Eye of the Abductor (19 page)

“Yes, more than anything.”

“Together we can do it. And to hell with what my family thinks.
So long as I believe you’re innocent, that’s all that matters. Understand?”

She raised her head from his shoulder and gazed up at him. “Oh,
Brance. You’re too good to me, and that scares me.”

“You’ve got to trust me, sweetheart.” He released her from his
embrace.

"I'm working on it."

“Everything will be fine.” He held her hand and gave it a
reassuring squeeze. “After we leave here, we’ll go to Gramie’s house so I can
introduce you.”

***

Allison freshened up her makeup on the long drive to
Collierville. She'd wanted to postpone meeting his grandmother, but Brance
seemed adamant about getting it over with. By the time he pulled into the
driveway of an elegant home, she’d regained her composure.

Huge columns held up a massive porch in front of the house that
sat on a large amount of acreage.

“How did she acquire so much money?”

“My grandfather was a developer and made several wise
investments.”

“Was he your mother or your dad's father?”

“My mom's. Guess what my dad’s father was?”

“A cop.”

“You got it. My grandparents were disappointed when my mother
married Dad."

"You mentioned your grandfather’s deceased. Does she live
alone?"

"She has Sally. She started working for my grandparents when
she was sixteen. Gramie saw that all of Sally’s kids went to college. When
Sally's husband died and her children relocated, she moved in with Gramie to
take care of her. From what my mother says, Gramie has made sure Sally will
have plenty after she dies."

"That's nice of her."

Brance helped Allison from the car and escorted her up the front
steps.

An older black woman opened the door. “Brance Stone, you should
be ashamed of yourself. You could’ve at least called.”

“I’ve been busy, Sally.”

“Doing what?”

“Finding a wife.” After introducing Allison, he asked, “Where’s
Gramie?”

“Out in the sunroom.”

Allison had never seen a more beautiful home, decorated with
exquisite antique furniture. A large chandelier hung in the foyer. The light
bouncing off it produced a rainbow on the wall. The house smelled of baked
apples and Old English Furniture Polish.

Brance opened a door off the den that led out to a sunroom. An
older lady turned and smiled. She wore a red and gold Japanese style wrap and
matching pants. Even her shoes matched. Though her hair was silver, she wore it
in a modern style. “The prodigal grandson at last shows his face.”

He introduced the two women.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. O’Kelly.”

“Call me Margaret.”

“Allison and I are getting married.”

His grandmother’s scrutinizing stare made Allison's stomach knot
up. She narrowed her eyes on her grandson. “So you found a little gold digger
so you can weasel your way into my will?”

“No,” Allison interrupted, answering before Brance could. “I’m
not a gold digger. I’m a convicted felon.”

Gramie’s eyes widened in disbelief before she shifted her gaze to
Brance. “Is that true?”

He nodded. “Yep, she served two years.”

Though Allison appeared calm on the outside, on the inside she
quivered with fear, fear that this woman wouldn’t accept her, fear that Brance
would still be excluded from her will.

Gramie motioned for them to sit down, then summoned Sally to
bring more tea. “Tell me about it.”

Allison explained what had happened.

“You poor, darling," Gramie said. "When is the
wedding?”

“Next Sunday we hope,” Allison replied.

“Does your father know?” Gramie asked Brance.

“Yes. He’s not exactly thrilled.”

“Are you marrying her for my money or do you love her?”

“I want to help Allison.”

“What if I said I still plan to leave you out of my will? Would
you still be getting married next Sunday?”

“Yes, if Allison will have me.”

His grandmother smiled.

Allison’s heart seemingly stopped for a matter of seconds. Why
would he still want to marry her if he didn’t have an alternative motive? Then
it occurred to her that he was only saying what his grandmother wanted to hear.
She relaxed.

If he started saying a bunch of crap about being in love with
her, she’d know something was wrong. Recently, she’d seen him with two women.

Sally entered carrying a tray and handed them each a glass of tea
with a lemon wedge on the side, and then she disappeared inside.

The glass door opened, and Allison glanced up expecting Sally
again. Instead she saw a younger image of Mike Stone and an attractive woman.
She remembered his picture and knew he was one of the brothers.

Gramie smiled. “I was lonely this morning and prayed about it and
now I have more company than I know what to do with. Where are the kids?”

"Mom kept them."

Recognizing the name, Allison studied the woman Brance had been
engaged to. Her sleek figure, dark hair, and brown eyes gave her an exotic
look.

Brance jumped up and stood by his brother. "Have a seat,
Carla."

"Thanks." She sat beside Allison.

“Don't get too comfortable. We're not staying.” Dillon shifted
his gaze to Brance. “Mom told us we could find you here. She said you plan to
marry Paige Wilson. I always knew you were an idiot. This proves it.”

“Then consider me the happiest idiot in town.”

Dillon turned his attention to Allison, his eyes revealing his
indignation for her. “Johnny Jenkins was married with a toddler and an infant
when he was gunned down. I hate you, you cop killing whore.”

Brance punched Dillon in the face. “Don’t ever call her that
again!”

Allison cringed.

“Stop it!” Carla shouted. “Both of you grow up.”

Panic and humiliation rippled through Allison’s entire body. She
wanted to crawl out the door and never see any of these people again. She
swallowed back her embarrassment.

Dillon rubbed his nose on his sleeve. “If you marry her, we’ll
all disown you. It’s either her or us.”

Allison closed her eyes, waiting for Brance’s reply. Her pulse
pounded at her temples. Without Brance, she’d never stand a chance of getting
Nathan back.

Chapter Eleven

“Next Sunday, I’m marrying Allison.”

Dillon looked at his grandmother. “Surely you don't approve of
him marrying this woman, do you?”

“I like her.” Gramie turned toward the door. “Sally! Bring a bag
of ice for Dillon.”

“But can’t you see this is some kind of deal between them,”
Dillon persisted.

“That’s true,” Allison admitted. “In return for marrying him,
Brance will help me regain custody of my son.”

Gramie smiled at her. “You’re a straight arrow, kiddo. And my
grandson loves you.”

Allison’s gaze shot to Brance, who gave her a loving smile. With
a look like that, no wonder his grandmother believed he was hopelessly in love.
What a smooth operator Brance was. Just one more reason to safeguard her heart.

She shifted her gaze to Dillon, who stood like an ill-tempered
rodeo bull. “I doubt you’ll believe me, but I wasn’t involved in Rob’s illegal
ventures.”

“Save it for someone who gives a shit." Dillon accepted the
bag of ice from Sally and placed it on his mouth.

“Don't use that language in my house," Gramie ordered.
"Sit down and hear the girl out.”

He did, and it unnerved Allison even more. She inhaled a deep
breath, then repeated what she’d told Gramie earlier.

Dillon’s eyes remained cold and hard. “A jury of twelve didn’t
believe you, and neither do I.”

"Well, I do," Brance said. "Allison was
framed."

“I believe you,” Carla said, looking at her.

“Carla, chill,” Dillon smirked. "You're both idiots."

Carla flashed him a don't-tell-me-what-to-do scowl before turning
her attention to Allison. “I attended your trial. And even then, I thought you
were innocent.”

“Too bad you weren’t on the jury. I was a fool for believing
everything Rob said. If I’d known, I’d have turned him in to the authorities
and filed for a divorce sooner.”

“No one’s that naive,” Dillon said.

“I was,” Allison whispered, heat inching up her neck. "But
I'll never allow myself to be played again." She studied Dillon. He was a
number one asshole. How could two brothers be so different? "I didn't kill
Jenkins. I wasn't there when it happened.

“Spare me the bullshit."

"Watch your language, Dillon," Gramie warned.

Brance’s glare landed on his brother. “I’m concerned about Randy
Forrest?”

“What about him?”

Brance reviewed how someone had ransacked Allison’s apartment. “I
think he knows something about it.”

“Why would he do that?” Carla asked.

“He’s probably after the five million Wilson stashed,” Dillon
said. “Rob and Randy were partners at one time.”

Brance looked at Allison. “Did you know that?”

“I don’t recall a Randy.”

“It was before Wilson was promoted to Narcotics,” Dillon
remarked.

“His partner was Rif,” Allison stated.

“That was Randy’s nickname. Randal Ivan Forrest,” Dillon offered.
“You’d never met him before?”

“No. Never. Not until Brance introduced us. Rob didn’t want me
around anyone he worked with. The only person we saw socially was Trey
Marshall, Jill’s old boyfriend. That’s how I met her.”

Brance’s expression grew tight and suspicious.

“Don’t even go there,” Allison warned. “She’s not involved.”

“When you called Jill that night was she the one who suggested
going out?”

“Yes, but that’s because I was angry with you.”

“Because I was with Tammy?”

Allison narrowed her eyes. “Yes. It just proves my point about
cops.”

“I went out with her to get over you.”

Allison huffed and threw the lemon slice at him. He caught it and
grinned. Immediately, doing something so childish caused heat to spread across
her cheeks.

Carla and Gramie laughed.

Brance turned to his grandmother. “Can you believe she dumped a
pitcher of water on my date’s lap?”

“Tammy?” Gramie asked.

“No, Linda. Ruined her dress.” Brance offered Allison a playful
scowl. “Waitress with an attitude. I bet they kept you in solitary confinement
to keep the other inmates safe.”

Even though Brance was teasing, Allison hated being reminded. Her
prison record would always be an ignominious collar around her neck. She didn’t
like talking about her experience, but since he’d brought it up, she decided to
elaborate.

“Actually, I’m proud of what I did during my incarceration. I taught
eleven women to read and work math problems. All eleven received a GED.”

“I forgot you’d been a teacher,” Brance said.

The man had her brain in a topsy-turvy spin. “Teaching those
women helped me keep my mind off of my situation.”

Gramie gave Dillon a stern look. “An apology might be in order.”

Dillon snapped out of his trance. “Hmm?”

“An apology to Allison,” she repeated.

“It’s not necessary,” Allison said to Dillon. “Since you’d only
be saying it to appease Gramie, I think any apology should go to her.”

Dillon met his grandmother’s gaze. “I’m sorry for the way I spoke
to you, Gramie. I was just trying to stop Brance from making the biggest
mistake of his life.”

“Thank you, Dillon. As for Brance, he’s not some misguided kid.
He’s a man capable of making his own decisions.”

Dillon drilled Allison with an intense stare. He’d already formed
an opinion of her and like a fossil left behind on hard rock, it was imprinted
in his one-sided dense brain.

“You’re all invited to our wedding,” Brance announced as if he
expected his brother to slap him on the back and congratulate him. “Mom can
give you the details later.”

“Don’t look for us.” Dillon averted his gaze to Carla. “Let’s
go.”

“I plan to attend." Carla stood and joined her husband.
“Dillon can watch the kids.”

“Sally and I will be there,” Gramie stated.

Brance appeared a little taken back. Poor guy really thought his
brother would want to come. But not Allison, she remembered exactly how
unforgiving people could be. Even family.

She stood and faced Carla, the woman Brance had once loved.
“Thank you for telling me that you believe I’m innocent. It means a lot to me.”

Carla gave her a light hug. “I think you’re what my stray
brother-in-law needs.”

“Amen." Gramie raised both hands in praise.

Allison understood why Brance had been in love with Carla. Not
only was she beautiful but kind as well. Her betrayal must have come as a
terrible shock. How devastated had he been?

Is he over her?

Dillon mumbled some profanities and stormed from the room.

Carla offered an apologetic smile and followed her husband.

***

After his brother and sister-in-law left, Brance listened to
Allison and his grandmother chat together. It astounded him that they shared a
love for music.

“Do you play the piano?” Gramie asked.

“Yes, but it’s been years. My piano was auctioned off.”

“Play something for me.”

They followed Gramie into the side parlor where she kept her
piano. Brance ushered Allison ahead of him.

She froze. “A black Steinway baby-grand. It's beautiful.”

Allison pulled out the bench and sat. She paused for a moment
before playing several familiar classical pieces.

“Can you play this?” Gramie offered her several sheets of music.

“Sure.” Allison set the music up and played
Danny Boy.

While Allison played a number of songs, Brance recalled the
jealousy he’d seen in her eyes when he’d mentioned Tammy’s name. It only proved
what he suspected. Allison cared about him, but getting her to admit it
wouldn't be easy. It was difficult to remain silent about how much he loved
her.