The Harvest Club (13 page)

The next time Jessie looked up at the clock, it was time to meet Pastor John. She grabbed her purse and headed to Patterson’s.

****

She found Pastor John sitting in a booth in the main dining area of the restaurant, head bent as he looked over the menu.

“Hi, I hope you didn’t have to wait long.” She smiled and waved at Patterson as she sat down. He nodded back. Was that a hint of a smile she saw? “It was quiet all morning. Just before it was time to leave, I had several phone calls, and Melinda came by to talk to me.”

“No problem.” He looked up and smiled at her. “I’ve only been here about five minutes. I just started to look at the menu—although by now I should know it by heart.”

“How do you like being retired?”

“To tell you the truth, I miss the church and the people.” He gave her a wan smile. “After Gina died, I was so saddened I let my son talk me in to retiring. But there are days, I would love to be back at the helm, helping people walk through all of this mess. For some reason Rick has got in his head that not mentioning Gina will make it all go away. I think people need to talk about it.”

“I agree with you. Several people have talked to me about needing an outlet for their emotions.” She paused and then pushed on. “Was Rick trained to be a pastor?”

“If you mean did he go to school, the answer is yes, but if you want to know if he is called—it was never on his radar until a little over a year ago. He wanted the church to hire him, but Gina had been hired the year before and people loved her. The church turned down his proposal. I told him I could help find him a church somewhere else, but he said it had to be here.”

After they gave the waitress their order, Jessie waded in just a little bit deeper, not wanting to cross a line and upset him.

“Did Rick pressure you to retire so he could have the church?” She tried to gage his reaction. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

“In fairness to Rick, and where I was at the time, my first response would be no. But having said that, when I look back, I would have to say it was a first rate job he did on me.” He fiddled with his water glass. “I’ve never known my son to be like he is now. He’s tense, seems nervous, and I don’t personally like being around him. As far as how he’s doing as a pastor, he’s doing an awful job.” His mouth tightened, and he paused as the waitress set down their orders. “I’m about to call the district office to get involved. I can’t talk to him at all. He refuses to listen to me or to the church board, and he reacts to almost everything said to him. I hope I haven’t shocked you, but you heard how he treated me in the office that day.” He leaned forward, his eyes on her face. “You’re working with him, what do you think?”

Jessie measured her words carefully. This was her boss they were talking about. “I think he’s appeared tenser lately, getting ready for the trip and all.”

“I realize I’m putting you on the spot. He’s your boss, and I know you want to be careful. I’m speculating now. I have no facts to back this up, but he’s using the church to cover up something.”

“What makes you think that?” She sipped her iced tea.

“He’s had a lot of strange phone calls. I’ve overheard some of them, and he seems to have an unlimited amount of money to travel. I have no clue where he’s getting it.” He took a bite of his sandwich, chewed and swallowed, before speaking again. “Some of the people in the congregation have asked if he was using the church’s money. They’re getting suspicious, too. When I asked Rick, we had a major fight.”

She looked at John’s worried face and tried to think of something that would put his mind at ease. “It’s possible he found a side business to supplement his income.”

“It can’t be legal. I know of very few things where you can make the kind of money I’m watching him spend.” John suddenly grabbed her hand and looked into her face. “I’m not going to tell him we talked. It’s our secret, but I need you to tell me what you really think.”

“Okay,” she spoke quietly. “You should tell Matt Parker what you’ve told me. There’s no doubt in my mind your son is acting strangely. There seems to be a general disconnect between him and the work at the church. I can’t help but think, like you, that his work at the church is a cover up for something else he’s doing.” She patted his hand.

“I’ll stop by the police on my way home.” He struggled. “I never thought I would have to talk to the police about my son. I also want to warn you that Rick is interested in you. It scares me. You’re just the kind of girl I always had hoped for my son, but I wouldn’t wish him on you the way he is now.”

“Rick has told me a couple of times that we need to go out, but I’ve changed the subject every time. I will tell him if he asks again that I have a firm policy about not dating someone I work with, especially my boss.” She folded her hands.

“That’s a good idea. Thank you for talking to me. I thought I was going off the deep end thinking about my own son like this. I’ve heard, through the grapevine, you’re doing a personal interest story on Gina. I wanted to meet with you originally to talk about her. I know you need to get back to work, so I’ll call you after I talk to Matt and fill you in on what I know. How’s that sound?” He picked up the bill and laid down his credit card. “This is my treat. Thanks for being a listening ear.”

“Thanks for lunch.” She stood and smiled at him. “By the way, I think the church misses you as much as you miss them. Maybe you should consider coming out of retirement.” She said her goodbyes and walked back to the church.

On her way back to her office, she stopped to chat with the ladies’ group which was just breaking up, and Reba told her she would be down to see her in a few minutes. So Jessie headed back to her desk.

She sent a quick email to Matt telling him John was on his way to see him and passed on Melinda’s news about the office intruder. She had several days until Pastor Rick was back, and she decided to use this time to work on Gina’s story. One point of concern to her was that John had heard she was doing a story already. If he had heard, she was sure others had as well.

“Did you have a nice lunch, my dear?” Reba’s cultured voice asked.

“Yes, I did. I spent a little time with Pastor John. He’s such a nice man.”

“I dearly wish that he was still our pastor. No offense to his son, but he just doesn’t have the same regard for the congregation as his father, and there’s a troubled aura about him.” She walked into the office and sat down. “How is your story coming along? By now, I figure you’re learning more about the mystery and unraveling the many layers. I never thought it was a simple murder or Gina wouldn’t still be roaming here.”

“Gina was well-liked, generous, and by all accounts a great mother.” Jessie evaded the question with a smile. “Her parents and children miss her dearly. I learned that she was a pretty terrific human being and maybe got too close to someone’s ugly secret, which we’ll mostly likely never know about because she took it with her to her grave.”

“Secrets have a way of being found out, my dear, so keep looking.” Reba glanced at her watch.

“I will, but I don’t hold out much hope.”

“I wanted to tell you something that concerns me, but I don’t want to scare you. I just want you to be careful. I had a dream about you. A large dark shadow was spying on you and following you around. This was not of the ghostly variety, but human. So watch your back, my dear, and I’m going to tell that Officer Parker to do the same. Someone considers you a risk. You must be getting close to the truth.” She stood up to leave. “I believe you’ll be okay, but it will get worse before it gets better.”

Worse, before it gets better. That doesn’t sound good. “Have a nice day, Reba.” Jessie smiled at her.

“You too, dear.” She walked out the door.

What should she do with that? Why did everyone keep coming to her with all this information? Sure, she had asked a few questions, but not that many. A large dark shadow? Hadn’t she’d seen him the other night? Matt needed to know that, too.

“Gina, you must have been terrified,” she whispered.
No wonder you wanted to get your children and yourself to safety. I’ve walked the streets of New York and never come up against what you had to face in this small town. I wish there had been someone you could have trusted to protect you.”

The phone’s ring shook her out of her pensive thoughts.

“First Community Church, this is Jessie. May I help you?”

“Jessie, this is John. I’m glad I talked to Matt. Thanks for the suggestion.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Matt told me I should be careful not to meet with you too often in case someone is watching. It might put you in jeopardy. It sounds like my son is messed up in something very serious.”

“It could be, but maybe he’s an outsider.” She tried to give him hope she didn’t feel.

“He also gave me your email address, so I’ll be sending you the information I was originally going to tell you.” He hesitated for a moment. “I’ll check on you by phone every now and then. I’m sorry you came here to be drawn into this mess. Hang in there, and let others help watch out for you, okay?”

“Okay, and thanks for your concern.”

Matt gave his report to Anderson when he got to work, and he called the sheriff’s department in the county seat for some assistance. A meeting was scheduled for the next morning to go over the evidence with Sheriff Taylor who had friends at the state level as well. Anderson agreed with Matt. They needed more manpower, and they had a little over a week to get a plan of action and key people in place to do surveillance.

Anderson looked at Matt sitting across from him. “This case is all yours, Matt. I’m going to take a back seat on this one. You’re in charge. I’ll be here to help if you need it, but only if you ask.” He took a sip of his coffee. “I’m grooming you for when I retire. Just keep me clued in on what’s happening.” He looked Matt in the eyes. “You’ve done a damn fine job with it so far.”

“What does that mean? Can I work in some protection for Jessie?” Matt asked him.

“It’s all your call, Matt, but you’ll have to judge it by the manpower. You don’t want to overextend your men in the field.” He sat back in his chair. “You could run your command center from her house, which would keep someone near her,” he suggested. “I want you to run all the meetings, deal with the law enforcement coordination, and see to the search and arrest warrants.”

“Yes, sir. Is there anything else?

“I’m going to recommend the council hire you as my replacement when it’s time.” Anderson put a hand on his shoulder. “The letter is already written, and you’ve more than earned it.”

“I appreciate your confidence in me, sir.” Matt smiled at him and stood.

“Hell, you’re the son I never had and always wanted. I know you’ll do a great job and run it with integrity.” Anderson stood and shook Matt’s hand. He watched Matt walk out of his office.

Matt was anxious to get some help. He could see the case starting to gain momentum. He had no doubt someone had been in her office probably searching her computer, checking notes, and looking for anything they could find to use against her. Checking the clock on the wall, he put a call in to the church to check up on her. He waited impatiently as the phone rang once, twice, three times. Finally, on the fourth ring she picked it up.

“First Community Church, this is Jessie. May I help you?”

“Hey, Jess, I called to say thanks for sending John over my way. He filled in quite a few blanks concerning his son.” He paused with relief at hearing her voice. “What more can you tell me about the intruder?”

“Only what I told you in the email. Nothing was missing or seemed out of place.”

“Is any of your research there?” He waited for her reply.

“No, I would never keep anything here. It’s all on a computer at home, protected by some pretty heavy duty firewalls and passwords. A friend I know set it up for me. He can get around just about everything out there, so he’s in the know. He’s one of the best. Even if someone broke in and stole my computer, they would be hard pressed to get anything. I always send a copy of my notes to Jeremy for safe keeping and to my boss, which in this case is you, so I sent it to you in a special file entitled AS-THE.” She waited for a response. When none came she said, “The letters stand for ‘
As
Seen Through
Her Eyes
.’”

“Catchy!” He breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s good to know.”

“You mean about the file? I’m always very careful with information.”

“A safe file is good news. The fact you see me as your boss is the best news of all. I like hearing it from your own lips.” He grinned, imagining her expression. “I’ll hold you to that when you want to argue with me about something.”

“It’s only good for work related issues.” She chuckled. “When it comes to my life personally, you have no say.”

“For a while, I imagine everything will be about this case. Is there anything else you need to tell me?”

“It’s probably nothing, but the other night I stepped outside in the evening, and I noticed a shadowy figure in the distance. When he saw me looking his way, he hid behind the tree and then moved down the path toward the marina. He was a pretty big man. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep well after that. I’m locking up pretty tight at night and even keeping my doors locked when I’m there in the day.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” His knuckles whitened on the phone.

“I dismissed it as a guest at the inn until Melinda told me about the intruder.”

“The chief and I made calls to the county and state and talked to them about getting some assistance for our small department, seeing as we have some players that are from other counties. I also want to get you some protection on the clock.”

“I don’t need or want protection.”

He could hear the tension in her voice over the phone.

“The hell you don’t, and just so you remember, I’m the boss. I’m calling the shots.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“No, you won’t. It’s a done deal.”

She abruptly changed the subject. “I sent out an email to the church folks about doing a story on Pastor Gina’s life. Several people responded, and so I’ve arranged to do several interviews while Pastor Rick is gone. You know, a human interest story with all the feelings and emotions of people’s sense of loss. The church people want and need to talk about Gina. I was thinking maybe I should leave a benign story where it’s easy to find to throw our intruder off the track.” There was still tension in her voice even though she had changed subjects.