RG2 - Twenty-Nine and a Half Reasons (35 page)

“And why on earth were you at the pool hall?”

“I don’t think you want to know.”

Violet let it drop until we’d gotten our coffee and sat down. I told her about going to the pool hall, Mason accidently telling Skeeter Malcolm my name, and Mason’s concern that Skeeter might try to harm me.

“What were you thinking, quizzin’ Skeeter Malcolm? Have you lost your mind?”

“
You
know who Skeeter Malcolm is?”

She rolled her eyes. “Who doesn’t?”

I groaned. At this point, I bet even seven-year-old Andy Jr. knew about Skeeter.

“And why didn’t you tell me you needed a place to stay?”

“You were going through your own problems. You sure didn’t need mine dumped on your doorstep.”

“But last night…”

“Violet, you had just told me that Mike was leaving and you were going home to sort out the mess. If the roles were reversed, would you have asked to stay with me?”

“I guess not.” She glanced out the window, then back at me. “Now tell me what happened last night.”

I told her sketchy details, not wanting her to get too upset. The few details I shared were enough to make her pale.

Violet bit her trembling lip. “You were almost killed.”

“I’m fine. Thanks to Mason.”

“So that’s why you were going to Little Rock?”

“One of the reasons.”

Violet waited.

“Joe asked me to move to Little Rock with him.”

I expected her to yell or argue. Instead, she inhaled and looked down at her hand on the table. “When were you going to tell me?”

“I was going to tell you tell you last night, but then you told me about Mike and…”

“So why aren’t you going tomorrow?”

“It’s complicated.”

She looked up with sad eyes, but her mouth lifted into a wry grin. “My brain isn’t
complete
mush after bottles, diapers and sleepless nights. Try me.”

I twisted the coffee cup in my hand. “I can’t leave you, Violet.”

“Rose…”

“It was hard enough considering leaving you before you told me about Mike, but now… You need me.”

Violet reached across the table and grabbed my hand. “Rose, you can’t stay because of me. If you do it will be just like Momma guiltin’ you into taking care of her. You hated it and felt trapped. I don’t want you to hate me.”

“Last week you told me you were scared that I’d leave and move away.”

“I was and I still am, but I want you to be happy.”

“But what about the nursery?”

Sadness filled her eyes. “That’s my dream, not yours.”

The more thought about it, I wasn’t so sure.

“What else is holding you back, Rose? I can see it on your face.”

“I don’t know if I’m the person Joe wants me to be.”

“What on earth are you talking about? That man loves you more than the air he breathes.”

“Part of the reason he wants me to move in with him is so he can keep an eye on me and so I’ll stay out of trouble. But you know I can’t guarantee that nothing will happen in Little Rock. What if I move up there and find out he’s tired of me? What will I do then?”

“He’s not goin’ to get tired of you.”

I hoped she was right.

“There’s something else holding you here. What is it?”

Unease nagged the back of my brain, but something Joe had said earlier that morning had nudged it forward. “I think by moving, maybe I’m trying to run away from my problems.”

Violet sipped her coffee and waited.

“I thought I could be someone else if I moved away and I could run from all the pain from our past, but now I’m not so sure. Maybe I need learn to accept and learn to love Rose Gardner of Henryetta before I can be Rose of somewhere else.”

“Then maybe you have your answer.”

I bit my lip, tears falling down my cheeks. “I’m going to lose Joe.”

She grabbed my hand again. “If he loves you enough, he’ll understand.”

Would he?

“And if he’s fool enough to let you go, he doesn’t deserve you. Don’t you worry, Rose, there’s plenty of other men to choose from.”

I laughed through my tears. “You mean like that blind date you set me up with? Steve, the Pillsbury Doughboy?”

She cringed. “No, and I’ll regret that for the rest of my life. Austin Kent, for one.”

“I’m not interested in Austin Kent.”

“Of course you’re not. You only have eyes for Joe. But if you find yourself in the position of being single, I assure you that other men would be interested.”

I leaned over and hugged her. “Thank you.”

“What are big sisters for? Maybe shaking up my own life has helped me look at things differently. I love you, Rose. I want you to be happy.”

“Thanks, Vi. I love you too.”

“I have to go pick up the kids. Were you supposed to go home with me?”

“How did you know that?”

She smiled. “Joe sent me a text.”

“Yeah. But I’m supposed to eat lunch with Neely Kate and I want to go to the library.”

“Are you sure it’s safe?”

“You heard me tell Mason about the library, and he didn’t try to stop me.”

She stood. “Okay. Do you want me to drop you off anywhere?”

“No, I’m not done with my coffee and Neely Kate can probably take an early lunch. Then I’ll just walk to the library. It’s only two blocks away and there are lots of people around. I’ll be fine.”

“Call me if you need me to come get you.”

“Thanks.”

I watched through the window as Violet walked to her car. Her change in attitude surprised me. Joe most likely wouldn’t be happy that I didn’t go home with Violet. I sighed, my heart heavy. Just one more offense to add to my ever-growing list. But if I decided to go to Little Rock tomorrow, I wanted to have one last lunch with Neely Kate.

I texted Neely Kate, and told her I was at the coffee shop and ready whenever she was. She answered back a few minutes later, saying Jimmy was going out for awhile and she’d let me know when she could go.

Since I had some time to fill, I figured I ought to use it to think about my future. I decided to make a list of reasons to go to Little Rock and a list of reasons to stay in Henryetta. I grabbed the coffee receipt and started the Little Rock list first, coming up with twenty-nine reasons.

Waking up with Joe every morning. Having someone to kill bugs. He cooks really well. He’s sweet to Muffy. He’s a good cuddler. He’s a wonderful man. He helps me wash dishes. He believes in me more than I do sometimes. He puts gas in my car. He mows the lawn for me. He helps me paint and says he likes it. He likes to try new things with me. He’s content to just be with me. He likes to play with Ashley and Mikey. He holds my hand when we go for walks.

He doesn’t snore. He rubs my feet. He gives me backrubs. He’s thoughtful. He’s a very handsome man. He thinks I’m beautiful. He helps me figure out problems. He thinks I’m intelligent. He’s not embarrassed by my visions. He loves me. He misses me when we’re not together. He wants to have a family one day. He makes me happy.

I’m miserable without him
.

I turned the receipt over and started the reasons to stay, staring at the paper a good five minutes before only coming up with one. But once I wrote it down, my eyes welled up with tears and I knew without a doubt I’d made my decision.

I stared at the three words through blurry vision, sure I was making the biggest mistake of my life.

I’m not ready
.

Choking back my tears, I picked up my phone to call Joe. Now that I had my decision, I felt the need to tell him as soon as possible. His phone rang as a man walked in the door of the coffee shop. Jimmy DeWade, Neely Kate’s boss, stood just inside the entrance holding a folded newspaper under his arm. He glanced around the room, catching my gaze. His mouth lifted into a half-smile, but his eyes were cold. My breath stuck in my chest when I saw the scratches on the side of his face and my head grew fuzzy.

Joe’s voicemail message kicked in, but I was frozen in horror.

Jimmy DeWade.
Duane
.

“He’s here,” I wheezed before Jimmy walked over and took my phone out of my hand. Stunned, I was slow to react. He hung up the call and tucked it in his front dress shirt pocket, sitting across from me.

“Fancy meeting you here.”

I was still trying to catch my breath.

Jimmy grinned, the scratch marks across his cheek stretching. “I think it’s time we had a chat.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Jimmy’s mouth lifted into a lopsided grimace. His hand twitched on the table, giving away his nervousness.

I noticed the scar on his arm, matching the one in my vision. Why hadn’t I looked him over more closely the day before?

“You’ve got nothing to say in broad daylight?” He removed the paper from under his arm and laid it on the table, lifting an edge to expose a gun. “Don’t think about doing something stupid. We don’t want someone to accidentally get hurt.”

“You’ll never get away with this, Jimmy.”

“Sweetheart, that is so cliché. Seriously. I expected better from you, but in case you hadn’t noticed: I already have got away with it. I just have to keep you from talkin’ any more than you already have.”

My cell phone rang in his pocket and his eyes filled with irritation and worry.

I needed to get myself together. I fought this man off last night in the dark. Alone. So why was I freaking out now? I took a deep breath. I could use the phone call to help me. “That’s probably my boyfriend. The state police detective. He’s at the Henryetta Police Department, which is only a couple of blocks away. If I don’t answer, he’ll rush right over and check on me.”

Jimmy looked down at his gun.

“You know, if you leave now, you could have a good head start. I’ll even let you take my cell phone. I’ve got plenty of minutes left this month.” That was a lie. I’d used most of my minutes with Joe.

He reached into his pocket and read the caller ID. “Mason Deveraux.”

My pulse pounded in my temple. “That’s the assistant DA.”

Growling, he pushed a button to make the ringing stop and put the phone on the table. “I know who Mason Deveraux is. The question is, why is he calling you?”

“He’s expectin’ me to come over to the courthouse. If I don’t show up, he’s going to send the police out looking for me.”

He cocked his head, suspicious. “I don’t believe you.”

I flashed my sweetest smile. “You can call him and ask him if you want.”

“Why in the world would I do that?”

“You said you don’t believe me. That way you’d know that I wasn’t lyin’.”

The phone rang again.

“Good Lord. Do you run a call service?” he asked, disgusted. He picked up the phone and checked caller ID. “Joe.”

I smiled again. “My boyfriend. The state police detective.”

“You already said that.”

“Just tryin’ to help you keep everyone straight.”

He rubbed his eyes and I was about to hop up and run for the back door when he dropped his arm and reached for the newspaper. “Don’t even think about it.”

“I have to pee.”

“No, you don’t.”

“I do. I swear it. I have the bladder of a thimble, not to mention coffee goes
right through me
, if you know what I mean.”

“You can wait.”

“I can’t be held responsible for accidents.” I grumbled, but the longer we sat here the longer I’d stay alive. There was no telling what he had in mind when he said
have a chat
, although his attempt to kill me the night before gave me a pretty good idea.

Waiting was good, although Violet was the only one who knew I was here. No, Neely Kate knew and was meeting me for lunch. I nearly groaned when I realized Neely Kate wouldn’t come until Jimmy went back to the office and Jimmy was detained, plotting my murder. I needed to stall him until I figured out what else to do. “Why did you come to my house last night?”

He snorted, his eyes bulging. “You’re kidding, right?”

I tried to look innocent. “Why would I ask if I knew?”

“I thought my motive was pretty clear when I tried to strangle you.”

My nausea brewed. “How’d you pass off your scratch marks?”

“Cats are vicious things.”

They didn’t look like cat scratches to me, but this was the normally mild-mannered Jimmy. No one would suspect anything ungentlemanly from him. “You still didn’t answer.”

“I already—”

“No.
Why
?” I tried to keep my voice light and breezy, not an easy task when talking about your attempted murder with the man who tried to do it. “I get that you wanted me dead.” I laughed. “Hello, anyone could figure that out. Even the Henryetta Police Department.”

Jimmy’s eyes narrowed in irritation.

“Come on, even you—especially you—have to admit that the HPD’s investigating skills are like two dogs in heat lookin’ for an acorn.”

He smiled with a shrug. “Well…”

“You’re gonna be like a local legend, you know it?” I asked, excited. “You’re gonna be known as the guy who outwitted the HDP.”

He shook his head in confusion. “Wait. How do you figure that…?”

I lifted my coffee cup. “To the guy who outwitted the HDP.” I started to take a sip then put it down on the table. “Oh wait. You don’t have a drink. I’ll go get you one, my treat.” I grabbed my purse and stood. “What can I get you?”

“Sit back down.”

“It’s really rude to drink in front of you, especially when we’re drinking
to you
.”

“Sit. Down.”

I sat. “You don’t have to be so grumpy about it.”

He sighed in exasperation. “Here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna get in your car and drive out Highway 82, out past Watson’s Garage. You’re pretty acquainted with that area, aren’t you?”

I was only too familiar with it and he knew it. That’s where Daniel Crocker’s operation had been based. Muffy and I had traipsed through the woods and brush around there to rescue Joe. If Jimmy DeWade planned to take me out there, they wouldn’t find me for a long time. If ever.

Trying not to hyperventilate, I half-smiled, half-grimaced. “There’s a teeny-tiny problem with that plan. I don’t have a car.”