“Oh.” He propped the gun against the railing and plopped into one of our cane rockers. “It’s all clear. No sign of a forced entry. Looks like he just walked through the back door. Seems it was left unlocked.”
Well, of course, nearly all the farmers in these parts left their doors unlocked under usual circumstances. But with Daddy and Mama out of town . . . well, I’d be talking to Ray about that, first thing. “What made you come out here anyway?” I asked Hawk, as I took the chair next to him. “I’ve been trying to reach you all day.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. Laney said you called the salon looking for my number. She’s all bent out of shape over it, too. Some busybody told her that you and I were getting it on—”
“Getting it on?” I rolled my eyes. Disgusting. “Mrs. Busby lives across the street from Sunny Side Up,” I explained. “She apparently saw us slip out of Whitaker’s room and sneak around the veranda. And you know how this town is.”
“Yeah, word travels fast ’round here. Anyway, I figured it was important, so I stopped in at your shop and Carla told me you were headin’ out this way.” He bent down and scooped an excited Roscoe onto his lap. “And I really wanted to see my little fellow,” he added, burying his face between the pooch’s ears and making kissy noises. Definitely a side of Hawk I’d never seen before!
I watched until he finally came up for air and said, “So you think Whitaker was here?”
“Yeah. He must think I found whatever it is he’s searching for.”
“Well, I know what that is,” Hawk said, pulling his shoulders back. “Diamonds.”
I leaned forward. “Diamonds? What?”
He nodded and gently set Roscoe down on the porch. Slumping back in his chair, he began to explain, “My contact came through with some information. John Whitaker, or Felix Ganassi, rather, was working as an armored truck driver back nearly twenty years ago. He was part of a team, with two other guys, making a large delivery for a diamond brokerage firm out of Chicago. Ganassi was driving. Somewhere en route between Chicago and Detroit, their truck experienced mechanical issues and they were forced to pull off on the side of the interstate. Two men, last names Turner and Gray, pulled up behind them in a white van. They shot one of the guards immediately and held Ganassi and one other guard at gunpoint.”
“And made off with the diamonds,” I added.
“Uh-huh. About four million dollars’ worth. But someone tipped off the authorities and they eventually tracked down Turner and Gray. They were holed up in some sleazy hotel. They didn’t go down without a fight, though. Gray was shot and killed during the arrest. The other guy’s still in the pen.”
“And you’re thinking that Turner and Gray had inside help from Ganassi. Because how else would they have known that the armored truck was going to have mechanical issues and be pulled over at that particular spot on the interstate?”
“Exactly,” Hawk agreed. He rocked back and forth a few times, gathering his thoughts. “Thing is, Gray’s half of the take was never found.”
“And Ganassi wants it,” I said. “Let me guess. Margie was married to one of them?” I recalled her saying something about her ex-husband, and I knew she was from Detroit.
“Gray,” Hawk responded. “Price is her maiden name. She must have changed it back, left Detroit and started a new life for herself.”
“So maybe she was involved with the robbery. That’s hard to imagine, but I’ve always wondered how she funded the renovations for Sunny Side Up.” Hopefully Ida would get back to me with Margie’s financial information soon. If Margie took out a loan to buy and renovate the inn, it would go a long way in proving her innocence in the diamond heist. After all, two million dollars in diamonds would pay for a lot of renovations.
Hawk shook his head. “I thought the same thing at first. If that were the case, though, she should have recognized Ganassi. On the other hand, even if she wasn’t in on the heist, it could be that somewhere down the line she found the diamonds and kept them. Clem might have suspected the same thing. I’m thinking he found out about Margie’s past and put the facts together. And if she did build her business on stolen money, then she’s in big trouble.” He shifted in his seat and sighed. “Can’t believe I misjudged the woman. Could be that I’ve been working for a killer.”
I didn’t have anything to add to that. It was possible, I guessed. And here I thought I’d started to figure things out. Now I was confused again. I needed to get some more information to make sense out of it all, starting with talking to Lucas. I began getting out of my chair when something else occurred to me. “Ganassi must be feeling pretty desperate if he broke in here and searched the place. He knows we’re onto him, Hawk. So far all he’s done is nose around. But things are heating up, and if he thinks there’s even the slightest chance that Margie knows where the diamonds are, then he might try to force it out of her. If that’s the case, she could be in danger.” I stood, heading inside to get my purse. I turned back. “You go find Margie,” I told him. “Make sure she’s okay. Then swing by the sheriff’s office and let Maudy know what we’ve discovered about Whitaker. I’ll try to meet you there a little later. Right now, I’ve got something else I have to do.”
“What’s that?” He stood, his expression full of concern.
“Just an errand I need to run,” I said, but he stood firm, folding his arms and lowering his chin. I sighed. It was probably getting close to two. I desperately needed to talk to Lucas and didn’t have time to explain everything to Hawk. “Go on and take care of this thing with Margie,” I said. “If I’m not able to meet you there before you’re done, come by the diner tonight around six. I should be done cooking by that time, and I’ll probably be able to explain more then.”
* * *
I caught Lucas just as he was making his way through the Pack & Carry parking lot. I pulled up next to him and rolled down my window. “Hey, Lucas. Hop in, will ya? I need to talk to you for a sec.”
“Me?” He shuffled his feet and glanced around. “What about?”
I pointed to the passenger door. “It’s important. Come on, and I’ll buy you a burger.” My own stomach was grumbling. I hadn’t eaten since breakfast.
He shuffled a little more and then finally agreed, climbing into the passenger side. We were barely out of the lot when he asked, “So what do you want to talk about? Something with Tessa?”
I made a right hand turn and headed for the Tasty Freeze. “Sort of. I’m going to be up front with you about something, Lucas. And I need to know the truth.”
He fidgeted, drumming his fingers on his knee. Probably wanting a cigarette. “Sounds serious.”
“It is.”
I was stalling, preferring to wait until we were parked and eating our burgers. But Lucas seemed anxious to get on with the conversation. “Am I in trouble for something?” he asked.
“Should you be?”
He turned slightly in his seat, staring out the window. “I forgot. There’s something important I’m supposed to do. Can you pull over? I can walk back to my truck.”
“The Tasty Freeze is just up ahead. Let me at least get you a burger.”
“I’m not really hungry.”
I sighed. “You’re in trouble, aren’t you? I can help.”
His hand hovered over the door handle. “I don’t need your help. Just pull over.”
“My friend Ginny speaks so highly of you. Says you’re a good kid. I guess you and her son, Jake, used to be friends.”
“Used to. That was a long time ago.”
“Good kids sometimes find themselves in bad situations. I know, Lucas. I’ve been there. I understand what you’re going through. I want to help you.”
“You don’t understand crap.” He sounded panicked.
“Do you know who killed Clem?”
He yanked on the handle, opening the door. “Pull over. I want out.”
A
fraid he was going to jump, I whipped into the Tasty Freeze lot and came to a screeching halt. He pushed the door open the rest of the way and jumped out. I spoke quickly, “I know what you’ve been doing and I have proof. Help me now, or I’ll go straight to the sheriff.” He was striding away. “Okay, I’m going to the sheriff now, Lucas.” I put the truck in gear.
That stopped him.
He turned back to me, defiance in his voice. “What exactly is it that you think you know?”
“I know that you’ve been stealing scrap metal all over town.” His mouth dropped open and he seemed to sink into himself. I added quickly, “But if you help me, I’ll make sure you get a fair break. My brother’s an attorney. He’ll help us.” The kid stood still, and I knew I had him. “Come back in the truck.”
When he got back in, I said, “I think Clem knew about the thefts, too. He threatened to expose you, didn’t he?”
“I didn’t kill him.”
“Maybe not. But you weren’t working alone, were you?”
He didn’t answer. I blew out my breath and tried another approach. “You told me you’ve been working the six to two shift all month at the Pack and Carry.”
“Yeah, so?”
“Well, Tessa told me that you worked until five o’clock the day of the murder. Is that true?”
He looked down at his hands.
“Where were you between two and five that day, Lucas?”
“I already told you that I didn’t kill Clem.”
“And I believe you. But were you out at the farm? Did you see who did?”
He shook his head. “No, I was . . . running an errand.”
“An errand?” I remembered Cade telling me there was a big recycling plant over in Perry. “You were in Perry, weren’t you?”
His head slowly bobbed up and down. That whole back road thing I did, about destroying my truck, was in vain. Lucas was never at the farm. He was hauling stolen scrap metal to the recycler.
I took a deep breath and tried to gather my thoughts. There was so much at play here. Greed, power, and so many loose elements that just didn’t fit together: past secrets, old scores to settle, scrap metal thefts and now a decades-old diamond heist with two million dollars in diamonds still missing. Not to mention all the clues that just didn’t seem to fit: Mama’s handkerchief, the gas can with Daddy’s prints, Jack Snyder’s burned arm, Wade Marshall’s car accident way back when . . . I’d been thinking that all these things were tied together into one overall set of crimes, and that two people were involved. Now I wasn’t sure. Maybe they were separate, completely unrelated crimes. Which only complicated figuring any of them out. I glanced across the seat at Lucas, knowing that he held the answers to so many of my questions. I decided to lay it on thick. “Do you really love Tessa,” I asked, “or are you just using her for a cool truck to drive? Or maybe it’s the farm you’re after.”
His whipped his head around, his eyes dark and angry. “That’s not true! I love Tessa.”
“Then how can you stand by and watch her suffer when you might know who killed her uncle? Think of the closure she’d feel if his killer was brought to justice.” His facial muscles tightened with anger. I tempered my tone, but kept up the pressure. “You should hear how she talks about you, Lucas. She trusts you. How’s she going to feel when she finds out that you allowed her uncle’s killer to get off scot-free?”
He suddenly slammed his fist on my dashboard, causing me to startle. “Shut up!” he yelled, sitting back and folding his arms, his chest heaving as he seethed.
But he didn’t bolt, and I knew I had to jump back in. “Listen, Lucas,” I said, struggling to keep my voice calm. “I think you’re in over your head. I think you’re being manipulated and you don’t know how to get out of this mess. I’m offering you a chance to help yourself and bring down Clem’s killer. You’d be Tessa’s hero.”
After a long pause, he pushed open the car door and stepped out. He turned back at the last minute. “I can’t go to the cops about this. I just can’t.”
“I understand. I really do. But let me try to help you, Lucas,” I pleaded again. “Come by the diner tonight around six. I’ll ask my brother to meet us there. We can figure something out.”
“I don’t know. Okay? I just don’t know.”
Just before he slammed the door shut, our eyes connected. What I saw in his expression made me feel sorry for the kid. Because his eyes weren’t full of anger, or defiance, but fear.
Chapter 17
Southern Girl Secret #077: When lookin’ for Mr. Right, always pick a man who’ll spend his life mussing up your lipstick . . . not your mascara.
After Lucas left, I placed a couple phone calls. The first to Ray. We talked a bit about Daddy’s condition, the plans for his surgery, how Mama was holding up, and so on. Then, I filled him in on a few things I’d discovered about John Whitaker. The rest I wanted to tell him in person, so I asked him to stop by the diner so we could discuss it tonight. I also wanted him to talk to Lucas—if he showed up, that is—to see if there was anything he could do to help the kid. Then I called Ida to find out if she’d talked to Hollis yet. She had. And he told her that Margie had indeed taken out a substantial loan to purchase and renovate the inn. Some of the best news I’d heard all day. Because if Margie knew where two million dollars in diamonds were stashed, she probably wouldn’t need a bank loan.
I’d decided the best way to celebrate this tidbit of good news and satisfy my grumbling stomach was with a Tasty Freeze special double cheeseburger, onion rings and an icy Coke. But I never did get that burger. Because just as I was putting my truck in gear for the drive-through, my cell rang. It was Hawk. He was at Sunny Side Up and he wanted me to come by right away.
“Sheriff’s not happy about Ganassi,” he said. “She’s worked into a tizzy and is takin’ it out on Margie.”
“I’m on my way,” I told him, mindful of the time. If I was quick about it, there was still enough time to do this and make it to the diner for tonight’s cooking session.
Arriving at the inn, I found Maudy in the front, her county-issued shoes leaving little scuff marks on Margie’s highly polished wood floors as she paced back and forth, berating Margie in a blustery voice, “Guess you really did have a secret to hide, Ms. Price. You were once married to a thief and a murderer.” She shook her head and chuckled. “Boy, some women sure know how to pick ’em.”
“I didn’t know anything about Kevin’s plans to rob the armored truck,” Margie shot back. She was crumpled up in one of the wing chairs by the fireplace, pale-faced and trembling slightly. Hawk was standing behind her. “I swear. I was shocked when I found out.”
“Oh, I see.” Maudy stopped pacing and scowled down at Margie. “You were married to the man, but had no idea he picked off an armored truck and made off with over two million dollars in diamonds. Frankly, Ms. Price, I’m havin’ a hard time believin’ that you were ever that stupid.”
“I was young, Sheriff. Young and naive. I’d lived such a sheltered life, always the good girl, doing exactly what I was told. And then along came Kevin.” She sighed. “He was so good-looking and dangerous. The classic bad boy.” She looked my way. “You understand what I’m saying, don’t you, Nola?”
My eyes grew wide and darted toward Hawk. He caught my look, his full lips slowly turning upward. I blinked double time and quickly turned back to Margie, who continued in a dreamy tone, “It was always something new and exciting with Kevin. Even the way we got married. He simply swept me off to Vegas one night where we took our vows in one of the cheesy little white chapels.” She chuckled lightly at the memory. “Oh, I know it all sounds so cliché. But to me, every day with Kevin was an adventure.” Her face drooped. “At least for the first year or so. Then things started to change. He never finished his degree, choosing to go into business with his roommates instead. Some sort of real estate investment venture. Such a
sure thing, he’d said. But it didn’t pan out, and when money got tight, Kevin started to change. We drifted apart. So, I really had no idea.” Her tone was pleading. “You have to believe me. For all real purposes, my relationship was over when Kevin planned all this. We weren’t even living together at the time. I’d moved back home.”
“And you had no idea who Ganassi was?” Maudy wanted to know.
“No. None.”
“Then how’d he track you down?”
“I think I can answer that, Sheriff,” I said.
The sheriff’s eyes slid my way with a sneer. “Oh, I’m sure you can. Y’all probably think you have this whole case figured out already. Probably Clem’s murder, too. In fact, rumor is that you have some sort of proof pertaining to my murder case.” She folded her arms across her chest. “Not that I’d believe for one second that you were able to come up with any proof—”
I shook my head. “You’re right. It’s just a rumor. Honest,” I added, continuing on before she could think too much about it. “Like I was saying, I think Ganassi was able to track down Margie the same way Clem was able to track down her true identity—through an investigative firm.”
The sheriff smirked. “What are you talking about, Nola Mae?”
“Clem was so intent on winning this election that he hired an investigative firm to run a background check on Margie. He was hoping to turn up some dirt to use against her in the election.”
“And he did stir up dirt,” Margie said. “He took great delight in telling me what he’d discovered about my past. Marched right over here the day before our debate and threatened me with it. Said if I didn’t pull out of the race, he’d tell the whole town about my secret. He would have, too. If someone hadn’t . . .” She stopped, her eyes widening.
“If someone hadn’t killed him,” the sheriff finished. “Someone like you, maybe?”
“No!” She frantically shook her head. “I didn’t kill Clem. There’s no way I could ever do something like that!”
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