Alaskan Sweethearts (15 page)

His grandfather just looked at him.

“You’re getting smarter about women,” the old man finally said. “Anyone ever tell you that?”

Hunter grinned. “Now, who would tell me that?”

They chuckled together and it felt good. Hunter put his hand on Joey’s shoulder to let the boy know he was included in the merriment.

“My mom likes you,” Joey said to Hunter, and he suspected it was the boy’s way of participating in the adult conversation.

“I’m glad if she does,” Hunter replied, wanting to accept the boy’s confidence without overshooting the truth. Scarlett may or may not have much fondness for him. He had to admit he was glad she was confiding in him more each day, though.

The three of them stood by the suitcases for a few minutes before Hunter picked one up.

“I’ll come back for the rest,” Hunter said as he slung a backpack over his shoulder. “I don’t want anyone else carrying anything.”

“Sure, hog all the glory for yourself,” his grandfather said with a grin.

“That orchid came with a note that said it was from the Jacobsons,” Hunter told the other man.

“Well, that was the most important part of the message,” his grandfather said.

“You might want to take it slow anyway,” Hunter said as he picked up the largest black suitcase.

“I haven’t got time to go slow at my age,” the old man said.

Joey offered his hand for something to carry and Hunter gave him a small duffel bag.

Hunter held out his other elbow to his grandfather.

“You don’t have the breath for going fast, either,” Hunter said. “Take my arm so you don’t fall.”

“I guess I did rather say too much,” his grandfather admitted as he did so. “But I used to be a gold miner. Gambling is in my blood.”

Hunter looked at the old man sharply, trying to see if there was any hidden meaning to the words. He had almost forgotten they’d come up here to see about that mine. The old man’s face was innocent, though, as he stood by Hunter’s side.

“Don’t stumble,” Hunter cautioned him.

Joey went ahead and opened the door for them.

The women weren’t in the living area, but Hunter could hear their voices coming from the kitchen. He hoped they were comfortable now and willing to mention what had happened. He looked at the books on the floor by the shelves. He was determined that no harm would come to Joey or Scarlett while he was around to stop it.

He’d planned for him and his grandfather to stay at a hotel, but now Hunter was wondering if he shouldn’t sleep on the couch in the living room. That way he’d be right here to stop any mischief if those boys came back. They had to be the culprits. He wasn’t so sure Scarlett would like him to stay, though. She’d seemed a little jumpy around him since Seattle. And she was right to be. Until they went over to see what was happening with that old mine, neither one of them knew how cordial the future would be between the Jacobsons and the Murphys.

He heard the voices in the kitchen dip down even lower and couldn’t help but wonder what troubles they were sharing. Even with all that was happening, he wondered what Scarlett was telling her grandmother about the Jacobsons.

Chapter Seven

S
carlett leaned against the kitchen counter and looked around. The white tiles were chipped on the backsplash above the sink and stove. The white cabinet doors were open and flour spilled out from a bag on the counter. The few plants her grandmother kept on the windowsill had been turned upside down on top of the washing machine and dirt was scattered over the black-and-white checked linoleum floor. Several cans of soup had been tossed on the floor and had rolled into a corner.

“Who would do something like this?” she turned and asked her grandmother.

The older woman shook her head. “I went to the grocery store to be sure we had enough milk for breakfast tomorrow and when I came back—here it was. Someone had searched every cupboard and shelf in the house—and they weren’t neat about it, either. Like they wanted us to know they’d been here.”

“Did you call the police?”

Her grandmother nodded. “I thought that was them when your cab pulled up. That’s why I went to the door.”

“It must be those boys who’ve come by before causing trouble,” Scarlett said. “I saw them on the street on our way here. They were huddled together. I bet they wrote that letter, too.”

“But how could they know I was going to be gone right at that time?” her grandmother protested. “I’m usually here and I was only gone for twenty minutes. They would have to be watching the house and waiting for me to leave. Would they do that?”

Scarlett nodded. “I think so. They’re out to scare Joey. They might do something like this just to frighten him.”

“But why?” the older woman asked. “They barely know Joey. They saw him in kindergarten this past year, but they weren’t in the same class or anything. They didn’t even share the same playground.”

“I don’t know why, but...” Scarlett stopped.

“What?” her grandmother asked, her forehead furrowed in worry.

“It’s nothing,” Scarlett said. She wanted to think about what it meant.

But then she realized she owed the full truth to her grandmother. “I saw Victor when we drove down Front Street just now. He had on a hoodie, so I couldn’t see his face, but I’d know him anywhere. He has attitude all through his bones and it shows in the way he moves. Those boys were all standing there laughing at something he said.”

“Oh, but surely it can’t be,” her grandmother protested. “You said yourself that Victor is hiding out in Florida because he doesn’t want to pay child support for Joey. That’s what everyone says. Even the courts can’t find him. He can’t be here. Besides, he would have come to see Joey if he was here.”

“Maybe he wouldn’t,” Scarlett said. “Victor is no good. Joey thinks he’ll come back to see him, but he never will. He seems to have forgotten he has a son.”

Just then she heard a gasp. She looked at the doorway to the kitchen and caught a flash of brown color at about the height of her knees.

“Joey!” she called as she hurried into the living room. She hoped her son hadn’t heard their conversation. She had never told Joey what she really thought of his father.

The boy raced over to Hunter and grabbed hold of his leg. The man had been talking to his grandfather about something.

Scarlett was taken back. She had been Joey’s anchor, especially since his father left. He’d never gone easily to anyone else, not even her grandmother.

Hunter looked down at her son and absentmindedly lifted him up to settle him on his shoulders while he kept talking to his grandfather.

Joey glanced over at Scarlett, but then looked away.

He was hiding something from her, Scarlett decided. She had wanted Joey to have a male figure in his life, but she hadn’t pictured it being someone like Hunter. She’d thought it would be someone more like Hunter’s grandfather. A kindly older man who would be supportive without threatening her position. And what Joey might be keeping from her, she couldn’t begin to guess. He was only five years old. That was too young for any big secrets. Maybe he was just feeling disloyal because he hadn’t run to her as he’d always done before when he was hurt.

Scarlett had the feeling that her reluctance to trust any man, including Hunter, was going to be difficult if Joey was so quick to form these kinds of attachments. How could her son trust someone she didn’t? She’d have to explain to her son that some men were not safe. And how could she do that without poisoning her son against all men when she had no good reason for her distrust?

Scarlett turned to go back to the kitchen just as she heard a loud banging come from the front door.

She turned and saw Hunter stop talking. He set Joey down on the floor and motioned for everyone to stay back. “No one goes near any windows.”

Scarlett looked up to see her grandmother standing in the living room now, too.

“It’s probably the police,” the older woman said.

Hunter looked over at her and asked, “Did you call them?”

“Just a few minutes ago,” she said. “As soon as I got back from the store.”

Hunter nodded. “It probably is them then, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful.”

Another knock was heard.

“I’ll get it,” Hunter said as he took a step toward the door.

“It’ll be Jimmy Riley,” Scarlett’s grandmother whispered. “He’s the one they said was answering the call. And his partner, Bob Sharpe. They’re nice boys.”

Hunter opened the door but left the screen door locked.

Two men in police uniforms stood outside.

“Can I see some identification?” Hunter asked.

They both reached for their pockets when Scarlett’s grandmother stepped closer and looked out from behind Hunter.

“That’s the boys,” she confirmed.

“Hi, Mrs. Murphy,” the policeman closest to the screen said.

Hunter opened the door.

“That’s Jimmy,” Scarlett’s grandmother whispered to Hunter as she nodded at the first man to enter the house.

“Officer Riley?” Hunter said with a nod to the man.

“In this house, you can call me Jimmy,” the officer said with a grin. “Mrs. Murphy used to babysit me. She has special privileges.”

“It’d be better if she had extra protection,” Hunter said. “Those boys who are bothering Joey probably did this.”

Scarlett saw the smile disappear from Jimmy’s face.

“And who are you?” he asked Hunter.

Scarlett could tell Hunter struggled to find the words.

“A friend of the family,” he finally said and gestured to his grandfather. “We both are.”

Jimmy looked at the two men suspiciously but didn’t ask them any more questions. Just then Bobby touched him on the arm. “A call’s coming in.”

Jimmy nodded and Bobby left the house, heading to the patrol car.

“Tell me what happened.” Jimmy turned to her grandmother, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a small notebook. “Step by step.”

“Someone got inside,” the older woman said.

“And you think it was those boys that were harassing Joey that day?”

“I don’t know who it was,” the older woman said firmly. “Those boys seem kind of young for this kind of a thing.”

“They’re teenagers,” Jimmy said. “Plenty old enough in my book. So tell me what happened.”

“I came home and look at what they did.” She gestured to the room.

Jimmy eyed the disarray around the bookcase and the buffet. “I’d say they were searching for something. Any idea what?”

“Well, I don’t know,” her grandmother said slowly. “We don’t have much that is worth stealing. A few pieces of furniture. Some dishes. Books.”

Joey stepped up to the policeman. “They might have come for my teddy bear. It was in my suitcase so it wasn’t here.”

Jimmy smiled at that and squatted so he was eye level with the boy. “I think we can keep your teddy bear safe. Don’t you worry any about that.”

Joey gave a shy smile to the officer and Scarlett told herself that Joey was just at the age that he wanted a man’s approval. He didn’t care whether it was Hunter or Jimmy the policeman. She felt relief at the realization that her son wasn’t becoming that attached to a man who might disappoint him. It was best if they both kept some distance from Hunter until they knew how this business was going to end.

Jimmy stood then and looked at her grandmother. “Anything else?”

No one said anything.

Jimmy kept looking at the older woman, though. “Have you checked to see if that ring of yours is still safe?”

“You know about that?” Scarlett asked in shock. She looked at her grandmother. “No one’s supposed to know about that ring.”

Jimmy glanced over at her. “It’s not general knowledge. But your grandmother used to tell me stories about the mining days when she babysat me. She showed me the diamond ring once. It was a beaut.”

Scarlett kept her eyes on her grandmother. “I thought we were never supposed to tell anyone.”

“He was just a little boy,” her grandmother murmured. “About Joey’s age. He wasn’t going to steal anything.”

“Little boys grow up,” Scarlett said and then realized she had no cause to scold her grandmother when she herself was likely the leak.

“Of course, Victor might have told those boys,” she confessed. “He’s the one we never should have told. But it would have been hard to keep that from him.”

“Your ex-husband,” Jimmy said in surprise. “I thought he was in Florida.”

Jimmy had been the officer to handle the threatening letter that had come to her house as well as the bullying.

“I think I saw him on Front Street when we were coming here from the airport,” Scarlett said. “He was talking with those boys—all buddy-buddy it seemed.”

“I’ll check that out,” Jimmy said as he made a notation in his book. “We didn’t have enough before to pull them in for questioning, but if they broke into the house here, they’re in serious trouble.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t want them sent away or anything,” Scarlett’s grandmother said.

“That’s for the courts to decide,” Scarlett said, refusing to back down.

“The only problem might be—” Jimmy looked at Scarlett. “Does your ex-husband still have a key to this house?”

“I imagine so,” Scarlett replied. “I didn’t change the locks. There didn’t seem to be any point once we got the divorce and he left Nome.”

“If he let the boys in, using his key, the DA might not press charges,” Jimmy said. “Especially if your ex-husband had reason to believe it was okay if he entered your house.”

“We never talked about it,” Scarlett said. “Like I said, it wasn’t an issue. He did come in after the divorce a few times when I was working. My grandmother was here, though, and he was stopping to see Joey.” Scarlett looked at the officer. “I didn’t want to discourage any contact he wanted to have with our son. I may have said he was welcome to come by anytime. And I didn’t ask for his key back. I just assumed he’d only use it to see Joey.”

“You need to be more careful about the men you take up with,” Jimmy said with a meaningful look at Hunter.

“If you mean Mr. Jacobson, I didn’t take up with him,” she declared with the barest of glances at Hunter. “I had business with his grandfather.” She thought a moment and added, “But I certainly wouldn’t give either one of them a key to my place. The grandfather is paying my family back for something that he did years ago. That’s all.”

Scarlett could see Hunter stiffen at her words, but, she told herself, he had warned her himself not to trust in his grandfather’s promise.

“He was a miner here,” Scarlett added.

“Years ago,” Jimmy repeated, sounding puzzled. Then his expression cleared and his voice was strong. “Don’t tell me he’s that Jacobson, the weasel of a partner who betrayed everyone?”

Jimmy looked over and studied Hunter’s grandfather skeptically. Then he turned to Scarlett’s grandmother. “I can’t believe you let your husband’s old partner into your house. I think you said he’d ruined your life.”

“I didn’t invite him in exactly,” Scarlett’s grandmother muttered in her defense. “He came with my granddaughter and her son.”

Scarlett felt Jimmy’s disapproval without even looking at his face.

“The Jacobsons are all right,” she said.

With that she looked over at Hunter. He was rigid with indignation.

“We are more than all right,” Hunter said, a low growl that seemed to vibrate throughout the living room following his words. “We’re friends of the family.”

Jimmy lifted an eyebrow at him.

“We are trying to right an injustice from the past,” Hunter continued. “We don’t mean any harm.”

“Yeah, well,” Jimmy said. “I’ll need to see some identification.”

Hunter reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He flipped it open to his driver’s license.

Jimmy looked at the license carefully. “It looks legitimate.”

“It is,” Hunter said. “Look, I appreciate you being careful where the Murphys are concerned, but don’t you think we should be out finding those boys who did this? They can tell you who let them in and what they were looking for.”

“We take care of our own here in Nome,” Jimmy said. “You don’t need to worry about that.

“And now that you mention it... What’s to say it isn’t the old man here—” he jerked his head at Hunter’s grandfather “—who has been threatening Joey? He could have written a letter and maybe he paid someone to come in and toss the house.”

“Of all the nonsense,” Hunter’s grandfather said, his voice rising as he went on, “how could you think I’d do such a thing? To my Maggie?”

“You stole from the Murphys once,” the policeman said firmly. “In my book that makes you a prime suspect for all of this. Besides, you knew about the ring. That’s the only thing of value in this house.”

“But it wasn’t here,” Scarlett said as she lifted the chain from around her neck and showed the ring to everyone. “I had it with me in Montana, so there would be no reason for Mr. Jacobson to break in to this house. Both he and his grandson knew that.”

Scarlett held out the ring then, the shine of it catching the light in the dimness of the house. It really was a pity her grandmother kept the ring hidden away. The only time it had been worn was when Scarlett had hung it around her neck to go to see the Jacobsons. And then her grandmother had asked that it remain out of sight.

Jimmy stepped closer and peered down at the ring in her hand.