It All Falls Down: Rose Gardner Investigations #7 (Rose Gardner Investigatons) Read online

  I glanced around the unfinished space, trying to figure out what was making me uneasy, and I realized that some of the boxes along the far wall looked like they’d been moved around. When I’d inherited the house, I’d also inherited boxes of photos and keepsakes that had been stored in the house for decades. Joe and I had been going through them, trying to determine what to keep and what to toss out. It must have been from the last time he was down here.

  Feeling more at ease, I headed back upstairs to figure out what to make for breakfast. I got the impression Dermot didn’t cook for himself, so I tried to spoil him on the rare occasions when he ate with me. I decided on waffles, bacon, and fried eggs, and of course, a pot of coffee. I’d started the bacon frying, made the waffle fixings, and set the iron to heating when I heard a soft knock at the back door.

  I hurried over and opened the door when I saw Dermot on the stoop. “Something smells good,” he said as he walked inside.

  “It’s the bacon. Coffee’s in the pot.”

  Dark semi-circles hung under his eyes, and he gave me a weary smile. “I could drink a gallon.”

  “I think I’m more rested than you, which is saying something,” I said wryly. “Especially since Hope has decided sleep is for losers.”

  He released a laugh and headed to the coffee pot. “I remember those days.” There was plenty of longing in his tone.

  Before Hope was born, Dermot had told me that he’d had a wife and children, but he hadn’t said what had become of them, and I hadn’t asked.

  “You want to get to business right away or stick to pleasantries for now?” he asked as he poured coffee into a mug I’d left on the counter.

  I spread batter into the waffle iron and closed it. “I say we get the business out of the way, then we can do pleasantries when Hope wakes up.”

  “Okay,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee, then turning around and leaning his butt against the counter. “I take it Joe isn’t here is because he’s dealing with the murder south of town.”

  “So it was a murder?” I asked. “He only told me they found a body.”

  One side of his mouth quirked up. “A bullet to the back of the head is usually due to murder.”

  A chill ran down my back. “Anyone I might know?”

  “It was one of Malcolm’s men, but someone he brought on after the two of you split. I doubt you’d know him.”

  I nodded.

  James “Skeeter” Malcolm was the king of the crime world in Fenton County, Arkansas. He had a long criminal career, but he’d bought his crown a year and a half ago with my reluctant help. I’d seen his murder in a vision. It had happened at the auction for the top dog position in the Fenton County underworld, and rather than skip the event, he’d insisted I come with him. Since I was dating the assistant district attorney at the time, I’d needed a disguise—a sexy black dress, heels, and a hat with a thick veil to hide my face.

  And so the Lady in Black was born.

  I’d donned that hat and veil for several months, using my visions to help James figure out who was trying to sabotage him. Although I was helping James, I wasn’t doing it for him; in exchange, he’d agreed to protect my then-boyfriend, Mason (unbeknownst to Mason). But a funny thing happened over those months—James and I had become friends, and we’d stayed friends even after Mason broke up with me, and I (temporarily, it turned out) retired my hat and veil. We continued to be friends for several months, meeting once a week behind the abandoned Sinclair gas station on the west side of town. That was how I discovered something most people didn’t realize about the man most of the county feared. James Malcolm—Skeeter to everyone else—had a good heart.

  I hadn’t meant to give him mine.

  Our fling had begun with clandestine meetings that were dangerous and seductive and exciting. We would meet at his secret house in the woods south of town and play a beautiful game of pretend. Because James had made it very clear he had no interest in marriage or a family, and I had always dreamed of having both. We weren’t supposed to fall in love, only we had, and it had made everything more complicated.

  Then I got pregnant, despite having been careful with birth control, and everything fell apart. He’d given me an ultimatum: him or the baby, but it hadn’t been a choice at all. He’d made his decision the moment he uttered those words.

  He’d told me that if I aligned myself with the criminals who were joining forces to keep the Hardshaw Group out of the county, we would be enemies.

  So that had been his choice too. Because from what I’d learned, Hardshaw had infiltrated other counties like a disease, bringing in hard drugs and harder people. Having Hardshaw in Fenton County wouldn’t be good for anyone other than the few people it enriched, and I had no intention of allowing them to destroy my home. Hope’s home.

  “Any idea who did it?”

  “If I had to guess, Denny Carmichael.” He took a sip of his coffee, then added, “I doubt he did it personally. Probably had a goon do it.”

  “Do you think Denny is about to make a play for James’ position?”

  “Hard to say. It could be that Carmichael found Malcolm’s guy snoopin’ around on his property and decided to teach him a lesson. Could be things are escalating. Carmichael is none too pleased with Malcolm’s involvement with Hardshaw. Maybe he’s acting on that. Especially in light of the news that Hardshaw kidnapped the kids.”

  I nodded as I took the last of the bacon out of the skillet and cracked a couple of eggs into the pan. The waffle iron beeped, and I took the first one out, pouring batter for a second.

  “You know you can’t tell Simmons any of this, right?” he asked in a nonchalant tone, but there was an edge to his voice.

  “I know. What we discuss is purely confidential. Always has been. Always will be.”

  He gave me a tight smile. I suspected he understood how hard it was for me to keep secrets from Joe. My life had been full of secrets, and I wanted to be done with them. But I also knew sharing certain things would cause more harm than good.

  “Where do you think we stand with Hardshaw’s presence in the county?” I asked.

  “Two months ago, I would have said they didn’t have much of one,” he said with a sigh. “Seemed like they’d retreated with their tail between their legs. But their connection to Sonder Tech makes me think they never fully left. Are they lying low, trying to sneak in under the radar? Or are they cleaning up loose ends before they leave town for good? Given their recent troubles with the FBI in Dallas, I suspect it’s the latter. Especially with your brother-in-law turning himself in to the state police.”

  Sonder Tech had come to town last fall to open up shop in Henryetta, which seemed strange since most legitimate businesses were hanging shutters and leaving town. But we’d figured out they were tied to Hardshaw, even if the manager hadn’t realized it.

  “Which leaves James vulnerable,” I said. “Hence the murder of one of his men.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not.”

  “But if you had to lean one way or the other…?” I gave him an expectant look.

  “I’d say Malcolm best be watching his back.”

  My blood turned icy with fear. I’d made my choice, and I didn’t regret it, but I still didn’t want anything to happen to James.

  “Have you heard from him since he reached out before Hope’s birth?” Dermot asked.

  “No.” James had told me he didn’t want anything to do with the baby, yet he’d refused to sign papers abdicating his claim to paternity…until recently. On the day of Hope’s birth, James had told me he’d sign the papers on two conditions. One, that I stop inquiring about the evidence stolen from Violet’s attorney’s office, and two, that I spend forty-eight hours with him before I gave birth, with no contact with anyone until our time was up.

  That hadn’t come to pass, for obvious reasons, and I hadn’t heard from him since then. I had no idea what he’d intended, although Dermot had voiced his suspicions. None of them good.

  �
��Did you find out if he’d tried to hire a midwife?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “No. But he could have been planning to take you to Louisiana.”

  “Kidnapping me across state lines?” I asked, dubious.

  “It wouldn’t have been kidnapping. You would have been gone ‘willingly,’ but it’s all a moot point. It didn’t happen. Still, it’s worrying that we don’t know why he wanted that time with you.”

  I just nodded, because he was right, and I’d devoted plenty of worrying to it.

  The waffle iron alarm went off again, and I pulled it out and put it on a plate. I added eggs and bacon to each, then brought them back to the table with some utensils.

  Glancing around, he said, “Where’s Muffy? I’m surprised she’s not after the bacon.”

  I released a laugh. “She’s abandoned me for the baby. She’s her guard dog now.”

  He grinned at that, an approving grin, then asked, “How’s it goin’ with the horses? Any trouble with Margi?”

  I’d dated Margi’s brother, Levi, briefly, what felt like a million years ago. So I’d understood why she’d been standoffish with me in the beginning, only she’d changed her tune on a dime after learning I had an unused horse barn and pasture. Then she’d treated me like her new best friend, not backing off until I agreed to board her rescue horses.

  “No,” I said. “I rarely see her. She has a teenage girl come out to tend to them in the morning, and a woman in her thirties in the afternoons. Margi only comes out when one of them can’t make it.”

  He gave a nod, then asked me if I’d been working, frowning when I admitted I had been putting in a few hours a day for the past couple of weeks. He told me that Hope’s birth had been traumatic and I needed to give myself time to heal, but I waved away his concerns, assuring him I was just fine.

  I’d eaten half my breakfast when I heard Hope’s cries.

  Dermot’s eyes lit up, and I released a laugh. “I’ll go get her.”

  Muffy was standing at the edge of my bed, sending me an anxious look when I walked into the room. I scooped Hope up and took her into her room to change her diaper. She stopped crying as she stared up at me.

  “Good morning, sweet baby,” I cooed. “Are you ready to see Uncle Dermot?”

  She released a gurgling sound that I took for a yes.

  When I finished, I picked her up and carried her downstairs with Muffy in tow.

  “Look who’s up,” I said as we walked into the kitchen.

  Dermot broke into a huge smile, and it struck me that I’d never seen him look so happy.

  “Want to hold her?”

  “Of course.”

  He reached for her, then cradled her in his arms.

  He’d come to see her twice since her birth. The first time Joe had insisted on being there so he could thank Dermot for saving both of our lives. They’d traded handshakes, Dermot had assured him it had been his pleasure, and Joe had taken off. I knew it was hard for him to have Dermot around. Dermot was a criminal, the very thing he was trying to clean out of the county, and now he felt beholden to him.

  I took advantage of Hope being distracted and finished my breakfast, then picked up our empty plates and took them to the sink. Muffy watched Hope vigilantly, but I convinced her to eat her food even though someone other than Mommy or Daddy was holding her charge.

  Dermot talked to Hope about the weather, the horses, and her personal guard dog.

  He’d held her for nearly ten minutes before she remembered she hadn’t had a full meal in many hours and started to wail.

  Dermot laughed and stood. “I think this is the part where you take over. Thanks for breakfast and time with Hope.”

  “Of course, Dermot,” I said, getting up too. “You have a standing invitation as far as I’m concerned.”

  “Thanks,” he said again with a soft smile, but there was no denying the pain in his eyes. Once again, I wondered what had happened to his family. But he didn’t give me time to ask, even if I’d been inclined. He placed Hope in my arms and walked out the back door.

  Chapter 3

  It took me an hour and a half to get us packed and ready to leave the house. Although I could work at home, I wanted a change of scenery, for both of us, and the office was more conducive to getting work done. Hope would likely go down for another nap soon, and hopefully, I could draw up a couple of plans.

  Downtown Henryetta was busy, with nearly every parking space full, but I managed to get a space close to the coffee shop and its taunting aromas, wrestle the car seat carrier out of the truck, and get me, Muffy, and Hope inside the office with less stress than the last several times I’d tried this.

  The office was locked up, which meant Neely Kate was probably out on a consult, so I let us in, then locked us in. I’d already brought Hope here half a dozen times, but I took her out of her car seat and showed her around.

  “Here’s Aunt Neely Kate’s desk. She’s out on a job right now, but she’s about to get a baby of her own. That means you’ll get a new cousin, and your aunt will be off work for a couple of months.” Or at least I hoped she planned on coming back. Neely Kate wanted a baby more than anything—with the exception of Jed—and I suspected she wasn’t going to waste a minute of it. Which meant she might decide to stay home for the foreseeable future, not that I could blame her. Part of me wanted to hole up with Hope out at the farm, but for one thing, I was half-owner of the business, which meant I couldn’t just quit. And two, if I were honest, I was bored and lonely out there with only a newborn who spent most of her time pooping and crying and sleeping. I loved being Hope’s mother more than anything in the world, but the business was part of me too, and I wanted to hold on to it.

  I’d taken her to the back of the office, telling her that Mommy had once locked herself in the bathroom to hide from bad guys, when I heard a knock on the front door. Muffy, who was at my feet, let out a low growl. I jumped, startling Hope, who released a tiny whimper. Bouncing her in my arms, I carefully crept out of the shadows and peeked at the door to see who was knocking, relieved when I saw it was Mason.

  He was cupping the side of his face and peering through the glass, and I lifted a hand in acknowledgment as I made my way to the door. When I unlocked and opened it, Muffy raced to the doorframe and jumped up, planting her front paws on Mason’s legs.

  “Mason. This is a surprise.”

  “I hope I’m not intruding,” he said, his gaze firmly on my daughter, who was staring up at him with a blank expression. He reached down and picked up Muffy, stroking the back of her head. “I saw your truck parked in front of the coffee shop and thought I’d drop by for a quick chat if you have time.”

  A quick chat meant his visit likely had another purpose than to just say hello. Was he here to talk to me about the murder Joe was currently working?

  “Yes,” I said after a second-long delay. I took a step back. “Of course. Sorry. You’re dealing with a woman with an extreme case of sleep deprivation.”

  He gave a forced chuckle as he walked into the office then set Muffy onto the floor. I shut the door behind him and locked it.

  He watched my movements and nodded. “You’re playing it safe. That’s good.”

  “Is something goin’ on that I should know about?” I asked with my heart in my throat.

  “Actually,” he said, shuffling his feet and sticking a hand in his pocket before locking gazes with me. “I was hoping you could tell me.”

  “Is this about the case Joe is workin’ south of town?”

  “Yes. Do you know anything?”

  “Seems like Joe would be a better source of information,” I said with my free hand on my hip.

  “One would think,” he said, his gaze back on Hope, a soft smile on his lips. “But over the past year, I’ve found you often know more than both of us combined.”

  I could have taken offense that he was here for information, but he and I had reached a kind of truce. He’d accepted my involvement in the criminal world, su
ch as it was, and he’d shared useful information on a couple of occasions.

  “Would you like to hold her?” I asked.

  His eyes widened in surprise. “Oh…”

  “She’s not as fragile as she looks,” I said, leading him to the client table. “Why don’t you have a seat and take her? It’ll give me a chance to get my computer booted up.”

  “Okay…” He headed over to the table and took a seat, then looked up at me expectantly.

  “Just keep her head up a little,” I said as I grabbed a small towel out of her diaper bag. “It’s been a bit since she last ate, but she’s prone to spitting up. I don’t want you getting it on your shirt.”

  He smiled. “I think I can handle a little spit-up.”

  “Famous last words,” I said, grinning as I placed her in his crooked arm. Muffy, realizing someone else was holding her charge, plopped at Mason’s feet.

  Mason looked nervous as he took her, shifting his arm up so her head was higher. It felt a little strange seeing them together, if only because I’d wondered, before going to that auction with James, whether I might be pregnant with Mason’s baby. If everything had unfolded differently, she might have been our baby. The look in his eyes said he knew it.

  “She’s so light,” he commented.

  “She weighed nearly ten pounds at her last checkup.”

  He shifted her again, a brief flash of fear in his eyes as he did so. “She’s absolutely beautiful, Rose.”

  “I think so,” I said with pride in my voice. “Some people would think I’m biased, but I know beautiful when I see it.”

  He laughed. “In this instance, I have to agree with you.” He lifted his gaze to me. “I hear you had a rough delivery.”

  “Understatement of the century,” I said as I sat in the chair in front of my desk and reached behind my computer to turn it on.

  “I also heard that Tim Dermot delivered her.”

  I paused, wondering what he was fishing for, then said, “You heard correctly.”