Deception (48 page)

“If there’s anything there, we’ll call. Not before. This family can’t take more gossip and talk. I don’t mind the stories about the house being haunted. Even the talk about Ms. Talla taking drugs is passing away now. If we call the police down here about some body swinging in a tree, we’d better have a body to deliver to them, or else they’ll begin to talk all over again about how Clay Sumner has got himself another crazy wife.” Willene’s voice was worn with weariness.

“Clay’s and Tallulah Sumner’s reputations are the last thing I’m concerned about,” Connor snapped.

“That’s tonight. Tomorrow, when Clay is home and all this is ironed out, you’ll regret making a damn fool of yourself.” Willene looked at Connor and then away. “You’ve given Renata another terrible image to think about. These children have suffered enough. If we can get through this without anyone else getting hurt, I want to try. Now let’s get to the bottom of this and settle it.”

Without waiting for Connor, Willene strode out of the house and got the flashlight out of the truck. In a few seconds she was walking down the drive toward the white oak tree where James Dickerson had swung from the end of a rope.

Connor ran to catch up with her, the wind whipping her hair into her eyes. Willene hadn’t even bothered to get a coat. At the curve in the drive, Connor fell in beside the cook. Together they pushed forward against the wind toward the tree.

“Where was it?” Willene asked, swinging the light toward the oak, her voice raised over the soughing of the wind.

“Just there.” Connor put her hand on Willene’s and directed the flashlight. The windswept branches of the tree caught the light. There was nothing there. Not a sign of a body or even a rope.

“Are you sure it was here?” Willene swung the light back and forth. The branches of the tree swayed wildly in the wind.

“I saw a man hanging in that tree.” Connor pushed her hair out of her face. “He was there.”

“There’s nothing here.” Willene moved forward, circling the big oak. She shined the light up and down in a regular pattern. “There’s nothing here, thank God,” she said softly.

“I saw him.” Connor searched the old tree, too, panic rising in her chest. She’d seen a man hanging in a tree. It wasn’t a trick of her imagination. She wasn’t losing her mind!

“You see a lot of things at Oaklawn. It would have been better for everyone if you’d left.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Connor asked. She knew what she’d seen, and Willene’s attitude chilled her to the bone. “I’m not responsible for any of this.”

“Those children can’t take much more. Whatever is going on here has got to stop before they are damaged beyond repair.”

“I can’t take much more of it, either,” Connor said.

Willene took Connor’s arm and started back toward the house. “Leave here now. Mr. Clay will survive. The children will be better off. Mr. Clay can find someone more suited to Oaklawn.”

Connor couldn’t believe what Willene was saying. “I’m suited to Oaklawn,” she answered.

“You’re unhappy here. Renata doesn’t want you as a stepmother. Clay is starting to behave the way he did when he was married to Talla, not coming home and not telling anyone where he is. For the sake of those two children, leave here at once.”

“How did you know that Clay has disappeared?” Connor jerked free of Willene, suspicion creeping into her mind. Had Willene been listening on the phone? Again?

“I tried to call him. Danny was so upset about Cleo being cut and the knife he found and all. When I couldn’t find you, I tried to call Clay and tell him that his children needed him.”

“And what did you discover?” Connor’s voice was cool, angry.

“That he wasn’t where he should have been. That he’s acting like he used to act, driving everyone crazy and making the children feel like they aren’t loved. If this is going to be a repeat of his last marriage, I’d advise you to pack your things and get away now, before you get in any deeper.”

“I won’t be run out of my marriage and Oaklawn by a body hanging in a tree.” Connor walked ahead of Willene, striding long and furious toward the house. Until now she’d depended on Willene’s support. It was a bitter blow to find that it wasn’t real.

Inside the house, she went to her room and locked the door. She tried Clay’s office, but there was no answer. Benedict Ashton didn’t answer, either. Connor chewed her bottom lip for half a minute before calling Richard Brian. It wasn’t fair to drag Richard back into her personal life, but she had no place else to turn.

The riddle of Oaklawn stemmed from Clay. That much Connor knew. If she couldn’t talk to Clay, Richard might be able to give her some insight into his past. He’d forgiven her for the last episode in which she’d called him. He’d even given his blessing to the marriage, but not before he’d shown how deeply disturbed he was about it.

The telephone was answered on the third ring by a young woman. When she asked to speak to Richard, the woman paused.

“He’s away, and I’m Beth, his cat sitter,” she said. “Who is this?”

“Mrs. Clay Sumner of Mobile. Do you expect him back soon?”

“He should be landing in Mobile in the next hour. He got a call from someone there today who said a friend of his was in trouble.” There was curiosity and a bit of anxiety in the woman’s voice. “Is everything okay with his family?”

“Yes.” Connor sat down on the bed. “If he calls you, please have him get in touch with me as soon as he can. I need to talk with him.” She put the telephone down. At least he was on his way home. Thank God for Richard.

She paced the room trying to think of what she could do. It was pointless to try to eat or rest. Elvie had obviously called Richard, a very smart move. At least Richard was on his way.

She found her address book under a stack of magazines and looked up Richard’s parents’ number. Before she dialed, she decided to drive to the airport and meet him. That would be much better. And maybe he’d have some suggestions about where to find Clay.

Along with frustration and anger, there was a tiny but growing blade of worry for Clay. No matter what Harlan said. Regardless of what physical evidence she’d found, she could not completely believe that Clay was behind all the madness at Oaklawn. Certainly not what had happened to Cleo. The sensation of his hands on her body came to her, and she could not believe that he could slice through an animal’s leg with cold deliberation. Nor could he hurt her.

If he was sane.

That cold and sobering thought got her to her feet and into her jacket. She started to tell Willene where she was going, but decided against telling anyone. Instead she drove down to the barn, checked on Cleo, and headed out for the airport.

It was nearly ten when she walked into the terminal. Scanning the arrivals screen, she found one direct flight that Richard might be on, due to arrive at 11:20. Stationing herself near the baggage claim, she leaned against a pillar to wait.

Time passed in small, hard increments. She watched the hands of a large wall clock move minute by minute. After three trips to the airport concession for coffee, she was back at her position when a few travelers began to straggle into the baggage claim. The flight arrived about five minutes early. Connor held her position against the pillar, waiting to see if Richard’s family had come to meet him. If they were there, she’d disappear. If not, he’d be glad to have a ride.

Even though she was watching, she was caught off-guard by Richard’s strong good looks when he walked to the baggage carousel. Relief swept through her, and she felt tears prickle behind her eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she wanted to see a friend. Her first impulse was to call out to him, but she checked herself, waiting to see who came forward to meet him. When no one did, she stepped forward.

“Can I offer you a ride?”

He whirled around, his critical gaze sweeping her up and down before he allowed a tentative smile to touch his lips. “Connor! I got a call from Elvie, and she sounded as if you were in danger of being killed. You look like hell. What’s Clay been doing to you?”

Afraid to trust her voice, Connor shook her head. “Someone cut Cleo pretty badly.”

Richard pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly as he spoke. “That’s what Elvie said. I know how much those animals mean to you, and I came straight home. Let’s get out of here and go someplace we can talk.” He picked up a single suitcase and put his free hand under Connor’s arm. He suddenly stopped, lifting her hand to the light.

“Does Clay know you’re wearing that ring?”

Connor looked at the ruby, unsure what Richard was talking about. She’d forgotten that the ring was still on her pinky.

“No. I wanted to ask him about the inscription. Renata found it in the pecan orchard.”

“
Forever, my love. “

“How did you know?”

“I’m going to tell you everything. RAB—those are my initials. I gave that ring to Talla.”

Connor swallowed. She let Richard take her arm and steer her out the door and into the night. She’d known Richard and Talla had been involved, but she’d assumed the affair was sexual, not romantic. The ring implied a much stronger bond.

“I was in love with Talla,” Richard said slowly, as he negotiated the parking lot. He’d spotted her truck and was working toward it as he talked. “I was never anything more than an amusement to her. I knew that, and she never pretended otherwise. It’s a long story, but I loved her. I found out where Clay had his jewelry designed and I commissioned a ring for Talla. That ring.”

“I should have guessed.” Connor twisted the ringer on her finger as they walked. “Does Clay know you gave it to her?”

“At the first opportunity, Talla threw that fact in his face. He ordered her not to wear it. He demanded the ring, and when she wouldn’t give it to him, they struggled. It was the first time he physically hurt her. He got the ring, but broke one of her fingers in the fray. To keep her from wearing it, he threw it into the pecan orchard.”

Connor almost felt the snap of the finger herself. Nausea made her stumble, but she recovered. Clay had married Talla, and Richard had loved her. Was there any part of Connor’s life that would remain untouched by Talla Bienville Sumner? It didn’t seem so. She forced herself to walk and speak. “Renata found the ring in the orchard. I thought she’d been playing with it and lost it there.”

“Clay hated me. I think it was because we were such close friends that he felt betrayed. He knew Talla was sleeping with anyone she chose, but it was different because I was his friend. Looking back, I suspect that was Talla’s only interest in me, that I could hurt Clay more than anyone else except his brother.”

“The terrible thing about all this is that no one is innocent.” Connor gave Richard the keys and leaned her head against the truck window while he unlocked the doors.

“Not completely innocent. No one ever is. But Clay didn’t deserved to be cuckolded all over Mobile. People were laughing at him wherever he went, and his chances to run for office were growing smaller and smaller. Maybe that was Talla’s ultimate goal, to tarnish him so thoroughly that no one would vote for him. To ruin everything he ever wanted—his career, his horses. I have no idea why she hated him so, except that she could not bend him completely to her will.”

“I have to ask you this, Richard. Please tell me the truth. Do you believe Clay is stable?”

“Now it’s come down to this. At last. This is the point I tried to help you avoid.”

“That’s the past. I made my own decisions, but now I need help. I don’t know what’s going on. I feel like I’m going crazy. The things that are happening at Oaklawn come from some dark nightmare.” She stopped herself and turned away.

Richard’s arms encircled her and he pulled her against his chest. “Tell me what’s happening.”

She gave him a quick review of the woman who’d attacked her with a hammer, and the incident on the steps, and she reminded him of the cut girth. “I’ve thought and thought, and Clay seems to be the person who’s had more access to make these things happen.” She finally broke, and tears choked her voice. “I can’t believe he’d do this. I can’t. He’s so caring and tender …”

Richard opened the truck door and put her in the passenger seat. When he was behind the wheel he put his hand on her shoulder. “When similar things started happening to Talla, I didn’t pay much attention to them.” His voice was rough with emotion. “She drank so much, and she took so many different kinds of pills, I thought it was a bid for attention. This time I’m listening.”

Connor leaned across the seat and kissed his cheek.

“What we have to do is figure out some way to find out the truth. Something came to me while you were talking. Are you willing to try?”

“I’ll try anything.”

Richard cranked the truck and pulled out of the parking lot. “Since the person at Oaklawn who is trying to hurt you or drive you crazy or run you away is so caught up in the past, maybe we could use the same weapon.”

Richard’s ramblings didn’t make any sense. Connor looked at him, his face a mask of concentration in the dashboard light. “What are you saying?”

“Everything has been the past. The woman in the woods is Hilla, the body was in the tree where James Dickerson was hanged. Unless Oaklawn really is haunted, someone is using all that as a weapon. Why don’t we turn the tables? There was another violent act at Oaklawn, and one that might flush out a murderer.”

“Talla.” Connor whispered the name as if she’d never heard it.

“Exactly. How would it be for our trickster to confront a body he didn’t place?”

“I don’t know.” Connor felt a chill at even the thought. “That seems so …”

“Twisted? Well, isn’t that exactly what’s happening to you? I’ve discovered that the best ammunition is that which the enemy shoots at you.”

Richard had a point. But the idea of even pretending to hang a body in the barn … She swallowed. “You’re thinking if it is Clay, and if he did kill Talla, then we’ll be able to see that by his reaction.”

“Exactly.”

“And if it isn’t Clay?”

“I believe Talla was murdered, Connor. I didn’t want to believe it, and until all this began to happen to you, I guess I wouldn’t let myself believe it. Now I have no doubts. Someone killed her. We have to force the hand of whoever is behind all this.” He gripped her hand in his and squeezed it. “If it is Clay, then he won’t stop until he kills you, too.”