by Ann Mullen
“I want to stop at the dealership to have one last look at my truck,” Billy said, pulling out onto Rt. 29. “I guess I need to go ahead and buy a new one.”
“Hey, I kind of like the idea of us having to share the ride.”
“You won’t if we both have different places to go at the same time and need two cars. We can’t use Helene’s car, because she needs it for the kids.”
“What about the Mercury at the office?”
We both looked at each other and laughed. Billy’s Mercury was strictly for surveillance. Neither one of us wanted to be seen around town driving a twenty year old heap. Oh, it was a dependable automobile in excellent shape, but…
We spent two hours at Redman Auto, the car dealership now owned and operated by Billy’s nephew, Greg, since the death of his father. We bought all our cars from there because we knew we could count on being treated right by a family member. We would get a fair deal.
Billy chose a new, black Dodge Ram pickup truck right off the lot. It had everything he wanted, except the spy gadgets he would install himself. He went with black like my 4Runner because he said people wouldn’t notice it as much as they would if it were a car of color. I liked the red one, but he said it would stand out. I laughed when he mentioned Mom’s startling, bright canary yellow 4Runner.
“You see that car around town, and you can bet it’s your mother,” he said. “Hers is the only yellow one I’ve seen.”
Greg told Billy that once the paperwork was finished on his totaled pickup truck, he could buy it back at a really cheap price. I’d never heard of such a thing, but it must be possible, or Greg would not have suggested it.
“I can have it towed to your house when we deliver your new truck. Store it in the garage and work on it when you have time. I can get the parts for you at a real discount. It’s a shame to send a truck like this to the junkyard.”
Billy agreed. The deal was sealed. We left Redman’s and headed out to see Savannah.
“I thought you were going to drive the new truck off the lot. I mean, you paid cash for it. Why not take it with you?”
“We have things to do. Besides, Greg will have it detailed, and then deliver it.”
“Remind me one day to have a look at our finances. Since when can we afford to pay cash for a new car?”
“I’ve always paid cash for everything. I have a Visa card for emergencies, but normally, I don’t use credit cards. For one thing, credit cards can be traced.”
“How much money do we have? I want to know if it would be worth it to me to have you bumped off.” I chuckled, and then turned serious. “Actually, we rarely discuss money. Maybe we should. What if something happens to you? Where would I find all the loot? That new truck wasn’t paid for with our kids’ college money, was it?”
“No way. Nobody touches that money. Not even me.”
“You mean we do have money set aside for our kids to go to college? Since when? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Why are you interested in money now? You’ve never been before.”
“For one thing, I’ve never been able to pay cash for anything other than groceries, gas and rent. It’s a little strange not to have to worry about my next paycheck.” I smiled when I asked, “Are we rich?”
Billy laughed a hearty laugh and replied, “No, `ge ya. We’re not rich, but we do fairly well. We make good money, but we don’t spend a lot.”
“Oh, like the eight-hundred dollar evening gown and the three-hundred dollar heels you bought me at Bella’s Boutique? That wasn’t much?”
“Don’t forget the clutch purse.”
I slapped my forehead and said, “How could I forget the purse?”
I tried to concentrate on other stuff instead of thinking about Savannah, but it was hard. Her lies had piled up, until sorting out what was the truth and what wasn’t, had become quite difficult. If she’d only tell me the whole story, it’d be much easier for me to be on her side. Why didn’t she tell me from the start about McCoy and the baby? I would’ve understood. Besides, McCoy was the one who broke his marriage vows—not her. Andrea was single. She didn’t have any vows to uphold. Single woman… rich lawyer… I could see how that would look attractive even if the lawyer was married. Some women don’t care whether a guy is married or not, and some guys just can’t keep their pants on. McCoy should’ve known better. I don’t care how drunk he was. If he had been drugged, it would’ve been different. But he hadn’t. No, he knew what he was doing. No wonder Savannah went nuts. I would’ve, too. I was beginning to see her side. She had been hurt. No wonder she killed his mistress. Then I thought about how I would feel if I were in her shoes. If Billy cheated on me, I’d be devastated. I’d never forgive him.
Lies or no lies, I was beginning to understand how Savannah must have felt. She had been hurt and humiliated by her husband. Women do crazy things when you mess with their heart. I guess that’s what happened to her. She just couldn’t take it anymore.
Chapter 13
It was going to be a beautiful day. The skies were clear and the sun was shining brilliantly. I just hoped it stayed that way after our visit with Savannah. I was determined that the truth was going to come out, one way or the other. And after it did, would I forgive her for all her lies, or would I understand? The anticipation was causing my anxiety to kick in. I was about ready to pop. That is—until we pulled up to the entrance of her driveway. Shock set in when I saw the wrought iron gate standing open and Savannah in the front yard. She was dressed in a skimpy red bikini, stretched out in a lounge chair and drinking a wine cooler. Two empty bottles lay next to the chair.
Billy pulled into the driveway and parked the 4Runner. When we got out and walked over to her, I had all kinds of questions going through my head… like… what was she doing out in her yard, half-naked, and getting drunk? What about her reputation? Not to mention that she looked as if she’d been in a fight—she had a large band-aid on her forehead and several more covered her hands. At least the unsightly gauze bandages were gone.
“You shouldn’t be out in this heat if you’re going to drink,” Billy said. “You could fall asleep and get badly sunburned.”
“Who cares?” she asked, getting up from the chaise lounger a bit wobbly. “My husband surely didn’t. Why else would he have an affair? I’m a beautiful woman. I know, because men tell me that all the time. But do I have an affair? No, I don’t. Why? Because I’m married, that’s why. Married people don’t do that. Right?”
Intoxicated or not, she was getting too close to Billy for my liking. She kept bumping into him in a sensual way. I knew that ploy. She was flirting with my man! I tried not to let it rile me, telling myself that it was the alcohol making her do that, but for the life of me, I couldn’t let it pass. Jealousy was taking over. I took a deep breath when she backed off. She started walking around the yard aimlessly as if she didn’t know where to go to next. She stumbled a couple of times, but managed to recover her step without falling. Finally, she walked back over and said something only another drunk could appreciate. “Nobody cares about me.”
“Of course, they do,” Billy offered, trying to reassure her. “You have plenty of friends.”
“Jesse hates me, but you’re still my friend, aren’t you Billy?” She looked over at me and said, “Don’t judge me, Missy, until you’ve had a chance to walk in my shoes.”
She sounded like my mother. Nobody called me that except Mom.
“You don’t know what it’s like to find out that the only man you ever truly loved has slept with another woman. It’ll break your heart and tear you to pieces. How would you like it if some woman crawled into bed with your man?”
“I wouldn’t like it,” I replied. “But I wouldn’t kill her over it.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Then enlighten me. Tell me why you killed Andrea.”
“I told you it was self-defense, but you won’t listen. Just because I didn’t air all my dirty linen doesn�
��t mean I’m not telling the truth. People don’t need to know all my business.”
“They do when it comes to proving your innocence. You have to tell the truth.”
“What do you know about telling the truth? You lie for a living.”
“That may well be, but not when it comes to something like this.”
“What’s the difference? Tell me. You seem to have all the answers.”
“I think we should take this inside,” Billy interjected. “You don’t really want your neighbors to see you like this, do you, Savannah? It wouldn’t look good for your image.”
“What does it matter? My husband’s dead and my readers are deserting me. What do I have left? My reputation is already shot. So what if the neighbors see me drunk. Who are they to pass judgment on me? I’m Savannah Kelley!”
I walked over and took the wine cooler from her hand. “You’ve had enough,” I said. “Come on. Let’s go inside. If we don’t, you’re going to hate yourself in the morning.”
“I already hate myself now,” she replied, but she did as I suggested. She cried as soon as I put my arm around her shoulder. We walked up the porch steps together, and then into the house.
The inside of the house was no longer trashed due to the events of the last few days. There was no upended furniture or broken lamps lying around. I mentioned this to Savannah and she mumbled something about her cleaning woman.
“She sure earned her pay,” I said.
“I’ll make some coffee,” Billy said as Savannah and I sat down at the kitchen table. “You need to sober up. This isn’t like you.”
Savannah’s hands shook. “I don’t know what’s going to happen to me now that McCoy is gone. My world revolved around that man.” She reached over and touched my hand with hers. “Jesse, I’ve never seen McCoy act that way before. It was as if he was on drugs. He went ballistic when he saw me with Russell. He accused me of sleeping with him, and a lot more. He was so vulgar, it was embarrassing. He’s never talked like that around me. He knows I don’t like it. Poor Russell didn’t know what to say.”
Billy set a cup of coffee down in front of her, and then walked over to the other side of the table and sat down. “Don’t worry about Russell. He’s a lawyer. Don’t think he hasn’t heard spouses bicker.”
“One thing I’ve learned is that men who cheat are accusers,” I said. “They point a finger at their spouse or girlfriend to cover their guilt—take the spotlight off themselves.”
“McCoy got down and dirty. He called me horrible names—names that a man shouldn’t call his wife in front of another man.”
“A man should never degrade his woman in front of anybody,” Billy added. “Thoughts such as those should be kept private and silent.”
“Well… they weren’t. Finally, Russell told McCoy to shut up, and it went downhill from there. Their fight was getting bloody, and neither one would quit, so I called the cops. Someone had to break it up, but I couldn’t. I’m no match for those guys.”
I sat and listened to Savannah talk about what happened last night and couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. She had it all, but now her world was falling apart.
“It’s time to come clean, Savannah,” I said. “Tell us everything, even the stuff you don’t want to tell anyone. We can take it. Friends don’t lie to each other.”
Savannah continued with her story and by the time she had finished, I was at a loss for words. I was taken aback by her tale of woe. She talked about her inability to conceive a child and how it had affected their marriage. When she found out about Andrea, she was heartbroken. She was also jealous. She wanted the baby for herself and McCoy. She tried to buy the child, but Andrea wouldn’t hear of it. The money wasn’t good enough. Then the emails started. At first, Savannah didn’t respond to them, but then she lost her patience once they became ugly. Andrea had threatened to take McCoy away from her. Death threats soon followed. Andrea didn’t just want McCoy, she wanted Savannah dead. Savannah prodded her with the invitation to talk about it in person. She never expected her to go through with her threats, but that all changed the day Andrea showed up on her doorsteps. They fought and then the real truth came out before Andrea died. McCoy and Andrea’s one-night-stand had lasted longer than just one night. If there had been any hope of salvaging the marriage, it died that day along with Andrea.
“McCoy denied it to the end,” Savannah added. “But he was lying. Andrea told me things about him that I knew to be true. What really saddened me was when she showed me the necklace he bought for her birthday. It was the same as the one he gave me for my birthday. He bought her gifts, a house and a new car. It seems he gave her everything he gave me, except a baby.”
Billy and I looked up at the same time. Savannah’s recollection of past events weren’t exactly the same as some we had heard, but that didn’t matter. People get confused when they’re upset.
“Perhaps she stretched the truth just to hurt you.”
“She told me about their lovemaking… like I wanted to hear that. She pointed out every scar, blemish, or quirk that McCoy has… had. You want to hear something really ironic?” Savannah didn’t wait for a response. “When Andrea’s mother found out about her daughter’s death, the first thing she did was to call McCoy and tell him that she wanted him to take custody of Kaleb. Jeanette is not well.”
“That is ironic,” I replied. “What did McCoy have to say about it?”
“Who cares? Once I found out the truth about his relationship with Andrea, there was no way I was going to help him raise that child. Every time I looked at Kaleb, I’d be reminded of my husband’s infidelity.”
“He’s just a child, Savannah. What happened is not his fault.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not that forgiving.”
“That’s so sad. You and McCoy…”
“Oh… there’s more. Jeannette called me this morning. She heard about McCoy on the news, and asked me to take Kaleb. Can you imagine that? My husband and his mistress are dead and that woman thinks I’m going to raise their child. It’s not going to happen.”
“What’s Jeanette going to do with the boy?” Billy asked. “If she’s too ill to care for him, someone has to.”
“It’s not going to be me.”
“You’ve always wanted a child,” he continued. “Forget about McCoy and Andrea. Here’s your chance to have your own baby. Somebody needs to step up to the plate. Why not you?”
“I’m not going to do it. Sure, I want a baby, but not this one.”
I could see where this was going. Billy’s the great rescuer of those in need. I looked at him and shook my head. There was no way I was going to be dragged into this. The child was not my responsibility. I have my hands full already with my own children.
Savannah caught the look I gave Billy and said, “Forget it. If I wanted to see that child every day, I’d adopt him myself.”
“Kaleb needs a home.”
“She can put him in foster care then.”
“Stop right there!” I said. “Before you make any decisions, Savannah, just think about it.” Savannah looked naked sitting there in her bikini. “Why don’t I go get you a shirt to put on? I feel as if I’m talking to a naked person.”
“It doesn’t bother me, but if you must, go ahead.”
I got up from the table, walked to her bedroom, and started searching through her clothes in the closet. I picked out a shirt and when I turned to walk out of the closet, I saw a photograph lying on the floor between a pair of shoes. Being the nosy person that I am, I picked it up and looked at it. The snapshot had two very familiar faces in it: Savannah and Cole. How about that? I guess Savannah hadn’t told us everything. She surely didn’t tell us about this. I stuck the photo in the side pocket of my cargo shorts, and walked out of the closet. When I got back to the kitchen, I handed her the shirt and said, “You didn’t ask us how Cole was doing. Why? Don’t you care?”
“Sure, I care,” she replied. “Your mom told me he was going to be fin
e. I’m so glad to hear it. I was really worried there for awhile. Why do you ask?”
I pulled the photo from my pocket and held it up for her to see. “What’s this all about?”
“Where did you find that?”
“In your closet on the floor. You know, you really should get rid of photographs if you don’t want people to see them.” I tossed the picture on the table in front of her. “How long have you been having an affair with Cole?” Before she could answer my question, I came back with, “You’re such a hypocrite, Savannah. You whine and complain about your no-good, cheating husband, but you’ve been doing the same thing.”
“It’s not what you think, Jesse.”
“Then what is it?”
“That picture was taken months ago… before the cruise. I went to a cookout with Cole. That’s all there was to it. Nothing happened, I swear. It wasn’t a date or anything. I ran into him at the IGA while he was picking up something for a cookout at his mother’s house. I was down, lonely, and needed a friend. I said something about loving cookouts, so he asked me if I wanted to go… just as friends… nothing more.”
“If I go back and look through your closet, am I going to find more skeletons in there?”
“Most likely. Doesn’t everyone have something to hide? Don’t tell me you’re the perfect person. I’m sure you have secrets of your own.”
“Your relationship with Cole—was that one of your secrets? How many others do you have that we don’t know about?”
“Stop trying to trip me up, Jesse. I’m not hiding anything about my friendship with Cole. I even showed that picture to McCoy and told him how much fun I had at the cookout. He didn’t seem to mind. Why should you?”