“Have you told Skeeter?” he asked.
“No, not yet.”
“Why do I sense hesitation?”
Why indeed. “Because I’m supposed to be neutral. Which means I can’t be running to James with every little problem. Besides, can you imagine how he’ll react? He’s likely to drive to Denny Carmichael’s front door and murder him.”
“Would you tell Dermot if he were in charge?” Jed countered. “Or would you keep it to yourself?”
“That’s a very good question,” I admitted, not sure I had the answer. “I suppose it would depend on whether I saw the situation as a threat to the county.”
He was silent for a moment, then said, “I think the thing you should be askin’ yourself right now is why you aren’t tellin’ your boyfriend. I’d be pissed as hell if Neely Kate didn’t tell me.”
“Because we’re not like you and Neely Kate, Jed. He’s not my boyfriend. This is just a fling.”
“You’re both fooling yourselves if you believe that, and frankly, it’s gonna get one or the both of you killed. I love Skeeter like a brother—a controlling, self-centered brother—but I love him nonetheless. But you…” He paused. “You’re not meant to be part of this world, Rose. You got dragged into it completely against your will, and thanks to Skeeter’s selfishness, you got stuck in it.”
“That’s not entirely true,” I protested. “I agreed to help him to save Mason.”
“And then you got pulled back in this summer to save Skeeter.”
My brow furrowed as I considered his statement. “I admit I did it to help him, but there was also a greater purpose, and you know it. And when I took Marshall in last month, I didn’t do that for James. I did it because he was a scared, wounded kid, and it was the right thing to do. I hid it from James.”
“And you gained the respect of a lot of men and women by helping that kid. More than you likely realize.”
“Bruce Wayne alluded to that afterward.”
“But you need to realize the ones who respect you are the sheep. The underlings. They may see you as their salvation if they need help, but they sure as hell won’t take the initiative to help you if you’re the one in trouble. If their boss tells them to pick up a gun and drag you away by force, by damn they’re gonna do it.”
I suspected he had a point.
“I’m probably breaking a confidence with Skeeter, but I love you like you were my sister, Rose.”
“You’re scarin’ me, Jed.”
He chuckled. “By saying I love you like my sister? A few people would agree.” He turned serious. “Something’s goin’ on with Skeeter. He’s distracted and now is not the time to be distracted.”
My breath caught. “Is it because of our relationship?”
“The truth? I suspect that’s part of it, but there’s something goin’ on in his organization too. Reacher let it slip that one of Skeeter’s men did something that sent Skeeter into a rage, and they’re lookin’ for a replacement for the guy.”
“Traitors?” I asked.
“I don’t know, but it’s got Skeeter on edge.”
“Is that why he’s goin’ to Little Rock on Thursday?”
“He’s goin’ to Little Rock?”
“He told me yesterday mornin’ that he couldn’t meet with me on Thursday because of it.”
“I have no idea why he’s goin’ up there. It’s not to see Kate.”
That caught me by surprise. “Has he been up there to see her before?”
He paused for several seconds. “He wanted information from her, but she’s long gone, so that can’t be his reason. Still, it must be damn important if he’s leavin’ now.”
One more thing to worry about.
“You’re a good influence on him, Rose. You soothe something in his soul, but I’m scared for you, both as Lady and as Skeeter’s girlfriend.”
“Maybe it’s not fair of me to ask, but if you knew I’d listen to anything you said, what would you tell me to do?”
“Honestly, Rose, at this point, I don’t know—and that scares the hell out of me.” He paused a beat. “And I know it’s definitely on Skeeter’s mind.”
“I know.” What was I going to do about the people I cared about who might get caught in the crossfire? “My sister and her kids are movin’ out to the farm tomorrow.”
“Neely Kate told me. You’re worried about protecting them?”
“And protecting Neely Kate too. I want her to move in with you for a bit. We both know she needs more protection than my farm provides, and frankly,” I said with a hint of levity, “I need her bed to sleep in if Carly is stayin’.
“Who’s gonna protect you and the rest of the people in your house if we leave?” he asked.
Who indeed? Who would be enough of a threat to scare off anyone from coming to the farm in the first place. Then it hit me. “Maybe I’ll tell Joe about Denny and see if he’ll stay with us for a bit.”
“You really want to involve the sheriff’s office in this?”
“Just because I tell Joe doesn’t mean the sheriff’s office is involved.” But I wasn’t sure that was a good idea either. I’d be putting Joe in an awkward situation. Again.
He was silent for a moment. “I don’t like it, but it could work.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I can explain Joe’s presence by sayin’ I need his help with Violet, first because Mike might show up and pitch a fit, and then later when she’s… when she’s really sick.”
“Neely Kate’s gonna want to be there for you,” he said softly. “You know that.”
“And she can be. She just needs to stay with you for a bit first.”
“Don’t you think that’s her decision?” he asked.
“She wants to stay with you,” I said with a lump in my throat. “She just needs to know I’ll be okay.”
“Yeah,” he admitted. “I suspect you’re right.”
“Besides, we’ve already had a conversation about her stayin’ with you, so this won’t come out of nowhere. She just needs a little push, and if Joe agrees to stay with us, she’ll know we’re okay.”
“Are you sure you want to ask Simmons?” he asked. “Especially with your history?”
“We’ve been gettin’ along lately, and he likes Violet and adores her kids. I think it’s the perfect solution. Denny Carmichael might think twice about showing up at my house if he thinks the chief deputy sheriff will answer the door.”
“If Simmons agrees.”
I considered his statement, realizing how presumptuous I was being, yet I couldn’t imagine a scenario in which he turned me down. Even with Dena in the picture. The thought of messing up his new relationship filled me with guilt. Unfortunately, I was getting far too used to the feeling. “I think he will. For Ashley and Mikey alone.”
“Okay. But for now, I’m going to send Witt over to sit with you until I can head out to the farm. I’ve been workin’ on Carly’s car, tryin’ to get it done sooner rather than later after her story made the news.”
“Witt’s not helpin’?”
“I seem to have it covered, and he’s hoverin’ like a mother hen. You’d be doin me a favor by gettin’ him out of my hair.”
I chuckled. “Anything I can do to help.”
“Seriously though, Rose, I’m glad you’re okay.”
I turned somber. “Yeah, me too.”
Witt showed up about twenty minutes later, wearing an ear-to-ear grin. He camped out at Bruce Wayne’s desk, goofing off on his phone until Neely Kate and Carly showed up about a half hour later.
His eyes bugged out and his mouth dropped open when they walked through the door, not that I could blame him. I was taken by surprise myself. While Carly’s hair was the same color, she looked completely different. Beulah had layered it and cut it a little past her shoulders. It hung in loose waves and long bangs lay across her forehead.
“Wow!” Witt said, still gaping at her.
Carly blushed.
“Shut your mouth, Witt,” Ne
ely Kate snapped. “What are ya doin’ here anyway? Shouldn’t you be workin’ on Carly’s car?”
He shot me a quick glance. “Jed’s got it covered, and I was bored, so I came over to hang out with Rose.”
Neely Kate turned to me, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. When I didn’t say anything, she said, “Witt, can you and Carly go down to the coffee shop and get me a drink?”
“I’m not here as your gofer, Neely Kate,” he grumbled.
“She’s tryin’ to get some privacy,” Carly said. “And that’s her subtle way of telling us to get out.”
“Oh.” He stared up at Carly and grinned. “I’ll be happy to get you coffee.”
“That’s not what I asked you to do,” Neely Kate grumbled.
Witt was busy ignoring her as he walked over to Carly. “If I buy you coffee, can we call it a date?”
“No!” Neely Kate shouted. “On second thought, Carly, you need to stay here and my cousin needs to be on his way.”
“No can do, coz,” Witt said. “I’ve got my orders.”
We all knew those orders didn’t involve coffee.
“You can talk about whatever it is in front of me,” Carly said. “I won’t tell anyone.”
While I had no doubt that was true, I was worried about scaring her away. Then again, if she was living with us, she had a right to know the possible danger she might be in.
“Okay,” I said with a firm nod. “Have a seat.”
Neely Kate looked less certain about my decision, but she gestured for Carly to sit at the client table in the back part of the office. I joined them, and Witt returned to Bruce Wayne’s desk.
I decided there was no easing into this conversation, so I might as well jump right in. “I met with Denny Carmichael this afternoon out on his property.”
“You did what?” Neely Kate practically screeched.
“He sent an associate to persuade me to come meet him. After I looked at the possible outcome, I decided it was worth the risk.”
The understanding in Neely Kate’s eyes let me know she’d gotten the hint about my vision. “And he just drove you there?” she asked.
“He claimed the location of Denny’s property wasn’t a secret so there was no reason to hide it. Once we got there, Denny came out to meet me. He was amused at first, but he finally got down to business and demanded that I tell him who confessed to killing Sarah.”
Neely Kate’s eyes widened. “Why in Hades would he care who killed her?”
“He thinks her murder is tied to Emmitt Lincoln somehow. He says Emmitt had a lot of his money and he wants it back.”
“Do you think Sarah somehow came across his money?”
I made a face. “Sounds like maybe she did, although I doubt Karen has it. How did Denny know someone had confessed to hurting Sarah, anyway? Randy acted like they were keepin’ that tight-lipped.”
“Maybe he has a mole in the sheriff’s department. We both know Skeeter did. And besides, it’s not exactly a secret if Dena’s tellin’ everyone.”
“True.” But it still bugged me. Especially since Marsha might not know what was going on. I understood why we needed to keep it from her, but it still felt wrong.
“Something about this whole case feels off,” I said. “If Karen killed Sarah, what happened to Emmitt Lincoln?”
“Maybe he ran off with the money.”
“Hmm…” It struck me that we knew next to nothing about Emmitt, and yet his name kept cropping up. “Feel like takin’ a drive back down to Sugar Branch?”
“We already handed the case off to Joe,” Neely Kate protested. “If Karen didn’t kill her, Joe will find out who did.”
We’d just taken opposite sides of this conversation only hours before, so her response surprised me. “But we don’t know what happened to Emmitt Lincoln.”
“We purposely stayed away from him for fear of pissing off Denny Carmichael.”
“And now we have Denny Carmichael’s blessin’,” I countered.
“You know,” Witt said from across the room, his feet propped up on the desk and his hands neatly folded over his stomach, “If Carmichael finds out you’re sniffin’ around askin’ questions about Lincoln, he’s gonna expect you to hand over a wad of money. Otherwise, he’ll presume you turned him down so you could find the money for Skeeter Malcolm.”
Neely Kate frowned. “He’s right.”
I groaned. He was right, but I hated to give up when the case still felt so unresolved. “Let’s think about it tonight and revisit it in the mornin’. If we both agree, then we’ll look into Emmitt. Maybe we can talk to his mother. It would be helpful if we knew what Emmitt was doin’ the Friday night before Sarah’s disappearance.”
“You think his mother will know?” Neely Kate asked. “I thought she’d given up on him.”
“Maybe so, but she’s likely to know who he hung out with or at least the name of a friend or two. Then we’ll have some leads to follow.”
Neely Kate didn’t look convinced. “You’re supposed to be movin’ Violet into the farmhouse tomorrow.” She pushed out a breath. “But maybe we can check into it on Thursday.”
It was the best we could do for now.
“I’m starvin’,” Witt said as he leaned back in his chair, patting his belly. “Since the only pay I get for hangin’ out with y’all is food, I say we head to the farm and y’all feed me.”
Neely Kate shot him a dark look. “Is food the only thing you think about?”
He grinned and winked. “I think about other things too.”
“Gross,” she said with a shudder, then pointed a glittery, pink-tipped finger at him. “Stay away from Carly.”
He laughed, but Carly shot him a look that suggested he should listen to her cousin.
The last thing the poor woman needed right now was to have a man hitting on her. “You mind yourself, Witt Rivers,” I admonished. “Or I’ll kick you to the curb, whether we need protection or not.”
If either part of my statement bothered Carly, she didn’t let on.
“It’s nearly five,” I said. “I have to be somewhere at eight. I say we go home and make dinner, and I’ll spend some time with Muffy before I go.”
“You’re not gonna take her with you?” Neely Kate asked in surprise.
“Not tonight.” I wasn’t sure why, but things felt off, and it seemed safer to leave her at the farm.
Worry filled Neely Kate’s eyes. “Is Skeeter upset that you went to see Denny Carmichael?”
“He doesn’t know, but don’t worry. I’ll handle it.”
“Okay…” Clearly I hadn’t reassured her at all. If anything, she looked more worried than ever.
Maybe she had a point.
Chapter 28
We hadn’t been home long before Joe called me. I’d already sent him a text, telling him I needed to talk to him about something serious.
“We’ve brought Karen Peasly in for questionin’,” Joe said as I walked out the front door and sat on the porch. Muffy followed behind with a worn tennis ball in her mouth. “She hasn’t confessed to anything yet, but she’s not callin’ for her lawyer either, so there’s still hope.”
“That’s good, I guess,” I said, taking the tennis ball from Muffy and throwing it into the yard.
She scampered after it, her tail wagging.
“I take it that’s not why you needed to talk to me,” he said.
I considered telling him we should discuss this in person, but it struck me that it might be better for us to have some distance between us when we had this conversation.
“I have a request, but I need to tell you something first.”
“I can’t break any rules for you, Rose. I’m skatin’ on thin ice over the last weekend with Kate.”
“Oh. It’s nothin’ like that. It’s personal.”
He took a moment before he said, “Okay.”
“Vi and the kids are movin’ out to the farm tomorrow.”
“You need me to help move them in?” he a
sked. “I have a meetin’ with Deveraux first thing in the morning, but I can probably get away by ten.”
“No, actually…” I said. “That’s not it either. Violet says she doesn’t have much to move, and we can fit it all into the back of my truck.” I paused. “I’m callin’ about a request for after she moves in.”
“Okay…” He sounded confused, not that I blamed him.
I needed to jump right into this, no tiptoeing. “We both know that over the past few months, I’ve had a presence in the criminal world.”
He remained silent.
“I present myself as completely neutral, but there are some entities that don’t appreciate my meddling.”
“Go on,” he nudged in a nonjudgmental tone.
“The latest instance is possibly dangerous, and I’m worried about Violet and the kids’ safety. I’m sure we’ll all be fine, but in case trouble shows up at my front door, I’m not sure I can protect them on my own.”
He hesitated before he said, “I thought Carlisle was stayin’ out there with Neely Kate.”
“He has been,” I said. “But if Hardshaw is still lookin’ for Neely Kate, this is the worst possible place for her to stay. She’d be much safer with Jed at his new house.”
“Leavin’ you alone on the farm with your dyin’ sister and her two little kids.”
And our mystery guest, but one issue at a time. “Yeah.”
“Who’d you piss off?”
“I wouldn’t say I pissed him off. He’s merely intrigued. He hinted that he’ll be in touch in the future when he wishes to seek out my services.”
“And what services might those be?” Joe asked in a tight voice.
“If you’re thinkin’ sexual services, then you don’t know me at all, Joe Simmons,” I snapped.
“I never said anything of the sort,” he argued. “But I have no idea what you do for those criminals.”
“Do you really want to know, Joe?” I asked.
He paused for several seconds, then said, “No. I don’t think I do.”
My mouth dropped open in shock.
“Not the answer you expected, huh?” he asked.
Up Shute Creek: Rose Gardner Investigation #4 Page 30