by Ann Mullen
It’s nice to be able to joke around with my husband. Billy and I have the best kind of relationship. He’s older, and I’m wiser. I told him so.
“I’m so glad you’re the ring leader in this partnership. It makes me feel good to know I’m married to such a smart woman.”
“Shouldn’t we stop and get some flowers for Savannah?” I asked. “Her husband did die.”
“Lila already sent an arrangement from us.”
“See… aren’t you glad you’re going to buy her a new car? She thinks of everything.”
“I’m the one who told her to send the flowers.”
“You haven’t brought me flowers in a long time.”
“You always said it was a waste of money.”
“I changed my mind.”
“I can see why.”
We laughed at our silliness all the way to Stanardsville. The laughter stopped when we pulled up to Savannah’s house. Her gate was closed and locked, and there wasn’t a car in sight.
“She’s not home,” Billy said. “Didn’t you call her?”
“Of course, I did, but I didn’t get an answer. I figured she had her phone turned off. She does that when she writes. Pull up and press the call button. Maybe her car’s in the garage. If she’s not home it’s no big deal. We were going to visit Mom anyway, so it wasn’t a wasted trip.”
“That’s true.” Billy pulled the truck up to the gate and hit the buzzer. “I don’t know how she can write after everything she’s been through. I wouldn’t be able to concentrate.”
“I wouldn’t either, but neither one of us are writers. They have a different mindset. Maybe that’s why they can write when the rest of us can’t.”
Billy hit the buzzer one last time. “That’s it. She’s not home.”
“Should we run by Cole’s house and see how he’s doing?”
“You think she’s there, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do, and it would be fun to catch her with him. I’d like to see how she wiggles her way out of that.”
“We’re not going to spy on her.”
“Why not? That’s what we do. Just because you believe her story, doesn’t mean we can’t follow a lead.”
“What lead?”
“Suppose they’ve been having an affair while she was married to McCoy. That’s motive.”
“Motive for what?”
“Murder. She has an affair with Cole, and then he kills her husband.”
“You don’t really believe that, do you?”
“You’re the one who always says to keep an open mind. That anything is possible. You don’t believe this could happen? Why? Because they’re our friends?”
“Minnie could be wrong.”
“My mom isn’t the type to make things up, or judge people. She saw what she saw. If she says there’s something going on between Savannah and Cole, I believe her.”
Billy hesitated for a second and then said, “Minnie’s the last person who would start a rumor. She’s too kind-hearted for that. I guess there is something to it.”
“We both know that Cole hasn’t been himself since he got shot in the head. He’s been acting wacky for a long time. And… he’s a cop. If anybody could pull off a kill, it would be him.”
“All right. I don’t believe Cole would kill anyone if it wasn’t in the line of duty, but I’m willing to keep an open mind. If we’re going to his house, we need to run into town and pick up a six pack of beer. We can’t go over there empty-handed.”
Billy turned the truck around and headed to Stanardsville. When he pulled into the IGA parking lot, we saw Savannah’s green Mustang parked among the other cars.
“I guess that shoots your theory down. She’s not at Cole’s house. She’s at the grocery store.”
“Yeah, but where’s she going when she leaves here?”
“To Cole’s house?”
“Probably. That’d be my guess.”
Billy parked the truck in the empty slot next to Savannah’s Mustang, and when we got out, I looked in her car. On the back seat lay copies of all her books. She had a talent that most people can only dream about. A twinge of jealousy struck me. I realized just how much I envied her when I saw the books.
Envy—was that my problem? Is that why I wanted to prove she wasn’t as innocent as everyone thought? I needed to revisit my emotions. There was no room for jealousy when investigating a case.
Billy purchased a twelve pack of beer, and I purchased a pack of cigarettes. If we were going to drink, we might as well smoke. He didn’t say a word about the cigarettes, and I didn’t ask him why he bought so much beer. We didn’t see Savannah in the grocery store, and when we returned to the parking lot, her car was gone. We had just missed her.
“Off we go,” Billy said as he started the truck. “We’re on our way to snoop on our friends.”
“Think of it as a job. That’s what I told Mom to do.”
“Minnie will never be able to pull it off without cracking. You know she can’t lie, and she’s not good at pretending. Savannah will see right through her.”
“Oh, she’ll keep it together. She feels betrayed by Savannah. Once she caught her messing around with Cole, that was it. The trust was gone.”
“What if she’s wrong?”
“She’s not, Billy.”
“Knowing your mother, she won’t stop until she finds out why Savannah kept her relationship with Cole a secret.”
“I don’t think she cares as much about their affair as she does about the truth behind McCoy’s death. She wants to know what really happened, and she doesn’t think she’s been told. I know her. She’ll be relentless until she gets some answers, no matter how long it takes. Trust me.”
“Your mom does have a way about her. She always gets to the truth in the end. Every time you do something wrong, she finds out. You can’t ever hide anything from her for long.”
“She doesn’t know about last night.” I giggled.
“Give her time.”
“I always felt something was off all along. From the minute Savannah called us about the dead body in her garage, her story’s been filled with nothing but inconsistencies. Who’s to say that she didn’t plan the whole thing, right down to McCoy’s death?”
“That’s pretty farfetched. Is that what your mother thinks now?”
“That’s what I think. Why can’t you see it? Why do you have to believe everything that woman says?”
“I never said I believed all of her story. All I said was show me the evidence. Evidence speaks the truth.”
“Savannah’s going to drown in this mess, and when the truth comes out, it’s going to be nasty. She’ll be selling her books at yard sales.”
Chapter 18
We left the grocery store and headed back to Dogwood Valley. When we passed Savannah’s house there was no sign that she had returned home. We continued up the road until we reached Cole’s A-frame house. Parked out front next to his Jeep was Savannah’s Mustang.
“Ah, ha! See. I told you so.”
“You don’t know why she’s here, `ge ya. Maybe she came over to drop off some food. He did just get out of the hospital.”
“I guess you just need to see it for yourself before you believe it.”
Billy pulled up, parked next to Savannah’s car, and the two of us got out of the truck and walked up to the front door. Billy knocked instead of ringing the doorbell.
Savannah opened the door. “Billy? Jesse? What are you doing here?” She had a surprised look on her face. She glanced at the black Dodge parked outside and asked, “Did you get a new truck, Billy?”
“Yes, I did. I wrecked the other one.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. What happened?”
“Oh, it’s a long, boring story. How’s Cole doing? We stopped by to check on him.”
“Come on in. He’s doing well. He’s sitting on the back porch. I see you brought beer. Good. I could use one... or two... or three.”
“I could, too. It’s bee
n a few moons since I sat down and shared a beer with my friend, Cole.” Billy smiled. “And also with such pretty women, too. Didn’t want to leave the ladies out.”
“I picked up some fried chicken from the IGA. I was just about to fix a plate for Cole. Would y’all like some? There’s plenty.”
“None for me,” I replied, walking in the house.
“I’m good,” Billy added, coming in behind me and then walking over to the back door to the porch. He joined Cole, and I could hear the two of them exchange niceties.
Everything seemed so familiar about Cole’s place, right down to the music he was playing. Percy Sledge’s, When a Man Loves a Woman, was coming through loud and clear. It was the same song he had played when he was trying to woo me. He was hung up on the same old game plan of the past. I wondered if he used these transparent tricks on all his girlfriends. Same music, same line, same everything.
“May I get you something to drink, Jesse? Cole has some wine in the refrigerator.”
“I’ll just have a beer with the guys. Can I help you with the food?”
“No, I have everything under control.” She walked over to the kitchen and started putting food on a plate. “Why don’t you join the guys? I’ll be out in a minute.”
“I’ll wait,” I replied, watching her. “I didn’t expect you to be here.” I lied. “But now that you are, I have something I want to talk to you about.”
She grabbed a fork and the plate of food and started for the back porch. “Would you grab a napkin, Jesse?”
I grabbed a napkin and then followed her. She sat the plate of food down in front of Cole, and then sat down next to him. I handed him the napkin as Billy handed me a beer. I pulled up a chair and sat down. I opened the pack of cigarettes and offered everybody one. They declined, and I lit up. The first drag almost choked me. It had been awhile.
“Those things will kill you,” Savannah said. “I’ll get you an ashtray.” She walked back inside and returned with one. “Here, you’ll need this.”
I puffed on the cigarette even though I didn’t enjoy it. “A lot of things will kill you,” I said. “These are the least of my worries. I’m more concerned about other things than smoking a cigarette every now and then.”
It was a beautiful day. The afternoon sun bathed the landscape, highlighting the colors of summer. Flowers bloomed in flowerbeds along the tree line. It brought back fond memories of the time Cole and I spent together. Too bad he loved his job more than he did his women. For me, that had been his downfall. Savannah would soon find this out.
“You wanted to talk to me about something,” she said.
I decided not to jump right in and start accusing her of anything, so instead, I replied, “I wanted to tell you about something that happened last night, before you heard it through the grapevine.”
“They already know,” Billy interrupted. “Cole and I were just talking about it. He says we’re the talk of the town.”
I looked at Savannah, who had a smile on her face. “I think it’s so romantic,” she said. “Having a blissful interlude with your spouse in the car, after five years of marriage, says something. You’re still attracted to each other. I applaud your daring nature. I wish I could be more like that, but I’m too chicken. I’d get caught for sure.”
Billy and I looked at each other and grinned. “We did,” I replied. “That’s why y’all know about it. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have told a soul.”
“What did your mother have to say?” Savannah asked. “I bet she flipped out. She’s a fine lady and it doesn’t take much to embarrass her.”
“She doesn’t know, so I didn’t say anything.”
“You might want to,” Cole replied. “Before she hears about it at the IGA. You know gossip spreads like wildfire there.”
“Oh, no.” I hung my head. “They’re talking about us at the IGA?”
“It’s a small town.”
“We’re going to see Mom when we leave here. I’ll tell her then.”
“When’s the last time you talked with your mother?” Savannah queried. “The only reason I ask is because I was wondering if she told you what I told her about McCoy’s problem with drugs.”
“She told me,” I said, trying to sound surprised about it. “I can’t believe McCoy used drugs. I bet that was a shocker for you. When did you find out? Where did he get them? Sorry... too many questions.”
“That’s okay,” she began her explanation. “About four months ago, I started running out of pills before the end of the month, so I went to Greene Pharmacy in town and complained. The pharmacist was real nice. She showed me their automatic counter, and assured me that it was highly unlikely that I was getting shorted. She even invited me to oversee the count of my next prescription. That’s when I had to ask myself where my pills went, if the count was correct. I said something to Vera, and she swore that she hadn’t taken any of them. Then, I said something to McCoy, and he confirmed my suspicions. He said he had borrowed a few from time to time. We had a big argument about it. McCoy had a mini-stroke a few years back, and he’s not supposed to take anything without checking with his doctor first—especially the kind I take.”
“What kind do you take?” I asked, knowing full well what her drug list consisted of. “If you don’t mind my asking.”
Savannah was blunt. “This is embarrassing, but the truth is that I have a problem sleeping, and anxiety is something with which I’m quite familiar. I guess it comes with the territory.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” I said as sincere as I could. “Writers live in a different world, don’t they? They have to. How else could they come up with such great stories?”
“I guess our minds work differently than most folks.”
“I have anxiety, so I know how that can be,” I added, feeling a kinship with her that I hadn’t felt in awhile. “My doctor gave me Clonazepam for my problem. I don’t take it often, but when I need one, I’m sure glad I have them. They really help.”
“I’m also bi-polar. I take a pill for that every day, and when I get so tired I can’t stay awake, I have a pill for that, too. No wonder my husband abused drugs. He didn’t have far to go to get them.” A tear ran down her face. “I’m just sorry it took me so long to find out the truth. If I would’ve known, maybe I could’ve done something—taken away the temptation. McCoy didn’t have to die. It’s my fault. I should’ve kept my medicines under lock and key.” Her tears flowed, and for once, I actually believed her. She was broken by her husband’s death, and the worst part of all, she blamed herself. Guilt like that is impossible to overcome—no matter how many pills you take.
“My cousin, Peaches, is bi-polar,” I recalled for her. “I know… with a name like that… but she’s southern—Peaches is a perfectly acceptable name for a southern girl. She told me that the only way she has survived is by taking her medication. She said it was hard at first, getting the dosage just right and everything, but after that, life has been much better for her.”
“It’s not your fault, Savannah,” Cole interrupted. He reached over and put his hand on top of hers. “You couldn’t stop him from taking drugs. If he hadn’t gotten them from you, he would’ve gotten them from someone else.”
“One does not have that power over another,” Billy agreed. “People are going to do what they want to do. You can’t blame yourself.”
I looked down at Cole’s hand, and then everyone else did. Awkward glances circled the table.
Savannah immediately spoke up. “I can only imagine what you’re going to think when I tell you this, but it has to be said. There’ve been too many secrets already. Cole and I have been seeing each other. The feelings have been there for some time, but only recently have we decided to pursue it.”
“How recent?” I asked, flatly.
“We kissed for the first time this morning,” she replied, offended by my directness. “That’s how recent. We haven’t been carrying on an affair while I was married to McCoy. I’m not that kind of woma
n.”
“I didn’t think you were,” I said, trying to sound as if I agreed. “You have a right to a life of your own. Your husband’s gone. No one will blame you for moving on. I just think it would look better if you didn’t go public with your relationship just yet. It might raise eyebrows.”
“Why?”
“I told you,” Cole spoke up. “I’m the one who killed your husband, and now we’re together. It won’t look good.”
“I agree,” Billy added. “The cops are naturally going to be suspicious, and when the press gets wind of it, they’ll go wild.”
“They can’t hurt me any more than they already have.”
“Don’t be surprised,” I said. “They can make your life miserable, not to mention what it will do to your reputation. How do you think your fans will take it when they find out you’re seeing the man who killed your husband? They’ll assume the worst.”
“No, they won’t. They know me. I’ll tell them I didn’t want to call the cops on McCoy, but I didn’t know what else to do. And I surely didn’t expect Cole to be the responding officer. Once McCoy went after Cole with a butcher’s knife, Cole didn’t have much of a choice. He had to stop him for his own safety.”
“I’ve just never seen that side of McCoy,” I said. “If he was using drugs that would explain his behavior. No wonder he was erratic and out of control.”
“I’m not so sure he was using drugs on a regular basis,” Savannah replied. “Once I had a chance to think it over, I think he tried some at first to see how they’d affect him, and then after that, he started hoarding them to use later. For what purpose, I don’t know. I can only speculate that he was getting addicted. That’s why I asked Sheriff Hudson if they were going to do an autopsy. I told him about my suspicions that I think McCoy took a handful of pills the day he died. Why else would he freak out like that?”
“You asked the sheriff to have an autopsy performed?” I asked, surprised. “That was wise.”
“How else would we know the truth? If McCoy did take a bunch of pills that day it would explain his uncontrollable behavior. Perhaps he thought he was going to overdose and die. But he didn’t die, instead, they made him psychotic.”