Blame it on Texas (28 page)

"Good. He nodded and started to leave, turning back for one final shot. "And Maddie? Don't ever come back."

CHAPTER ONE

Montgomery County, Oklahoma 2011

Madelyn Cooper glanced at her watch for the fifth time in as many minutes. "Where the hell is Pioretti?" she demanded of no one in particular. No one dared reply. They knew she tolerated no tardiness in her courtroom, not even from her best friend. Maddie did everything by the book, and no one was immune to being held in contempt.

Jerry March, the bailiff, only shrugged in reply. The defense counsel scowled and glanced at his watch as he drummed his fingers on the tabletop. Maddie couldn't help but wonder if he was more concerned about missing his dinner than he was about the missing prosecutor.

She watched the double oak doors as though Anne would appear if she wished hard enough, but they stayed stubbornly closed. Maddie had no patience left after a full day of dealing with defense lawyers and two-bit crooks hoping for nothing more than a slap on the wrist, and all she wanted to do was get the pre-trial motions out of the way in the Delgado case, the last on today's docket. Then she could go home to her daughter.

It wasn't like Anne to miss something this important. When she still hadn't arrived by five o'clock and no one had appeared to take her place, Maddie continued the case until the next week and left the courtroom. More worried now than angry, she hung her robe on the coat rack in her office and went to her desk to call Anne's office. No answer.

A frown creased her forehead as she cut the connection, then dialed her home number. Brandy should be home, safely ensconced in front of the television, but her daughter would fret if Maddie was late getting home.

Brandy answered on the first ring and Maddie breathed a sigh of relief. "Hi, honey. How was school?" She smiled as Brandy rattled on about the latest happenings at Wadsworth Junior High. At thirteen, her daughter was still young enough to enjoy the social life at school without all the teenage angst that would be inevitable in another year or two.

"Sounds like you had a good day. Listen, I'm going to be a little late getting home. I need to stop by Anne's house on the way. You keep the doors locked and don't open them for anyone, okay?"

Brandy huffed as only a teenage girl can when she thinks she's grown but is being treated like a child. "Sure, Mom. I know the rules. Can you pick up a pizza on your way home? Oh, and see if Anne got that Brad Paisley CD yet. She said I could borrow it."

"Pizza? Again?" Brandy would eat pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if she'd let her. "I'll ask her about the CD, but you are not going to copy it, understand? That's illegal."

"Geez, I know that. I just want to see if I like it enough to buy my own copy."

"Okay. Now remember, keep the door locked and don't open it for anyone. And stay off the computer until I get home."

"Mo-om. There's nothing else to do."

"Just do as you're told, Brandy. I'll be home as soon as I can."

Maddie checked her messages to see if Anne had called. Sure enough, she had. As she listened, she jotted notes on a legal pad. The message was disjointed and didn't make a lot of sense. Something about weird things going on and someone following her, to be careful. Maddie had never heard her sound so rattled before. She was definitely going by her house now. Maybe Anne would make more sense in person.

By the time she locked the door behind her, the building was nearly vacant and the staccato sound of her sandals against the linoleum floor echoed down the hallway.

She rounded a corner and nearly jumped out of her skin when she found herself face to face with Jerry. "What are you doing still here? I thought everyone had gone home."

Jerry looked embarrassed, but managed to stutter, "I wanted to walk you to your car. I don't think you should go into that parking garage alone."

"But I do it all the time, Jerry. It's no big deal."

He gave a jerky nod and fell into step behind her as she marched to the elevator. "I know, Your Honor. But, you being a woman and all, someone should go with you to make sure you're safe."

Maddie punched the down button. "Okay, what's up, Jerry?"

The elevator door opened and the bailiff shuffled in behind her before he answered. "Max Lucas got out of jail yesterday."

Maddie swallowed hard and willed her voice to be strong and steady. "They let that scum out on the streets? I thought the parole board was going to keep him in?"

"Guess not. Anyway, you need to be careful, Your Honor. You know what he said."

"He was just spouting idle talk. I don't think he'd risk another term to get back at me. But I appreciate your concern, Jerry. I'll watch my back."

The bailiff stayed with her until she'd reached her SUV, then checked inside and under the vehicle before he let her climb in. It annoyed her that she'd let him make her nervous about Max. She never let the threats get to her. If she did, she'd have to give up her job, and she'd worked too hard to get where she was to quit now.

As she drove to Anne's house, she wondered if her friend's strange message and failure to show in court had anything to do with Max's release. His threats had been aimed more toward her than Maddie. But Anne wasn't easily frightened, either, and Maddie couldn't picture her hiding at home. She could more easily see Anne stalking Max and taking him out when no one was looking.

Anne was as tough a prosecutor as Maddie had ever seen. She made grown men tremble under cross-examination. On one memorable occasion she'd even made one wet his pants while on the stand. When Max made his threats in court, Anne looked him right in the eye and threatened to make sure the entire cell block knew he favored little boys.

So what had happened to make Anne so afraid?

Maddie turned onto Anne's tree-lined street. The sun was little more than a speck on the horizon. Shadows covered the street and yards, and a shiver of nerves chased up her spine. Did she really want to risk running into Max in the dark? What if he was lurking in the dark shadows cast by the street light's vain attempt to shine through the trees? And who would take care of Brandy if anything happened to her?

No one, that's who. Anne was Brandy's designated legal guardian if anything happened to Maddie. She'd never thought to name an alternate if the unthinkable happened and both she and Anne were killed. She made a mental note to correct that oversight as soon as possible and pulled into Anne's driveway, looking around before she opened the car door.

All was eerily quiet and still. She tried to shake off the foreboding that stole over her. You're being silly. Nothing is wrong. Anne just forgot her court date or something. She wouldn't have left town without letting you know where she was going, no matter how scared she was.

The house looked empty. Anne's car wasn't in the driveway, but she might have parked it in the garage if she was spooked. Maddie grabbed a flashlight from the glove box and stepped out of the car, slamming the door hard enough to announce her presence. No one came outside to see who had come to visit. No one peeked through the curtains. No dogs barked a warning.

She stepped onto the wide front porch and cupped her hands around her eyes, trying in vain to see through the sheer curtains covering the bay window. There was no sound of a television or radio, no footsteps echoing from within the house. No sign of life.

Maddie opened the screen and knocked on the door, hard enough to bruise her knuckles. She waited, and waited. No one answered. She knocked again, then a third time. Feeling like a too-stupid-to-live character in a B movie, she tried the doorknob--and breathed a sigh of relief when she discovered it was locked.

So that was that. Anne wasn't home. All she could do was wait until she called again.

As Maddie rounded the front of her vehicle, she glanced toward the backyard. A flash of white in the trees drew her closer. She really didn't want to go back there. But what if Anne was in trouble? She couldn't just walk away and leave her friend.

At least call for backup. Oh, great. She definitely needed to lay off the cop shows. Her imagination had always been her downfall. Maybe she should have been a novelist instead of a judge. She wasn't planning to chase any bad guys down the street. All she needed to do was make sure the back yard was empty, that the flash of white was nothing more than a grocery bag caught on a branch, and then she'd head straight home and call everyone she knew who might know where Anne had gone. If that didn't bring any results, she'd call the police and turn in a missing persons report.

Shining the light into the trees, she saw what looked like a dress hung out to dry.

That made no sense. Anne wouldn't hang her dress in the trees. Maddie wished she'd called the cops before coming back here alone, but what would she tell them anyway? She had to deal with them every day, and she didn't want them to think she was weak or scared. But right now she'd give almost anything to have one of them at her side.

She took a deep breath and opened the gate, stepping into the dimly lit yard. She used the flashlight to make sure no one was hiding nearby, then moved closer to the trees.

What she saw stopped her in her tracks. Then she lost her lunch all over her brand new Gucci sandals.