Dorothy Garlock (20 page)

“And paid her at that time? ”

“Yes. I gave her some money.”

“Did you give her any money while she was here this time? Would she have had money when she left here? ”

“I had not given her any money. She may have had some. She didn't seem to be short of ready cash.”

At that, Officer Hurt stood up and reached for his hat. Hunter walked him to the door. The two men shook hands and the officer left.

“Supper is ready.” Dinah's voice broke into Hunter's thoughts.

“Thank you, Dinah. I'll be right there.”

While eating his meal, Hunter admitted to himself that he was dissatisfied with his life and had been for some time. He was thirty years old. For the past ten years he had worked to build his companies; he enjoyed his money and what it could buy for him. He had a fine house, the respect of the town's merchants and could have any kind of sexual pleasure money could buy. Yet, what did it amount to?

Besides Dinah and Casper, who cared for him for himself, instead of what he could do for them? The sex no longer excited him as it used to. He had never been with a woman who had caressed him because she loved him and wanted to please him. He wondered how it would be to have a woman who was totally his because she wanted to be, one who would love him through good times and bad.

There were women like that. He'd had glimpses of them from time to time. He believed Jill Jones was a one-man woman. He had enjoyed walking out with her, but he had not felt one-tenth the attraction to her that he had felt toward Laura Hopper, although he and Laura had exchanged less than a dozen words. He wanted to see Laura again and talk to her. Maybe then he would understand why she was constantly in his thoughts.

As terrible as it was, he couldn't let what had happened to Carsie stop him from getting on with his life. He had cooperated in the investigation in every way he could and would continue to do so. He would, however, regret to his dying day that, because of him, Carsie had come to Rainwater and met such a tragic end.

Hunter finished his meal, went to his room and put on a clean shirt. He inspected himself in the mirror to be sure he was well groomed, and left the house.

It was that short span of time between late evening and dark. Hunter walked quickly down the street, turned and headed toward the outskirts of town. He knew exactly where he was going and wanted to get there before dark. He had seen the house several times while in his car going or coming from one of his oil wells.

He passed the ruins of Lloyd Madison's small house and noticed Madison's Ford roadster parked on a side street. Within the stone foundation only a blackened bathtub and an iron cookstove were visible. He wouldn't think the man would find anything of value left, but he couldn't blame him for searching. The fire was assumed to have been started by a short circuit in the electrical wiring. Madison had been playing cards at the billiards parlor at the time, and the fire had had a good start before it was discovered.

Hunter's excitement built as he neared the small, neat house where Laura Hopper lived with her mother. Like so many in town, it had two doors leading off a porch that stretched across the front. A stand of hollyhocks grew just inside the fenced yard; a barrel filled with blooming petunias stood nearer the porch. When Hunter opened the gate, a cat scurried beneath the porch.

Behind the house, still visible from the road, was an outhouse surrounded by more hollyhocks, a neatly tended vegetable garden and a clothesline that reached from the corner of the house to an iron post. Laura was taking white shirts off the line. Hunter walked around the house and found breathing difficult as he watched and waited while she stripped the line and turned toward the house.

“Oh.” Laura let out a little gasp when she turned and saw Hunter. She hugged the garments to her and took a couple of steps to the side when he approached her.

“I'm sorry I frightened you. I guess, under the circumstances, every woman in town has a right to be cautious.” Hunter took off his hat. “I'm Hunter Westfall. We've only met one time before….”

She stood still; her only movement was when her eyes darted once behind him, then back to his face as though cataloging every detail.

“I know who you are.” Her lips barely moved when she spoke. “Your shirts aren't ready.”

Her large violet eyes studied his face. Hunter suddenly felt shy and uncertain, a sensation he'd not had for many years.

“I didn't come for the shirts. Dinah said you'd bring them Monday morning.” She was still, watching him; and he knew that if he made a move she would dash away like a startled fawn.

“Then why — ”

“I want to talk to you about something else.”

“All right.”

Her softly spoken concession effectively gave him the courage to say, “I can wait until you take the clothes in the house. Then maybe we can sit down.” He nodded toward the stoop attached to the back of the house.

“All right, ”she said again and made a wide circle around him and hurried into the house.

Hunter stood where he was, just pivoting to watch her. She was everything he had remembered and even more beautiful. She was slim and as graceful as a willow switch and so beautiful it almost hurt his eyes to look at her. The gingham dress she wore was faded from many washings, but it outlined her softly rounded breasts, hugged her waist and danced around her bare calves. She was barefoot. He hadn't noticed until she stepped up on the porch.

He was enchanted by her.

She was out of the house in a minute or two. Hunter had not moved. She stood on the stoop looking at him and waiting. As he came slowly toward her, his hat in his hand, she sat down on the edge of the porch. She had made no effort to make herself more presentable. She was still barefoot, her hair a tangle of dark curls. His eyes stayed on her face as he approached. Her skin was a warm ivory, a perfect background for her magnificent eyes.

She was beautiful, but there was something else about her that drew him like a magnet, some quality that he couldn't name.

“May I sit down? ”

When she nodded, he sat down on the edge of the porch, leaving a space of four or five feet between them.

“Mary Pat is asleep.” This appeared to be an apology for not inviting him into the house.

“Does she walk? ”

“Oh, yes.” She turned to look at him. “She's a year and a half.”

“I remember you telling me that. But I don't know much about children that age.”

“She walks and is …quick. I have to get as much done as I can while she sleeps.”

“Do you work at night? ”

“I iron sometimes. I hang out the white things when the wind isn't stirring up the dust.”

Hunter listened intently to her every word. His mind searched for a way to keep her talking.

“I came to speak to you about your husband's death.”

“Bradley? He's been dead for two years.”

“He died before your child was born? ”

“Yes.” She looked straight ahead. Hunter stared at her profile. Calm, cool and lovely was the only way to describe her.

“I'm sorry.”

“Why? Did you know him? ”

“No. I'm sorry because it must have been terrible for you.” When she didn't say anything, he continued: “I learned only a few days ago that he died while working on one of my rigs.”

Her head swiveled around slowly. “He wasn't
working.”

“It's my understanding that he climbed to the crown block of the derrick and fell eighty feet. It's a policy of our company to pay compensation to the widows of men killed in our employ. I can find no record of you having been paid. I'd like to remedy that.”

“Why? ”She seemed to say that often. “Bradley wasn't working. He hadn't worked for a couple of weeks. He was drunk. It just happened to be your derrick he fell off of.”

“Yet it
was
our derrick.”

Laura stood up. “You have no obligation to pay me anything. It wasn't your fault he was drunk or that he climbed your derrick and fell.”

Hunter got to his feet. “I do feel obligated. It's what we would have done for any of the other employees. It can't be easy to support a child alone.”

“We get by. We don't need your charity.” She spoke coolly, with a haughty tilt of her chin, and stepped up onto the porch as if to go back in the house.

Hunter began to panic.

“Please, Laura — I mean, Mrs. Hopper — I'm sorry if you feel what I was offering was charity. It's a company policy — ”

“Was the company policy in place two years ago? A policy that paid a widow if her drunken husband went to the oil well in the middle of the night, climbed the derrick and fell off and killed himself? If it was, I would have been notified at that time.”

“It had not happened before.”

“I'll have your shirts ready by Monday morning.” Dismissal was in the tone of her voice.

“Laura, I'm sorry if you feel insulted by my offer. I only wanted to compensate you for your loss.”

“How do you know it was a loss? ”

The question dumbfounded Hunter for a moment. “I don't know that, but — ”

“Good night, Mr. Westfall.”

“Laura, stay and talk to me for a while.”

“About what? ”Her hand was on the handle of the screen door. “Do you want to talk about the real reason you came here? ”

“Oh, Lord.” Hunter groaned and twisted his hat around and around in his hands. “Was it that obvious? ”

“To me, yes. I've heard everything from 'my mother sent me over 'to 'I found a dollar on your doorstep and it must be yours. 'Your excuse is a new one.”

Hunter's eyes smiled into hers. “It's no wonder that you're leery of men.”

“Women are in short supply here in Rainwater.”

Sweetheart, women like you are in short supply the world over.

“Will you accept my apology? ”

“Accepted. I have work to do, Mr. Westfall.”

Her hand was on the door handle and he was desperate to keep her talking. He said the first thing that came to mind.

“After what happened, you shouldn't be here alone.”

“Mama went to prayer meeting. She'll be back any minute.”

“The woman who was murdered had been staying at my house.” It was dark. Hunter couldn't see her eyes, but he could feel them on his face.

“I heard that.”

“I suppose it's all over town. She was a friend.”

Fool! Of course she was a friend: I wouldn't have had an enemy staying at my house. Lord, I wish I could take back the last ten years of my life and start fresh with a girl like Laura.

“She was very pretty. I saw her one afternoon when I brought a shirt I had mended.”

Hunter fumbled for words. His first thought was that Carsie would not have been friendly or even nice to a girl as pretty as Laura. His second thought was that it must have been the shirt Carsie had ripped off him one night when she couldn't wait for him to get undressed.

“You did a good job replacing the buttons.”

“Thank you.”

He didn't know exactly how much Dinah paid her for doing his shirts. He made a mental note to tell her to increase whatever it was.

“May I come back some evening? ”

“Why? ”There it was again.

“We could take a walk. Get acquainted. I'll pull Mary Pat in the wagon.” His smile faded when she slowly shook her head.

“I'm usually busy evenings.”

“If you don't want to go for a walk, we can go for a ride in the car. I'll show you the wells my company is drilling.” She silently shook her head and he said somewhat desperately, “Are you afraid of me because of what happened to Miss Bakken? Mother of God, Laura. I'd never hurt you.”

“I'm not afraid of you.”

“Then what is it? Why won't you spend some time with me? ”

“I don't know you, Mr. Westfall, and I'm not sure if I even like you.”

“Why? ”It was his turn to ask.

“I said that I'm not sure why. It's something about the way you live.”

“Are you in love with someone? ”He held his breath while he waited for an answer. It seemed to him that she was weighing a decision. Finally she shook her head and his shoulders slumped in relief. “Would you mind if I came back tomorrow night and we sat here on the porch for a while? You might find out that I'm just an ordinary man when you get to know me.”

She lifted her shoulders in a noncommittal gesture, but he took it to mean that she was agreeable. He put his hat on his head, hoping to hurry away before she changed her mind.

“Good-bye, Laura. I'll see you about this time tomorrow night.”

She was still standing beside the door when Hunter turned and walked away. When he reached the road, he saw a woman coming toward the house. No doubt it was Mrs. Cole, Laura's mother, returning from her prayer meeting.

“Evening, ma'am.” They met and Hunter tipped his hat as she hurried past, almost running toward the house.

Hunter was sure that he had never had anything in his life affect him like his meeting with Laura Hopper. He was elated that tomorrow night he would be coming back to see her. Lord, he wanted to give her everything. But he'd have to be careful. She had pride and spirit.

Pretty girl, you are a treasure.

He chuckled to himself. The little dickens! She had known that the reason he gave for calling was a pretext. His feet seemed lighter and he was surprised to discover that the tempo of his heartbeat had increased. He was not aware of the grin on his face or the fact that he had fallen head over heels in love.

His steps slowed as he reached the ruins of Lloyd Madison's burned-out house. The idea struck him that in the short time he had been with Laura, he hadn't thought one time of how she'd be in bed, which was the usual way he considered a woman. He didn't even want to think about that now. He wanted to think about how he could make life easier for her, protect her and Mary Pat from anyone who would hurt them.

Hunter was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't see the man beside the car on the side street. Pure hatred shone in the eyes of the man who stared at him.

“It didn't take you long to latch on to another woman, ”the man muttered. “Enjoy yourself, Mister Big Shot. Your world is about to come tumbling down.”

Chapter 14