by Ann Mullen
Helene had already given the kids a bath and was ready to put them to bed. We’d made it just in time. Once they were tucked in, Billy and I sat in the den with Helene, drinking coffee and discussing our plans.
“The helicopter trip is out,” I said to Helene. “Jonathan has to check her out real good first, so we might as well go ahead and make other plans.”
“Why don’t we just do something simple,” Helene suggested. “I’ve been thinking about the trip, and I think it would be fun if we went to the beach for a couple of days. How about Nag’s Head? Is that too far?”
“Sounds good to me,” I said. “What about you, Billy?”
“I don’t know,” Billy replied. “The summer is coming to an end and I doubt we’d be able to find a place to stay on such short notice. The hotels and cottages are booked up well in advance. Let me see what I can find out.” He got up and headed to our home office to check the computer. Thirty minutes later, he came back and said, “Sorry, ladies. I couldn’t even find a hotel vacancy, let alone a cottage to rent.”
“I guess… whoa… wait a minute,” I said, looking at Billy. “Russell Shank owns a cottage right on the beach in Nag’s Head. I think he said it was on mile post eight or ten. Remember his telling us he’d just spent a week there? That was right before Savannah went and killed that woman and needed his undivided attention. Maybe he’d rent it to us. We wouldn’t make a mess. Tell him we’d leave it just like it was when we got there.”
Athena and Thor, who had been lying in a corner snoozing, all of a sudden, jumped up and started prancing around. I guess they liked the idea as well. The cat was nowhere to be seen.
“What about them?” Helene asked. “Are they going? And what are we going to do with the cat?”
“Let’s just see if I can get Russell to let us use his cottage first,” Billy answered. “Then we’ll go from there.” He pulled out his cell phone and walked out of the room. This time when Billy returned, he had a serious look on his face.
“What’s the matter?” I asked him. “It’s not the end of the world if he won’t let us use his…”
“It’s not that,” Billy replied. “He’s more than glad to let us use his cottage, but not right now. His brother’s family is using it for the next two weeks. After that, we’re more than welcome to use it. The problem is—McCoy’s going to be buried in a few days. If we leave now, we’ll miss the funeral.”
Reality brought us all back down to earth.
“I forgot,” I said, sadly. “We can’t miss the funeral. It wouldn’t be right. He was our friend. We have to go.”
“Yeah. When I called Russell, he was at Savannah’s, helping her make the arrangements. That was sad. I could hear her crying in the background.”
“Was my mom still there?”
“No, she wasn’t. Russell said she left over an hour ago. Eddie wasn’t feeling well.”
“What’s the matter with him?”
“I don’t know. You’d have to ask her. You should call her. It’s about time the two of you got over this Savannah thing and agree to disagree.”
The idea of calling my mom and having her go on and on about Savannah didn’t appeal to me. I just wasn’t in the mood for another confrontation. Then, I thought about it for a minute. Billy was right. I wasn’t going to let Savannah Kelley come between my mother and me. No, sir! I would call my mom and ignore anything she had to say about the high and mighty Savannah! While Billy and Helene were discussing ideas for our trip, I walked out of the room and called my mom.
“Hello,” Mom whispered into the phone.
“Mom? Why are you whispering? Is Eddie okay?”
“He’s doing better,” she continued to whisper. “He’s asleep on the couch. His stomach isn’t doing too well. He ate too much dinner.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I hope he’ll be all right.”
“He’ll be fine. I gave him some baking soda in water. Next time he’ll listen to me. He can’t help it. He just loves my cooking.”
“How’re the wedding plans coming along?”
“Very well.”
Mom and I talked for over twenty minutes before it dawned on me that Savannah’s name hadn’t even come up once. But, we had to be able to talk without fussing over her, so…
“Billy and I plan to take Helene and the kids on a mini-vacation as soon as we can get it set up. We were thinking we’d go after McCoy’s funeral. We’ll be gone a week.”
“You will be back in time for the wedding, won’t you?”
“Weddings,” I jokingly corrected her. “Of course, we will. Besides, that’s three weeks away. We have plenty of time. Y’all have everything under control, right? You don’t need my help.”
“Oh, honey, are you feeling left out? I’m sorry. I didn’t…”
“No… not at all, Mom.” I chuckled. “You know that’s not my thing. If you need my help, I’d be more than glad to give it, but if you don’t, that suits me just fine. I’m not much of a party planner, especially a big shindig such as this. I’m happy just to stand on the sidelines and watch.”
Our conversation ended without any disagreement over Savannah. I’d decided not to try to change my mother’s mind about her. It wasn’t worth it. We had a good relationship, and I wasn’t about to let anyone change that. I felt relieved after our phone conversation. When I walked back to the den and told Billy, he was relieved, too.
“I’m so glad you’ve decided to put it to rest. There’s no reason to go on and on about something you can’t change, so why argue over something so unimportant?”
“That’s my thought exactly. Savannah will show her true colors eventually. Mom doesn’t need me giving her grief all the time about her.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. It’s not as if Savannah is going to corrupt your mother. Minnie’s a smart lady. If there’s something to see, she’ll see it.”
Helene sat on the sofa and didn’t say anything as if she were concentrating on something. When I sat down next to her, she looked over at me and said, “Shall we give up on our getaway plans for now? With McCoy’s funeral coming up, and then the wedding gala, maybe we should stay home. There’ll be plenty of time for travel later.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” I said. “It’s pretty bad when we can’t plan a family trip for even a couple of days. Have we become boring?”
“Not hardly! I’m not boring!” Billy said. “Are you boring, Helene?”
“I’m not boring! I’m exciting! I can jump in the car and go anywhere.”
Her reference to getting into a car and just going anywhere set off a light bulb in my head. “That’s it!” I said. “Let’s rent a Winnebago and just cruise the roads. Who needs accommodations? We’ll have a hotel on wheels. All we have to do is find a place to park it. That way we can take the dogs and the cat, and we’d have plenty of room. Have you thought about how crowded it’ll be with all of us in a car?”
Billy and Helene looked at each other, and then Billy said, “That’s a great idea! I love it. If we wait until after McCoy’s funeral and the big wedding bash, we’ll have plenty of time to prepare.”
“And don’t forget. Your new truck should be delivered tomorrow. Did you forget about that while we were busy planning our getaway?”
“Yes, I did. I was so busy trying not to think about all the stuff going on around us. People lying—people dying. Every time I turn around someone either lies to me, or bites the dust. It’s getting so frustrating.”
“That’s life, Billy. Why do you keep beating yourself up? If you’re so angry about Bruno dumping the gun, why don’t you go look for it? You’re not to blame for his sorry behavior.”
“It just bugs me. Why…” Billy stopped. A strange look appeared on his face as he got up, grabbed his cell phone, and then punched in a number. “I have to check out something. I’ll be right back.” He walked out of the room.
Helene stretched out on one of the sofas, picked up the remote control, and then turned on the televi
sion—a widescreen that Billy had purchased for me, knowing how much I liked to watch TV.
“Maybe there’s something on the news about someone we know,” I said with a chuckle. “Surf the channels to see.” I stretched out in a recliner and relaxed. All things aside, I was feeling pretty good. I closed my eyes for just a second and the vision of Bruno standing next to his Lincoln at Wynona’s house appeared. A split second later, he swung his arm and tossed the gun into the woods. I jumped up from the recliner and ran out of the room, leaving Helene with her mouth wide open. I stepped into the doorway of the office and said, “He tossed it in the woods at Wynona’s house.”
Billy was sitting at the desk punching keys on the computer keyboard while talking on his cell phone. He looked up at me and said, “Give me a minute, `ge ya. I’m checking out something.”
I slowly backed out of the room and went back to the den. Whatever Billy was working on, it must’ve been important. He never makes me wait for anything.
A few minutes passed before Billy came back to the den. By then, I was in a snit. He had dismissed me, something he never did, and I wasn’t happy. I always came first! But, my ill mood didn’t last. The minute he came over to me and apologized, I was all smiles.
“I’m so sorry for putting you off like that, `ge ya, but I was talking to a friend of Jonathan’s.” Billy sat down on the edge of the sofa across from me and leaned over, his arms resting on his knees. “I did, however, hear what you said, and I think you might have something. Bruno isn’t dumb. He wouldn’t toss the gun where it could be found by a passerby. He’d want to put it someplace where he could easily find it.”
“That’s what I was thinking. He wouldn’t keep it on him, and he wouldn’t hide it back in Wynona’s house. What if the sheriff went out and searched her house again, and then searched his?”
“That’s true.”
“Yeah. If he tossed it in the woods at Wynona’s house and the cops found it, it would be on her property. He’s smart. He’ll protect his sister, but he’s not going to go to jail for her.”
“I think the gun might have some history to it,” Helene added. “Why else would he dispose of it? Find the gun, and you’ll find out why he was so eager to get rid of it.”
“Maybe it was used in another crime,” I said, wide-eyed. “Perhaps Hank Sharp wasn’t Wynona’s only victim. I bet she’s killed someone else with that gun.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Billy said, and then hesitated. “But you never know.”
“Who were you talking with on the phone?” Helene curiously asked. “If it’s a friend of Jonathan’s…”
“You are so intuitive, Helene,” I said, turning my head toward Billy after a second of thought. “You think you can find the gun, and you want someone to run a trace on it. You were talking with that woman, Deanna who works in ballistics—the one Jonathan used to date. I’ve heard all about her. Didn’t she dump him?”
Helene and I glanced at each other, our womanly instincts kicking in. We knew it was never good to visit old wounds.
“She broke his heart,” Helene added. “He just about fell apart.”
“Do you think that was wise?” I asked Billy. “Getting Jonathan to hook you up with a woman who dumped him and broke his heart? Man, you really pushed the limits of brotherly love. You never get someone to ask a favor from someone they used to care about. It sends the wrong message.”
“That was a long time ago. He’s been over her. Besides, I never brought up her name. All I said was that I needed someone to run a ballistics check. He was the one who suggested her.”
“Semantics,” Helene said. “By doing this, you could’ve stirred up something that should’ve been left alone. What would Lu Ann say?”
“This is business,” Billy said. “You’re making too much of it.”
“We’ll see,” Helene came back with. “But if the wedding gets called off, we’ll know why.”
“Why?” Billy seemed confused at our concern. “It’s not personal. It’s a job. That’s all. Nothing more.”
“Honey,” I leaned over and said. “This is about as personal as it gets. Jonathan and Lu Ann are getting married in three weeks. I know he loves her, but from what I’ve been told, if Deanna decides she wants him back, all she’d have to do is snap her fingers. Jonathan would come a-running.”
“She’s married.”
“Are you sure? Did you ask her?”
“No! Why would I ask her that?”
“You wouldn’t. That’s the point. You don’t know whether or not she’s still married. What if she isn’t married anymore and she’s lonely?”
“This is getting crazy. Why are we even talking about it? Jonathan’s going to help me out, and he’s not going to dump Lu Ann over a woman he doesn’t even care about anymore. What’s the big fuss?”
“I’m just saying…”
“Forget it, Jesse,” Helene said, rolling her eyes. “Guys don’t think like we do. They just don’t get it.”
“Getting back to business,” Billy said, ignoring our objections. “Sheriff Hudson said that Wynona wouldn’t be getting out of jail anytime soon, but I have my doubts. A good lawyer will find a way to get her released. It might take a couple of days considering the charges against her, but it will happen. No one actually saw her shoot Donald. All they have is his word against hers. They don’t even have the weapon used.”
“But we have it on tape. We heard the conversation and the gunshot. We know she did it. “
“Flimsy. How we got the information could be called into question. If the court tossed out the recording, there’d be no case. This could get all turned around before it’s over. No. I don’t see this going too well without the gun.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I think you know. We have to go find the gun, and we have to do it now, before Wynona gets released. I don’t want to go there if she’s home.”
“I don’t either. She’s dangerous. She might shoot us.”
“You’ll need to put on some long pants and your boots if we’re going to trek through the woods.”
“Are we leaving now?”
Helene sat back, folded hers hands, and just smiled. She knew what was coming next. Billy and I would rush out the door, into another adventure. There would be another tale to be heard later.
“I’ll just watch the kids and sit by the phone,” she said. “I can’t wait to see how this turns out.” She looked at me and asked, “Should I call your mother?”
“Not now.”
Billy and I got up and headed to the bedroom. We changed clothes, collected our gear, and left Helene standing at the front door, waving.
This was our routine, I thought to myself. We were always running somewhere, or chasing after someone. Who has time for another baby? Now where did that negative thought come from? It’s strange how things pop up in your head when you’re out, getting into other people’s business.
Here we were… again. On our way to Donald and Wynona’s house. Driving the same car. In the dark. Late at night. To find… what? A gun—or an angry, killer woman?
“You’re thinking too hard,” Billy said as we passed their house. “I know. I passed their house. I wanted to see if anyone was there.”
“Déjà vu. I feel as if I’ve been in this bad dream before.”
“You have, my dear.”
“And all I have now is this vest with a bullet casing still lodged in it. What good is that?”
“It is not. That is why you are going to wait in the car.”
“Then why did you make me wear this vest?”
“You ask too many questions, `ge ya.”
“Okay. I’m starting to worry. You’re talking funny again. You got that Indian thing going on. What’s the matter? What’s the deal?”
Billy turned the 4Runner around and headed back to the Rhodes’ house.
“There is nothing wrong. It is going to be a breeze. We will find the gun, and then we will be out of there.
”
“Right. When you stop using contractions in your sentences, I know you have something on your mind. You don’t think we’ll run into Bruno, do you?”
“He will not show up. He thinks his secret is safe.”
“He doesn’t know you. Nothing or nobody can hide from you for long. You’re as relentless as a blood hound.”
“That’s my job! Woof! Woof!”
I laughed at his silliness, but my insides were shaking like one of those wobbly headed dolls. Would this simple task turn out to be not so simple? I crossed my fingers.
Chapter 16
Much to my surprise, everything went as planned. There was no one home at the Rhodes’ house, and when Billy walked out of the woods holding the gun, I was shocked. Never, in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that we’d actually find the gun exactly where we thought it would be. I figured Billy would come out empty-handed.
“You had your doubts, didn’t you?” Billy asked, crawling into the car. “You didn’t think we’d find it.”
“I must say that I am surprised, but when you rationalize it, what better place to get rid of a gun and still have access to it? He probably panicked when he thought the police were coming, so he just flung it into the woods. That’s what I would’ve done.”
“We need to take this gun to Deanna. She can run a ballistics test on it in no time at all. We should know something in a couple of days.”
“A couple of days? It doesn’t take that long on those TV shows. They get the job done in an hour.” I laughed. “Billy, it’s past eleven. It’s a little late to be dropping in on someone. Can’t it wait until morning? It’s been this long. What difference will another day make?”
He looked at the clock on the dashboard and said, “I didn’t realize it was that late. We will wait until the morning.” He kept looking around.
“What is it? You act like a thief in a department store. What are you looking for?”
“Just keeping my eyes open.”
“Open for what? Who do you expect to see?”
“I was expecting to see a Greene County deputy cruising by. Sheriff Hudson said he had some men watching the place.”