3 Dime If I Know (14 page)

I sipped my coffee, willing the steam from the cup to work magic on my headache, wondering if I’d look back on this instant later as the moment before the storm. Would everything after this point in time be forever altered?

Britt opened his folder and withdrew a picture. He placed the photo in front of me. I glanced down, seeing the strawberry blond hair, the freckled skin, and molten chocolate eyes. It was a little girl. An adorable little girl sitting on a swing, laughing. Behind her was the landmark bell tower of Baker Park in Frederick.

“Recognize her?” Britt asked.

“She’s cute as a button,” I said. “I don’t know her. Should I?”

“Look closer,” he urged.

I picked the picture up and studied it. “There’s something familiar about her, but I can’t place it. She’s what, four or five?”

“Five.”

“For goodness sakes, don’t hog the picture,” Mama said as she reached over. The color drained from her face. “I thought Rafe didn’t have any kids.”

“Rafe?” I snatched the picture back. Now that Mama had pointed out the resemblance, I saw it. The hair color, the freckles, the eyes. Oh, God, she had his eyes.

My heart galloped wildly. “This girl is Rafe’s daughter? I don’t understand.”

Britt sat ramrod straight, his gaze honed in on my face. “Her name is Kylie. She’s Starr Jeffries’ daughter.”

“I’ve never seen her before in my life.” Mama’s hand rested on my shoulder, and I drew strength from that human tether. “What do you know about her? Where is she?”

“Starr’s sister, Jenny, has custody of her,” Britt said.

“What’s this have to do with anything?”

“Kylie’s last name is Golden. She’s five years old.”

I did the math. Rafe said he’d dated Starr about six years ago. The pieces fell into place. Kylie Golden, five years old. An adorable child. She could be his daughter.

Air stalled in my lungs. “Does Rafe know?”

“You tell me. Has he ever mentioned Kylie?”

“Never.”

Britt reached for the picture, but I wasn’t letting it go. “I need this.”

“That photo is evidence.”

“That photo is a time bomb, and you know it. You can’t flash it around showing it to people, letting them think the worst of Rafe. Get him over here. Show him the picture. Give him a chance to explain.”

I recognized the signature growl of Rafe’s car outside.

Britt shot me a chilling smile. “You read my mind.”

Rafe opened the door to my office without knocking. His strawberry blond hair was mussed, as if he’d forgotten to comb it. He’d thrown on a tan windbreaker over a navy polo and khaki slacks. He stormed through the reception area and marched to where I stood. “You all right?”

I nodded, reaching for his hand. When he leaned in for a kiss, I whispered softly, “I didn’t know anything about this.”

He squeezed my hand. Together we faced the law.

“What’s this about?’ ” Rafe asked Britt. “Why did you summon me here?”

“I have questions for you. Questions you need to answer honestly. Since you’re dating Cleo and I think highly of her, I wanted her present when we talked.”

“Is my integrity in question?”

“Your everything is in question,” Britt said. “What was your relationship with Starr Jeffries?”

“She was a friend of mine.”

“Did you sleep with her?”

Rafe’s face darkened, and he jerked reflexively. “A long time ago. What does that have to do with anything?”

My fingers tightened around his, offering a port of calm in the storm. I edged closer to him, needing to offer him more. That little girl was precious, so clearly a Golden. Britt believed the worst of Rafe, but I wanted to believe the best. In all my dealings with him, he’d been fair and honest.

Britt pulled the picture out of his folder. “It has to do with this.”

Rafe stared at the photo as if it were the eighth wonder of the world. He reached for it, holding it in his other hand, studying the picture. “Who is this? Wait. Are you telling me this is Starr’s kid?”

“I am.” Britt’s gaze narrowed. “Is she yours?”

“No. She can’t be mine. I always used protection with Starr, and we weren’t together that long. She . . .” He paused momentarily. “She was seeing someone else at the same time. Once I learned that, I broke it off with her.”

“This child resembles you. You had an intimate relationship with the mother. The evidence seems straightforward. You had a kid with Starr.”

“This is the first I’ve heard of a child. Starr never mentioned her to me, not once. I never saw a child or any toys when I visited Starr.”

“And yet you were in monthly contact for these last two years. Before you deny it, let me assure you we’ve pulled your phone records. We also know there are deposits to Ms. Jeffries’ bank account that correspond with your visits.”

“She couldn’t get ahead of her bills. I helped her out. She told me she was taking courses at the college and that she was training to be a nursing assistant.”

Britt stared at Rafe with a feral intensity. “There were no payments to any college in her banking records.”

“I don’t understand. I tried to help a friend who was down on her luck, and for that you think I killed her?”

“She kept asking you for more money, right?”

“Yeah.”

“It wouldn’t have stopped. She wouldn’t stop bleeding you for cash until you had nothing left. Was she blackmailing you?”

“No, I gave her the money of my own accord.”

“That’s not how it looks. From my standpoint, you had motive and opportunity. Now that I’ve dug into your past, I know about your gun proficiency. That brings up the means.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not a killer. Starr was my friend.”

“Let me ask her about that. Wait. I can’t. She’s dead. You killed her.”

“No.”

Ice in my heart, I stepped between the two men. “That’s enough, Britt. He said he didn’t do it.”

Britt tried his withering glare on me. “They all say that. Step away from him.”

I gave it right back to him. “I won’t. You’ve got this all wrong.”

“I’ve got a grand slam. Means, motive, and opportunity. It doesn’t get any clearer than that in police investigations.”

“You don’t have one shred of solid evidence. This is all circumstantial.”

“What I have is a compelling picture, and I’m not just talking about the secret baby. Golden was seen at the victim’s lodging the night she died. His fingerprints are on the door and in the room. He grew up around guns, and he’d been a person of interest in a previous shooting death. Add to that his frequent communication with her and the routine flow of money from his account to Starr Jeffries’ account. A good prosecutor can run these facts through a jury and get a guilty verdict.”

“Except he didn’t do it,” I insisted.

“You can’t be objective. You’re too close to this. To him.”

“I know how it looks. We’ve been down this road before. Rafe didn’t do it. He’s not a killer. What about Starr’s sister? She inherited Starr’s trailer and her kid. She has as much motive as Rafe, more, now that I think about it.”

“The sister has an ironclad alibi for the murder. She didn’t do it.”

“She could have hired someone.”

“Now who’s grasping at straws? Step away from him.”

“I won’t.” I hugged Rafe close. My voice trembled. “I won’t let you take him.”

“For God’s sake, I’m taking him in for questioning, not exiling him to Mars. Let go of him, or I will arrest you for obstruction.”

“Do it. Arrest me. I’ll sue you to the Supreme Court and back.”

“Cleo.”

“Don’t
Cleo
me. You can’t be right. I know it in my heart. I don’t care what your evidence says.” Tears flooded my eyes, breaching my self-control.

“Easy, Red,” Rafe murmured in my hair, his hands stroking my back. “I appreciate your support, but I’m not worried about a few questions. Your family needs you to stay strong for them. You’ve got puppies that depend on you.”

I tried to bring my tears under control. “Puppies? You’re bringing the puppies into this? Britt’s dragging the man I love off for questioning, and you’re thinking about puppies?”

“Be strong. Can you do that for me?”

“I can, but I don’t want to be strong. Can’t a girl have a nervous breakdown when she wants? Why do I have to always be the strong one? Why isn’t it my turn to fall apart?”

“Cleo,” Britt warned again.

Rafe kissed me lightly on the lips, wiping the tears from my face with his thumbs. With that he disentangled us and moved over to Britt.

My heart lurched. I hugged my arms close, not wanting to believe this was happening. How many times did I have to do Britt’s job for him? Why didn’t Detective Dumb-as-Dirt trust my judgment? I gulped in another ragged breath.

Britt held the door open and nodded to Rafe. “You got any parting words, Golden?”

“Yeah, I do.” He turned to me. “Call Bud Flook. Looks like I may need his services after all.”

Not knowing if Rafe would be released or arrested, I prepared for the worst. I’d learned the bail bonding process when Mama had been arrested for murder. If needed, I had enough cash for the fee, along with tax bills showing the value of my business and my home. I would sign them over without a qualm.

That wasn’t the hard part.

Waiting was the real killer.

Mama peered around a clump of officers passing through the Law Enforcement Center’s lobby. “Any sign of our fellas?”

I slumped into the plastic chair next to her. “Not yet. I remember sitting here waiting for you for what seemed like hours.”

“Why can’t Bud walk out the door with him?”

“The police must be still questioning Rafe. How many times does he have to say he didn’t do it?”

Mama tapped her foot on the tiled floor. “You think that baby is his?”

It surprised me that she’d be more interested in the child than in my planning to sign away our house for my boyfriend. Not that I wanted to have either discussion. “The little girl looks like Rafe, but he said she isn’t his. I believe him, but the resemblance is uncanny, isn’t it?”

“Sure is.” Mama fidgeted with her pearls. “What’s taking so long? I swear I could have bought a week’s worth of groceries and three pairs of shoes by now.”

“You’re free to take my car and head out if you like. I’ll catch a ride with Bud and Rafe.”

“No way will you get rid of me so easily. Not with my house potentially up for grabs. I want to know what’s going on, and Bud will be all lawyerly about privileged information and won’t tell me diddly-squat. You’re going to save him, aren’t you?”

Uh-oh. Would she lay into me about the house now? I feigned ignorance. “Save Bud? I didn’t know he was lost.”

“Rafe. You’re saving him, right? We know Detective Hard-head has once again rushed in too quickly. You’d think he’d have learned patience by now.”

“Don’t you worry. I’ll figure out who killed that woman. Britt made a mistake. Rafe’s a good person, even if he is a little stubborn about his family.”

“That’s a bad sign.” Mama glanced up when the door opened and a vibrant brunette dressed in pickle green appeared. “Look what the wind blew in—Johnsy.”

Jonette hurried over to hug us both. “Why didn’t you call me? I went by the house to play with the puppies between shifts at the Tavern and your puppysitters told me Rafe had been arrested. Unfortunately, Muriel and Francine didn’t have a single detail to relay.”

“Because there aren’t any. Rafe wasn’t arrested. He’s being questioned about Starr’s homicide as a ‘person of interest.’ I’m glad you’re here. I could use the company.”

“What am I?” Mama asked. “A broken record?”

I covered Mama’s clasped hands. “You’re company, too. I’m glad you’re both here. Poor Rafe. I wish I could be in there with him.”

“He has Bud,” Mama said, pride ringing in her voice. “Bud will get him out of there as soon as he can.”

“What’s this I hear about Rafe’s secret baby?” Jonette asked as we all sat down.

Mama cackled. I silenced her with a sharp look. “Rafe says it isn’t his child,” I said. “Starr Jeffries, the dead woman, is survived by a five-year-old daughter, which I learned about at Starr’s funeral, and which Starr’s neighbor told us about when we snooped around her mobile home park. What we didn’t know through all this, having never seen the kid, is that she strongly resembles Rafe. Given that coincidence, Britt is certain Rafe is a killing machine.”

“Seriously? Rafe’s ex-girlfriend’s kid looks like him, Rafe denies fathering the kid, and you believe him?”

“Starr had a kid.” I held her gaze. “Rafe says the child isn’t his.”

“A kid. If Britt’s right about the paternity, Rafe could have a kid living with him in the next few days. Boy, how’d you like to wake up one day and find out you had a daughter you didn’t even know about? That would be a serious shocker.” Jonette stared at the bubblegum machine across the room. “The thing I don’t get is how Starr managed. By all accounts, she drank too much and couldn’t hold a job. How’d she support herself and a kid if she was a drunk?”

I hugged myself to keep from shuddering. I couldn’t imagine what that cute kid had gone through in such an unstable home environment. I knew Rafe helped Starr financially, but I’d promised to keep that private. I tried to steer the conversation in a different direction. “What if the sister’s a drunk, too? What will happen to Kylie? How will her father, whoever he is, respond? Do you think one of Rafe’s male relatives is the father?”

Before she could answer, the lobby doors opened again, and Rafe’s siblings swept in. Regina ignored us and marched straight to the plexiglass receptionist’s window. “Release my brother Rafe Golden at once, or I’ll sue everyone in this building.”

Hill trailed behind her, a little pale around the gills. Regina’s assistant, Mary, looked efficient in a conservative brown business suit. She stood behind her boss, pen and note pad at the ready.

The staffer behind the glass scowled. “Take a seat, miss. No need to sue anyone. He’ll be out when the detective is finished questioning him.”

“How do I post his bond?” Regina continued as if the woman hadn’t spoken.

“He hasn’t been arrested, so there’s no bond to post. If he is arrested, Mrs. Jones plans to post his bail. There’s nothing further you can do at the moment. Have a seat in the lobby.”