by Pamela Toth
“She didn’t do it,” Brandon said. “I was with her part of the night it happened—”
Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “And that’s why you believe in her innocence?”
He shook his head. “I know her,” he said simply.
“Are you good for her bail?”
“Absolutely.” He didn’t care what it cost, he refused to let her sit in jail a minute longer than necessary.
“If you need my help, you’ve got it,” Garrett told him.
“Thanks, Granddad.” It was the first time Brandon had called him that. Garrett looked both surprised and pleased as he turned his attention back to Elizabeth.
She stared at the ground for a moment, one hand parked on her hip, and then her head snapped up. “I’ll talk to her.”
Brandon knew he had no real reason yet to feel relieved, but this woman inspired a certain degree of confidence. For now that would have to be enough.
“Thank you so much,” Emma mumbled against Brandon’s chest as he held her tight. For the umpteenth time today she blinked back tears, but at least these were from the sheer relief of being out on bail and not from her earlier despair. How did Lexine get through the day, knowing she would never be free again?
When Brandon released Emma from his embrace, she took in a deep breath of air and looked up at the sky. She’d never realized before how much in life she took for granted. If she got through this, she vowed silently, she would make some changes.
“And thank you,” Emma told the attorney Brandon and Garrett had hired on her behalf. “It’s good to be free.”
Even though they’d ducked out of the courthouse by a side door, two reporters had been waiting for Emma. They’d finally given up after the attorney refused repeatedly to answer their questions or to let Emma say a word. Before the rest of the reporters camped out front had a chance to wise up, Elizabeth had hurried the group to the parking lot, where they now stood.
Emma had seen Elizabeth Gardener on television, but she’d never imagined they’d meet, and certainly not under these circumstances. In person Elizabeth looked much more approachable than she did on TV.
“You’re not free. You’re merely out on bail,” she corrected Emma. “And despite the DNA test, you claim to be innocent.”
“It’s no claim,” Emma retorted. Here was one more person who didn’t believe her. “I’ve never been in those woods.”
Elizabeth exchanged glances with Garrett. “Either she’s a damn good liar or something else is going on here.” She swung her attention back to Emma, who was too strung out by the day’s events to summon up much outrage. At least the attorney had left the door open a crack.
“I’m going to follow my instincts,” she said with another quick glance at Garrett. “Emma, I know today has been one of the most difficult you’ve ever faced, but if you’re up to it, I’d like to get started on your defense right away.”
Emma was both emotionally and physically drained, but she couldn’t rest until she knew they’d gotten the ball rolling on her defense. “Could I just have something to eat first?” she asked timidly. She’d been given a tray while she was in custody, but the idea of food had repulsed her.
“We’ll order in a sandwich,” Elizabeth replied. She glanced at the others. “I’m taking Emma back to my office in my car. Someone can pick her up later.”
“Can’t Brandon come with us?” Emma asked. “We were together the night of the murder and I have no secrets from him.” Except one. She bit her lip. It would probably be a good idea to tell her attorney about Lexine, but she wasn’t going to do it in front of him.
“Good idea. That work for you, Mr. Harper?”
“I’m completely at your disposal,” he said fervently. His support was what Emma needed the most and she prayed he wouldn’t lose faith in her. When they’d shown him in to see her earlier, she had realized how desperately she’d been hoping he would come. Only sheer willpower had enabled her to keep her tears at bay during their brief meeting.
Elizabeth drove Emma while Brandon followed. “Whatever you tell me had better be the truth. I don’t like surprises,” Elizabeth said as she turned into the alley behind an elegant redbrick building a few blocks from the courthouse and parked in a space marked with her last name. “And I don’t like going to trial with my hands tied, so I’ll want to know everything, even the details you think are irrelevant. I’ll decide what’s significant and what isn’t.”
“I understand,” Emma replied. After they got out of Elizabeth’s car, a sporty red coupe with fancy chrome wheels and leather interior, Brandon joined them and grasped Emma’s hand. They both followed the older woman through the carved double doors of the building.
In the lobby, the glow from a crystal-and-brass chandelier that hung from the high ceiling was reflected in the satin finish of the dark wood walls. The floor was intricately pieced parquet. Their footsteps echoed when they crossed it.
Elizabeth led the way down the hall carpeted in charcoal. Her name in plain gold letters was on the door to her office, next to a long window of beveled glass.
“This is my assistant, Stella Jones,” Elizabeth said when they’d gone inside.
An attractive woman with a cloud of curly black hair and deeply tanned skin looked up from her computer terminal and smiled. Gold hoops danced at her ears. As Elizabeth introduced them in turn, Emma and Brandon shook her hand, adorned with a ring on each finger and long dark red nails.
“Let me a have a ‘new client’ form and we’ll need sandwiches and coffee right away,” Elizabeth told her. “Call Corwin in the D.A.’s office. I want whatever he’s got on the Christina Montgomery murder case. Send Jody over.” Stella was writing quickly. “Corwin will be pouting, since I beat down his bail denial, but just ignore him. He owes me a favor.” Elizabeth finally took a breath. “Any messages?”
“Nothing urgent. They’re on your voice mail.” Stella handed her some papers. “Turkey sandwiches okay?” she asked them all.
To Emma that sounded heavenly. She felt hollow and shaky.
“I’ll bring coffee in a minute.” Stella reached for the phone.
“Best assistant I ever had,” Elizabeth said as she led the way past a room lined with legal tomes. “I stole her away from my late husband.”
“Was he an attorney, too?” Emma asked.
Elizabeth glanced over her shoulder. “The best.”
They entered her office, carpeted in the same thick charcoal as the hallway. The chairs she indicated were covered in a teal-and-burgundy plaid and her desk was an elegant antique in some exotic wood that Emma didn’t recognize. The wall behind Elizabeth’s leather chair was covered with awards and certificates. Beneath the window was a low bookcase, on the other wall a sideboard in the same wood as the desk. Over it was a grouping of framed aerial photos.
“Were those taken by a friend of yours?” Brandon asked while Emma studied a shot of the mountains.
Elizabeth sat down and folded her hands together. “My husband took those.”
“He was a pilot?” Emma asked.
“No, I’m the pilot. Sometimes commuting by air is the only way I can stay on schedule. Besides my practice here in Whitehorn, I teach and I also do some legal commentating for one of the networks.”
She handed Emma the blank forms. “Take these home with you and fill them out,” she said. “It’s all routine information.” She slid open a drawer and took out a legal pad, then she set up a tape recorder. “Okay, let’s get to work,” she said as she uncapped an elegant gold pen. “Give me your phone number first.”
As Emma complied, the door opened behind her. Stella brought in a silver tray that she set on the sideboard. Asking their preferences, she served the coffee in elegant china cups and then slipped from the room.
Emma sipped the strong, hot brew, as did Brandon. Elizabeth ignored the cup Stella had placed at her elbow. Instead she fixed a level gaze on Emma.
“Truth time,” she said. “Your blood was fo
und at the crime scene. How do you explain that?”
For a moment Emma simply stared, her mind a blank. “I can’t,” she said finally. “I’ve never been in the woods.”
Elizabeth’s blue eyes narrowed. “Remember what I told you. Don’t jerk me around.”
“I’m not!” Emma cried, her eyes filling with fresh tears. “It’s the truth.”
Elizabeth stared while Emma tried not to fidget. She’d racked her brain trying to figure out how her blood could have gotten anywhere near Christina, but she’d come up with nothing.
“I don’t know,” she wailed, shaking her head. “I haven’t got an explanation because there isn’t one!”
Brandon reached over to pat her hand. “It’s okay, baby. We’ll figure this out.”
Elizabeth sat back in her chair, finally picking up the delicate china cup and drinking her coffee. A tiny frown formed a pleat between her brows as she continued to study Emma over the brim.
There was a knock on the door and Stella came in again. This time the silver tray held plates of sandwiches and chips.
Once Stella had served her, Emma stared at the food and realized her appetite had fled once again.
“Is there anything else I can get you?” Stella asked.
After glancing at the others, Elizabeth thanked her and sent her away.
“Let’s take a break from this,” she said, waving her fingers over the yellow pad.
For the next few minutes they chatted as they ate. Brandon asked Elizabeth about flying. They discussed the relative merits of different planes while Emma concentrated on chewing and swallowing each bite of the sandwich that tasted like cardboard and stuck in her throat like glue. When she’d managed to down half of it, Elizabeth pounced.
“Let’s go back to the beginning. Tell me a little about your childhood and then bring me up to last August.”
Emma looked at Brandon, who smiled his encouragement, and then she recited the basic facts of her life. As soon as she mentioned being abandoned as a baby, Elizabeth leaned forward.
“You weren’t in contact with your birth mother?”
The lie nearly stuck in Emma’s throat. “No. I actually came here to find her.”
Elizabeth shoved back her chair and got to her feet. “Emma, is it possible that you had a twin?” Excitement vibrated in her voice as she leaned down and braced her hands on the desktop.
“What are you getting at?” Brandon asked. “What difference would that make?”
“Identical twins share the same DNA,” she replied.
A chill slid down Emma’s spine. Wouldn’t she know if she had a twin? Even separated, surely they’d share some kind of cosmic link. The idea that she might have a double out there and not even know it was ludicrous.
“That’s not possible!” she exclaimed.
Brandon had turned in his chair. “Sure it is, honey. It’s one explanation for this mess you’re in.”
Emma worried her lower lip with her teeth. She didn’t know the answer to Elizabeth’s question, but someone else did.
Lexine! Would she have admitted to Emma that she had a sister? Maybe not.
“What is it?” Elizabeth demanded. “Do you remember something?”
How Emma hated hurting Brandon’s feelings, especially when he’d been so supportive, so unwavering in his belief that she was innocent. “Would you mind if I talked to Elizabeth alone?” she asked reluctantly.
For a moment he looked stunned. Then a shutter dropped down over his face and he shoved back his chair. Only the bright splotches of color on his cheekbones betrayed whatever emotion he must be feeling as he stood.
“No problem. I’ll wait outside.” His gaze was averted as he headed for the door.
“I’m sorry,” Emma whispered, but he didn’t seem to hear her.
“Okay,” Elizabeth said the moment the door had closed behind him. “What’s up?”
Emma laced her fingers together and stared at them. The half sandwich she’d managed to eat sat like lead in her stomach and her nerves were stretched as tight as a bungie cord. What would her attorney think when she learned that Emma, whose innocence must appear so very unlikely, was related by blood to a woman who had killed not once, but three times?
Would she withdraw from Emma’s case?
“I’m waiting.” Elizabeth sounded exactly like a teacher quizzing a student.
Emma barely stopped herself from squirming in her chair. She took a deep breath and told the other woman about her mother.
“Wow,” Elizabeth said when she was done. “I hope the press doesn’t get hold of this.”
A wave of new anxiety crashed into Emma. “Me, too.”
“Do you think she’d tell you the truth if you asked?” Elizabeth had sat down and was scribbling notes to herself.
“I have no idea.” The admission was a difficult one for Emma to make, but she had to be realistic. The sheriff had told her that when he’d gone to visit Lexine she had tried to implicate Emma.
To divert suspicion from someone else…
Emma sat up straighter in her chair as the realization hit her. Before she could say anything, there was a soft knock on the door. Brandon?
Stella poked her head inside. “Jody brought this back from the D.A.’s office,” she said, handing a manila envelope to Elizabeth. “Corwin said to call him in the morning.”
“Thanks,” Elizabeth replied absently as Stella picked up the sandwich plates. Once the door was shut again, Elizabeth laid down the envelope and looked expectantly at Emma. “What is it?”
Emma told her about the sheriff’s visit to the prison. “He’s my half brother,” she added. “Lexine abandoned him, too.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “As a mother and a grandmother, I can’t even begin to understand what motivates that kind of woman.” She opened the envelope and pulled out a folder. “Give me a minute to look this over.”
Emma got to her feet. She was stiff from sitting for so long. “I’ll go see if Brandon is still here.”
“You haven’t told him about your connection to this woman?” Elizabeth asked.
Emma shook her head. “Two of her victims were members of his family.”
“That’s a tough one, but it’s obvious he cares about you, and he’s bound to find out. It might be easier coming from you.” When Emma didn’t reply, she shrugged. “Secrets are like infections,” she said in her characteristic blunt way. “Left untreated, they fester. Think about it. When you come back, you can bring him with you if you want,” she said. “Unless you’d rather not.” She returned her attention to the papers in front of her and Emma slipped from the room.
When she walked out to the reception area and saw that Stella was alone, her heart sank. She’d hoped he might stick around even though she’d hurt his feelings.
Stella glanced up from her terminal. “If you’re looking for Mr. Harper, he went outside to use his cell phone.”
Relief hit Emma so hard she thought her knees would buckle. She was dangerously close to emotional overload, but she needed to know that he hadn’t completely given up on her.
When she went outside, she saw him standing with his back to her and his hands jammed into the pockets of his suit pants. The sky was overcast, but the temperature was mild and Emma was warm enough in the windbreaker she had on over her shirt and pants.
She’d barely noticed before how handsome Brandon looked in his elegant gray suit, but now she did. For a moment she watched him unobserved. His jacket fit smoothly across his broad shoulders and his slacks followed the lean length of his legs. He must have sensed her presence, because he turned around with an aloof expression.
“All through?” he asked. A dozen feet separated them, but he didn’t move.
“She’s going over what she got from the district attorney. Would you like to rejoin us now?”
For a moment Emma feared he was going to make a sarcastic comment, but finally the tension went out of his shoulders and he closed the gap between them. He di
dn’t touch her, though, and she felt the loss like a cold wind.
“I’d like that,” was all he said.
“Brandon—” Frustrated, she stopped, conscious of the lack of time to explain and her own indecision. What if her news sent him back to Reno? Now more than ever she needed his support.
“What is it?” Curiosity gleamed in his blue eyes.
Emma had no choice but to bide her time. “I’m glad you’re here,” she said simply, ignoring the relief her rationalizing brought with it.
His smile, when it finally came, warmed her to her toes. “Me, too.” With her hand tucked in his, they went inside together.
Brandon followed Emma back into the office, still curious about what she hadn’t been able to discuss with her attorney in front of him. While he’d been waiting outside, he’d called Garrett to update him. When the old man asked if Brandon’s faith in Emma could possibly be misplaced, he’d damn near bit off his tongue to keep from taking his frustration out on the old man. Was it possible, as Garrett suggested, that Brandon had been listening to his libido instead of his head? Not that libido was the term Garrett had used.
No, Brandon had always gone with his gut and followed his instincts, both when it came to business and with people. That was one reason he was so successful. While the next guy was still thinking a deal through, weighing the pros and cons, Brandon had already acted on it.
Right now every instinct he had was telling him he was right to believe in Emma. Whatever he was using to do his thinking with, it insisted he stick by her.
Once he’d held out her chair and then seated himself, Elizabeth opened the folder in front of her and slid a colored photo across the desktop. “Recognize this?”
It was a picture of a gold locket. The chain was broken and part of it appeared to be tarnished.
Emma examined the photo carefully. “It’s pretty ordinary, but I don’t remember it. Whose is it?”
“The police think the killer might have dropped it. They found it near the body, but her brother didn’t recognize it and the blood on the chain isn’t Christina’s.”