Ripple of Secrets: Rose Gardner Mystery Novella #6.5 (Rose Gardner series Book 3) (16 page)

When I walked back out, I took in the layout of the store. The shelves had been stocked the last time I’d been in, but since then, she’d made the place homey and cheery and very festive. Valentine’s Day was only five weeks away, and miniature rose bushes in white, red, and pink ceramic pots were spread through the shop.

Violet’s gaze followed me. “Do you want to wear an apron too?”

“Um… yeah.” It was odd to feel like a stranger in my own business. Maybe I’d purposely separated myself from the nursery just a little too well.

She handed me a black apron, and after I pulled it over my head, she grabbed the strings and tied it in the back.

“Are you excited about today?” I asked.

“Yes,” she gushed. “I’m glad to be back to work. I feel like I belong here, you know?”

I turned to look at her. “I know, Vi. You do belong here… You’re a natural.”

Tears filled her eyes. “Thanks for not taking my dream away from me.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. She’d betrayed me multiple times. But she was my sister and that overruled every other consideration. “I love you, Violet. You know that. But I can’t take another betrayal from you, so consider this fair warning.”

“I know.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry.”

I pulled her into a hug. “I know you are. Let’s just try to start over, okay?” I released her and pulled back, looking into her eyes. “We don’t fill the same roles any more. I’ve grown up and you don’t have to protect me anymore.”

Fiery determination set her eyes ablaze. “You can’t ask that of me, Rose. I’ll always want to protect you. Are you saying you’d just stand by if you saw me gettin’ hurt?”

“Of course not. How can you even ask?”

“You’re asking me to refrain from doing that very thing.”

I grabbed both of her biceps. “Violet, I think your definition of protecting me and my definition are two very different things.”

She was about to answer when the front door dinged. I turned to see Neely Kate enter the store with a cake box in hand. Her face lit up when she saw us. “Am I missing somethin’ good?” Neely Kate was always after me to confront Violet about her behavior.

I let my hands fall to my sides. “Of course not. Vi and I were having a heart-to-heart.”

Her eyebrows lifted in amusement as she walked past us to the table Violet had set up in the back of the store. “Don’t let me stop your chat.”

Vi’s eyes clouded and she turned and marched back to the register. “Rose, I take it you’re going to make sure your employee gets the cake set up okay?”

“Sure.”

Neely Kate shot me an amused look and whispered, “Is bein’ called your employee instead of your friend a promotion or a demotion?”

I shook my head and grinned at her. “She’s just upset that you’re doin’ the books now,” I whispered. “She takes it personally that she’s being audited. She says it makes it look like she was stealing money.”

Neely Kate’s mouth pressed into a thin line and she hissed, “But she
was
stealin’ money!” The balanced cake began to wobble in her arms. I grabbed it and set it down on the table.

“She wasn’t really stealing,” I whispered in Violet’s defense. “She was just misappropriating funds.”

“Like that’s any better,” she scoffed.

“Give her a few weeks. She’ll get over it.”

“Hmm.” She put her hands on her hips and shot an angry glare at the register.

Perhaps asking Neely Kate to help out had been a bad idea.

The bell on the door jingled again, signaling the arrival of our first customer, a woman from Jonah’s church. Neely Kate cut her a piece of cake while I helped her pick out a plant to give her neighbor as a housewarming gift. As soon as she left, I got Neely Kate an apron and helped her on with it.

“You’re just trying to hog-tie me here so I can’t leave,” she said, but something in her voice sounded off.

“Neely Kate, are you feelin’ okay? You look a little pale.”

She rested her hand on her stomach. “Now that you mention it, I’m a bit queasy and my back kind of aches.”

“You should sit down. I’ll get you a chair from the back.”

“And have Violet accuse me of sitting down on the job? I don’t think so.”

“I’m your employer and I’m ordering you to sit.”

She flashed me a grin, though it was several wattages dimmer than usual. “You’re so bossy.”

“I know.” I grabbed a folding chair from the back room and set it up by the table, making sure Neely Kate obeyed me.

As the morning progressed, more people started to stream through the door. We were getting more customers than we’d expected, and even better, they were all buying things. Through it all, I kept on eye on Neely Kate. After she drank some water and ate a banana she had in her purse, some of the color returned to her face.

Close to noon, she stood by the cake, not looking quite right. I made my way over to her. “Maybe you should go home, Neely Kate.”

“I’m fine,” she said, rubbing her back. “I just slept in a weird position last night is all.”

“Are you sure?”

She looked exasperated. “Stop babyin’ me. I’m fine.”

“If you change your mind—”

“I won’t.” Her gaze shifted to the door. “Who’s that? I’ve never seen her before. I’d know if I had.”

I wanted to tell Neely Kate that she didn’t know everyone in Fenton County, but some days it felt like she did. I definitely didn’t recognize the woman who’d just walked into the nursery. Her dark hair was bobbed with several blue streaks. She wore jeans and a khaki coat.

“I tell you what,” Neely Kate said. “I think I could pull off color streaks.”

I shot her a look. She’d mentioned the same thing in New Orleans when we met a woman with pink stripes in her hair. Considering how things had turned out with her, I was surprised Neely Kate hadn’t changed her mind on the merits of such a hairstyle.

The woman walked into the middle of the store and Violet circled the counter to greet her. “Welcome to Gardner Sisters Nursery. Can I help you find something?”

The woman looked Violet up and down. “Are you Rose Gardner?”

Violet looked taken back. “And you are…?”

She flashed Violet a sarcastic grin. “Someone looking for Rose Gardner.”

“Are you sure you don’t know who that is?” Neely Kate asked me in a whisper.

“I think I’d remember her, Neely Kate.” But she obviously knew me. The question was how.

Violet had taken on her familiar role of momma bear. “I’d like to know how you know her and why you’re lookin’ for her.”

I stepped forward. “It’s okay, Violet. I’ll talk to her.”

“Rose,” Violet hissed. “I don’t like her attitude.”

Neither did I. She put off a cocky air, but I saw no reason not to talk to her. “It’s fine. I’ll see what she wants.”

The bell on the door announced another customer and Violet reluctantly went to greet her.

The woman chuckled and closed the distance between us. “Rose.” It was a statement.

“What can I do for you?”

She looked me up and down. “You’re not what I was expecting.”

I squared my shoulders. “You have me at a disadvantage. You’ve clearly heard about me, but I don’t know anything about you.”

I expected her to introduce herself, but she moved on to another topic instead. “What do you know about Hilary Wilder?”

Neely Kate tried to get around me, but I shifted to the side and blocked her path. “If you’re lookin’ for gossip, I suggest you get your hair done at Beulah’s Nip and Clip,” I said. “You’ll get more than you bargain for there.”

She laughed. “Really? That’s all you can say about her?”

I shook my head. “I’m sorry, but I’m not gonna discuss Hilary Wilder with you.”

“Why not? She’s more than happy to talk about you with anyone who asks.”

“What Hilary does is her business, not mine.”

The woman looked perplexed. “Why aren’t you with Joe?”

“Who
are
you?” Neely Kate demanded.

“An interested party.”

“You can be interested all you like,” I said. “But my personal life is no one’s business but my own.”

“I can get my answers elsewhere.”

Neely Kate worked her way around me. “Then maybe you should move along to elsewhere.”

The woman chuckled again and looked around the store. “I think I’ll check out your merchandise first.”

“Don’t you even think about casin’ the place,” Neely Kate warned.

The woman laughed again and started to wander the floor.

Violet shot me a glance that told me she wanted to kick her out, but I saw no reason for it. Maybe she’d buy something. God knew we weren’t in any position to turn away business. I’d expected curious gawkers. We were lucky we hadn’t had any before this customer.

Ten minutes later she was still there, ignoring our offers of help. She just said she was waiting for the perfect gift, though the way she kept glancing at the door told me she didn’t expect to find it on the shelves. A grin spread across her face when Joe walked through the door. But he looked less than thrilled to see her.

“What are you doin’ here, Kate?”

Kate? His
sister
Kate? Her questions made more sense, though there was still the issue of why she was here asking them and why she was being so belligerent.

“I’m trying to get some of the answers you wouldn’t give me.”

Joe’s face flushed with anger. “I told you to leave it alone. It’s time for you to go.”

She picked up a black and white, cow-shaped gravy boat. “But I haven’t purchased my housewarming gift for Hilary yet.”

Joe rolled his eyes. “You’re stirring up a hornet’s nest, Kate. I know this is your idea of fun, but it’s time for you to stop.”

She hugged the ceramic cow to her chest. “Now, Joe. When have you known me to back down from a challenge?”

“You are messin’ with my personal life.
Stop.
”

She stepped closer to him until they were no more than a few inches apart. “I’m sorry, big brother, but I just can’t do that. Now that I know we’re on the same side, I plan on jumping into the ring to help you.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that I don’t
want
your help?”

She shrugged, her lips curling up into a smug smile. “You’re getting it anyway.” She spun around and set the cow on the counter in front of the register. “Do you gift wrap?”

Violet’s gaze shifted to me before moving back to Kate. “Yes, but it’s extra.”

“I don’t mind. Make sure it’s classy.” She scratched her chin, as if deep in thought. “Oh, wait. You
do
know what classy is here in Fenton County, don’t you?”

I expected Neely Kate to pounce on her. When she didn’t, I turned around to see her clutching her stomach, her eyes wide with terror. “Neely Kate?”

Her face was paler than I’d ever seen it, and I noticed a small pool of blood on the floor at her feet. “Joe!” I screamed, rushing over to my friend as she started to collapse.

He was at her side before I could even process what was happening. “Violet, call 911,” he shouted.

Violet grabbed the phone and made the call as I knelt beside Joe and my best friend. He gently patted her face. “Neely Kate? Can you hear me, honey?”

Her eyes were closed and she didn’t respond.

“She’d hate you callin’ her honey,” I said, my voice shaky from my terror.

“I know, that’s why I said it.” He picked up her wrist to feel for her pulse, then turned to me. “What happened?”

“I don’t know.” I brushed back my hair, trying to sort it all out in my head. “She said she was queasy and her back hurt. I tried to send her home, but she refused to go.” My eyes darted to the blood on the floor. “She’s losin’ her baby, isn’t she?”

“Maybe, maybe not. Let’s focus on the maybe not, okay?”

I nodded. “Okay. You’re right.”

Violet moved behind us. “They said the ambulance has a flat tire and won’t be here for a bit. Maybe twenty minutes.”

“You didn’t tell them it was Neely Kate, did you?” he demanded. “They’ll take longer if they know it’s her.”

“No. I didn’t tell them.”

“The damn ambulance system in this county,” he said in disgust, then shook his head. “We can’t wait that long.” He scooped her up in his arms and climbed to his feet. “I’ll take her myself.”

“I’m coming with you,” I said, following behind him.

“I want you to, so don’t expect a fight from me.”

Genuine concern filled Kate’s face as she ran for the door and held it open for Joe and me. “What can I do?” she asked.

He shifted Neely Kate in his arms so her head wouldn’t flop backward. “I think you’ve done more than enough.” His tone was harsh, but it softened when he addressed me. “Rose, open the back door of my car and I’ll put her in. Why don’t you sit back there with her?”

“Okay.” I did exactly that, propping an unconscious Neely Kate so she was leaning against me.

As he shut the back door, Kate was opening the passenger door. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Joe shouted. “Butt out of this, Kate!”

“No. I’m coming.” She slid into the seat and closed the door.

Joe’s face turned beet red as he got in. “I don’t have time to argue with you over this, but we will be talking about this later.” He took off, turning on his police lights and siren as he raced through town.

I picked up Neely Kate’s hand, worried by how cold it was. “Neely Kate. You have to wake up.” I fought to keep from crying.

Kate turned around and got onto her knees so she was facing us. “Keep talking to her.”

My gaze shot up to her. I was about to say something snippy, but she cut me off.

“Remind her of what she’s fighting for.”

Kate was right, as hard it was to admit considering the first impression she’d made. “Neely Kate. Hang on, sweetie. Joe’s takin’ you to the hospital, so you just hang on, okay?”

Less than five minutes later the hospital came into view.

“We’re here,” Joe said, pulling into the hospital entrance and driving right up to the emergency room doors. He honked his horn several times, then hopped out and opened the back door, scooping Neely Kate into his arms again before anyone even came out. He barged through the electric doors, Kate and me fast behind him. “I have a twenty-four-year-old woman, eleven weeks pregnant. She passed out and is unresponsive. She needs to be seen
stat
.”