Mississippi Blues

by D'Ann Lindun

  She felt as if someone were staring at her. Without being obvious, she glanced around. On the other side of the aisle, Mary-Gray Bennet shot her a glare. Summer met the other girl’s hard look without flinching. She was sorry Mary-Gray had set her cap for Trey, but he wasn’t available any more. As soon as they could, without upsetting everyone, they would publicly become a couple. A small shiver of delight danced up Summer’s back.

  An usher motioned for her to leave and she walked out of the church.

  The sun blinded her for a minute. When she could see again, she saw groups of people standing in groups near the grave across the road. Her eyes searched for Trey. She found him near the open gravesite talking to the Chief and Lindy.

  Near Summer’s elbow, Lilah asked, “Do you see Jody?”

  “I don’t see him. Let’s go toward the police cars. Maybe he’s over there.” They wove their way through the throngs of people heading the opposite direction, in search of him.

  “There he is.” Lilah pointed his direction.

  Near his patrol unit, Jody spoke into his radio. His expression was grim.

  “Something’s wrong.” Lilah broke into a quick jog. “I’d know that look anywhere.”

  “The interment is going to be very soon.” Summer looked over her shoulder and saw the family take their seats at the edge of the grave. Preacher Finn bowed his head.

  “I’m telling you, something’s happened,” Lilah insisted, dodging a minivan.

  Jody looked up when they approached. He hung up his radio. Lilah was right; he looked as though he’d seen a ghost. “We’ve got a problem.”

  “What is it, baby?” Lilah wrapped her arms around his waist.

  Gently, he removed himself. “We’ve got the wrong person in jail. Carlene Carter didn’t kill Mrs. Bouché or anyone else. I just got a call. The hair Trey found on his mother’s pillow isn’t Carlene’s.”

  “Who’s then?” Summer asked.

  He shook his head. “We don’t know yet. There’s more. Someone shot Buford Krebbs in the back today when he entered his store through the side door. He’s in surgery, but not expected to live. Whoever did it tried to make it look like a burglary, but I think our killer is on the prowl again.”

  “Oh, God.” Summer covered her mouth with her hands. Dropping them like lead weights, she said, “Mama. She’s in danger.”

  “I’ll send a unit out to check on her,” Jody said.

  “She won’t let anyone but me inside.” Summer looked around for a way to get out of the packed parking lot. Her old car was stuck between two pickups she didn’t recognize.

  “I’ll take you,” Jody said. “I’ll send Carole Rasley to Krebbs’s place.”

  “We should tell Trey,” Summer said, uncertain if she should interrupt his mother’s service. Extreme, yes. But her mama’s funeral might be the next one if she didn’t do something.

  “You two go on. I’ll tell Trey where you’re at.” Lilah shoved Jody. “Go! Hurry! Before it’s too late.”

  He opened the door and ushered Summer in then ran around and jumped in the driver’s seat. Picking up the radio, he called Officer Rasley and told her to stay at the Krebbs’s scene until he could get there. Then he tore up the road, red and blue lights flashing, siren screaming.

  • • •

  Trey threw his handful of dirt on top of his mother’s coffin and turned away. He scanned the crowd of mourners for Summer, but didn’t see her. Lindy grabbed his hand and he glanced at her strained face. He hoped she could make it through the rest of the day without falling down. He hoped they all could. The Chief stood nearby. He hadn’t broken down, but he acted as if he were somewhere else. His mind seemed to be a million miles away.

  Someone touched Trey’s arm. Lilah stood there, a fearful expression on her face. “I have to talk to you. Now.”

  Her tone convinced him and he let go of Lindy’s hand with an apologetic glance. He walked a few feet with Lilah then stopped. “What’s wrong?”

  “Jody got a call on the radio. There was a break-in at Krebbs’s store. He got shot in the back and they don’t think he’s going to live. Summer was with me. She thinks her mama is in danger and she and Jody tore up out of here like two cats with their tails on fire.”

  Trey began moving before she was done talking. “Thanks, Lilah.”

  He approached the Chief. “Sir? There’s trouble brewing.”

  Lindy joined them. “What’s going on?”

  Trey didn’t see any reason not to tell her. “Buford Krebbs was shot a little while ago. He’s in surgery. Carlene Carter is being held for Mother’s murder, so she couldn’t have been the one who did it. I think MiLann Hill is in danger. I’ve got to go.”

  “Oh, no,” Lindy cried. “Someone might go after Jace, too. Daddy, listen, Jace didn’t kill Deke Soloman. Whoever did might be after him. I have to warn him.”

  “Call Jace on your cell,” Trey ordered, not waiting for their father to say anything to her.

  “Better yet, I’m going to him.” Before either of the men could react, Lindy turned and sprinted across the lawn, her shoes flying off as she ran.

  The Chief’s mouth was white and pinched. He looked ill. “Hell no, Carlene didn’t do anything like that.” He turned to Ida. “Go to the jail now and turn Carlene loose right now. Tell her I’ll talk to her later. Make sure she gets home all right.”

  “I’ve got to go to Summer,” Trey said. “If something happens to MiLann … ”

  “We’ll both go.” The Chief shot Trey an impatient look. “Move.”

  As they climbed in the Mustang, Trey gave the Chief a puzzled glance. “Sir? You’re leaving Mother’s funeral. Are you sure you want to do that?”

  “Got no choice.” He grunted as he settled in the leather bucket seat and tethered the seatbelt around his big frame. “Damn cars are made for midgets.”

  Trey spun the car around and as he hit the road he asked, “What do you mean, you have ‘no choice?’”

  “I can’t let anything happen to MiLann,” the Chief said. “If I do, I’ll have more rights to set wrong.”

  “What do you mean? Carlene?” Trey concentrated on the road, and didn’t glance over. “If she didn’t kill Soloman or Mother, then who did?”

  He didn’t answer.

  • • •

  Lindy sped up the driveway to Granny’s, her heart pounding in her chest. If anything happened to Jace, she’d never forgive herself. She loved him with her whole heart. No matter the cost, no matter the end, she would stand by him.

  Skidding the Jeep to a halt, she jumped out and ran to the front door. She barreled through it, shouting, “Jace! Jace! Are you here?”

  “Up here,” he called. In a minute, the attic ladder dropped and he climbed down. As he approached, he said, “I wasn’t sure you’d come back.”

  “I told you I would. You aren’t going to believe this,” Lindy cried, launching herself at him. “I have so much to tell you.”

  He caught her as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. “What do you have to tell me, little girl?”

  “For one thing, Trey did what he said he would and found out who killed Soloman. You’re going to be set free.” She hugged him tight. “And, I’m not a little girl.”

  “No, you’re not,” he agreed, looking into her eyes with open desire. Still holding her, he said, “Tell me what happened. Start at the beginning.”

  “The Chief had an affair with Carlene Carter … Candy is her daughter, maybe my sister … we have to do DNA … Mother found out about it … she went to the bar with the Chief’s friends … Soloman raped Carlene, too, and she killed him.” She took a breath. “So you’re going to be freed.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t follow.”

  “It’s complicated,” she said. “But trust me; ev
eryone will know you’re innocent by the time I’m through. I’ll shout it from the rooftops, from town square, from the water tower. You name it. If I can be heard, I’ll be there.”

  “You’d do that for me?” His lips moved a mere fraction of an inch from hers.

  “I’d do anything for you,” she said, her voice as husky as Trey’s. She giggled. “Even color my hair.”

  He gaze moved to her blonde color and his eyes widened. He reached to touch the one curl she’d left down with one finger. “It’s gorgeous. Just like the rest of you.”

  “Flattery will get you everywhere.” She tightened her legs around his waist.

  He slipped one hand up her back and bare neck, cupping it. “Will it get me here?”

  “Uh-huh.” Her eyes locked on his.

  “I’m crazy about this color,” he whispered as his hand moved to the clip holding her French twist and releasing it. Her hair tumbled around her face.

  “Keep talking,” she ordered as she clasped her hands behind his head. Then she moved her mouth close to his ear. “Please.”

  “Have I told you how much I like you in my arms?” His free hand tangled in her hair.

  “No,” she said. She wasn’t going to let him off easy.

  “Have I told you how much I want to be inside you?” He reached for her dress and tugged it up over her hips. His fingers slipped along her belly, lower, resting at the top of her satin panties.

  She shivered and a hot flash of desire flooded her. “No.”

  “I’m saying it now.” His fingers slid lower, but not nearly far enough.

  “Love me,” she suggested.

  “Whatever the lady desires.” He carried her to the bed. Settling her gently on the covers, he stood above her and helped pull her tight, gray dress over her head.

  Leaning back against the pillows on her granny’s bed, Lindy lifted her chin and met his hot gaze. Her heart filled her chest and she was so taken by her love for him, she couldn’t speak for fear the magic would end.

  “You are so special.” His hands hung by his sides.

  With steady fingers, she reached for the front clasp of her bra and undid it. Shrugging her shoulders, the satin fell to the bed. Her nipples puckered in the warm air. Lifting her hips, she shimmied out of the scrap of satin and lace covering her womanly parts. Completely nude, except for the matching diamond bellybutton stud and earrings, she laid proudly before him. Already damp, she wanted him inside her now.

  She reached for him, but he instead of pressing down on top of her as she expected, he knelt in front of her and touched the tip of his tongue to the diamond in her bellybutton. The move was so unexpected, she burst out in laughter. Against her stomach, she could feel his lips move into a smile.

  But all laughter died a moment later when he pushed her legs apart and bent his head to her. His mouth brushed across the springy curls between her legs. A small gasp escaped her then another as his tongue dove into the opening of her body. Her fingers curled into the blankets and her head fell back. Tingles rushed over her, from head to toe. Every muscle tensed, tightened like a string on a kite lifting for the sky.

  Lifting her bottom with his hands, he touched her clit with his tongue. It was enough. Her body convulsed in a series of shakes that seemed like they would never end. Lindy opened and closed her mouth, gasping for air, not hearing her own cries.

  She hadn’t recovered her breath or sense of equilibrium and he was over her, entering her. Instinctively, her hands went to his buttocks, her fingers digging in. He plunged deep and she met the thrust with an equally eager movement of her hips. Like two dancers, they rose and dipped and lifted each other to the place of pure pleasure. In her ear, he began to breathe in quick, jerky pants. His eyes closed and his mouth opened a fraction. Lindy’s body tightened, encouraged him to spill his seed. Her own quivers built and built until she exploded in a million directions at once. As she shattered, he, too, found his limit and came, crying out into her hair.

  For a few minutes neither moved.

  Then Jace rolled to his back, pulling her across his chest. “Lady, you’re amazing.”

  Her already speeding heart went into overdrive “Thank you.”

  He lifted her limp hand and kissed her palm. “I owe you so much.”

  She raised her head and looked at him. The flames he’d just lit began to die. Keeping her voice from shaking, she asked, “Is that what this was? Some kind of payment?”

  “What do you want it to be?” His expression was guarded. “Some forever kind of thing?”

  “Oh no, you’re not going to get me to fall for that one again.” She rested her chin on his chest and looked into his deep blue eyes. “I told you I loved you and you told me not to mistake great sex for love. The screwing was awesome, but you won’t trick me twice.”

  “Don’t say that,” he said with a frown. “I don’t want to hear my wife talk dirty about the way we make love.”

  Her eardrums pounded, but Lindy kept her expression blasé. “Wife? Lovemaking?”

  “Yeah.” He grinned and her heart did a few cartwheels. “Making love. What we have is too good to call it anything else.”

  “What are you saying? What’s this about a wife?” She had to hear the words; he had to say it. She ran her fingers across the ridges of his stomach and back up to his flat, brown nipples. “I want to be sure I’m not hearing things.”

  “He rose up and took her face between his hands. “Lindy Bouché, I’m so lucky to have you. I want you and I need you.”

  She held her breath.

  She didn’t blink.

  The moment seemed eons.

  He said, “I love you.”

  She doubled her fist and slugged him in the stomach. “I knew it!”

  He laughed and brought her mouth to his. Just before he kissed her he said, “Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”

  “Yes, oh, yes. I’ll be proud to marry you. I love you, too, Jace Hill. For the rest of our lives.”

  He rolled over her, his body once again ready to prove his devotion.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Summer hit the ground running.

  Jody pounded after her. “Wait, Summer. There might be someone in there.”

  She disregarded his advice. Leaping up the steps, she saw her fears weren’t unfounded. The screen door on the porch stood ajar, as did the kitchen door. Mama never would have left either open. With her heart in her throat, Summer moved across the porch, Jody at her back.

  “Summer,” he warned, “Don’t go in there.

  She ignored him.

  Stepping into the kitchen, it took a moment for her brain to process what her eyes were telling her. Mama sat at the kitchen table, her eyes huge, her lips pressed tight. The angry red scar stood out in sharp contrast to her white face. In her shaking hands, she held a letter.

  Seeing who was with her, Summer breathed easier. “Thank God you’re here. Buford Krebbs was shot today and we thought whoever did it might come here … ”

  Mama whimpered.

  “Summer,” Jody said.

  Then she saw the gun pressed to the back of Mama’s head.

  “Oh, God, what’s going on?” Her knees shook and she felt as if she might fall to the floor. She took one step forward, and the gun was pointed at her.

  “Stay where you are or I’ll kill her in front of you. I didn’t want it to be like this, but you gave me no choice.” The gun didn’t waver and neither did the owner holding it.

  “Glory?” Summer shook her head to clear her vision — sure she was seeing things. But her boss, her friend, stood in front of her, pointing a gun at her chest. Her features were twisted with rage, her green eyes unfocused, her mouth a thin line. Even her hair looked angry — standing on end in tight, sharp spikes.

 
“Yeah, me.” Glory chuckled and the hair on the back of Summer’s neck stood on end. “Fooled you, didn’t I?”

  Summer felt Jody at her shoulder, but didn’t look at him when he said, “Let Mrs. Hill go.”

  “Shut up, cop. Another word out of you and I’ll waste her right here.” Glory shoved the gun at Mama’s head for emphasis.

  He held up his hands in a gesture of surrender and backed away several steps.

  Summer tried to send Mama a message, staring into her frozen blue eyes. “Yes, you got me. I don’t understand. Why are you mad at me? Let Mama go, and I’ll do anything you want.”

  “You’ll do anything I want anyway.” Glory cackled and the sound was that of a madwoman. She poked Mama in the back with the gun barrel. A small whimper was Mama’s only response. “Shut up, you crazy old bitch.”

  “You’re my friend, why are you doing this?” Summer balled her hands into fists. None of this made any sense. “Why do you want to hurt Mama? She’s never done anything to you.”

  Glory’s eerie laugh bounced off the walls. “You are so wrong, friend.”

  Dumbfounded, Summer couldn’t think what Glory meant. As far as she knew, Mama had always treated Glory well. In fact, she was one of the few people Mama trusted enough to allow inside her house. “Please let Mama go,” Summer pleaded.

  “Not until she pays for what she did.” Glory’s irritation grew and she moved around. “I can’t let her get away with it.”

  Summer locked her gaze on the gun. “Surely you’re mistaken. Mama couldn’t have done anything to you. The only times you’ve seen her I’ve been right here with you, and I can’t think of a thing she could’ve done to make you so angry.”

  “She took him away from me,” Glory screamed. “They all did.”

  “Took who?” Certain her friend had lost her mind, Summer wondered if she could get through to her. If only someone would come and help.