Candy-Coated Secrets (25 page)

“We don’t know the powder is poison. It could be part of her medication.” Sometimes Ethan’s logical mind overshadowed his ability to see the possible what-ifs.

“What about his chasing us with a gun?” I tilted my head, glaring through the dimness of the truck’s cab.

“There is that.” Ethan remained silent until we pulled in front of my house. He turned to me. “Summer, this evening was fun. Adrenaline-rushing, in fact.”

“But?”

He pulled me to him and cradled my head on his chest. “I’m a teacher. You make candy. This is above our heads. No matter how much fun we have, we need to be responsible and let the police handle things.”

“Joe’s laid up in the hospital.”

“Why can’t you hear what I’m telling you?” Ethan set me back, one hand on each of my shoulders. “God, help me. Woman, you scare the living daylights out of me. I love you so much it frightens me. The thought of losing you—” He let go and ran his fingers through his hair. The moonlight coming through the windows highlighted his curls with silver, and my hands ached to follow the path his had left. “Eunice told me about your feelings of guilt about your parents.”

“Oh.” I loved this man with all my heart, but my aunt telling him something so confidential still felt like betrayal.

“I want you to be able to come to me with struggles like that.” His pain sounded so raw his words bled across the small cab.

“It’s not so bad anymore, Ethan. I’ve given it up to God.”

“Then why are you still so driven to solve this?”

“I thought you were having fun.”

“I was. Not so much when I saw the gun. You scare me. Back there, at the campground, you trembled in my arms. Fear oozed from you, yet here you sit, raring to go again.” He leaned back, resting his head on the back of the seat. His gaze rolled to mine. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Marry me?”

“What, you don’t want to wait until next fall? And don’t change the subject.” The porch light blinked on. “Looks like your aunt doesn’t want us sitting in the truck any longer.”

“When will she realize I’m almost thirty and stop treating me like some wild teenager?”

Ethan chuckled.

I punched his arm. “And don’t say it’s when I stop acting like one.”

“Okay, I won’t say it.”

I punched him again and he jerked me close, his lips claiming mine. For the next several minutes I forgot about the Sallys, Woodrows, and gun-wielding gorillas of the world. It wasn’t until the porch light blinked on and off in rapid succession that I pulled free from the intoxication of Ethan’s kisses.

“Tomorrow is Saturday. Feel like making a trip to Forrest Road and visiting Harvey?” I smoothed a wayward curl back from Ethan’s forehead.

“You’ll go either way, right?” He kept his arms around my waist.

“Not if you really don’t want me to.”

“What’s out there?”

I told him about Sally’s threat regarding Ginger. “And she’s threatening revenge against someone who supposedly killed her son. I can’t think of anyone else to question. Especially since Harvey already warned me about being in danger. I’m assuming he meant the elephant.”

“Okay. I’ll pick you up at ten.”

He opened the truck door and slid out, pulling me with him. “This conversation isn’t finished, Tink.” I closed my eyes when he placed a kiss between my brows.

I sighed. “I have to go through with this. Yes, I’ve given the guilt to God. It won’t be something that is solved in a day. I’ll have to make the choice each morning when I wake and each night when I go to bed. I’ve lived with that burden for so many years, Ethan, it feels like a part of me. I’m standing on God’s promises, but I made a promise, too. I made a promise to a scared woman whose face I glimpsed through a speeding car’s window.”

The flickering of the porch light increased in intensity. “Kiss me again. Give Aunt Eunice a heart attack.”

Ethan smiled and lowered his head. His kiss lit up the night until I feared for my heart. The squeak of the screen door signaled that Aunt Eunice had gotten tired of waiting. “I love you.”

“I love you. See you in the morning.” I caressed his cheek and turned to meet my virtue-saving aunt.

“What are you thinking, necking in the driveway?” Aunt Eunice folded her arms. “What will the neighbors think? I raised you better than that.”

“You, Aunt Eunice, are a gem. A true gem. I thank God for you.” I hugged her and marched into the house.

“What happened to your shirt? If that boy got too rough, your uncle will have words to say to him.”

I glanced at the bottom portion of my blouse. Ethan’s kisses had kept me warm enough, I’d forgotten the missing section. The fabric fluttering from the window of Sally’s trailer announced to everyone that someone had been peeking in her window.

Chapter Thirty-One

Ethan and I sat in the cab of his truck and stared at the swinging screen door of Harvey’s house on Forrest Road. Everyone wasn’t as conscientious as my aunt and uncle, but I had a hard time believing the banging of the door wouldn’t attract the attention of someone inside.

I swallowed against the rising knot in my throat. “Do you think we’re going to find more bodies inside?”

“I hope not.” Ethan reached for his cell phone. “But I do know we aren’t going inside without the police.”

“Can we at least explore the surrounding area?” My gaze scanned the thick forest of trees around the property. “Maybe we’ll find some clues. The police won’t let us inside once they get here.”

“Look, Nancy Drew, in real life people don’t go barging around crime scenes.” He chuckled and clapped a hand to his forehead. “For a moment, I forgot I was speaking to Summer Meadows. Now she definitely gets enjoyment out of messing up crime scenes.”

“Ha ha. Very funny.” I crossed my arms and slouched against the seat. “We can’t just sit here.”

“Why not?”

“I—well. . . Give me a minute. I’ll think of something.” A cry drifted on the morning air. I straightened and rolled down my window. “Did you hear that?” It was a definite plea for help. Before Ethan could utter another
God help me
, I bolted from the truck.

“Summer, wait.” I hadn’t closed my door before he appeared by my side and gripped my arm.

“Someone needs us. Listen.”

“I hear.” We paused. My ears strained to detect the direction the cry came from.

“This way.” I grabbed Ethan’s hand and sprinted for the trees.

He yanked me back. “Stay behind me.” Ethan clipped his phone back to his belt. His hand hovered over the black leather case like a cop with a gun. He caught me looking and grinned. “I might need to grab it quick. Besides, you ran from the truck before I could place the call.”

He led me fifty feet into the woods. We stopped beneath a large oak and stared up at a tree house. Harvey’s wife and a boy approximately eight years old peered down at us.

“Thank the Lord. Please tell me you’re the good guys. I can’t stay up here for another minute. Every bone in my body aches to high heaven.” The woman chattered as she shifted and climbed down the rope ladder. Her plump behind strained against the cotton pants she wore. I bit back a chuckle as she jumped the last rope knot, landing in an undignified heap at our feet. “I’m not made for climbing trees anymore.” She stood and dusted herself off. “I’m Ester and this is my son, Harvey Junior.”

“Where’s Harvey?” I asked. The boy climbed down much nimbler than his mother.

“I haven’t seen him since the fiasco at the fairgrounds.” Tears welled in the woman’s eyes. “I’m worried about him.”

As she should be from what Sally spouted off. “Why are you hiding in the tree house?”

“We’re hiding from the gorilla.” Junior stepped forward. “I tried to get my rifle, but Mom made me run out the back door and hide up there.”

“A gorilla?” Did everyone in this part of Arkansas think they could solve their problems with a gun? Redneck clichés ran through my mind of flannel-shirted, tobacco-chewing hillbillies grasping rifles. I almost expected a three-legged dog to romp around our feet. I shook my head to clear it. “When?”

“Last night.” Ester headed back toward her house. “Y’all come on in. I want to see what damage has been done. And it wasn’t a real gorilla, mind you. Someone in a suit.”

Of course. My gaze met Ethan’s. Grizzly Bob was already behind bars. At the thought of two people hiding behind a gorilla mask, taking turns stalking me, a cold sweat collected beneath the sweater I wore.

“What time last night?” Ethan took my arm.

“Late. We were already in bed when the dog’s barking woke us. Maybe midnight?”

“Later than that, Mom,” Junior said. “I stayed up to watch cartoons on cable. Maybe two o’clock.”

Ester rolled her eyes. “He don’t listen very good. But with Harvey gone so much, I don’t have the strength for heavy discipline. The boy plumb wears me out at times.” She led the way up the porch steps and into the house. Complete disarray greeted us in the form of clothes scattered across furniture, cabinet doors hanging open, and dishes left in the sink and on counters.

“Looks like they were searching for something. They’ve destroyed your house.” I stepped farther into the kitchen. “We need to see whether anything is missing.”

“Nah, this is how it always looks. I’m not much of one for housekeeping, either. I like the lived-in look. As for stealing, we don’t have anything worth somebody taking.”

The dreaded flush crept up my neck. Open mouth, insert entire leg. Ethan fought back a grin.

“It doesn’t look like anyone’s here now.” Ethan headed for the back of the house. “Let me have a look around, make sure everything’s fine. You should probably call the police and let them know you had an intruder.”

He reappeared moments later with a shivering Chihuahua in his arms. “Here’s your fearless protector. Found him hiding under the bed.”

“Momma’s little Snookums!” Ester hugged the dog to her bosom. “If you find Harvey—Lord, we pray You keep him safe—tell him to get his rear end home.”

“Will do.” Ethan ushered me out the front door. “Do you want us to call the police for you?”

Ester waved us off. “I’m gonna call ’em now.”

I glanced back at her over my shoulder while Ethan and I walked across the yard. “She doesn’t seem too concerned, does she?”

“She’s used to her husband being gone.” He opened the truck door for me. “It’s the way of life for women who marry carnies. They either go with them or stay behind.”

“I’d be scared spitless if my husband was gone and someone wearing a gorilla suit came to my house.”

“You’ve had worse.”

“And I was terrified each and every time.” I slid inside the truck. “Two gorillas, Ethan. That’s why they always seem to be wherever I am. Woodrow had plenty of time to drive out here last night after we left. We need to check on Sally. She could be lying dead right now.”

Ethan shook his head. “He suspects you of peeking in his window. If you show up, he could confront you. We’ll go to the station and tell them our suspicions.”

Does he always have to play things so safe? A sigh escaped me. “I really enjoy you as my sidekick, Ethan, but you sure do hold me back.”

He took my hands from my lap and folded them with his. “Let’s pray for Harvey’s safety and then head to the station, okay?”

I nodded and bowed my head, struggling to focus on Ethan’s simple prayer of protection and discernment. Instead, my mind raced like a whirling twister. The few clues I’d gathered sucked up like debris and turned muddy, hard to see through. Were Woodrow and Grizzly Bob working together? What part did Sally play in all this? I didn’t believe her to be completely innocent or clueless.

And what motive could they all have? That’s the part where I got lost. I couldn’t believe the acts of violence were because of money. Too simple, and I couldn’t see the relation between the victims, other than the fact they all worked for Rick Foreman, who was also missing.

Lord, make things clear, please
. Ethan’s amen jerked me back to the cab of his truck. Shame flooded through me. I wasn’t even a decent enough person to stay focused during a prayer for someone’s safety.

Words my aunt spoke to me last July echoed through my mind. I am spoiled and selfish! How can anyone love me, much less God? I vowed to do better. To make myself worthy of His love. Starting with saving Harvey. I’d failed with so many others, but this time I would triumph.

I stayed lost in my self-accusation while Ethan drove us to the police station. It took fifteen minutes for someone to greet us and another ten before they were able to tell us who was acting chief while Joe lay in a hospital bed. Eventually, an officer who didn’t look old enough to be out of the academy strolled up to us, his face wearing the telltale signs of stress in lines around his eyes and mouth.

“I’m Lieutenant Downs. You’re looking for me?”

Ethan shook the man’s hand. “We’d like to speak with you about what we are assuming could possibly be an attempted murder.”