Dead Giveaway

by Diane Benefiel

  “You look tired. You should have slept in.”

  “Nice, Eli. Exactly what every woman wants to hear.” Her tone was flat. “And sleeping later isn’t an option.” She sipped again and decided she felt almost human.

  Eli opened the freezer and pulled out a box of frozen breakfast sandwiches. “Want one?”

  Gwen shook her head, looking at the package doubtfully.

  “Don’t judge. Cooking is not my strong point and this stays with me longer than a bowl of Cheerios.”

  “Not judging, simply thinking that an egg and sausage on an English muffin would be pretty easy to manage from scratch.” She shook her head when he would have responded. “Thanks for the coffee.” Gwen rinsed her mug and put it in the dishwasher.

  “That’s it? You want toast or something?”

  “No. I’m good.”

  Gwen made her way to the front door where she gathered her boots, then doing what was becoming her routine, slipped outside to sit on the porch to lace them. Crossing to the barn, she thought of returning to the house for a couple of Tylenol, but figured once she got moving, work would ease her general achiness.

  After studying the feed schedule, she loaded hay into the wheelbarrow and began making the rounds. She stopped at the first stall where Queenie, the sorrel mare, nibbled at Gwen’s pocket as she filled her hayrack. Gwen took a moment to rub the horse between the ears. “Aren’t you a sweetheart?” Queenie enjoyed the attention for a moment before turning to her alfalfa.

  Gwen continued down the aisle, all the while conscious that Xander was waiting peevishly for his breakfast. She filled the rack in the stall adjacent to his while the stallion blew impatiently, hooves striking the stall door with sharp thuds. When she finally reached him, he threw back his head, showing his teeth.

  “Oh, you’re a tough one. Maybe there’s nothing for you until you behave.” Over the steady sound of horses feeding, Gwen could hear men’s voices coming from the front of the barn. She kept her attention focused on the blue roan stallion. “Your handsome self is going to have to calm down.” She raised a hand, waited out the head toss, then stroked the smooth nose. “I’ve got something for you.” Black eyes gazed back at her, and when he stopped his antics and stood still, Gwen decided the horse understood her perfectly. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a carrot. Breaking it into pieces, she offered one chunk in a outstretched flat hand. Xander waited and Gwen knew it was beneath his dignity to appear too interested. Finally, ears back, he nipped the carrot off her palm.

  “Okay, big guy, back up so I can fill your rack.”

  The horse moved and Gwen gave him another piece of carrot, then loaded his hay. Done, she retrieved a bag of grain, oats and corn in a molasses-coated mixture, and gave each horse its ration. Returning the wheelbarrow to its place near the stacked bales of hay, she gathered up the rake and scoop for mucking out the stalls. Turning around she came to a halting stop when she spied the figure watching her. “Hey, there, JD.”

  He whipped off his straw cowboy hat. “You fed the horses.”

  “Yeah, was it your job?”

  He nodded.

  “I hope you don’t mind.”

  “No, I don’t mind. But I’ll muck out the stalls. You don’t want to do that kind of work.”

  Gwen looked at him with raised brow. “What kind of work?”

  “You know, mucking out stalls kind of work. That’s a man’s work.”

  Gwen laughed. “Do you have sisters, JD?”

  He shook his head, blond bangs wispy across his forehead. “My mom died when I was little. It was just me and my dad.”

  She leaned on the rake, and nodded in understanding. “You don’t want to fall into the trap of thinking that women are delicate, or they can’t get their hands dirty, or they need to be coddled and protected.” She gave him a smile. “Now, I’m going to muck out the stalls.” Leaving him staring after her like she was some exotic bird, she opened the nearest stall, nudged the horse to the side, and set to work with the rake.

  JD took the stalls across the aisle, and they worked steadily. By the time she reached the last stall, Gwen had shucked her sweatshirt, and pushed up the sleeves on her long-sleeved knit shirt. Done with her chores, she walked out of the barn and into the cool air of early morning intending to check on Cameron. Two horses were tied to a hitching post in front of the barn, saddled and ready to ride. She frowned when she noticed the scabbards strapped to the saddles, rifle butts gleaming in the sun. Ben Cutter approached, and JD came out of the barn.

  “Mornin’.” Ben tipped his head and gave her an easy smile, and Gwen found herself liking him for his laidback friendliness.

  “You going for a ride?”

  “Yep, up to the creek. There’s a diverter up there that sends water into the fields. Eli wants us to make sure it’s working properly.”

  The glint in his eyes and the rifles told her there was more going on than simply checking on equipment. She nodded, then crossed the yard and entered the house to find Cameron in the kitchen, pouring milk over shredded wheat cereal. He lifted his face and she stooped to press a kiss to his forehead.

  “Is it okay if I eat Uncle Eli’s cereal? We’re out of Cheerios.”

  “Yeah, I’ll buy him a box later.” Though she still wasn’t hungry, Gwen figured she needed the energy so she slipped a piece of bread into the toaster, then filled the teapot at the faucet and set it on the stove, turning the burner to high. Tea sounded comforting.

  ***

  Eli walked into the kitchen to find Gwen and Cameron seated at the breakfast table. Cameron was working his way through a bowl of cereal, while Gwen toyed with a piece of toast.

  “Hi, Uncle Eli. Me and Robby and Christy are going up to the fishing hole. I don’t know what that is, except it’s where the fish are. How can there be a hole in water?”

  Eli grinned. The kid was inquisitive, and wasn’t afraid to ask what he didn’t know. “A fishing hole is a place in the creek where the water deepens and the current slows. It’s a good place to fish because trout like to hang out there.”

  Cameron seemed to consider this, then nodded his head. “That makes sense. If I catch a fish can we eat it for dinner?”

  “Sure. But you’ll have to clean it first.”

  The boy nodded sagely. “That’s like Gwenny always says. We have to wash all of our fruit and vegetables before we eat them, too.”

  “Cleaning fish is a little bit different. You have to cut off the heads and clean out the guts. Then you scrape off the scales.”

  “Really? Cool.”

  Eli glanced at Gwen. She’d set the toast on the plate and was sipping from a steaming mug. He frowned at her flushed cheeks.

  Cameron piped up. “I guess that’s kinda what they do to all meat before we buy it from the grocery store.”

  Eli refocused his attention. “Exactly.”

  Cameron finished his breakfast and hopped down from his chair to carry his bowl to the sink. Eli was impressed. Not only did Cam rinse the bowl, but he opened the dishwasher and placed it on the rack.

  “Nice job, Cameron,” Eli told him. “Get changed, then you can find the Cutter kids.”

  “Cool.” Cameron raced off, pounding feet on the stairs marking his progress.

  Eli stared across the table at Gwen. Not meeting his gaze, she used the string to bob the teabag in her mug. He leaned forward and laid a hand on her forehead. She pulled back, eyes wide.

  “Your cheeks are flushed and you’re warm. You okay?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Hmm. So tell me, are you Cameron’s mother or was Chloe?”

  Her gaze clashed with his. “What do you mean by that? Chloe was his mother.”

  “His biological mother, yes, but emotionally? I think that’s you. I think that’s always been you.”

  “Chloe was my best friend, so of course I’m close to Cameron.”

  “Do you remember the last time I saw you. Cameron was what, three? Four?”
r />   She shrugged. “About that.”

  “Mom was having that big Christmas Eve dinner, she was pleased that both Chloe and I were there, as well as Tom’s kids. She wanted us to be one big happy family.” He remembered the holiday decorations, the elaborate meal his mother had been determined to produce, her husband Tom effusively pushing drinks until everyone was slightly juiced. All except Gwen.

  “Yeah, I remember. Tom’s son Jordan kept trying to get me to drink his dad’s spiced rum. He wouldn’t quit. He must have said or done something to the girl you were with because you grabbed him by the collar and shoved him up against the wall. I thought you were going to deck him.”

  “I was going to deck him because he’d copped a feel of your ass and got obnoxious when you got in his face about it.”

  She frowned. “Really? You were with that girl with big teeth who wouldn’t let go of your arm. I guess I thought she was upset because Jordan had messed with her.”

  “She was upset because I wasn’t paying her enough attention. She was somebody I’d known in college and called when I was in town. Which turned out to be a mistake. And the only reason I didn’t deck Jordan was because I didn’t want to ruin the evening for my mom or to embarrass you.”

  Golden eyes met his. “Hmm. Funny how some things aren’t how you thought.”

  “Yeah. Like with you and my sister. That night Cameron was cranky—you said he was coming down with something. Thing was, he wanted you. Chloe picked him up but when he started crying, she was happy enough to dump him on your lap. And the kid curled up, stuck his thumb in his mouth, and went to sleep. You must have sat for over an hour with him like that.”

  “And then he threw up on me.”

  “Yeah. But it didn’t faze you.”

  “He didn’t mean to.” Her brows lowered as if remembering. “I’d forgotten that you helped me with him.”

  “Well, Chloe had taken off with her boyfriend of the moment and left you with her sick son.”

  “It wasn’t like that. We’d already worked it out that I would take care of Cameron that night so Chloe could go to her boyfriend’s parents’ house for dessert.”

  “Even though it was Christmas Eve and Cameron was sick.”

  She shrugged. “It was only a virus. Nothing major.”

  “I should have figured it out when I was holding him so you could get cleaned up and he wouldn’t settle. He kept fussing until you’d changed your shirt. Then you took him and he settled right down. He wouldn’t let go of you long enough for you to gather up his things.”

  “I remember that after you helped me carry my bags out to the car while I got Cam into his car seat, you made some crack that it was good for me to see what being a parent was like. How girls like Chloe and me should put off having kids until we could give up partying. I thought you were a pompous ass.”

  He gave a sharp bark of laughter. “No doubt. But I was concerned about Cameron. So now that I’m getting a slightly different perspective, how often did you do that? You and Chloe were roommates at the time, right? How often did you end up being Cameron’s mother while she went off and did her own thing?”

  Her dismissive shrug spiked his temper. “You let me think you were like my sister. That you were an irresponsible party girl who was only out for a good time, but that’s not true, is it? It wasn’t ever true.”

  “It’s not relevant anymore, Eli. Besides, you like to see things in black and white. In your book, people are good or they’re bad. And because you saw your sister as bad, you painted me with the same brush.”

  He took in the flushed cheeks and the tired eyes. “That’s not quite accurate. I felt sorry for my sister, and guilty that she had emotional issues. She had a rough childhood, and I wasn’t much help to her. But maybe we should table the discussion for now. We need groceries, so if you want to go with me, we can drive into Hangman’s Loss. If we leave now we can make it back by the time the kids are back and wanting lunch.”

  Gwen disappeared up the stairs and returned minutes later wearing a light jacket over her plaid shirt and a leather purse over her shoulder. Standing in the doorway to the kitchen, he watched as she dug out her wallet. She pulled out several bills and counted them, then replaced them, a frown on her face.

  “I’ll pay for the groceries, Gwen.”

  She sighed, expression troubled. “I hate this. I hate having to rely on you for everything.” She stuffed her wallet back into her purse. “But if you’ll let me keep the receipt, I’ll pay you back for what you buy that’s for Cameron and me.”

  He shook his head. “I think my bank account can handle the burden. Let’s go.”

  ***

  Gwen sat back in the passenger seat as Eli drove his truck along the winding gravel road. The sun had risen into a cloudless sky of deep blue, and shadows dappled the road as they drove past tall pines. At the highway, Eli turned north, driving past mountain lakes shining like jewels in the sun, and meadows bursting with wild flowers. Miles later they passed green roofs of tiny cabins visible between the aspens, and a sign that said, “Hangman’s Loss Resort,” marking the driveway. The surface of a large lake shimmered beyond the cabins.

  “Where did the name Hangman’s Loss come from?”

  His grip easy on the wheel, Eli answered. “Story is that a posse was after a guy for murder, and had a noose ready to hang him from a big tree down at the end of the lake. A couple of local settlers didn’t believe he was guilty and managed to rescue him.”

  “Wow. I wonder if he was really guilty.”

  “Took some doing, but he was able to prove his innocence. His name was Royce MacElvoy. He was my great, great grandfather.”

  “Really? Cameron would love this story. Who were the rescuers?”

  He slowed the truck as they entered town, sliding her a look. “Brothers by the name of John and William Morgan.”

  “Morgan? The police officer you were talking to? His family?”

  “The same.”

  “Wow, that puts a whole new spin on your relationship.”

  ***

  They passed a gas station and then a building with a false front that looked like it was straight out of a Western movie. It housed several small businesses, including an outdoor sporting goods store and an inviting eatery called Hangman’s Best Café and Bakery. Gwen noticed the sign for free WiFi in the window. She turned to Eli. “Do we have time to stop at the café? I could use my burner phone to do a search to find out what’s happening with Justin. There might be something about the investigation into Chloe’s murder.”

  Eli glanced in her direction, then back at the road. “I’ve been checking out what I can on the Internet, and I’ve made a few phone calls. So far, the investigation is going in the direction of a robbery gone wrong. The L.A. Times reported that the police department’s working theory is that Chloe interrupted a robbery before anything was taken. There hasn’t been any mention of Cameron.”

  Gwen shivered. “Justin is getting away with killing Chloe.”

  Eli nodded. “It also means you and Cameron are loose ends that he can’t afford to leave hang out there.”

  Which was why she was glad they had recorded her statement and sent it off already. “Have you heard anything from the FBI?”

  “I’ll call them this afternoon. It’s Friday so I bet they won’t do anything until next week, but I’ll call them.”

  “I wonder if there’s any way we could find out where Justin is.”

  “At this point, no. The checking I’ve done isn’t anything that would raise eyebrows. I’m a concerned brother wanting to know what’s going on with his sister’s murder investigation. But looking into Justin could trigger alarms. My bet is he’s got flags on his accounts that will notify him if anyone tries to access them. And I’m not sophisticated enough with the computer to know how to bypass those kinds of protections.”

  “If I used the burner phone to ask around about him, it might raise the flags, and, most likely, he’d know it’s me, but he w
ouldn’t know where I am. It wouldn’t tell him where the query came from.”

  “That’s not exactly true, especially if you’re using open source WiFi.”

  Gwen sighed as Eli turned into the driveway of a grocery store and pulled into a parking space. They exited the vehicle and he rounded the bed of the truck to join her. When they started toward the store, he took hold of her hand. He gave her a blank look when she raised her startled face to glance at him. Eli simply adjusted the hat on his head.

  A pair of older women walked toward them, one wearing a sunhat with a giant pansy on it. She nudged the other woman who carried a purse so large it probably could hold the two grocery bags of food. She waved them to a stop before they could pass. “Hello, Eli. Good to see you in town.”

  He nodded at the women. “Mrs. Chastain, Mrs. Montes. This is Gwendolyn Ballard.”

  “Gwendolyn, what a pretty name.” Mrs. Chastain beamed at her. “If you’re going to be visiting for a while, make sure this boy takes you to our Fourth of July celebration here in town. There’s a parade, then the rodeo in the afternoon, all capped off by the fireworks display at the high school stadium in the evening. You won’t want to miss it.”

  Gwen smiled at the lady’s enthusiasm. “That sounds like a lot of fun.”

  Mrs. Montes’s eyes twinkled. “And for sure you’ll want to support the Broken Arrow in the rodeo. They place in just about every event they compete in, and come in first more often than not, due in no small part to young Elijah’s bronc riding skills.”

  Gwen nodded, and Eli touched the brim of his hat. “Ladies, we don’t want to keep you. Have a good day now.”

  The women said their goodbyes and Eli tugged Gwen’s hand to lead her toward the store. “Young Elijah?”

  He grunted. “Mrs. Chastain was my first-grade teacher and Mrs. Montes taught me in second grade. I’ll always be young Elijah to them.”

  She smiled. Catching her grin, he smiled back, and Gwen felt her heart trip. It was all an act, the endearments over the radio, holding her hand, the smiles, and she needed to remember that while he might be reconsidering his attitude toward her, he wasn’t her boyfriend; he wasn’t really a friend at all. The strong fingers twining securely with hers made the warmth around her heart grow, but it was a false warmth, and she had to remember that.