Deception on All Accounts

by Sara Sue Hoklotubbe

  Sadie gasped, “What the…?”

  Sonny pawed at the back door, growled and then whimpered, begging to be free to face this threat head-on, whatever it may be.

  “No, Sonny!” yelled Sadie. “Get down.” Sadie ran to the bedroom and picked up the 12-gauge shotgun. The next thing she heard sounded like a huge thud near the barn, and then a car horn blared unmercifully. Sonny barked and scratched ruthlessly at the back door. From the kitchen window, Sadie could see that the large black automobile had T-boned one of her prize walnut trees, and the driver, a blond-headed woman, had slumped over the wheel, causing the horn to sound.

  Sadie laid the shotgun down and grabbed the phonebook. In a panic she searched for the right phone number. When she found it, she hurriedly dialed the sheriff's office.

  By the time Eli Walela made his way to the barn from the upper pasture, jumped into his old truck, and drove around the shortcut at the edge of the pasture to his niece's house, an ambulance and two Delaware County sheriff's cars had already arrived. Eli took one look at the car wedged against the tree and the paramedics trying to force the car door open and then began to search for Sadie. He could see her, with Sonny beside her, right in the thick of things trying to help, but mostly getting in the way.

  Sheriff Henry Sapp took Sadie's arm and pulled her out of the crowd. Sonny barked when Henry touched Sadie and he immediately let go.

  Eli arrived just in time to take the wolf-dog back to his truck. He opened the door, waited for Sonny to jump in, and then commanded him to stay. Appearing dejected, Sonny accepted the front seat of the truck as his temporary holding cell, but he remained at attention and watched from a distance with keen eyes.

  “What happened, Sadie?” asked Henry. “Who is this woman?”

  “I have no idea, Henry. I swear, I've never seen her before in my life. But she sure did a number on my window before she tried to murder my tree.” Sadie pushed her hair out of her face with both hands. “They said she was barely alive. Do you think she'll be okay?”

  Henry looked toward the house and then back at the car. “I don't rightly know,” he said.

  The medics placed the unconscious woman in the back of the ambulance while one of the deputies removed a shotgun and two handguns from the passenger's side of the vehicle.

  Henry waved his hand at the deputy. “You found any identification yet?” he asked.

  “No, sir,” the deputy answered. “Not yet.”

  The ambulance carefully backed out and drove off. When it reached the highway, the driver lit up the lights and let the siren squeal as they turned toward Sycamore Springs. That meant one thing: Her injuries needed more than small-town Eucha Memorial could provide.

  As several men separated the car from the tree, Sadie heard hammering and turned to find Uncle Eli on a ladder nailing boards over her broken window. He winked at her and she smiled. He always seemed to know what to do, she thought.

  Sadie finished giving Sheriff Sapp what little information she had as the wrecker pulled the black car off toward the highway. “I just don't know, Henry. I can't imagine why anyone would want to shoot at me. It just doesn't make any sense. Would you mind calling me as soon as you know who she is?”

  “I'll see what I can do, Sadie, as soon as I can run down the owner of the vehicle. The license plate shows up under the name of Cantor with an address in Texas.”

  “Cantor?”

  Sadie swept up tiny pieces of glass for hours. Her mind replayed the day over and over, trying to make sense of what had happened. She spooned at a bowl of black-eyed peas, but she couldn't eat. An overwhelming feeling of violation emerged, ushering in some of the same feelings she'd had when she experienced the robbery. Why would someone want to shoot at her? Nothing made any sense.

  She tried to call Jaycee and got his answering service again. Not knowing what she could say in another message that she hadn't already said, she hung up. Aimlessly, she wandered through the house. It had been almost eight hours since the unannounced visitor had arrived and now football couldn't even take her mind away. She had to know something. Finally, she picked up the Sycamore Springs phonebook and looked up the number to West County Memorial Hospital.

  “I want to check on the condition of a woman who was brought into the emergency room earlier today,” said Sadie. Sadie waited on hold for what seemed like an eternity.

  Finally, a nurse answered and told Sadie the woman had been admitted into intensive care and Sadie would have to get information from the patient's family.

  “Does she have family there?” Sadie asked. “What is her name?”

  The nurse declined to give any additional information and Sadie thanked her for her help. After thinking about it for a minute, Sadie picked up her purse and headed for the car. She wanted some answers and she wanted them now.

  When Sadie drove into the hospital parking lot, she could see a woman pushing a wheelchair toward the front door. Hurriedly, Sadie parked and ran to catch up with her. “Mrs. Andover? Is that you?” Sadie tried not to raise her voice close to the hospital door.

  Suddenly, a tiny head popped around the corner of the wheelchair as Sadie reached them—Soda Pop and her mom. The child's gaunt face and frail arms took Sadie by surprise, but Soda Pop's beautiful brown eyes sparkled when she saw her friend.

  “Hey, there, can I drive these wheels?” asked Sadie. Soda Pop's mom let Sadie take command of the wheelchair. After they entered the hospital, Sadie quickly found a place to park the chair where she could sit at eye level with the little girl. “How are you doing, Soda Pop?”

  “I have to come here to get my special medicine to kill the bugs that are inside my body,” said Soda Pop in an authoritative voice. “When they are all dead, then I will feel better,” she added.

  “You certainly will,” agreed Sadie.

  “And do you know what else?” asked Soda Pop.

  Sadie slowly moved her head from side to side indicating a negative answer. “No, what?”

  “When all the bugs are dead, my hair will grow back, too.”

  Fighting the lump rising in her throat, Sadie reached up and stroked the little girl's bangs. The wig made from Sadie's own hair looked remarkably natural on Soda Pop's head. “Yes, yes it will,” Sadie whispered.

  “Sadie?” Her voice sounded small. “You said I could ride Joe sometime. Soon?”

  “You know,” said Sadie with excitement, “Joe's been asking about you.”

  Soda Pop giggled. “Horses can't talk.”

  “Why, of course they can. You just have to listen.”

  Soda Pop giggled again. Mrs. Andover stood up and looked at her watch. “Thank you, Sadie. It's good to see her laughing. I'm glad we got to see you. Do you have a family member in the hospital?”

  “Oh, no. Nothing like that. I'm glad I got to see you and Soda Pop, too. And please call me anytime you'd like to see Joe.”

  “We will. Thanks.”

  Sadie stood and watched until the young mother pushed the child's wheelchair into the elevator and disappeared, then she returned her attention to the task at hand. Across the lobby, three volunteers in pink aprons sat behind a small information desk drinking coffee and talking. Sadie decided to start there.

  As she took a shortcut through the waiting area, she noticed a man sitting alone at the end of a vinyl-covered sofa. He sat with his elbows on his knees, holding his head in his hands. He looked familiar, but she tried not to stare. Suddenly, he looked up, saw Sadie, and spoke. It was Charlie McCord.

  “What brings you here?” he asked. He looked tired, and his wrinkled clothes gave Sadie the feeling he'd been there awhile.

  “I was just looking for someone,” she said. Then, after a brief moment of silence, she asked, “Are you okay, Charlie?”

  “Who are you looking for?” he asked, ignoring her question.

  Sadie perched on a matching vinyl-covered chair and began to tell her story. “I swear, Charlie, I don't know who this woman is, but I'm not going to be able to sle
ep until I know why she was shooting at me.”

  “Do you want some help, Sadie?”

  “I don't want to intrude on your personal time, Charlie. I can snoop around pretty well on my own.”

  Charlie stood up. “Actually, I'd welcome the distraction. Wait here.”

  He disappeared around the corner and down the hallway while Sadie contemplated the situation. She had always thought of Charlie as a police officer, hard as a rock, never imagining him as a normal human being with ordinary emotions. She suddenly realized he was as vulnerable as everyone else, and she felt sad for his apparent pain. She wondered for the first time about his family and whose illness or misfortune might have brought him here.

  After a few minutes, Charlie returned with information. “I ran into one of our officers down there. You remember Lance Smith, don't you? He said they had identified the woman and her husband showed up about an hour ago from Dallas. The woman's name is Jones—Carolyn Cantor-Jones or something like that. Does that ring any bells?”

  Sadie stared at Charlie. “No, not really,” she said. “There's a lot of people named Jones. In fact, I have a wonderful friend—”

  About that time, Officer Smith rounded the corner and summoned Charlie. “Sergeant, I spoke with the woman's husband. She's still knocked out, but he said he'd be glad to answer any questions for you.”

  Sadie followed close on Charlie's heels as they approached a smaller waiting room set aside for intensive care. As Lance introduced Charlie to the man, Sadie stopped short as if she had hit an imaginary barricade and someone had clipped her behind the knees. She sank backward against the wall and tried to become invisible as she fought the pounding in her head. It was Jaycee.

  Why is he here? He can't be…

  While she listened to Charlie question Jaycee, she unconsciously shifted from one foot to the other as if the rhythmic movement might convince her legs to regain their strength. The sound waves of the men's voices drifted in and out of her ears while her mind tried to flee. She wanted to run to him, let him hold her with his strong arms while he explained away his presence. But her body would not move. For an instant she heard Jaycee's voice: “…my wife…” The words blared unmercifully before his voice dissipated into the smell of the hospital air.

  Sadie began to feel dizzy and realized she was holding her breath. She tried to concentrate on inhaling and exhaling. Pieces of the puzzle began to fit. He was married. He had a family in Dallas. No wonder he couldn't be here for Christmas and only came to visit once a month. There had been no holiday client get-together. Then Sadie remembered the hang-up phone calls. His wife had uncovered the truth when he placed the call to Sadie on Christmas morning. The distraught spouse had simply tracked her down and tried to kill her.

  Damn, I am such a fool.

  As her anger swelled, the blood began to circulate in her limbs and the adrenaline began to flow. Sadie walked up to the men and waited. They stopped speaking and Jaycee, forced to acknowledge her presence, looked at Sadie. His haggard face took on a childlike appearance and he smiled as if he had just gotten caught stealing candy.

  “Hello,” he said in an apologetic tone.

  Charlie started to make introductions, but Sadie stopped him. She looked straight at Jaycee and with a calm, solid voice said, “Don't ever come near me again or I will do to you what your wife tried to do to me…only I won't miss.” She turned on her heel, stuck her head in the air, and strode back through the lobby. She could hear Jaycee calling her name as she left the hospital.

  Chapter 23

  Sadie hammered the last few nails around the perimeter of the new window. Her mind wandered and she missed twice, once almost hitting the glass, then nearly nailing her thumb to the shutter. The more she focused on Jaycee, the harder she pounded. Her thoughts ran on full tilt this morning after what felt like an endless night. She had finally unplugged the phone to quiet the relentless ringing.

  “Come on down, Sadie, before you break something,” barked Eli while he held the ladder steady.

  She knew her uncle didn't know the entire story, but he seemed to be disgusted enough with the whole Jaycee business. He acted particularly protective of her after yesterday's incident, and she was sure he was willing to string up anyone, man or woman, who meant harm to her.

  Sadie jumped off the ladder, stood back, and admired her handiwork. “Looks good enough to me,” she said. “Thanks, Uncle Eli. I don't know what I'd do without you.”

  Eli said nothing. Instead, he gathered his tools and laid the ladder in the bed of his truck, then climbed in and rolled down his window. “Mary said you should come for supper. She's fixing chicken and dumplings.”

  “Okay.” Sadie smiled and waved as he drove off. The unseasonably warm January weather beckoned to Sadie, and she lifted her face toward the bright sun hoping it would burn away her pain. She looked at the injured tree and felt the bareness where the bark had been ripped from her heart. Alone again, she began to fight the depression, struggling with the tangled mess of thoughts in her head, berating herself for falling in love with a married man. I should have known.

  When a vehicle turned off the highway, she wiped the tears from her eyes and the hair from her face. Sonny came to her side while they waited for the old truck to roll to a stop.

  “I hope you don't mind me showing up unannounced,” said Charlie as he climbed out.

  “What a nice surprise,” said Sadie. “I'm glad you came.”

  “You are?”

  Sadie looked at the ground and raked the dormant crabgrass with her worn boot. “I want to apologize for my behavior last night. I didn't even thank you for your help. And you were off duty.” She looked back at Charlie's face. “I don't know why you were there at the hospital, but I'm glad you were.”

  “I was there because my father-in-law was having heart surgery,” he said. “He didn't make it.”

  “Oh, I'm sorry, Charlie.”

  “Yeah, well, we never liked each other anyway,” said Charlie, his face absent of emotion.

  As Sadie started to echo her regrets again, Charlie cut her off.

  “But,” he said, “I thought you might want to know that the Jones woman never regained consciousness before she died early this morning. I was still at the hospital when they rolled her to the morgue.”

  “Oh, no.” Sadie felt awful, willing to take full responsibility for the death of this woman she didn't even know. After all, it was her tree that had stood its ground, causing the ill-fated driver to smack her head against the windshield and cause irreparable damage to her brain when the air bag malfunctioned. “If I had only known he was married, none of this would have happened,” Sadie whispered. “I would have never gone out with him if I'd known he was married. There would have been no reason for all this destruction…death.”

  “You can't blame yourself for someone else's suicide, Sadie. The doctor said her blood alcohol level well exceeded any definition of being drunk and her husband admitted finding the suicide note she left behind in Texas. Sounds as if she had plans to take you with her.”

  Thoughts swirled in Sadie's head again and she wrestled with overwhelming opposing sensations. It was only by the grace of God that she wasn't dead, too. She felt sorry for Jaycee losing his wife, but at the same time she hated him for his deceptions. Less than a day ago she longed for the magic touch of his fingers and now she became nauseated at the thought of him coming near her. The confusion brought tears.

  Charlie put his arm around Sadie's shoulders and they walked to the front steps of the house and sat down. Alarmed, Sonny ran to Sadie's side. “Unelagi,” said Sadie softly. The wolf-dog relaxed.

  Several moments passed before Sadie looked at Charlie. “Don't you need to be with your wife if her father just died?”

  “Actually, she asked me to leave,” said Charlie. “We are in the process of getting…what I guess you would call a friendly divorce. It's friendly, that is, as long as I'm not around.”

  Sadie tried to hide her sur
prise.

  Charlie continued. “With her daddy gone, Lilly will be coming into a lot of money. So she doesn't need me around to pay the bills anymore. And it's been a long time since she needed me for anything else.” He stopped talking for a moment, looked off into the distance, and then continued. “What's that old saying?” he asked. “‘Money makes the world go round.’ I guess that's it.” He smiled. “Anyway, we started making arrangements to divorce a while back—before Christmas.”

  “I'm really sorry, Charlie.”

  “Don't be. It was long overdue.” Charlie's face began to brighten. “Besides, I have some better news for you.” Charlie stood up, went over to his truck, and retrieved a newspaper. “I thought you might like to see this article about Jules.” He handed Sadie an inside section of the New Year's Day issue of the Tulsa World.

  Sadie stared at the picture taken on Christmas Day of Happy carving turkey at the shelter dinner. She could see herself and others in the background. “Wow, this is neat. Long article, too.”

  “I thought you'd like that,” said Charlie. “You can keep it and read it. Are you okay with everything else, Sadie? I know this must be hard for you. Jones explained the situation between you and him.”

  “Thanks, Charlie.”

  “Did this Jones guy ever cause you any trouble?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You can't trust people like him, Sadie. He's a con.”

  Sadie looked off toward the Eucha hills as if she hoped to extract some answers from the air. Her heart ached for the loss of the man she loved. Desperately, she wanted to believe it was all just a big mistake, that she would wake up from this dream and Jaycee would come sweep her off her feet like he always did. He had been such a gentle lover, a pillar of support. Or had it all been some big masquerade? Who was this man that had wreaked havoc on her life? Joe wandered up to the fence near the damaged tree, raised his head, and snorted, bringing Sadie out of her daze.