I’d just started on the second leg—thankful that stingy Homer hadn’t used much tape—when the door opened.
“I can’t stomach liars,” Homer said in an angry voice. “I’m gonna make you pay for wasting my time. Just like Rayna.” But from his voice and his footfalls, he was still standing close to the door.
I crawled over to Neely Kate and helped free her hand from the tape, then put the can in her hand with the nozzle positioned so that she could use it. She kept her hands behind her back, pretending she was still tied up, as I crawled along the wall to the edge of the screen. Homer had left our guns and Tasers on our desks. If I could just get to one, I could try to even the playing field.
“Are you scared yet, Neely Kate?” Homer asked in a menacing voice, and I realized he was playing with us. I heard several heavy footfalls. “You should—” I heard a grunt and then a hard thud. A tube of lipstick shot across the floor, rolling toward the back door.
After several seconds of silence, I crawled around the screen. There was no sign of Homer. Had Jed shown up?
Neely Kate’s desk was only eight feet away, so I got to my feet in a crouch, set my sights on Neely Kate’s gun on her desk, and ran for it, shocked beyond belief when I managed to grab it. I stood, glancing around for any sight of Homer.
Then I found him—on the floor in front of Neely Kate’s desk, flat on his back. His gun lay several feet from his outstretched hand.
What on earth?
“He’s out cold, Neely Kate,” I said as I held the gun on him and walked around to pick up his weapon.
“What happened?”
I spotted another tube of lipstick and grinned. “I think your lipstick took him out.”
“What?”
“I think he stepped on that one tube, lost his balance, and then fell backward and hit his head.”
“See?” she said with a tiny gloat. “Wearin’ lipstick saved our lives. Maybe we should become spies instead of PIs.”
I laughed even though I was shaking from nerves. “One thing at a time.” I opened my top desk drawer and grabbed a pair of scissors. Then I pushed the screen out of the way so I could keep an eye on Homer while I cut Neely Kate’s legs free.
“How much time do we have?” she asked.
I glanced over at the clock on the wall. “Less than an hour.”
I cut the last piece of tape and stood. “We have to take care of Homer.”
“Good idea,” she said, grabbing his roll of duct tape and strutting toward him. She rolled him over with her strappy sandal and then knelt beside him and started to wrap the tape around his wrists.
He released a moan.
“He’s comin’ to,” I said. “We have to work fast.”
“No we don’t.” She stood and grabbed her Taser off her desk before heading back toward Homer and squatting in front of him. “Hey, you boot-lickin’, no-good, murderin’ piece of slime. This is for killing Rayna . . . and for possibly ruining my new capris with duct tape.” Then she zapped him with her Taser.
He flopped around before falling limp. We had his arms bound behind his back with his duct tape, and it only took another minute for us to get his lower legs bound together. Thankfully, he was still unconscious, but we had another issue.
“We can’t just leave him here bound,” I said. “What if someone sees him and tries to play Good Samaritan?”
“Good point. Let’s drag him behind the screen.”
We both grabbed his feet and dragged him across the floor, bumping his head into the corner of Neely Kate’s desk.
“Oops,” she said with too much glee to sound truly apologetic.
When we got him out of sight, I moved to my desk and began putting all my belongings back inside. “We need a plan. We have to figure out a way to stop this.”
“I’ve been thinkin’,” Neely Kate said. “We didn’t get a chance to finish questioning Miss Mable earlier because of that sorry excuse of a dog, but I think we were on the right track. I’m pretty doggone sure Rayna didn’t keep the necklace, which means Miss Mable really did take it with her. The jewelry was loose in her drawer, which means she saw all the pieces. It was her momma’s, so she must have realized it didn’t belong.”
I turned back to look at her. “Raddy said he broke in a day later and it wasn’t there. And if Newton and Mable were right about when Leah went over, it was days after that.” My eyes widened. “Which means Miss Mable was the last person to see it.” I gestured to the back. “But what about Homer? Why’s he lookin’ for it?”
“Not because he saw it, but because he heard about it from everyone else,” she said, getting excited. “You know how I told you that Homer kept his business away from his wife? What if she does the same with him? He’s taken a nosedive off the deep end with his off-the-grid stuff, and he made Miss Mable stop goin’ to church and her quilting group. What if she saw that necklace and figured it was her ticket to freedom?” Her eyes lit up. “That would explain why she got so upset when she asked if someone killed Raddy for the necklace! He couldn’t find it and it got him killed!”
She was onto something. “I think you’re right.”
“We have to go back out to the Dyer farm,” she said. “We have to get that necklace from her.”
I glanced back at the clock on the wall. 7:35. All of our shenanigans had taken more time than I’d thought. “There’s not enough time for us to go back out to the Dyer farm and make it to the meetin’ on time.” I steeled my back and tried to look forceful. “You have to get the necklace and bring it to the Trading Post. I’ll stall.”
“Have you gone crazy?” Neely Kate demanded. “Did that tape cut off circulation to your head? You’re not going in there alone.”
“No. I’m not.” I grabbed my phone and placed a call. “Jed,” I said when he answered. “We think we know who has the necklace, but there’s not enough time for us to get it and make the meeting. I need someone to go with Neely Kate to help coerce the woman who has it into handin’ it over, but I need someone else to go with to the meetin’ with Buck and Kip.”
“You’re not goin’ to that damned meeting.”
“Jed!”
“No. Listen to me,” he said, sounding calmer. “I have an idea. You and I both know how important appearances are in this game. Buck called you, so you call him back and tell him that if he wants the necklace, he’ll meet you at nine at Putnam Industrial Park. Space 239. Tell him to bring Wagner and two additional men of their choosing. No more, or the deal’s off and he won’t get the necklace. Tell him we’re invoking the rules of parley.”
“Parley? Isn’t that for pirates?”
“We have a damn code too,” he grumped.
“Okay.” Touchy.
“But don’t call him until eight on the nose,” Jed continued. “We need to buy some time, and it will give you the upper hand to flout their own rule.”
“You do know that he’s gonna think James had it all along. He’s already pretty sure of it.”
“Good. Let him. I’ll swing by the office to pick up Neely Kate, and we’ll get the necklace. Go home to change into something befitting the Lady in Black. Skeeter will pick you up at the farm at eight. Can you be ready?”
“I’m at the office, but I think I can make it.”
“We’ll meet you at the industrial park.”
“Jed, there’s one more thing . . . Homer Dyer’s taped up in our office.”
“What’s he doin’ in your office again?”
“He held us hostage lookin’ for the necklace. Neely Kate sent him on a wild goose chase. Long story short, when he came back, we got the upper hand and he’s now tied up in the back. We found out he was the one who killed Rayna.”
“Did he hurt either of you?”
My cheek was still sore, but his open hand was better than a fist. “I’ll let Neely Kate fill you in. Are you gonna have someone deal with Homer?”
“We’ll leave him tied up in your office and deal with him after the meeting. He d
eserves a fittin’ punishment.”
“No. He murdered Rayna. When this is all done, we’ll call Joe and have him arrest Homer.”
“Fine, if that’s the way you want to play it. Now get moving.”
Jed hung up, and I filled Neely Kate in on the plan.
“Go,” she said, giving me a small shove. “You need to get goin’. I’ll be fine until Jed gets here. I’d love for Homer Dyer to give me a reason to shoot him.”
I gave her a stern look. “Do not shoot Homer Dyer.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m just blowin’ smoke. I’d be stuck cleaning up his mess. Again.”
I wasn’t so sure about that, but I pulled her into a quick hug. “Be careful and good luck.”
“You too.”
I was pretty sure we were gonna need all the luck we could get.
Chapter 29
James was waiting on my front porch when I pulled up. He didn’t seem all that surprised to see me in Jonah’s car; but then, I was sure they’d figured it out by now.
“Lady,” he said in a low tone as I walked up the steps. The tension in his voice clued me in on his mood.
“I know you’re probably ticked at me right now, but—”
He stood and moved closer. “This is a fool’s errand, and it’s puttin’ you in even more danger than before.”
“But if I can stop a war—”
“It’s not your damn concern, Rose.”
“But it is!” I said, grabbing handfuls of his shirt and pulling him closer. “You’re my friend and I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you, James. My heart couldn’t bear it. So whether we’re just friends or we’re more, I’m not gonna stand by and watch you get embroiled in another war if there’s any way I can put a stop to it. Got it?”
He just watched me with that intent gaze of his.
“And as a citizen of this county, if I have an opportunity to keep peace and prevent more bloodshed, I’m gonna do it too.” I clenched his T-shirt tighter in my hands and pulled his chest to mine. “Are there any more arguments?”
“If you go to this meeting as the Lady in Black,” he said, his voice low, “you’ll be stuck in this world. There will be little chance of getting out. You’ll always be in danger.”
“Then I’m stuck in it. My goal is to make sure no one’s in danger when this meeting is done.”
His hand slid behind my back, the warmth of him searing through my shirt, and suddenly he was holding me against his chest. “You know that’s next to impossible?”
“I have to try. I’ll always regret it if I don’t.”
“You’re so different than me,” he said, searching my face. “You’re doing this for absolutely no personal gain whatsoever.”
I gave him a tiny smile. “Don’t be so certain of that.” I released my hold on his shirt. “Jed told me to dress as Lady, so I need to get ready.”
His arm dropped, and he took my keys and unlocked the door. “It’s eight. You should make that call now.”
I nodded, my mouth going dry. I pulled out my phone and pulled up the number Buck had called from.
“You remember the location?” James asked. “Putnam Industrial Park, space 239, at nine o’clock. Tell him the rules of parley will last an hour, starting at nine.”
“What are the rules?”
“We agree to no bloodshed during that time. No weapons in the meeting. We check them at the door.”
“Can you trust him to follow it?”
“I guess we’ll find out. Make the call.”
I swallowed and hit the call button. When it started ringing, I put it on speaker so James could hear.
“Rose Gardner,” Buck said in a sneer. “You’re late.”
“I’m not coming.” I paused to let that sink in. “But I have your necklace. If you want it, you’ll come to me to get it.”
“Is your boyfriend goin’ to be there?”
I shot a glance at James’ poker face before looking away. “Skeeter Malcolm will be there, along with his associate Jed Carlisle. They invoke parley.”
“You’re shittin’ me.”
“If you want the necklace, you’ll agree to the terms.”
He paused for so long I was sure he’d hung up. “Okay,” he finally said with a chuckle. “Why the hell not. When and where?”
James had told me to tell him, but memories of my run-ins with J.R. Simmons came to mind. Whenever we’d given him a chance to plan ahead, he’d taken the upper hand. “For an hour, starting at nine. I’ll text you the location at 8:45. It will be on the west side of town. We expect you and Kip Wagner. The both of you or no deal. You may bring two additional men.”
“No way. How do I know we’re not walkin’ into an ambush?”
“I give you my word that you’ll walk away without a scratch as long as you abide by the rules.”
“Your word.” He chuckled. “What authority do you have to give your word?”
James’ gaze held mine. This was his warning, but it couldn’t be helped. I’d known it would come to this. I’d stepped through this door last year, and there was no turning back. Maybe I could use this position for good. “As the Lady in Black.”
He was silent for a moment, but he wasn’t laughing when he said, “Well, I’ll be damned. I was right.”
“Do you agree to the terms?”
“Hell, yeah. I’ll agree if I get to meet with you, Lady, but at the first sign of trouble, the deal’s off.”
“Agreed.”
When I hung up, the worry in James’ eyes caught me by surprise.
“What?” I asked.
“He’s a little too eager to meet you. I’ll have extra men set up.”
“Not where we meet you won’t. You get two men too. You’ll follow the rules just like we expect them to. I’m gonna need about twenty minutes to get ready. Can we spare it?”
He gave a quick nod and looked away, but damned if I knew what he was thinking.
Once upstairs, I turned on the shower and stripped as the water heated up. I piled my hair on top of my head and took a quick shower. When I got out, the room was steamy, so I left the bathroom door open when I slipped into the room to grab a black lace push-up bra to give me more cleavage in my lower-cut Lady in Black dresses and a pair of black lace panties out of my dresser. I put them on in the bathroom while I waited for the mirror to defog.
I couldn’t ignore the butterflies in my stomach—it was part nerves, but if I was being honest with myself, it was part excitement too. I’d missed Lady, and I wasn’t sure that was such a good thing.
The mirror had defogged enough that I put my hair up in a French twist before I started on my makeup. I’d always worn the veil before, so I’d never given much attention to my eye makeup, but since I planned to wear my trademark black and it was night, I went with a darker, more dramatic look. If Buck Reynolds was eager to meet the Lady in Black, I might as well make it worth his while.
When I finished, I stepped out of the bathroom to figure out which dress to wear when I heard the door creak open.
“Lady, it’s time to—” His words cut off.
I whipped around, resisting the sudden urge to cover myself. Neely Kate and I rarely closed our doors, and I hadn’t expected James to come upstairs, so I’d left the door only partially closed. But now he was standing in my doorway, staring at my half-naked body, and I wasn’t sure what to say. With him looking at me like that, his eyes dark with lust, I wasn’t so sure I could say anything.
From his silence, neither could he.
“We need to go,” he finally said.
“I was just picking out my dress. It’s been a while,” I said, turning back to the closet, pretending like I was used to men seeing me in my underwear.
He walked up behind me. “Do you feel too out of practice? We can call the whole thing off.”
“No,” I said, sliding the hangers across the rod. My Lady in Black dresses were in the back now. “I just need to figure out which one to wear. I feel like it n
eeds to be just right since this will be the first time I’ve done this without a veil.”
His hands found my hips, and I was achingly aware he stood mere inches behind me. “This scares the shit out of me. I can still contain this. I don’t want you to risk yourself.”
I glanced over my shoulder at him. “You mean kill Buck?”
He didn’t respond.
“No. No more killing. I’m committed to seeing this through. If you know me at all, you know that once I commit to something, I don’t just throw in the towel because it’s suddenly inconvenient.”
“This isn’t some minor inconvenience, Rose. This is your life. It will never be the same.”
I turned around to face him. “Maybe I don’t want it to be. Maybe that’s a good thing.”
He lifted his hand and lightly cupped my cheek. “You’ve turned my own life completely upside down.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing too.”
He lowered his face to mine, and I was sure he was going to kiss me. I held my breath, the anticipation making my chest tight, but instead he lowered his mouth to my ear. “We need to talk when this is finished.”
“Yes. Agreed.”
He reached into the closet and pulled out a dress. “This one.” Then he handed it to me and walked out of the room.
Chapter 30
I wasn’t sure what to expect at space 239 at the Putnam Industrial Park, but I hadn’t planned on it being so empty. It was like a warehouse, but the only contents were two rectangular folding tables facing each other about six feet apart, with three chairs at one table and two at the other. The room itself was about thirty feet by a hundred feet, with no windows and three doors—one on the front wall and a large garage door and a smaller solid door on the back wall. The overhead industrial lights had been turned down so the lighting wasn’t so harsh but bright enough to see.
“We’ll sit at one table, and they’ll be at the other,” James said, leading me to the tables with his hand at the small of my back. I was used to him touching me, but this felt more possessive than usual. “You’ll sit in the middle.”
Family Jewels: Rose Gardner Investigations #1 Page 29