With that we walked out. I wanted to take little Kylie home with me, but she was clean and didn’t appear to be underfed or neglected. I didn’t have any rights where the child was concerned, but I wanted an easier life for her.
Rafe hadn’t said anything for a while. I cranked the car and pulled away from the curb. “What are you thinking?”
He scowled. “Kylie looks more like me in person than she did in the picture. How can that be? It isn’t possible she’s my kid, but she sure looks the part. Why didn’t Starr tell me she had a kid? The kid wouldn’t have changed how I felt about Starr. Her daughter can’t be my kid. Because of Brenna, I’ve always taken precautions and have used contraceptives. I’ve never thought I’d make a good parent.”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” I said. “You’ve a lot to offer a child and a family. You’re kind and compassionate. You care about people.”
“Starr pulled the wool over my eyes. I’m still a dumb jock.”
“You trusted her, and you wanted to help her. Nothing wrong with that. The fault lay with Starr—she wasn’t honest with you.”
He gazed over at me. “How do you cut to the heart of the matter so easily?”
“Analytical thinking is one of my strengths.” I cleared my throat. “Speaking of figuring stuff out, you mentioned yesterday you had a secret. Is it relevant to Starr or Brenna’s deaths?”
His lips twitched. “Not that I know of.”
“Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“We dumb jocks need a few aces in the hole when it comes to smart chicks. Wouldn’t want you to think you know every little thing about me.” He eyed me critically. “But you could try guessing.”
What was he doing? Was he trying to put me off or to intrigue me? Either way, I didn’t like it. With so much at stake I needed an exact answer. I wasn’t buying his dumb jock schtick any more than me being a smart chick. If I was so smart, why couldn’t I figure this out?
I shot him a frosty look. “Guessing is an inexact science. I’ve got my hands full trying to solve Starr’s murder. Maybe we’ll get back to this later.”
He nodded. “Definitely later.”
CHAPTER 31
* * *
Not knowing Jenny’s cooking skills, I selected child-friendly, easy to prepare groceries. My shopping cart brimmed with whole milk, juice, cereal, cheese sticks, animal crackers, bread, peanut butter, jelly, bananas, and frozen dinners. I tossed in a new toothbrush for good measure.
I hurried down the clothing aisle, wishing I’d thought to shop for Kylie’s clothes first so that I wouldn’t worry about the frozen items defrosting. I grabbed jammies, undies, shoes, socks, a jacket, jeans, and several long-sleeve shirts. I also threw in several beginning readers, a large teddy bear, crayons, and a coloring book.
Rafe tagged along without saying much. At the checkout counter, he helped place the items on the belt. When I pulled out my credit card, he said, “Put that away. I’m getting this.”
I shook my head. “I volunteered to buy this stuff without consulting you. We didn’t discuss a budget, so I bought what I could afford. I’m prepared to pay for these items. I’ll foot the bill. I want to help little Kylie.”
“You’re helping by knowing what she needs. I couldn’t have done this without your help. Your money’s no good here. I’ve got this.” With that, he swiped his card through the machine.
I wished I could do more to help the child, but solving her mother’s murder would help a little. I contented myself with that knowledge. We carried the shopping bags to the Gray Beast and headed back to the trailer park. The lack of conversation weighed on me. Was Rafe stunned at the thought he might have a daughter?
“She’s a cute kid,” I began.
“I didn’t know about her.”
Though I was driving, he stared straight ahead. What was he thinking? Was he avoiding eye contact with me for a reason? I dithered in that place of do I push him to open up or wait and see if he said something else. Why was dating so complicated?
After awhile, he huffed out a breath and looked my way. “Why did Starr keep her a secret from me?”
“You got me. I don’t understand it either. But Kylie is a lead we can’t ignore. She has needs for food and shelter, and I’m not sure her aunt is able to take care of her. I was appalled at the lack of toys and the outgrown clothes. Kylie is too precious to be poorly treated.”
“Thank you for knowing what to buy for her. I would have bungled it.”
I shot him a sidelong glance. “No, you wouldn’t. I have more confidence in you than that. But you would have thrown money at the problem. It’s better to make sure the child has clothing and food, better to make sure your money is going toward her care. We’re doing the right thing by taking this one step at a time.”
“I hope so.”
Since Starr had taken great pains to hide Kylie’s existence from Rafe, I was intrigued by the possibilities. Had she been protecting Kylie or Rafe? “Kylie is part of this. I’m sure of it.”
“This?”
“Starr’s murder investigation.”
“How do you know that?”
“Female intuition. Starr kept secrets, and those secrets got her killed. We have to figure out what she knew and who didn’t want that information to come to light.”
“Kylie was a secret. At least from me.”
“Why? Did Starr think you wouldn’t like her if she had a kid?”
“Starr had issues. She was friendly and smart, but she rarely showed initiative. She stewed about things and missed opportunities. To put it in context of schoolwork, Starr wasn’t an A student, though she had that capability. She skated by on her looks and personality.”
“Maybe Kylie was her ace in the hole. As long as she could get money out of you without telling you about the daughter, she didn’t have to answer any questions about the child’s welfare.” She didn’t have to share custody of the child either. Had Rafe considered that?
“She knew what to say to make me feel sorry for her. She sounded so excited about becoming a nurse because she wanted to help people. I wanted her to improve her quality of life. I never thought of myself as her meal ticket. I thought I was helping her.”
“You were, but you helped Kylie at the same time. Don’t forget that. No telling where Kylie might have ended up without you stabilizing Starr financially.”
“Good point.” He lapsed into silence again. “About what you said a few minutes ago, that Kylie was somehow connected to Starr’s death—is the child in danger?”
I ran through what I knew. “I hope not. Starr’s been dead nearly two weeks now. Jenny or Britt would have mentioned if someone had tried to hurt Kylie. I mean, how threatening can a five-year-old be?”
“I hope you’re right.”
I slowed for a pickup loaded with hay bales turning left. Little drifts of hay swirled past my windshield. I hoped I was right about the child’s safety, too. I hadn’t thought my theory all the way through, but if Kylie was the reason for Starr’s death, then an obvious suspect would be her aunt. Jenny’s motive would be to have custody of Kylie.
Was Jenny a killer? I wish there was a way to visually recognize a killer, but I’d been fooled before. Killers didn’t necessarily give off a tangible vibe until they were in a deadly mood. Should I mention my theory to Britt? He’d already told me to butt out. He had to know I wouldn’t do that.
“She has Brenna’s eyes,” Rafe said.
His statement jolted me back to the present. “Kylie isn’t Brenna. Don’t feel guilty about recently learning of her existence. That’s what Starr wanted, to leave you out in the cold. You didn’t know.”
“I had to be pretty dense to miss something this big.”
“Again, not your fault. Starr hid the child from you. But what if you knew? What would you have done differently if you’d known Starr had a daughter?”
“I don’t know.”
My hands jerked on the steering wheel, and the tires edged
over on the grassy shoulder. I muscled the car back on the two-lane road. “Excuse me? You don’t know? You have to know.”
“I’m not family material. We had this discussion on the way here.”
“But, but, but,” I sputtered. “You were engaged to be married. I don’t understand. Why get married if kids weren’t in your future?”
“Tiffany didn’t want kids either. We agreed on that.”
“To say I’m surprised is an understatement. You’re good with kids. You’d be a terrific dad.”
“It’s not for me.”
Was that why Starr kept Kiley’s existence a secret?
Because Rafe thought he might be a deadbeat dad? Oh, brother.
Back at the trailer, we shelved the groceries and cut the price tags off Kylie’s new clothes. She glanced at me with a tremulous smile. “Is it Christmas?”
“It’s a day for making new friends,” I said, heart on my sleeve.
The child pointed to where Rafe stood talking to Jenny by the door. “Is he my lost daddy?”
“I don’t know, but we’re gonna find out. Did your mom say your daddy was lost?”
She nodded, rocking the large teddy bear in her little arms.
I knelt down beside her. “I promise you I’ll find your lost daddy, don’t you worry.”
“I heard what you promised Starr’s daughter,” Rafe said on the ride home. “Should you be making promises you can’t keep?”
I glanced at my purse where Kylie’s toothbrush was bagged securely. We’d agreed to send it with Rafe’s toothbrush to be tested. “What will you do if she’s yours?”
“She isn’t,” he stated flatly.
“How can you be a hundred percent certain? Birth control methods fail all the time. Humor me. If she’s yours, will you integrate her into your life? Would you seek custody?”
My skin prickled the longer he remained quiet. In all my dealings with Rafe, I’d never seen him back down from a challenge.
He’d wined and dined the golf club board to smooth out problems. He’d pitched in with childcare when I’d had emergencies. He’d taken charge of the puppy birthing.
“She’s Jenny’s daughter now,” he said.
“And?”
The weight of my expectations hung on that single word. Our past and our future met at that instant. I glanced down at my bare fingers on the steering wheel. I wanted a man who wasn’t afraid to stick up for what was right. For what was his. I didn’t understand why he hesitated.
“And,” he began slowly, “no matter how crappy a parent Jenny will be, there’s no reason to think I’d be better. I’m sure I’d be worse.”
My foot slid off the accelerator. My stomach dipped to my toes. “You can’t believe that.”
“I do.”
Funny, I’d longed to hear him say those very words, but not in this context. How could I even think about one day marrying a man who thought he’d be a bad father? My girls were everything to me; I couldn’t imagine not being part of their daily lives.
I couldn’t picture Rafe walking away from Kylie either, not after the way he’d put himself out to help Starr. His words didn’t jive with his past actions. Granted, he was under a lot of stress right now, what with being a murder suspect, having his golf job put on hold, and now a kid that appeared out of nowhere.
Even so, I couldn’t give him a pass on this.
Family mattered.
CHAPTER 32
* * *
“Thanks for helping me, Mrs. Jones,” Zoe Lapinski said as a dark-haired baby boy cried in her arms. Britt’s sister-in-law patted the child’s back and bounced him a little, quieting him. Two other little boys pushed toy dump trucks around the office. Tears brimmed in Zoe’s eyes. “I knew money was tight, but I had no idea about our debt. Justin promised things would work out, and I believed him. Now he’s gone, and I don’t know what to do.”
“Call me Cleo.” I waited as she collected herself. Zoe’s troubled face reminded me of little Kylie and the uphill battle she faced in the world. Oddly, I wanted Rafe to be her dad so that the child would have adequate food and shelter. And love. Couldn’t forget that.
“Your brother-in-law told me about your situation,” I said once it looked like she wouldn’t dissolve into a puddle. “I can file the paperwork for an extension. After that, we can open a negotiation with the Internal Revenue Service, but we need to understand your finances first.”
Zoe wailed, setting off the baby, and bringing the little boys rushing to her side. “All the papers are jumbled. There are trash bags of unopened bills. I’m overwhelmed. My credit cards are maxed out. Britt and Melissa buy my groceries and pay for my gas, but I’m terrified the kids will get sick. Will the IRS take my house?”
I was tempted to fuss at her for trusting so completely in a man, but we’d all been there, at one time or another. “They don’t take your home, but the bank might. Did you pay your mortgage?”
“My husband died three weeks ago, and I’ve been trying to cope since then. There’s no money, and bills are coming fast and furious. A debt collector knocked on my door yesterday.”
“Do you have any sources of income?”
“Like what?”
“Like a job. Or a retirement account. Or an insurance annuity. Or a home business.”
“No. We don’t have anything like that. My job is taking care of the kids. The two oldest are in school, but I can’t make enough to put the youngest three in daycare and have anything left over.”
“What about life insurance? Did he have a policy?”
“I don’t know.”
“Do you have a local insurance agent?”
“I don’t think so. This is all so much to take in. My head is reeling,” Zoe said. “I want to wake up from this bad dream.”
I sympathized. Ever since I’d learned of Rafe’s connection to the murdered Starr Jeffries, I wanted the trouble to go away. But it wouldn’t. And trouble would bite both of us in the butt if we weren’t proactive. I found the form she needed and printed it out.
“Sign this.” I placed the form and a pen near Zoe. “This authorizes me to represent you.”
Zoe shifted the baby to her left side and dashed off her signature.
I scanned the paper into my files, pushed a few buttons, and sat back. “Done. That gives us a little breathing space. But this is only the first step.”
The young mother’s eyes filled with tears. “Tell me what to do.”
“Go home and take charge of the bills the same way you take charge of the children.”
“I’m scared.”
“Life’s scary, but we manage. Start small. Open a stack of envelopes and sort them by due date and amount. Create a spreadsheet if you have a computer. Find out if you own your vehicles, or if they have loans or leases. Focus on one step at a time.”
She stood and her children followed her lead. “Thanks. I appreciate your help. I’m embarrassed I can’t pay you.”
“Don’t be. Everyone needs a helping hand now and again.”
After Zoe left, Mama scurried in from the outer office; her scarlet pumps were muffled on the carpet. “I thought she’d never leave,” Mama said. “What’s the latest on our case?”
I took a deep breath to transition from the client’s crisis to my own. I hadn’t told Mama about Rafe’s sister’s shooting, so I withheld the info about the death certificate we’d requested. “Rafe took the toothbrushes to a lab today and requested a rush DNA analysis. It cost him an arm and a leg, but he can afford it.”
“You think the little girl is his, don’t you?”
“The resemblance is even more striking in person. The child is a Golden, of that I have no doubt. But Rafe insists Kylie isn’t his daughter.”
“You believe him?”
“I believe him, but he’s having doubts. By my count, there are at least three other Goldens who could have fathered that child—Rafe’s brother, father, and uncle. I’m not sure the child’s aunt is taking good care of her.
I wanted to bring Kylie home with me.”
Mama snickered. “You need a five-year-old like you need a hole in the head.”
“I know. But even with an alibi, the aunt is a possible murder suspect in my book. She might have hired someone to murder her sister to gain custody of Kylie. And the trailer. She moved right into Starr’s trailer. She profited by Starr’s death.”
“Can I stake her out?”
The world wasn’t ready for Mama on a stakeout. I wasn’t either. “No. You shouldn’t stake anyone out. Don’t you have wedding details to work out?”
“I’m good on that. I owe you for keeping me out of prison, and I need to pay off the debt while I’m still in my right mind.”
“You don’t owe me anything, and there’s nothing wrong with your brain.” I guided her to her office and beat a hasty retreat.
My cell rang. I hurried back to my desk to catch the call. “I need to talk to you privately. Meet me at the park?” Rafe asked.
“Will do.” Madonna bolted from under my desk where she’d been hiding from the children. Had she heard the word park? I wasn’t sure, but I could tell she needed to go out. I clipped a leash on her. “Mama, I’m taking the dog out for a walk.”
I hugged my sweater tighter, wishing I’d taken the time to grab a jacket as the wind blew right through it. The weather forecast had called for mild temperatures today, but the stiff breeze made it quite chilly. As I rounded the corner to enter the park, I saw Rafe pacing around the granite marker in the center. The rest of the park was deserted.
Madonna picked up Rafe’s scent and hurried forward. I tagged along, glad I was going her way.
Rafe strode over to meet us and wrapped me in a hug. I felt warmer immediately in the boyfriend-wrap, but the way he clung worried me. Had something terrible happened? “You okay?” I mumbled into his shirt.
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