Shadows from the Grave (36 page)

Hannah excused herself, and Annie led Hazel into the backyard. She studied the older woman surreptitiously as they walked. Charlie’s mother was attractive; her dark hair showed a few strands of gray but, all in all, she looked ten years younger than Annie knew her to be.

“I’ve always admired Molly’s green thumb,” Hazel said. “I guess you have a pretty green thumb, too. I can kill a plant by looking at it.” Annie figured she wasn’t hiding her nervousness as well as she had thought when Hazel gave her a reassuring smile and patted her arm. “Honey, I’m not going to yell at you or make a scene. I just wanted to let you know that I don’t have a problem with you,” Hazel said kindly. “I’ll be honest. I worried that I might when I found out you were my daughter-in-law’s best friend. I did a lot of soul-searching about it, and I figured out a few things. Primarily, I discovered that I can’t blame you for what my ex-husband did nearly thirty years ago. It wasn’t your fault any more than it was Charlie’s.”

Annie felt a huge weight lift from her shoulders, and she stopped walking to turn toward Hazel. “Are you sure? Because I would completely understand if you did have a problem with it.”

Hazel smiled, the expression a little sad. “Annie, I’m happier now than I’ve been in a very long time, and I’ve been pretty happy for several years now. Once upon a time, Ransom Clark was the love of my life. Then he started drinking. We lost a child, Charlie’s brother. When we lost Robin, our marriage died. It was already strained, but that loss was just too much. By the time you came along, we were separated. Actually, finding out about you was the impetus I needed to file for divorce and get on with my life,” she confessed.

“I didn’t know you’d lost a child, Hazel. I’m so sorry.”

Hazel accepted her condolences, blinking away a few tears. “Thank you. He was younger than Charlie and worshipped the ground his brother walked on. I think one of the biggest regrets I have from that period in time is that Charlie lost so much. He wasn’t supposed to be an only child, Annie. Now he has you, and I can’t tell you how much that truly comforts me. I hope that the two of you will become closer as you get to know each other.” It was Annie’s turn to wipe away tears, and her emotions set Hazel’s off again.

“Molly won’t need to water this section of her garden today,” Annie quipped. Hazel gave a watery laugh, and the two women exchanged a knowing glance. “Thank you for telling me this, Hazel. It means a lot to me.”

To Annie’s surprise, Hazel pulled her in for a hug. “Sweetie, I’m glad I did. I almost didn’t because I didn’t want to upset you. But I had to try, especially after Beth called.” A sharp whistle sounded from the patio, and they looked up. Beth was on the deck waving.

“Looks like it’s show time,” Annie said. They hurried back inside, and as the shower started, Annie felt one more insecurity start to slip away. That relief had been a long time coming, and she had never thought it would happen, not in a million years. Apparently, though, sometimes love really was all it took.

~ * * * ~

As it happened, Lauren made it until Monday morning without going into labor. When Charlie took her in for her regular checkup, her doctor gave them the good news.

“But I’m two weeks early, if not three,” she said. “It’s too soon.”

Dr. Garrett checked the baby’s size again. “I think you’re going to be fine,” she assured Lauren. “I’d guess that we just miscalculated the due date.”

“You’re sure?” Charlie asked.

The doctor smiled. “I’m sure.”

“So those contractions I’ve been feeling since last night… they aren’t Braxton Hicks?”

“No, and unfortunately, they’ll probably really start hurting here pretty soon. You’re already well on your way to being three centimeters dilated.” She went ahead and admitted Lauren to the hospital, and while she and Charlie were waiting for the labor suite to be readied, they made their phone calls. Lauren called Molly first, and then Beth.

“It’s time.” She had to hold the phone away from her ear when Beth squealed. After Beth had calmed down, Lauren asked her to let everyone else know.

“Will do, Mom,” Beth said, and Lauren smiled as she heard Beth sniffle. “Oh, my God. You’re having a baby!”

Lauren laughed. “I have been for some time now, silly.” She sucked in a breath as a contraction hit. “I have to go, Beth. I’ll see you soon.” She hung up and grabbed the hands Charlie held out to her. When the contraction was over, she smiled, trying to reassure him.

“I’m okay. That one wasn’t too bad, just surprising.”

Charlie’s eyes grew wide. “That wasn’t bad? Oh, God!”

Lauren laughed, unable to stop herself. “I love you, Charlie Clark,” she told him. She leaned forward in the wheelchair they’d put her in at registration and tugged her husband closer. He went willingly, and Lauren kissed him softly. “You’re going to be a daddy.”

“I’m already a daddy. I’ve got Ava,” he said. “But this one’s going to be a really cool bonus.” Lauren knew that if she hadn’t already loved him to pieces, those words would have clinched it. She said a quick prayer of thanks that he had so readily accepted Ava as a daughter to cherish, not just a child from Lauren’s previous marriage he had to endure. When she opened her eyes, she saw the aide heading in their direction to take them to the labor suite. She smiled up at Charlie, who smiled back.

“Let’s go have a baby, Mrs. Clark.”

When Beth called Annie to tell her about Lauren, she heard Annie cursing as she answered the call.

“You okay?” she asked.

Annie gave a frustrated sigh. “Yes, sorry. It’s just that it’s rung five times in the last ten minutes, and I have Chase’s phone to contend with, as well. Apparently, Murphy stuffed it in my purse this morning. But you didn’t hear that from me. What’s up?”

Beth tried to stifle her laughter, but it bubbled up despite her efforts. “Lauren just called. Guess who’s having a baby?”

“Um, yeah. She’s been pregnant for a while now, Beth,” Annie told her slowly. Then Beth’s meaning sank in. “Oh. Oh! You mean right now? Crap!”

“They just admitted her,” Beth said. “Calm down, Aunt Annie. You have a little while before Baby Clark makes its appearance.”

“You’re sure?” she asked. “I’m supposed to meet with Travis Tyler here shortly. He has some questions for me about the rebuild. I can postpone it if I need to.”

“How long do you think it’ll take?”

“Probably not more than an hour, at most,” Annie said. “Plus, I’m supposed to drop Chase’s cell phone off at his office afterward.”

“Tell you what. I’ll call Chase and let him know that he can pick his phone up at the hospital. Just handle your meeting with Travis, and then head straight over. My brother can live another hour or two without his phone.” She laughed. “And then we can wait for the newest member of the family together.”

“Thank you, Beth,” Annie said. “I think I’ll do just that. Call me if there’s any change, okay?”

Beth promised she would, and then called Chase. She told him what was going on, and he agreed to come to the hospital as soon as he wrapped up some things. Her next call was to Ethan.

“Hey, honey, what’s up?” he asked.

She told him, then added, “I tried to leave a voice message but it wouldn’t let me, and your desk number is busy. I was going to try your voice mail again. I’m sorry. I know things are crazy right now. Can you get away?”

Ethan sighed. “I don’t know, Beth. I doubt I can for a little while, anyhow. A guy just walked in, and it’s possible he has some information about the killings. I have to stay here as long as I can. This might be the break we’ve been waiting for. I’m sorry I can’t be there.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “Ethan, I understand. This is good news, isn’t it?”

“If he’s legit, yeah. It’s very good. Have you called everyone else?”

“Annie and Chase. They’re both going to be a little late. Chase is finishing something up, and Annie’s meeting with Travis about the shop. Maybe by the time they get here, you’ll have some good news for us.”

“We can hope. I have to go, but I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Ethan said. “I love you, Beth.”

“Love you, too.” Beth was a little sad that he wouldn’t be there while they waited, but she knew how important it was that he did his job right now, especially on this case. With only a small sigh of regret, she called Hannah and let her know the good news.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Hannah promised, something Beth was getting used to hearing. She laughed and asked Hannah to call Jason. Her phone duties finished, she wrapped up her work responsibilities and headed to the hospital. Hopefully someone would be there to wait with her.

He’d thought about it for a couple of days before he acted on it, but Rafe Lewis realized he didn’t have any choice in the matter. He knew if he was wrong, it would mean losing his job, but if he was right…. Well, he really didn’t have any choice. And he had a terrible feeling that he wasn’t wrong. So much of what he knew matched what he had seen in the news reports. It couldn’t be a coincidence.

So, gathering up his courage, he made his way through the Olman County courthouse to the Sheriff’s Department.

When the steely-eyed maven behind the reception desk asked if she could help him, he sighed. “God, I hope so. Those murders they’re talking about on the news? I think I might know who’s responsible.”

At his words, the older lady reached for the phone. “You can wait here.” Then she spoke into the phone. “Detective Moore, there’s someone here who needs to speak to you.”

“He’ll be right out,” she told Rafe as she hung up. A minute later, the door on the other side of the waiting room opened and a tall, somber man about Rafe’s age walked out.

“Neva?” he asked. The lady gestured toward Rafe.

“I’m Detective Ethan Moore. How can I help you?”

“Well, I think I can help you, unfortunately. I think I know who killed those people.”

~ * * * ~

The last thing Ethan had been expecting when he walked into the reception area was someone who claimed to know who the killer was. When the man told him why he was there, Ethan was skeptical, but stranger things had happened.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“Rafe Lewis.”

Ethan frowned. The name sounded familiar, but he wasn’t sure why. “Well, Mr. Lewis, why don’t we go on back and sit down to talk about this?” He held the door open and beckoned Rafe into the hall on the other side. “I’ll have you go down here to one of our interview rooms. Neva, can you page Gordon and Stacy to Room One and let them know what’s going on?”

“Will do, Ethan,” she promised.

The door closed behind him, and he led Rafe down the hall. “Right here,” he said, turning on the light. It was the biggest interrogation room the department had; Ethan didn’t want Rafe to feel crowded. “Have a seat.”

As Rafe sat down, Stacy and Gordon entered. “Rafe Lewis, this is Detective Stacy Kirchner and Special Agent Galen Gordon,” Ethan said. “They’re working this case with me. Is it okay if they’re in here while we talk?”

Rafe looked from one to the other, then back at Ethan. He swallowed. “I don’t guess it really matters,” he said. “Either way we go with this, I’m screwed. If I’m right, I lose my job. If I’m wrong, I lose my job. So it’s fine with me if they’re here.”