Now You See Him

by Stella Cameron

  She saw her opportunity to return the diamond and dropped it into his open palm. Immediately she turned away and started walking.

  “Damn it.” He reached her before she’d covered a couple of yards and pulled her to face him. “You’re behaving like this because you think you’re supposed to. Well, you’re not. You’re mine and you want it that way. I want us to go back and tell the world we’re engaged to be married.”

  Jilly yanked her arm away and took off again. “Don’t come after me, Paul,” she told him. “Leave me alone to think. I can’t believe you were so sure of me. You don’t know me at all.”

  34

  Doll Hibbs and Wally sat at a corner table in All Tarted Up. “Jilly’s late, ain’t she?” Doll said to Missy Durand behind the counter. “Where is everyone, anyway?”

  Wally had reached a stage when his mother’s bluntness mortified him. He colored and looked beseechingly at Joe and Ellie, who stood close together and glanced frequently at the door. Joe had already put up the storm shutters and all the lights were on in the shop, giving it a warm yellow glow. Sandbags stood in heaps on the town’s sidewalks, ready to be put in position.

  Joe said, “There’s a lot to be done this mornin’. Shorin’ things up. We’re lucky we invested in the shutters. For most people it’s plywood.” He felt edgy and very aware of how exhausted Ellie must be. She hadn’t slept last night, and she couldn’t go back to her place as long as the cops were still there.

  “We’re boarded up,” Doll announced. “Least we don’t have to go lookin’ for supplies. Gator keeps everythin’ ready. I was goin’ to talk to Spike if he came in, but since you’re here, Joe, I might as well tell you what’s on my mind.”

  “That’d be fine. You want to sit down, Ellie?” He studied her closely. “You need some rest.”

  Ellie kept her face turned from him. “I know. But I don’t know where or how to do that.”

  “Vivian and Spike want you out with them.” He spoke low so Doll wouldn’t hear.

  “I can’t take advantage of them. Anyway—” She looked sideways at him. “Nothing.”

  “Anyway, what?” He pressed her.

  “I’m too embarrassed to say.”

  “Ellie.”

  “I only feel safe when you’re around.”

  With that she made him feel ten feet tall and ready to take on the world. It was the first little hint that things were far from over between them. “I’ll go out there with you.”

  “We said we’d be here if we’re needed so we can’t go anywhere.”

  “Yet,” he said, and led her to Doll and Wally’s table.

  “Oh, my Lord, I didn’t notice,” Doll said as they sat down. “What happened to you, Ellie Byron? Someone hit you, didn’t they? I know the bruises of a man’s hand when I see them. And your poor mouth. Oh, Lordy, Lordy, a madman has been at you.” She glared at Joe.

  “Not guilty,” he said, more amused than angry. “Ellie was attacked in her bed last night and beaten up. But we’ll find the guy.”

  Doll gave a thin shriek and slapped her hands to her cheeks. She leaned across the table and whispered to Ellie, “Poor darlin’. Did he…you know?”

  Ellie said, “He tried and failed,” and Joe admired her cool head. He also thought it unwise to confide in Doll, who would love spreading the bad news.

  Missy came to the table carrying a tray. Plates of pastries and mugs were set out—and cream and sugar. She returned with a carafe of coffee and four glasses of orange juice. “You all look as if you need this,” she said before going back to the counter to continue filling oil lamps. They had invested in a good generator, but sometimes it was the old-fashioned and familiar that saved the day.

  “You need to see Reb,” Doll said to Ellie.

  “I have. I’m as fit as a fiddle and I’ll heal up in no time.”

  “Wazoo thinks we should have a ceremony to drive bad spirits out of the town,” Doll said.

  Wally glanced at Ellie. “Father Cyrus says there aren’t any bad spirits in Toussaint, we’ve just had a lot of bad luck.”

  “I don’t normally hold with any of that voodoo nonsense, but what could it hurt,” Doll said.

  “Who could it hurt, you mean,” Ellie said. “Cyrus for one. He’d be so disappointed in all of us.”

  “Joe…” Doll put a hand on top of his. “I’ve been worryin’ myself silly. I heard how Jim Wade left the country, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t up to no good here.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “He took photos of Ellie, and he hung around Hungry Eyes all the time. Spyin’, if you ask me. Could be that if Wade wasn’t the man after her, he was givin’ information to the one who is? Seems to me someone should keep followin’ up on him. I wish I hadn’t been too scared to take the photos and the clippin’.”

  “Don’t you feel bad about a thing,” Ellie said. “I understand why you didn’t. Joe, I think Doll’s right about Jim Wade.”

  “They are followin’ up on him,” Joe said.

  She frowned at him. “You didn’t tell me.”

  He couldn’t argue so he said, “No.”

  Rather than get mad, Ellie punched him lightly and gave a wry grin. “You’ve got a long way to go before you get the idea of full disclosure,” she said.

  Best of all, she leaned against him.

  The door opened and Jilly hurried inside. Her eyes were wide and glittery in an ashen face and she walked past everyone without a word.

  Doll muttered, “Well.”

  Joe put an arm around Ellie and said, “Somethin’s real wrong.”

  “If someone hurt Jilly, he’ll wish he hadn’t.” Wally slapped a pastry down on his plate and pushed up the long sleeves on his striped T-shirt. “I’m gonna ask her about it.”

  “No!” Doll, Joe and Ellie spoke in unison, and Doll closed a hand on her son’s wrist.

  Very pregnant Deputy Lori came in next with Marc Girard, and Paul stepped in behind them. Wally leaped up and pushed two tables together.

  Marc and Lori joined them. Paul behaved as if they weren’t there at all and sat as far away as possible.

  “Where’s Reb?” Doll said. “Is everythin’ battened down on Conch Street?”

  “On Conch Street and at Clouds End,” Marc told her. “Now, if I can just get my wife to stop seeing any patients who aren’t emergencies, I could get her back to Clouds End where she belongs.”

  Conversation fizzled. Marc glanced toward Paul, who sat with his arms on the table and his head hung forward.

  The atmosphere turned heavier than it already was, and not only because the customers at All Tarted Up were strung out and waiting for something major to happen. Humidity fogged the windows behind the shutters and rivulets ran in jerky lines down the glass.

  Wally said, “Shh,” and cocked his head. “Thunder. It’s a long way off.”

  Joe sighed. “Could be a good sign.” He wanted to go to his sister but knew better than to interfere if she didn’t let him know she needed him. “Maybe we’re in for something less than a big one, after all.”

  Deputy Lori eased herself down onto a chair. “How you doin’, Ellie?” she said. “Vivian called Spike to find out when you were goin’ over.”

  “I’m not going anywhere till I pick Daisy up from Loreauville. Then I’m going home.”

  “No need,” Lori said. “Wazoo’s taken her old beater to pick up the dog. She’s taking her to Rosebank. Anyway, they’re still goin’ over your place. Likely they’ll be there for hours.”

  “It’s a crime,” Doll said.

  Joe looked at the ceiling. “You always were a woman of insight, Doll.”

  Lori said, “Accordin’ to Vivian, the storm shutters are up at Rosebank. That place is built like a fort and they’re ready for anythin’. Too bad more places around here aren’t as solid. The hotel guests out there are leavin’ as fast as they can. Mark my words, if there’s enough damage to be worth gapin’ at, they’ll all be back in a few days.”


  Ellie sighed. “It’s good of Wazoo to think about Daisy, but I do want my life back some time soon.”

  “I think she did it mostly for the dog,” Lori said, and grinned. “She’s already collected Zipper and they’re saying there’s a lovefest goin’ on between the cat and Vivian’s Chihuahua.”

  Joe had bigger things on his mind than pets—including his sister, who had remained in the kitchen, and Paul Nelson, who occasionally raised his head to watch for her.

  Even more immediate, they had an unknown would-be rapist and possibly murderer on the loose, and the law was at square one again.

  “Parishioners at St. Cécile got that place bagged up like it was the mint,” Doll said. “Gator’s gone down there and so has just about every willin’ soul who isn’t workin’ on they own place.”

  “It’s too close to the bayou,” Ellie said. “It gets water damage every time.”

  “Can’t hardly move it,” Spike said. “Even if they wanted to, where would the money come from?”

  “Cyrus would never let the church be moved,” Wally said, with a bright spot of color on each cheek. “It’s on hallowed ground and it belongs there. Cyrus says it’s hallowed ground and that means it’s God’s. You don’t go movin’ what belongs to God.”

  Joe studied the boy and thought how far he’d come from the shy little kid Cyrus had first befriended.

  “Cyrus this, Cyrus that,” Paul said suddenly and loudly. “Cyrus knows everything. He’s got all of you people wrapped around his holy finger, that’s for sure. He’s got you all talking like you swallowed Bibles, even a kid.”

  The only sound to follow was the steady beat of rain on the shutters.

  “Jilly,” Paul shouted. His voice broke and the silence in the shop deepened. “Jilly, I need you. I can’t live without you.” He rested his forehead on his folded arms on top of the table.

  Joe’s gut clenched. He pushed up from his chair and went directly into the kitchen, where he found Jilly facing a range with her hands over her ears.

  “Jilly? What’s happened?”

  She shook her head.

  “Has he hurt you?”

  Silently, she turned toward him and he saw tears coursing down her face. Her throat jerked over and over and he didn’t think she could manage to talk if she wanted to.

  “Come here.” He held out his arms but she didn’t move. Joe didn’t waste any time before making his own move and holding her against him. “Say the word and I’ll make sure he’s out of town today. He won’t want to stay.”

  “I was a fool,” she said, choking on the words. “He was weak and wrong but I should have figured things out. Please, Joe, stay out of it. This is my problem and I’ve got to deal with it.”

  “Should I ask him to leave the shop, though? He’s cuttin’ up and carryin’ on about Cyrus like he’s got a grudge against him.”

  “He spoke to Cyrus—went to reconciliation, maybe—but I don’t know why Paul would be angry about that. Don’t get in the middle. You’ll only make things worse.”

  “Are you going to talk to him?”

  “If he doesn’t decide to leave on his own, I’ll have to. Go back to Ellie. I saw her face, Joe. There’s someone out there with a reason to hate her. He’s got to be caught.”

  Joe stared at his sister. A reason to hate Ellie? “Couldn’t he be a man with an obsession about her? It happens.”

  “Do those types usually keep hurting the woman they want for themselves? Darn, what do I know? I’m scared for Ellie is all.”

  “So am I,” Joe said with fervor. “And I’m scared for me.”

  Jilly looked at him sharply. “You really love her, don’t you?”

  Why pretend? “I really do. This is a first for me, Jilly, and it has to be the only. I believe we were meant to be together.”

  She angled her head and gave him a watery smile. “I think so, too. When the right one comes along, hold on to her tight.”

  From the café, Paul bellowed, “Jilly, don’t hide from me.” He sounded as if he was in the kitchen with them.

  “You’ve got all this on your hands,” Joe said, “but you’re still thinking about me. I’ve always been here for you and I always will. You need space. I’ll suggest Paul should take off. Don’t worry, I’ll keep my cool.”

  Jilly looked at her hands, then at Joe. “I’ll deal with it. This isn’t fair to my customers. Go back to Ellie.”

  Joe followed her from the kitchen. He smiled at Ellie but remained standing when Jilly approached Paul. She said his name quietly and he shot to his feet.

  “Jilly,” he said, “I said I’m sorry. Nothing like that will ever happen again. I promise you I’m a changed man—because of you. Give me another chance and we’ll never look back.”

  Spike caught Marc’s eyes. The other man was embarrassed for Paul Nelson, but he could also be thinking the man should be moved along.

  Joe shook his head slightly.

  “Let’s step outside,” Jilly said to Paul.

  “It’s raining too hard,” Paul said. “And you should be with people you trust—with your brother—when you’re making up your mind about something important.”

  “We’re upsetting people,” Jilly said, and looked at the floor. She showed signs of crying again.

  “I want you,” Paul said. “I’ve always wanted you and you said you’d marry me. What I did was wrong. It was so wrong, but it’s all over now. And I could have kept it to myself but I wanted to start out with a clean slate.”

  Ellie got up. She went to Jilly and rubbed her back.

  “This is yours,” Paul said. He took out a ring box and pushed it across the table toward Jilly. “I was cheated out of what’s mine by a woman—that made me promise myself I’d never trust another one—but I’d trust you with my life, Jilly. You’re it, the only one I’ll ever want.”

  Lori, her face sad, shook her head slowly.

  Doll said, “Ain’t nothin’ so bad a woman can’t get past it for a man who loves her like that.”

  “You’re shamin’ yourself—and me,” Jilly said.

  “Did you hear what Doll said?” Paul asked. He reached for Jilly’s hand but she laced her fingers together. “If a man loves you the way I do there’s nothing you can’t get past.”

  Cerise opened the door and poked her head inside. She looked around the café, taking note of everyone there. She slipped inside and into the closest chair.

  “Coffee, Cerise?” Missy asked.

  “Why not?”

  Jilly turned toward Cerise, bowed her head and started for the kitchen.

  “Don’t go.” Paul hurried to cut her off. “I’ll throw this one on the good people of Toussaint. I’ve been a fool. I slept with another woman while I was courting Jilly. Today I asked Jilly to marry me and I came clean about my mistake.”

  Cerise laughed. She rocked back and forth on her chair. “Didn’t work quite the way you had it figured, huh? Jilly didn’t fall for your confession? Did you tell her the last time you got out of my bed was this mornin’?”

  “Shit,” Joe said under his breath. He itched to take Paul Nelson by the throat and drag him outside. Jilly said he’d spoken to Cyrus. No wonder Cyrus had fumed at Joe and called him careless, careless for not watching out for his sister better.

  “I’m sorry,” Paul said, shaking his head over and over. “I wasn’t fair to you, Cerise, but you knew I didn’t love you. You said you were okay with that.”

  “Stop it.” Jilly cried. “Enough.”

  Cerise’s smile disappeared and she turned her face away.

  Deputy Lori responded to a signal and switched on her lapel mike. “Yeah?”

  “Where are you?”

  “All Tarted Up.”

  “Are Ellie and Joe still there?”

  “Affirmative.”

  “Have Joe drive Ellie over here.” Spike’s voice crackled over the receiver. “And you’re going home. Reb just called and said she found out you’re still on duty. Whooee, my ears got tr
immed. Two officers are coming your way, one to drive you home and one to bring back your car.”

  “I’m not ready to—”

  “I just gave you an order. And I want Joe and Ellie here now. We’ve got the surveillance tapes from Ben’s Foods.”

  35

  “Can I get you anything?” Guy asked. He and Spike waited in the interrogation room Ellie detested.

  Joe spoke for both of them. “No, thanks.” He closed the door and nodded to a young blond officer who stood at ease and ready to show the films. His badge identified him as Turner.

  “We all know my current professional status,” Guy said.

  “For our purposes Guy’s an expert with special insight,” Spike said promptly.

  In other words, Spike liked having Guy around and valued his opinion.

  The weakness she’d felt before struck Ellie’s legs again. She made herself take deep breaths but couldn’t stop the queasiness in her stomach.

  “For what they are, they’re clear,” Spike said. “Come and sit down. Watch carefully and just tell us to stop if you see someone familiar.”

  She turned blindly into Joe and whispered, “I don’t want to do this.” She flattened her hands against his chest, warm through a rain-damp shirt.

  “You’re not likely to see anyone you know,” Joe said. “Other than a clerk or a neighbor.” He didn’t attempt to smile, but he looked at her with his heart in his eyes. Joe was a caring and a worried man.

  Ellie watched his mouth, the way his lips parted a little. “What if I do recognize someone else?” she said.

  “Relax.” He curled his hands loosely around her shoulders. “If you do, dealing with it won’t be your problem.”

  “We’ll take it from there,” Guy said. Ellie turned to him and he smiled. He reached out a hand and she took it. “Sit here. You, too, Joe.”