South River Incident (35 page)

“Are you talking about my
car?” I asked. “Do you have it?”

“Yes, and I’m afraid we’re
talking about an insurance claim here. It’s probably going to cost two thousand
dollars just in parts alone. I suggest you call your insurance company and file
a claim. This is a major job. You don’t want to have to pay for it out of your
pocket. That’s why people carry insurance. Let them pay.”

“It’s probably time to get
rid of that car,” I said. “I love it, but every time I get in it, something bad
happens. I think it’s cursed.”

Chief Standing Deer looked
over at me with a surprised expression. “So you do believe in spirits, huh?”

“I didn’t say I believe in
spirits, what I said was...”

“See, she’s getting more
like us all the time,” Beth said as she walked over to me and gave me a hug.
She pulled me aside and said, “Was I right about the chief and his predictions?”

“I guess you were right,” I
said. “One day I will figure out how he does it. I think he just got lucky. He
was guessing.”

“Give the man a little
credit,” Mom butted in. “I don’t know how he does it either, but there must be
something to it. He was right.” She turned her attention to the chief and said,
“Can you tell me the exact day the baby will be born?”

Everyone laughed.

“Mom, he doesn’t carry a
crystal ball around with him,” I said.

“Give me a little time and
I’ll give you a date,” the chief told Mom.

“You can do that?” she
asked. “Do you use cards?”

Sarah walked over to Mom
and said, “No, he doesn’t use cards or tricks. He just comes and asks me.”

“Silly `ge ya,” the chief
said. “I am the one with the sight, not you. You are my squaw... you do what I
say.”

“Sam, nobody believes that
crap,” Sarah said to her husband. “Give it up. They know the truth. They know
who is in charge around here. Stop being such a know-it-all.”

“I am in charge! I am the
chief!”

Sarah smiled and hugged
him. “Sure, dear. Have it your way.”

Once everything had settled
down, I managed to slip out of the room and have a chat with Jonathan.

“It sure has been a rough
day, huh?” I said, trying to get myself prepared for the worst. “What I
wouldn’t give for a cigarette.”

“Cut to the chase, Jesse,”
Jonathan said. “You and I both know you have something to ask me. You’re not a
dummy. Just ask me.”

“Before you answer,” I
hesitated, “I just want to say that I want the truth and regardless of what you
tell me, it dies here.”

“I would not tell a
lie—it’s not in my nature to be dishonest.”

I didn’t know Jonathan well
enough to know whether he would be honest with me so the only thing I could do
was trust in my ability to recognize the truth. If he should lie to me, I would
see it on his face.

“Did Billy have anything to
do with the murder of Larry Hudgins?”

“No, he did not.”

“What about...”

“Jesse, you asked your
question and you have your answer.”

“But I have to know if...”

“I told Billy I would find
Clayton Tyler, and I did. I also found Larry Hudgins. I had no control of their
future.”

“Did you kill Larry
Hudgins?”

“Would your opinion of me
change if I told you that I had?”

“I don’t know.”

“Would you believe me, if I
told you that I had nothing to do with the man’s death? What would you say to
that?”

“I don’t know.”

“What does it matter? Your
family is safe. My family is safe. A bad man is dead. We can go on with our
lives. That is what you should do. Stop worrying about what happened to this
man. He did not care about you.”

“You’re absolutely right
about that,” I said. “He would have killed me and enjoyed it. He was a sick
man. His quest for revenge ruined his life.”

“His life was ruined before
you came into the picture. Did you know that he had been arrested three
different times in connection to three different murders? He was never
convicted due to lack of evidence. It seems that all the witnesses miraculously
disappeared. He was one bad dude. Clayton Tyler was small potatoes compared to
Hudgins.”

“I’m lucky that he’s gone.
I guess I owe someone a debt of gratitude.”

“You would have never felt
safe if he was still alive. People like him don’t ever give up. If they think
you have wronged them, they won’t stop until they get justice... their
justice.”

“What about Clayton Tyler?
Do you think he’ll serve any time?”

“It would be in his best
interest if he did. He’s not safe on the streets anymore. He has too many
enemies, and he doesn’t have Larry Hudgins to protect him. His days are
numbered.”

“Is that how it worked?”

“
Tyler
was the
front man, but Hudgins was the real boss.”

“And now that Hudgins is
dead, where does that leave
Tyler
?’

“Out in the cold,” Jonathan
said. “
Tyler
was not the smartest man in the world. Hudgins was
the brains behind the operation.
Tyler
relied on information from Hudgins to keep his
business afloat. If
Tyler
had to run the operation on his own, he would be
standing on the street corner, holding a sign that would read,
Will work for
food
.”

I had made a promise. I
told Jonathan the truth would die here, and true to my word, the truth as I
knew it would stay where it belonged. I would live with the knowledge that even
if Jonathan hadn’t personally killed Larry Hudgins, he probably knew who had.
It was not my job to be the enforcer of justice—I only spy on the people involved.

“Okay, let’s put this
matter to rest.”

“I answered your questions
truthfully.”

“That’s all I need to know.
Thanks, Jonathan.”

Jonathan leaned over and
kissed the side of my face. “You are a good woman, Jesse. You will make my
brother happy. For this, I am glad. He deserves to be happy.”

“Don’t you be kissing my
daughter, young man. She’s getting married,” Mom said as she walked out of
Billy’s room.

“Ah, but it was only a
friendly kiss, Mrs. Watson. I had to welcome her to the family. It’s a
tradition.”

“Well, if we’re going to be
family, then you must call me Minnie.”

“I can’t do that. My mother
would have my rear end. She’d take a belt strap to me,” he replied, and then
laughed.

“I doubt that very
seriously, you’re too big!”

“Mom tells us all the time
that we’ll never get too big for her.”

“That’s the same thing Mom
always said to me,” I added.

“Oh, pooh, we all say that.
You just wait until your baby comes along, Jesse, and you’ll see what I mean.”

Jonathan and I laughed at
Mom’s silliness.

“I guess we need to go back
inside,” Jonathan said. “I want to talk to Billy again before I leave.”

Mom turned to him before he
had a chance to walk away. “Who killed that evil man, Jonathan? Was it you?”

“Mom! That’s a terrible
thing to ask. Jonathan’s a bounty hunter, not an assassin. You’ve been watching
too much television. Just be thankful that man’s out of our life.”

“I am, honey. Believe me, I
am.” She looked at Jonathan and winked. “I was just kidding. I know you didn’t
kill him. But if you did, I just wanted to say thank you. It had to be done and
somebody had to do it.” Mom shook her head. She turned around and headed back
to Billy’s room and mumbled to herself. “I can’t believe I just said that.
What’s this world coming to?”

Jonathan put his arm around my shoulder as we turned
and walked back into Billy’s room.

S
aturday morning, the 1st of December, Billy
was released from the hospital and was
back home with me. By then, I had pretty much embraced the idea of being a new
mom. It would be a challenging job, but I was sure that I was up to the task.
We were going to be great parents.

The temperature had dropped
and a fresh, light dusting of snow enveloped the yard as I paced about the
house and contemplated the past few day’s events. So much had happened. I
flinched at the thought that I had killed two people, but I did it in the
defense of my family. I didn’t have a choice. Billy and I had almost been
killed by someone out of our short past together, and now that person was dead.
Cole had been shot in the head—grazed; we were informed while he was still in a
coma. Fortunately, he emerged from the coma a day later, but had suffered
partial paralysis to his right side. The bullet passed by just deep enough to
nick the skull, and cause nerve damage. The road to recovery was going to be
long and hard according to Dr. Bryant. But at least he was alive.

“He’s paralyzed on his
right side from his face down to his knee. He has some feeling in his right
foot and calf. That’s a good sign. This might be temporary, but we’re not sure.
The rest of the body works, but his days of law enforcement are over,” the
doctor had told us.

“What about physical
therapy?” I asked. “Won’t that help him?”

“We’ll just have to wait
and see. He will need a lot of support from his family. This is going to be a
tough transition. Cole has always been an active person. He might need
professional help to get him through the dark days, and there are going to be a
lot of dark days.”

Mom and Claire packed up
the kids and went back to
Dogwood
Valley
. Later, I found out that the two of them were going
to take care of Cole when he got out of the hospital. I figured that meant he
would move in with Mom, but Claire said she fully intended to take care of him
at his house. She would become his twenty-four-hour nurse. It would only be
temporary. Sure, I can read between the lines. The kids were going to live at
grandma’s house. They would spend part of their day at Cole’s house with their
mother and at night they would go back to grandma’s house. It sounded like a
pretty good arrangement to me. However, Claire’s soon-to-be ex-husband might
not like it, but who cares? I’m still hoping he gets eaten by a bear.

Clayton and his brother,
Doug Tyler, and what was left of Clayton’s subordinates were going to spend
many, many, years in prison once Cole, Billy, and I testified against them. 

Larry Hudgins was no longer
a threat. Someone had taken him out of the equation. And it’s that someone who
makes my nights restless ones. I weighed the pros and cons of actually trying
to solve that puzzle, but decided to stick by my steadfast rule—it was them or
us.

And Rose Hudgins was dead.
Rose was an innocent bystander in this whole vile mess, but yet she was the one
who had paid the highest price. She was the one who had suffered the most. Her
mother was a psychotic killer; her brother was the demon from hell; and her
father had been the scum of the earth. She never had a chance. The memory of
her will be a sadness that will always haunt my heart.

Billy walked in the kitchen
to where I stood. He leaned over and kissed the back of my neck as I gazed out
the window. “What’s on your mind, `ge ya? You’ve hardly spoken ten words since
I got home. Are you mad at me? I know I should be resting like the doctor
ordered, but if I have to stay in bed a minute longer, I will lose my mind.”

“Would you like for me to
fix you some lunch?” I asked as I turned and walked over to the refrigerator. I
opened the door and looked inside. “We have some sliced ham for a sandwich or
maybe you’d like a piece of leftover chicken. Mom always fixes chicken. I think
it’s because she was raised on it. When she lived on the farm, they had chicken
a lot. I guess once you get used to something, it’s hard to change.” Tears
welled in my eyes; my heart ached. I leaned my head up against the refrigerator
door, and let the tears flow.

Billy rushed to my side.
“What is it, honey? Why are you crying? Oh, I know what it is! It’s your
hormones. Mom said you would probably cry a lot. You’ll have to forgive me if I
seem insensitive, it’s been a long time since my kids were born. I forgot what
it was like to be around an expectant mother. Wow, I like the sound of that,
don’t you?”

Bless his heart. Billy’s
such a good man. I wouldn’t hurt him for the world, but I had to tell him about
what happened between Cole and me. I had to clear the air. It meant nothing.

“I need to tell you
something,” I said. “You’re not going to like it, but I have to say it anyway.
I don’t want any secrets between us. I refuse to marry you with this hanging
over me. It clouds my every thought. It shouldn’t because it didn’t mean
anything...”

Billy stepped back. “I
don’t like this already. It has something to do with Cole, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, it does,” I replied.
“Why don’t we go over by the fire and sit down. We can talk about it...”

“I think maybe you should
just spit it out right now. I don’t want to sit down. Please tell me that
Cole’s not the father of this baby.”

“Cole’s not the father of
this baby.”

A look of relief came over
his face. “Then I will never ask that question again,” he said.

“I told you in the hospital
that you were going to be a daddy. Did you think I would lie about something so
important? Do you think I would lie to you about anything?”

“No, I don’t think you
would lie to me, but I do think you would avoid telling me the whole truth.
I’ve seen you do it before. If I want the complete truth from you, I have to
ask a hundred questions.” He turned and walked over to the front door, leaving
his back to me.

“You won’t have to,” I said.
I walked up behind him and put my arms around his waist. “I may turn out to be
a good private eye after all. Aren’t they supposed to be able to be discreet
and keep the truth to themselves?”

Billy turned to face me. “I
believe what you tell me. I trust you and I love you. I am not usually a
jealous man, but when it comes to Cole, I’m afraid I might be. Tell me what
happened and let’s deal with it.”

“I think Cole’s trying to
accept the fact that it’s over between us, but it’s taking him a little while.”

“It was kind of sudden,”
Billy said. “I can see how it would be hard for him to accept. You two broke up
a short while ago, and now we’re together. We’re going to get married and we’re
going to have a child. He’s probably in shock. I would be, too, if I were in
his shoes.” Billy put his arm around my shoulder and guided me over to the
sofa. We both sat down. He took my hand in his and asked, “Is it over? Do you
still love Cole? I know things moved much faster than they should have with us,
but I’m taking it as a sign of good things to come. I’m not wasting my life
wondering if I should do this or do that, I’m just doing it. I want you, and if
you want me, we can work anything out.”

I reached over and kissed
him on the lips. My body ached for his touch.

“No,” he said, and then
pulled away. “We have to talk first.”

“Cole made a pass at me
while I was being held captive,” I said.

“When you say pass, do you
mean he flirted with you?”

“It means he kissed me, and
I let him.”

“You let him do what?”
Billy asked, his face turning red. His body tensed up and he slid away from me.
“How far did this kiss go? Did you have sex with him?”

“You’re joking! How can you
ask me something like that?”

“You don’t see me laughing,
do you?”

“Of course, I did not have
sex with Cole. I love you; not him.”

“Things can happen. I
understand how he might be able to convince you to have sex with him. He’s a
decent looking man and he has charm. All the women like him. It’s been like
that all his life. I can’t for the life of me see why women put up with him, he
treats them terrible.”

“I let him kiss me, and at
the time, I liked it. But I only liked it for a minute. I guess I still had
feelings for him.”

“Had feelings, as in past
tense? What changed your mind?”

“It just didn’t feel right
anymore. The physical attraction was still there, but the love wasn’t in my
heart.”

There was a long pause
before either one of us spoke. I wanted to give Billy time to soak in what I
had just said, and I guess he was using that time to do exactly that. He got up
from the sofa and walked over to the fireplace. He stirred the coals and then
added a log to the fire.

“How did you feel when he
got shot and you thought he was going to die? Did those feelings come back?” he
asked with his back to me.

“When I thought he had
died, I was sad, but I was able to let go.”

He turned around, walked
back over to the sofa, and sat down.

“I think I can live with
the knowledge that you might have some physical attraction to him as long as I
know you love me. I think I knew all along that you were still attracted to
him, but you never gave me a reason to believe it went past that. It would be
crazy of me to think that you would never be attracted to another man.”

“I will always be faithful
to you, Billy. You can count on it.”

He swept me up in his arms
and headed for the bedroom. He tenderly made love to me. “I love you,” he said.
He crawled out of the bed and headed to the bathroom.

A few minutes later, I
jumped out of bed and headed to the bathroom, passing Billy in the process.
While I was using the bathroom, I heard the phone ring. “Ah, the start of a new
day!” I said to myself. I walked out of the bathroom as Billy was walking back
into the bedroom.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“That was Claire on the
phone,” Billy replied as he put on his shirt. “They are releasing Cole from the
hospital. It seems he might recover nicely from this after all. She says he has
feeling back on his right side. Well, not completely, but with this turn of
events, the doctor believes he will make a full recovery. They’re sending him
home.”

“That’s wonderful!” I
rejoiced. “I’m glad. I was worried about what this might do to him, but now
he’s going to be all right. Our prayers were answered. I bet Claire’s happy.
She really likes him; I can tell. I need to get dressed. He’ll probably need
our help to get home.” I scurried around looking for something to wear while
Billy stood in silence, watching me. “What’s the matter? Why are you standing
there staring at me like that?”

“You seem awful excited for
someone that doesn’t care about the man.”

I walked up to him and
kissed his lips lightly. “I am thrilled that Cole’s going to be okay, and you
should be, too. He’s our friend and he’s going to be a part of our life so get
over it. There’s nothing for you to be jealous about. I care about his
well-being, but I’m not in love with him. We are finished. I love you. You need
to get with the program.”

Billy smiled his beautiful
smile. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Love me,” I said.

After letting Athena and
Thor out to do their business and then back in, we locked up the house and
headed to the hospital.

“Do you want me to drive?
You look tired.”

“I’ll be fine,” Billy said.
“I’m still a bit sore. Pain can wear you out.”

“I know what you mean.
Thank God nothing happen to my baby because of that car accident. I was lucky.”

“Your baby?”

“I mean... our baby.” I
scooted over as close to Billy as the seatbelt would allow. “I hate these
things, but if it hadn’t been for that seatbelt, I would probably be dead just
like that girl... what was her name?”

“Her name was Tammy Farmer.
She was sixteen years old.”

“That was such a waste. How
sad.”

“Yeah, she was young and
had her whole life ahead of her.”

“I’ll have to warn my
daughter about men like Hudgins.”

“I’ll have to warn my son of
the pitfalls of being a man like Hudgins.”

We looked over at each
other at the same time and laughed out loud.

“I can see that you’re
going to be a handful,” Billy said.

“Did you expect me to be
different now that I’m going to be a mother? Hey, that does sound pretty good.
I’m so excited.”

“I can tell. Your face
lights up every time you mention anything about the baby. I guess you could say
that you have that glow. Isn’t that what they say about pregnant women?”

“That’s a bunch of bologna.
Where’s that glow when we have our heads in the toilet?”

“Oh, I forgot about that.”

Billy and I continued our
bull session until we reached the hospital. By then he was completely convinced
that I was going to be a holy terror for the next nine months. As much as he
loved me, he was not looking forward to my mood swings. He was probably right.