania.
Just to make things easier. For Belvia’s sake.
In Meemaw’s Tea factory lobby, I examined the double funeral wreaths and the updated announcement written by Meemaw’s public relations department.
Two horrific murders that had decimated Meemaw’s Tea leadership in just under two weeks. That was my spin, anyway. The PR department’s announcement described the tragedy as “sudden deaths of our beloved founders.”
“When are the funerals?” I asked the receptionist.
The older woman shook her head. “We don’t know yet. It’s so tragic.”
“I heard Donna Sharp quit. Did they find her a replacement yet? I’m a friend of Molly Kern. She’s concerned.”
“I’m not sure about Donna, but how is Molly?” asked the receptionist. “I haven’t seen her in ages, not since she had to retire. She was in recently, but I missed her.”
“She’s taking Belvia’s death pretty hard.”
“Of course, they were close. Molly was the only person who Belvia trusted as much as Della. I think Molly’s retirement is what determined Belvia’s decision to finally step down. Poor Molly, her sister’s passing took the wind out of her sails. I don’t think Belvia wanted to work without Molly.”
“Molly worked into her eighties. Isn’t that almost twenty years past normal retirement? And Belvia was ninety.”
“But she didn’t act ninety. They loved Meemaw’s Tea. Both rarely missed a day of work even with Molly’s heart problems and Belvia’s glaucoma. It was their life.” She sighed. “I’m sure Della would’ve done the same. Probably why she exercised so much. To stay healthy.”
Hard to argue that point. It almost seemed Meemaw’s folks were expected to work until death. Literally. I asked to see Lisa Russell. Maybe her outspokenness about “seeking new leadership for the next generation at Meemaw’s” wasn’t unreasonable. Maybe she felt folks should retire by seventy-five or so.
“If you don’t mind my asking, did Della often jog during working hours?” I said after
the receptionist finished her call to Lisa Russell’s office.
The receptionist didn’t seem surprised at the question. I supposed when someone’s struck while jogging, the topic came up. “Sure. We have a gym here at the company, but Della didn’t like to use it.”
“Why’s that?”
She blushed and fidgeted with her rings. “Della and Belvia liked to keep themselves separated from everyone else.”
“Della would rather run along a highway than work out with y’all?”
“I think she liked to jog to clear her head.” The receptionist flashed me a bashful smile. “But that’s why Molly and Donna were invaluable to them. They were the human link between the Brakemans and the company. Molly was really missed when she retired.”
Human link. I wasn’t mistaken in feeling Belvia had given off regal vibes. Maybe she and Della had given one too many “let them eat cake” remarks for their employees’ liking.
Fifteen
Lisa Russell, Human Resources Director, had human resources of her own. An assistant who seemed terrified of her, shooting down my hope that Lisa Russell would be the reasonable Meemaw’s Tea personnel who could explain her public backstabbing of Belvia as a misunderstanding and misrepresentation by the press. There seemed to be a plethora of people with motives for ousting the Brakemans from their empire.
That was the problem with empires.
“Are you sure you made an appointment?” The young woman’s hand trembled above the phone. Possibly because she forgot to breathe while she spoke. “Ms. Russell’s very busy and I don’t see your name on her list and I can’t let you in if you don’t have an appointment.”
A Composition in Murder (A Cherry Tucker Mystery Book 6) Page 10