All About the Money (A Jesse Watson Mystery Series Book 7) (16 page)

“Not hardly! I’m not boring!” Billy said. “Are you boring,
Helene?”

“I’m not boring! I’m exciting! I can jump in the car and go
anywhere.”

Her reference to getting into a car and just going anywhere
set off a light bulb in my head. “That’s it!” I said. “Let’s rent a Winnebago
and just cruise the roads. Who needs accommodations? We’ll have a hotel on
wheels. All we have to do is find a place to park it. That way we can take the
dogs and the cat, and we’d have plenty of room. Have you thought about how
crowded it’ll be with all of us in a car?”

Billy and Helene looked at each other, and then Billy said,
“That’s a great idea! I love it. If we wait until after McCoy’s funeral and the
big wedding bash, we’ll have plenty of time to prepare.”

“And don’t forget. Your new truck should be delivered
tomorrow. Did you forget about that while we were busy planning our getaway?”

“Yes, I did. I was so busy trying not to think about all the
stuff going on around us. People lying—people dying. Every time I turn around
someone either lies to me, or bites the dust. It’s getting so frustrating.”

“That’s life, Billy. Why do you keep beating yourself up? If
you’re so angry about Bruno dumping the gun, why don’t you go look for it?
You’re not to blame for his sorry behavior.”

“It just bugs me. Why…” Billy stopped. A strange look
appeared on his face as he got up, grabbed his cell phone, and then punched in
a number. “I have to check out something. I’ll be right back.” He walked out of
the room.

Helene stretched out on one of the sofas, picked up the
remote control, and then turned on the television—a widescreen that Billy had
purchased for me, knowing how much I liked to watch TV.

“Maybe there’s something on the news about someone we know,”
I said with a chuckle. “Surf the channels to see.” I stretched out in a
recliner and relaxed. All things aside, I was feeling pretty good. I closed my
eyes for just a second and the vision of Bruno standing next to his
Lincoln
at Wynona’s house appeared. A split
second later, he swung his arm and tossed the gun into the woods.  I jumped up
from the recliner and ran out of the room, leaving Helene with her mouth wide
open. I stepped into the doorway of the office and said, “He tossed it in the
woods at Wynona’s house.”

Billy was sitting at the desk punching keys on the computer
keyboard while talking on his cell phone. He looked up at me and said, “Give me
a minute, `ge ya. I’m checking out something.”

I slowly backed out of the room and went back to the den.
Whatever Billy was working on, it must’ve been important. He never makes me
wait for anything.

A few minutes passed before Billy came back to the den. By
then, I was in a snit. He had dismissed me, something he never did, and I
wasn’t happy. I always came first! But, my ill mood didn’t last. The minute he
came over to me and apologized, I was all smiles.

“I’m so sorry for putting you off like that, `ge ya, but I
was talking to a friend of Jonathan’s.” Billy sat down on the edge of the sofa
across from me and leaned over, his arms resting on his knees. “I did, however,
hear what you said, and I think you might have something. Bruno isn’t dumb. He
wouldn’t toss the gun where it could be found by a passerby. He’d want to put
it someplace where he could easily find it.”

“That’s what I was thinking. He wouldn’t keep it on him, and
he wouldn’t hide it back in Wynona’s house. What if the sheriff went out and
searched her house again, and then searched his?”

“That’s true.”

“Yeah. If he tossed it in the woods at Wynona’s house and the
cops found it, it would be on her property. He’s smart. He’ll protect his
sister, but he’s not going to go to jail for her.”

“I think the gun might have some history to it,” Helene
added. “Why else would he dispose of it? Find the gun, and you’ll find out why
he was so eager to get rid of it.”

“Maybe it was used in another crime,” I said, wide-eyed. “Perhaps
Hank Sharp wasn’t Wynona’s only victim. I bet she’s killed someone else with
that gun.”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Billy said, and then hesitated.
“But you never know.”

“Who were you talking with on the phone?” Helene curiously
asked. “If it’s a friend of Jonathan’s…”

“You are so intuitive, Helene,” I said, turning my head
toward Billy after a second of thought. “You think you can find the gun, and
you want someone to run a trace on it. You were talking with that woman, Deanna
who works in ballistics—the one Jonathan used to date. I’ve heard all about
her. Didn’t she dump him?”

Helene and I glanced at each other, our womanly instincts
kicking in. We knew it was never good to visit old wounds.

“She broke his heart,” Helene added. “He just about fell apart.”

“Do you think that was wise?” I asked Billy. “Getting
Jonathan to hook you up with a woman who dumped him and broke his heart? Man,
you really pushed the limits of brotherly love. You never get someone to ask a
favor from someone they used to care about. It sends the wrong message.”

“That was a long time ago. He’s been over her. Besides, I
never brought up her name. All I said was that I needed someone to run a
ballistics check. He was the one who suggested her.”

“Semantics,” Helene said. “By doing this, you could’ve
stirred up something that should’ve been left alone. What would Lu Ann say?”

“This is business,” Billy said. “You’re making too much of
it.”

“We’ll see,” Helene came back with. “But if the wedding gets
called off, we’ll know why.”

“Why?” Billy seemed confused at our concern. “It’s not
personal. It’s a job. That’s all. Nothing more.”

“Honey,” I leaned over and said. “This is about as personal
as it gets. Jonathan and Lu Ann are getting married in three weeks. I know he
loves her, but from what I’ve been told, if Deanna decides she wants him back,
all she’d have to do is snap her fingers. Jonathan would come a-running.”

“She’s married.”

“Are you sure? Did you ask her?”

“No! Why would I ask her that?”

“You wouldn’t. That’s the point. You don’t know whether or
not she’s still married. What if she isn’t married anymore and she’s lonely?”

“This is getting crazy. Why are we even talking about it?
Jonathan’s going to help me out, and he’s not going to dump Lu Ann over a woman
he doesn’t even care about anymore. What’s the big fuss?”

“I’m just saying…”

“Forget it, Jesse,” Helene said, rolling her eyes. “Guys
don’t think like we do. They just don’t get it.”

“Getting back to business,” Billy said, ignoring our
objections. “Sheriff Hudson said that Wynona wouldn’t be getting out of jail
anytime soon, but I have my doubts. A good lawyer will find a way to get her
released. It might take a couple of days considering the charges against her,
but it will happen. No one actually saw her shoot Donald. All they have is his
word against hers. They don’t even have the weapon used.”

“But we have it on tape. We heard the conversation and the
gunshot. We know she did it. “

“Flimsy. How we got the information could be called into
question. If the court tossed out the recording, there’d be no case. This could
get all turned around before it’s over. No. I don’t see this going too well
without the gun.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“I think you know. We have to go find the gun, and we have to
do it now, before Wynona gets released. I don’t want to go there if she’s
home.”

“I don’t either. She’s dangerous. She might shoot us.”

“You’ll need to put on some long pants and your boots if
we’re going to trek through the woods.”

“Are we leaving now?”

Helene sat back, folded hers hands, and just smiled. She knew
what was coming next. Billy and I would rush out the door, into another
adventure. There would be another tale to be heard later.

“I’ll just watch the kids and sit by the phone,” she said. “I
can’t wait to see how this turns out.” She looked at me and asked, “Should I
call your mother?”

“Not now.”

Billy and I got up and headed to the bedroom. We changed
clothes, collected our gear, and left Helene standing at the front door,
waving.

This was our routine, I thought to myself. We were always
running somewhere, or chasing after someone. Who has time for another baby? Now
where did that negative thought come from? It’s strange how things pop up in
your head when you’re out, getting into other people’s business.

Here we were… again. On our way to Donald and Wynona’s house.
Driving the same car. In the dark. Late at night. To find… what? A gun—or an
angry, killer woman?

“You’re thinking too hard,” Billy said as we passed their
house. “I know. I passed their house. I wanted to see if anyone was there.”

“Déjà vu. I feel as if I’ve been in this bad dream before.”

“You have, my dear.”

“And all I have now is this vest with a bullet casing still
lodged in it. What good is that?”

“It is not. That is why you are going to wait in the car.”

“Then why did you make me wear this vest?”

“You ask too many questions, `ge ya.”

“Okay. I’m starting to worry. You’re talking funny again. You
got that Indian thing going on. What’s the matter? What’s the deal?”

Billy turned the 4Runner around and headed back to the
Rhodes
’ house.

“There is nothing wrong. It is going to be a breeze. We will
find the gun, and then we will be out of there.”

“Right. When you stop using contractions in your sentences, I
know you have something on your mind. You don’t think we’ll run into Bruno, do
you?”

“He will not show up. He thinks his secret is safe.”

“He doesn’t know you. Nothing or nobody can hide from you for
long. You’re as relentless as a blood hound.”

“That’s my job! Woof! Woof!”

I laughed at his silliness, but my insides were shaking like
one of those wobbly headed dolls. Would this simple task turn out to be not so
simple? I crossed my fingers.

Much to my surprise, everything
went as planned. There was no one home at the
Rhodes
’ house, and when Billy walked out of the woods
holding the gun, I was shocked.  Never, in my wildest dreams would I have
imagined that we’d actually find the gun exactly where we thought it would be.
I figured Billy would come out empty-handed.

“You had your doubts, didn’t you?” Billy asked, crawling into
the car. “You didn’t think we’d find it.”

“I must say that I am surprised, but when you rationalize it,
what better place to get rid of a gun and still have access to it? He probably
panicked when he thought the police were coming, so he just flung it into the
woods. That’s what I would’ve done.”

“We need to take this gun to Deanna. She can run a ballistics
test on it in no time at all. We should know something in a couple of days.”

“A couple of days? It doesn’t take that long on those TV
shows. They get the job done in an hour.” I laughed. “Billy, it’s past eleven.
It’s a little late to be dropping in on someone. Can’t it wait until morning?
It’s been this long. What difference will another day make?”

He looked at the clock on the dashboard and said, “I didn’t
realize it was that late. We will wait until the morning.” He kept looking
around.

“What is it? You act like a thief in a department store. What
are you looking for?”

“Just keeping my eyes open.”

“Open for what? Who do you expect to see?”

“I was expecting to see a
Greene
County
deputy cruising by. Sheriff Hudson
said he had some men watching the place.”

“And you didn’t tell me? I was sitting here wearing a vest
and packing heat. What do you think a deputy would say if he caught me? We’d
both go to jail!”

“My senses were keened.”

“What does that mean?”

“I did not feel or smell a cop.”

I had to laugh again.

“I’m serious, `ge ya. Didn’t you ever watch any westerns on
TV?”

“Yeah, I did, but nowhere did I see an Indian sniffing…. “ My
voice trailed off.

“Is it coming back to you now?”

“Sometimes, I forget that you’re an Indian—a warrior with
special powers.” I chuckled. “You are the man! You know and see everything!”

“I am a Man Warrior.”

We laughed together. We were both glad the hunt was over, and
that it had been successful. If events had turned out differently…

“Now we can go home, go to bed, and get started on that
baby,” Billy said with a smile.

I didn’t respond. I was still reeling at the idea that we
could’ve been arrested for trespassing—an offense not worth worrying about—but
nonetheless an annoyance. We could’ve been hauled off to jail and questioned
for hours. There’s nothing worse than being kept up all night by a burly deputy
who had just started his shift and had plenty of energy.

What am I thinking? Trespassing is nothing. We do it all the
time and we never think twice about it. Am I getting weak?

“You are silent, `ge ya. Are you having second thoughts about
us having another baby?”

“No,” I replied. “I was just wondering why we had to wait
until we got home. Practice makes perfect, or something like that.”

I was joking, but Billy wasn’t when he turned off Rt.33 onto
a dirt road. While he looked for a place to park in the woods, I giggled like a
school girl. By the time he turned off the car, I had tears running down my
face from laughing so hard. I didn’t believe he was serious until he took me in
his arms, kissing me passionately.

“We can’t do this here,” I said as he kissed my neck and
pulled at the Velcro on my vest. “What if we get caught?”

Needless to say, Billy folded down the back seats in the
4Runner, and the two of us did something we’ve never done before. We made love
in our car, and it was wonderful! It was wonderful, until we saw the flashing
lights of a police car. We scrambled to get dressed.

“I don’t believe it!” I said in a panic. “Of all the things
we’ve done, we’re going to get arrested for having sex in public. Mom will
never forgive me for embarrassing her like this.”

“Don’t worry, `ge ya,” Billy said, crawling out of the car.
“I’ll take care of it.”

Then, I thought about Wynona’s gun. If they caught us with
it, we’d surely go to jail. My heart raced as I tried to figure out what to do
next. All I could think about was the time Billy got arrested for withholding
evidence. That wasn’t fun.

It turned out that the deputy was someone we knew. He let us
off with a stern warning, and then laughed all the way back to his car. I was
ashamed of myself. Billy was proud.

“That’s a smug look you have on your face,” I said to him as
he turned the key in the ignition. “What did he say to you?”

“He said he didn’t think I still had it in me. He even patted
me on the back. He thinks you’re a hot mama.”

“He didn’t say that, did he?”

“Not in those words, but I knew what he meant. It made me
feel good.”

“How long do you think it’ll be before every cop in
Greene
County
knows about our little indiscretion? What’s that going to do to our
reputation?”

“Nothing. They’ll be envious.”

It was after
one
o’clock
by the time we
got home, and I was glad to put this day behind us. Actually, I was glad to put
this night behind us. The day had been fine. It was our nighttime escapades
that gave me pause. Although it was exciting, it was not going to happen again.
No more sex in the car.

The night came to an end, and when the sun came up, I
awakened to the sound of laughter. It was coming from the kitchen, and judging
by the tone, I was sure that Billy was telling someone about our wild night.
This was going to be another long day.

When I got to the kitchen, Jonathan and Billy were standing
by the sink, drinking coffee. They both smiled when they saw me. I knew how
this was going to turn out.

“I guess Billy’s been telling you about our wild night,” I
said, walking over to the coffee pot.

“You know there are no secrets in this family,” Jonathan
replied. “Jesse, you really need to curb your urges.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” I poured a cup of coffee.
“Besides, he’s the one who needs to keep his urges in check. Ha. Ha.”

Billy winked at me. “I love you, `ge ya.”

“Hey, I’m just glad to see that the spark’s still there,”
Jonathan came back with. “So many marriages fail because people forget to keep
the romance alive.”

“You’re a wise man, Jonathan,” I said. “You’re not going to
run off with Deanna, are you?”

Billy almost choked on his coffee.

Jonathan didn’t flinch. All he said was, “I know what I’m
getting into. Deanna has no hold on me. I can handle my feelings and her.”

I looked at Billy, and then back to Jonathan. “I hope so. Lu
Ann loves you, and you love her. Think about that before your urges get the
best of you.”

Billy looked at Jonathan and said, “Jesse and Helene freaked
out about Deanna being the one who was going to run the ballistics. They seem
to think you’re going to fall back in love with her, and then dump Lu Ann… and
I was the one who instigated it.”

Jonathan looked at me and said, “It’s not going to happen,
Jesse, so you can stop worrying. Deanna is the past. Lu Ann is the future.”

“The past, huh?” Helene mumbled, walking into the kitchen
with a cup of coffee in her hand. “I don’t see any good coming out of
reconnecting with that woman.” She looked at me. “I checked on the kids and
there’re still asleep. So are the dogs. Tell me about last night. What happened
when you went over to Wynona’s house? Did you find the gun?”

“Yes, ma’am, we sure did! And then we had sex in the car.”

Helene gasped for a second, and then chuckled.

“That’s right. Billy and I had sex in the car, and a Greene
county deputy caught us. Of course, he let us go after he laughed himself to
death.” I took my coffee, walked over to the table, and sat down. “I can’t wait
for my mother to hear about this.”

“She probably already knows,” Helene said as she sat down
next to me. “She lives in
Greene
County
.
Everybody knows everybody, and nobody misses a thing.”

“Geez…”

“It’s no big deal, Jesse,” Helene said. “It’s not as if you
killed someone.”

“Like
Savannah
did,” I said under my breath.

No one commented, so I moved on. I looked at Billy and said,
“I think you should turn the gun over to the sheriff and let them do their job.
It would save us all a lot of headache.” I looked over at Jonathan. “If you go
to Deanna for help, it’s only going to cause you problems in the end. Take my
word for it.”

Jonathan didn’t respond.

“If I give the sheriff the gun without having it checked out,
I won’t learn a thing,” Billy said. “He’s not going to share information.”

“So… you’re going to have it tested and then turn it over to
Sheriff Hudson. Won’t he know it’s been run through ballistics? For one thing,
it’ll have fingerprint dust residue on it.”

“Not when I’m finished with it.”

The conversation changed, and the day proceeded on. After
breakfast, Jonathan took the gun and went on his merry way, saying he would
call as soon as he found out anything. Helene and I were concerned about his
seeing Deanna, but there was nothing we could do.

A flatbed carrying Billy’s wrecked truck showed up around
nine, and by the time it was unloaded and put in the garage, the new truck
arrived. Greg handed Billy a handful of paperwork and then departed. The new
truck had been registered, tagged and insured. It was ready for the road!

Billy spent much of the morning checking out the wrecked
truck to see what he’d have to do to restore it, while Helene, the kids, and the
dogs played outside. I made phone calls, following up on the happenings of
family, friends, and clients. Someone had to do it, and since I knew Billy
wanted to mess around with his old truck, I volunteered. I wasn’t real thrilled
to call Flo and tell her that her bill had been prepared and was in the mail.
The fee: $5500. She didn’t say a word about the cost. She was just happy to
have her life back.

Next on my mental list was
UVA
Hospital
. Donald Rhodes was recovering and
would be released today. Cole James had already been released. I guess getting
shot or being stabbed doesn’t get a person any extra time in the hospital.
Wynona Rhodes was still locked up and would be until her trial. I didn’t get
the specifics, and it didn’t matter. She wasn’t going anywhere. I went on the
internet to see if I could get any information on Bruno Michaels, and
discovered some interesting dirt on the man. Four months ago, his wife,
Francine, had been killed in a drive-by shooting. Bruno was the only suspect in
her murder, and even though his alibi was lame, he was still free to walk the
streets. The weapon used in the shooting—a .38 caliber handgun—has not been
recovered. I printed out the page.

I took a deep breath, and then called
Savannah
. After several rings, her answering
machine came on, so I left a polite message. I told her to please call if she
needed anything, and we hoped she was doing all right. Then, I called Russell.
If
Savannah
wasn’t home, he’d know where she
was. To my surprise, he hadn’t talked to her since last night. He’d called, but
she hadn’t answered. He sounded distressed. 

When I got off the phone, it dawned on me that Cole was out
of the hospital. Was she with him? I knew there was chemistry between the two,
so it wouldn’t surprise me if they hooked up.
Savannah
’s marriage had been on the skids for a good while, and now
that McCoy was out of the picture, why not? That might sound cold, but it is
what it is.

Mom was delighted to hear from me. When I told her about
Billy’s new truck, she said they would come over to see it as soon as Eddie was
feeling better. His stomach problems had turned out to be a bug, and he was
feeling right rough. She also told me there would be a service for McCoy on
Friday at
eleven o’clock
at the
Stanardsville
Baptist
Church
, and then his body would be laid to
rest in the family plot in Fancy Gap.

“Cole’s out of the hospital,” Mom said.

“I heard,” I replied. “I’m so glad he’s going to be all
right.”

The tone in Mom’s voice changed. “Don’t you find it a little
strange that McCoy pulled a knife on Cole, knowing full well that Cole was
armed? Can you answer that for me?”

“You seem a little perturbed, Mom. What’s the matter?”

“It’s been bothering me. McCoy wasn’t an irrational man, so
why would he attack Cole?”