“I’m giving you a ride back to the motel.” He smiled. “You can thank me later.”
The Parker kid rose and stood eye-to-eye with Jeremiah. “You got a problem, mister?”
Overgrown brown hair, angular jaw, pumped-up muscles, the boy was like every other punk Jeremiah had come across in his travels. Get in the face and whip out the fists. “Yeah, that’s right,” Jeremiah said, raking him with a hot glance. “I’m here to pick up my woman.”
The younger balked. “Your woman?”
Loretta placed a hand to his forearm. “Troy, it’s okay. I’ll explain later.”
Jeremiah glanced between the two. “Have another date, do we?”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” Troy thrust.
“When you’re making plans with my woman, everything’s my business.”
“Jerry! You said you were here to give me a ride, now let’s get going.” Loretta started pushing at him but Jeremiah didn’t budge.
Troy looked to Loretta, seeking answers, but none came. “I’ll call you, okay?” Fury lit his eyes.
Now you’re getting the idea, Jeremiah mused, enjoying the displeasure of a man who’s just realized he’d been conned. Loretta pushed past him and made a beeline for the door. Jeremiah paused and savored a private smile. If looks could kill, he’d be dead right about now. Which gave him a chuckle. Jeremiah patted the boy on the shoulder. “Sorry kid, maybe another woman will mean it.”
The boy whipped his hand up and grabbed Jeremiah’s arm. “Keep your hands off me,” he growled.
Surprised by the swift move, the strength of his grip, Jeremiah was momentarily stunned. While he enjoyed watching the kid suffer, he wasn’t interested in a fist fight. Around him, the din of restaurant conversation had hushed to rabid curiosity. “I’m not looking for trouble, kid.”
“Too late.”
With a jerk of his arm, Jeremiah freed himself from the kid’s hold. “It’s never too late. Or didn’t your mother ever teach you that?”
Before the kid could respond, Jeremiah turned on his heel. Ignoring the stares, he tugged his shirt from his chest and made his exit. While he wouldn’t mind going a round with the boy, Jeremiah wasn’t about to give these people a reason to call the cops. Cops served warrants—warrants with his name on them.
Strolling outside, he found Loretta hopping mad. “What do you think you were doing in there?” She jabbed a finger toward the diner and cried, “I was making progress with that boy!”
Jeremiah brought hand to chin and eased the tension from his jaw. “Told you already.”
“Did you think it was a good idea to let him know we’re together? After I spent all that time getting him to trust me, convincing him I’m just a friend looking out for your best interests?”
Jeremiah brushed past her and eased into the driver’s seat. “Well, if he’s stupid enough to believe that, you might have been wasting your time.”
Loretta opened her door and climbed into the truck. Pulling the end of her skirt toward her knees, she said sternly, “I said you were a friend, not my lover.”
“Did you get any information?” he asked, inserting the key into the ignition.
“As a matter of fact, I did.”
“And?”
Loretta’s blue-green eyes stilled, flooding with emotion. “Your daddy is sick.”
Jeremiah’s hand paused on the gear shift. She might as well have sucker-punched him. “Sick? What kind of sick?”
“Sick. As in terminal sick.” She reached over the center console. “Troy said he thinks that’s why your daddy signed the deed over. He’s dying.”
She searched Jeremiah’s gaze. If she was looking for sympathy, any feeling at all, she was wasting her time. Something inside him closed. Jeremiah didn’t care about his father. In fact, part of him was glad the old man was dying.
“Did you hear me? He’s dying, Jerry. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
He snapped to life. “It’s about time.”
“Jerry!”
Jeremiah ignored the stricken look on her face and gunned the engine, pulling away from the curb with a hard acceleration. Tamping down the mix of emotions coursing through him, he said, “You’re not the only one with news. I learned a few things of my own today.”
Loretta didn’t say a word. She only stared. If he had to guess, it looked to him like she was disappointed by his reaction. That she was upset, offended that he had the gall to not care. Why should she be surprised? Loretta knew how he felt about the old man, though a terminal illness was the last thing he’d expected. Jeremiah smiled, as if to prove he didn’t care. “Don’t you want to know what I found out today?”
Loretta turned away, shunning him with a haughty edge.
“Seems my neighbor Clem Sweeney has been getting pretty tight with my old man but ran into trouble with Delaney.”
“What kind of trouble?” she asked, continuing to stare out the passenger window as they drove through the dump of a town.
Jeremiah savored the words as he said them, “Clem kidnapped her.”
Loretta spun around to face him. “What? That poor woman! Did he hurt her?”
Jeremiah chuckled. “Didn’t look like it from what I could tell. But I bet he had good reason.”
“Jerry, what could possibly make kidnapping someone a good idea?”
“I don’t know. But that’s the part I intend to find out.”
Chapter Thirteen
Malcolm and Nick tracked Delaney as she paced from one end of the cabin to the other. Both men sat pulled up to the butcher block island in her kitchen, patiently waiting for her to absorb the information. He and Nick had already discussed the situation, drawing up a set of their own plans to handle Jeremiah. But when it came to Delaney, Nick suggested they move slow, break it easy to her. Interesting concern, considering Malcolm had never seen Delaney take anything easy. She paced, she grumbled, she fretted and she questioned. She was knee-deep in emotion and Malcolm wondered if she could even think clearly, let alone understand the options at hand. But Ladd Springs was her land, hers and Felicity’s, and she needed to be involved.
Delaney paused, a grave look hanging in her dark brown eyes. “This is bad. This is really bad. If Troy was with Jeremiah’s girlfriend, he had to have told her.”
“We don’t know that,” Nick said.
“Why else would they be together?”
Hot body, easy pickings. Malcolm exchanged a glance with Nick. None of which Delaney wanted to hear at the moment. Taking a deep breath, Malcolm focused on the more pertinent issue at hand. “It doesn’t matter. Even if Troy did tell her, it doesn’t matter.”
“But he can sue us for duress!” she cried. “You said so yourself!”
“He doesn’t have the money,” he returned calmly, as though treading softly would help soothe the wild beast in her.
Delaney slid a hand over her head, resting it on a cotton hair band that held her long blonde hair back in a ponytail. Thick and full, it almost could belong to a pony. “How do you know that?”
Without makeup, lines of worry scored her face all the deeper. Dressed in jean shorts and simple tank top, Delaney was thin as a rail. Malcolm understood worried, but she looked stressed as hell, almost to the point of becoming unhealthy.
“Lacy,” he replied quietly.
The name chilled Delaney’s demeanor. “She’s not the most reliable source.”
“She’s proven right on so far,” Malcolm defended. But he wasn’t about to argue the point. Family feuds ran deep in this part of the country, and inserting himself between opposing forces was not a good bet. Especially female feuds.
Delaney brought a hand to her forehead, as though a headache were coming on. Malcolm sympathized with her plight. She had cause. If Jeremiah was successful on any level, it would jeopardize her ownership of the property and from what Nick told him, living on this land was the only thing that mattered to Delaney. If she lost that right, she would be devastated.
“What if Jeremiah finds out about the gold?” she asked. “What if Felicity told Travis and Troy about the gold?”
“Would she?”
Delaney dropped her hand and heaved a ragged sigh. “She tells them everything.”
“But I thought you specifically told her to keep it under wraps.”
“I did. But if Jeremiah finds out about the gold...”
Malcolm groaned inwardly. It was clear she wasn’t certain her daughter would honor her wishes. Nick went to Delaney and took her in his arms. “He won’t. We have a plan.”
“A plan?” She looked up at him, then checked with Malcolm. He nodded. “What kind of plan?”
“According to Lacy, Jeremiah owes money to a casino in Vegas.”
“He does? How would she know that?”
“She keeps tabs through his girlfriend, Loretta.” At Delaney’s puzzled expression, Malcolm explained, “Lacy and Loretta are friends. They worked at the same lounge in Atlanta. Loretta shared the information with her and she, in turn, shared it with me.” And she had been so proud of herself for doing so, he thought, pleasure streaming through him at the memory, as though it were a most amazing feat. In the end, it might just turn out to be amazing. “It’s all we need to take Jeremiah out of the picture.”
“How is a debt he owes in Vegas going to help us stop him from taking Ladd Springs?”
Malcolm smiled. “An unpaid marker is a felony.”
“What’s a marker?”
Nick responded, “It’s a loan. A line of credit. When a guy goes into a casino and wants to gamble, but doesn’t have the cash, he can sign his name for a loan.”
“But if he doesn’t have the money, the casino can go after him,” Malcolm finished.
“Like defaulting on a credit card?”
“Kind of,” Nick replied. “Except that in Nevada, casino debt is a felony. Unlike your standard credit card, they can put you in jail for defaulting.”
Delaney stood there, mouth agape.
“The casino boys take it pretty seriously,” Malcolm told her. “They’ll go after him.”
“But I’m sure Jeremiah didn’t give them his real address. What if they can’t find him?”
“They’ll have his ID on file, unless he used a fake driver’s license. Either way, I guarantee you they know who he is. They’ll have surveillance video on his every step through the casino. All we have to do is help them connect the dots.”
“And they can go after him?” She shifted her gaze between the men. “Across state lines?”
“Yes, ma’am. The DA in Nevada will obtain a warrant for his arrest and it will be reported nationwide. Jeremiah can be picked up in any state, at any time.”
Delaney paused. Still wrapped within Nick’s arms, she settled her hands on his forearms. “How is it you two know so much about casinos and debts?”
They shared a smile. “Didn’t Nick tell you?” Malcolm asked.
She peered up at him. “Tell me what?”
Nick grinned. “Mal and I like to gamble.”
“It’s like our home away from home.”
“Are you addicted?” Delaney demanded flatly. Nick dropped his head back and laughed. She punched his arm and tried to pull free from his grasp. “I’m serious. Are you?”
Amused by the domestic squabble unfolding before him, the confirmed bachelor in Malcolm enjoyed watching his pal squirm.
“No, I’m not addicted,” Nick said. “Why would you ask?” Delaney didn’t reply and Nick’s face changed abruptly. “I’m sorry, that was insensitive of me.” Surprising Malcolm with his swift contrition, he kissed the top of her head. “No, I’m not addicted. I merely enjoy the entertainment.”
“Why haven’t I heard of this before?” Delaney asked.
“Because we’ve been together all of two weeks?” He flashed a grin to Malcolm then said to her, “I daresay there’s a lot more to me you haven’t learned yet.”
Delaney seemed placated by the response and Malcolm stood. His business here was finished. Nick and he were in full agreement. Delaney didn’t need to know any more. “Listen. I’ll call our man out in Vegas and get the ball rolling. After that, we wait.”
Nick nodded, communicating the unspoken half of their plan with his eyes. Malcolm nodded.
“But can they arrest Jeremiah for no reason?” Delaney asked.
“I don’t call fifty thousand dollars ‘no reason.’”
“He owes that much?”
“He owes that much,” Malcolm said. “Confirmed it with a friend of mine which is why he’ll be running scared when he receives a visit from the local sheriff.” A visit he and Nick were going to provoke.
Malcolm walked to the door and Delaney blurted, “Where are you going? Aren’t you staying for dinner?”
“No, ma’am. I’m going fishing at the local watering hole.” Malcolm tipped an imaginary hat and let himself out.
Jeremiah sat in a plastic chair in the county jail visitation room. He tapped his toe on the floor, impatient to see Clem, but grateful he’d made it before visiting hours ended for the day. There was a young woman to his right, visibly agitated with the inmate sitting across from her and to his left a man sat bent over, repeatedly looking from side to side, as though plotting an escape and worried someone was listening. At a loud slam of metal door, Jeremiah looked through the glass partition to see Clem Sweeney being led over to him. Clean-shaven, thin, his jail garb was a washed-out gray, he shuffled his feet as he walked. He looked old, Jeremiah thought, much older than his forty years. But Clem’s health and well-being were not his concern. His knowledge of Delaney was what mattered.
Clem dropped to a seat before him, curiosity glittering in his eyes beneath the glare of fluorescent lighting. “Jeremiah Ladd,” he drawled, scrutinizing him as one would an apparition. “It’s been a long time.”
“Sweeney.”
“I didn’t believe it when they told me it was you.”
“Sorry it has to be under these circumstances,” Jeremiah said.
Clem shrugged. “What brings you to town?”
“Delaney Wilkins.”
The name set fire to Clem’s expression. “I reckon you know about what happened.”
“Not really, but I’ve been hearing things.”
Clem set his mouth in a grim line, his eyes distrusting. “What kind of things?”
“Things that I don’t like, Clem.” Jeremiah responded, reeling his catch in, slow but sure.
“Nothing to like about that woman, I’ll give you that.”
Jeremiah chuckled. “Aw, now, she wasn’t so bad as a kid.”
“She’s trouble now.” He cut Jeremiah in half with a hateful gaze. “You heard about her and your daddy?”
Jeremiah nodded and assumed the saddest look he could. Did Clem know his father was sick? “Don’t seem right, her taking full rights to the property from him like she did. She could have at least called me.”
Fury blustered through Clem’s features and he hissed, “She don’t care about nobody but herself!”
“People change, I reckon. But with my daddy feeling the way he does?”
“He don’t like her none, I’ll tell you that right now,” Clem spat.
“I mean his health.”
“His health?”
“He doesn’t look well,” Jeremiah said, hinting that he knew, that Clem could open up to him.
“I don’t know about all that.” Clem lifted his cuffed hands and laid them on the counter, the metal skidding across the Formica. “I only know that Delaney is a greedy little thing. She tricked him somehow, kept threatening him with court.”
“Court?” This was the first he heard about Delaney going to court. “On what grounds?”
“Grounds?” Clem looked around as if he were searching for somewhere to spit his dip. “I don’t know nothin’ about grounds. I’m only telling you what I heard.”
Jeremiah nodded. “She was probably trying to coerce him to sell.”
&n
bsp; “She ain’t got no money!” Clem hollered, drawing a sharp glance from a nearby guard.
Staring at the man he’d known his entire childhood, the man who had never been very bright, Jeremiah doubted he’d get anything meaningful regarding Delaney’s abuse of the legal system. Time to change direction. “Well, from what I hear, you and my dad were pretty close.”
Clem stilled. His right eye twitched.
Hooked. Jeremiah paused for effect, then added quietly, “Thanks for looking after him for me. I know I didn’t leave on the best of terms, but I was young back then, ya know?” He shifted his weight in his chair. “I didn’t know the importance of family like I do now.”
Clem pursed his lips, the wheels of thought spinning behind his eyes. He slid his hands down into his lap. “Have you seen him?”
“Briefly. He’s still angry. I don’t say as I blame him, but I still had to try.”
Clem paused, as though finally catching on. He slid a wary gaze around the room before settling in on him. “What are you after, Jeremiah?”
Point blank. Jeremiah almost smiled. He respected a man who got right down to business. “The property,” he said. “I want what’s rightfully mine.”
Clem smiled thinly. He licked his lips, glanced about and said, “I might be able to help you with that.”
“Help me?” Did Clem think Jeremiah was going to cut him in? He almost laughed in his face, but held himself in check. He wanted to hear what came next.
Clem nodded. Knitting his brow, he rubbed his skinny chin and pondered who knows what. The nearby woman wailed at the man across from her, attracting a guard to their cubicle. “I know a secret about Delaney.”
“You do?”
His eyes lit up with a wicked gleam. “I do.”
Jeremiah wondered if it had anything to do him trying to kidnap her. “Tell me.”
Clem visibly retreated and Jeremiah cursed himself for moving in too soon. Checking for unwanted attention, Clem said, “Not yet, not yet. I got to think about it a while.”
What the hell was there to think about? It was his family they were discussing!
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