Remote Consequences (7 page)

Snapping off the radio, I took a few cleansing breaths and tried to prepare myself for the day. I'd left my morning meeting with secret agent man half an hour earlier.

Of course, now that he'd identified himself as Colin Brooks, that made referring to him as the international man of mystery a little less fun. I found Colin's theory about his father interesting, but I wasn't sure I could trust him. He'd failed to satisfactorily explain where he'd been all these years and why I'd never heard of him—despite the fact that we were only a few years apart in age. Maybe he'd reveal more when we met again.

But I was willing to suspend disbelief for the moment—at least until I knew more about the identity of the dead body. A body that I hoped had been found by the police by now.

I made a mental note to do a little research on Colin when I had time. Surely there was some record of him somewhere. No one could hide out these days with the power of the internet.

Could the body really be Caden Brooks? Son of one of Millbrook's founding fathers?

Colin seemed interested in helping me discover the truth. After a good night's sleep, my curiosity was more than nagging me. So, like it or not, I was headed back to the station after checking on Paget and clocking in at the cable company. I needed to know if Ty was taking my report seriously, and that, regardless of his apparent memory of my one "big lie" back in high school, I shouldn't be considered a liar upon sight. I wasn't that immature girl anymore.

And, frankly, when all was said and done, I'd never been a fan of the Mills. If I could play a part in taking them down a notch and maybe solving a mystery in the process—well, it was all about honesty, and that was part of the Hippocratic Oath, wasn't it?

Maybe that was stretching the oath a little too far.

Plan in mind and car ride complete, I swung the wide car into a parking space—or two—and then pulled my hairbrush from my bag. Looking in my rearview mirror, I saw two things that concerned me.

One, my hair was going to need more than a quick brush-through after the wind damage I'd just caused it. And two, I had a bigger problem. Ty Dempsey was in the row of cars behind me, leaning against the hood of his police-issued sedan with his arms crossed.

He didn't look happy.

*  *  *

I exited my car and watched Ty's eyes carefully as he studied me with a cop's glare. "We need to chat."

I slung my bag over my shoulder and turned toward the entrance. "Well, I have to check on my sister first, if you don't mind."

It wasn't a question. I was going to check on my sister, and I didn't feel like talking to Ty Dempsey right now. Something about him still made me act out. Even after all this time, he could get under my skin without speaking a word. He'd been my whole life, back in the day, and then he'd been the reason I'd started a new life when I left town. I'd all but cut off communication with this town, with the exception of limited contact with Aunt Patty and Paget. But I didn't have time to reminisce right now.

"Actually, I do mind. I need to get to the mayor's office pronto, and your little stunt yesterday could cost me my job."

At his words, I stopped and spun around.

"My little stunt? I came to your office, reported a possible crime, and your guy laughed it off as if I were a nutcase. Then you sprang the news on me that my sister was injured and sent me off in a panic. Nice job, officer."

A twitch at his jaw line revealed that I'd zinged him with my words, but no other emotion was visible behind his green eyes.

"That's
detective
. And I'm referring to your little stunt of going to the newspaper and spreading rumors about Mayor Mills before we'd had a chance to secure the crime scene."

My breath caught in my throat, and the smugness I'd felt a moment ago slid down to my stomach, which lurched into a spin cycle.

"I did no such thing. I wouldn't go to the newspaper about something like…"

My mind raced back to my lunch with Henny Penny, who'd said she didn't work for the paper any longer. But that didn't mean she hadn't spread the news herself. Or maybe it was Colin. He'd overheard our entire conversation and come after me the same evening. Who else had heard the story? My boss, Barry?

I went with the most likely culprit. "Penny said she didn't work for the paper anymore."

Wasn't that what she'd said?
I had to focus in order to swallow.

He lifted one eye and crinkled his forehead at me, and I had the sudden memory of him doing the same thing when I'd confronted him behind the stadium on one rainy night eons ago. I tamped down the memory.

Not now, Mandy. Not now.

"No. She doesn't work for the paper. She
owns
the paper, Mandy."

Gulp.
"Well, I asked her if she worked there, and she said she didn't. I needed someone to talk to. I'd had a bad day."

The explanation sounded lame even to my own ears, but he was watching me carefully. The muscles in his face were taut—locked into place. His jawbone shifted slightly as he ground his teeth, but his eyes were soft, and the heat emanating from them, combined with the heat off the asphalt parking lot beneath us, was unbearable. It was as if he wanted to console me in some way but was torn between compassion and anger. I'd seen that look before as well.

"Look, I didn't exactly handle your visit to the station well, either."

I looked down at my worn work boots. "Is that an apology?"

He let out a soft bark of laughter. "Let's not get carried away."

I avoided eye contact with him as I lifted my head. "I need to check on Paget and get to work. I need this job, and after yesterday…"

He nodded. "Can I join you?"

This brought my eyes back to his face. "Join me? At work?"

Now he smiled full force at me, and I felt fifteen again. Saying the wrong thing in front of the cute guy. I was a virtual pro at this maneuver.

"No, when you check on Paget. I haven't seen her since the accident."

"Since the…"

I was finding it difficult to form rational thoughts and sentences this morning. Maybe I didn't get enough sleep. Or maybe it was being around Ty that caused it.

"Oh, didn't they tell you?"

"Tell me what?" My heart did a little boogie against my chest plate again.

"I'm the one who pulled her out from in front of the car. I'm the one who saved her."

Fences have ears. –Irish Proverb

"Do you think Dr. C. will let me get an x-ray so I can see inside myself?"

I squeezed her hand. "I doubt it. Why would you want to do that?"

Paget jabbed at the wiggling block of gelatin on her plate and scrunched her nose. "I wanted to see if it still jiggles on the inside?"

"I see you're feeling better."

Paget frowned deeply. "I'm sorry I messed up again, Mand. Are you mad at me?"

"I'm never mad at you. I'm mad at myself. Sorry I can't be with you all the time. Sorry I have to work."

Paget gave a wide grin. "Want some Jell-O? It's orange, that's your favorite."

I laughed, and Paget reached up to press her small finger to the corner of my mouth. Our mother had had the same dimple at the corner of her mouth. I remembered it. Mom, hanging clothes on the clothesline. Smiling in the sunlight. Back when she was young and happy and alive. I wondered if Paget had seen a photo of our mother like that.

"No, I think I'll pass for now. Pickles and I had a huge breakfast, but thank you."

"Pickles…is he okay?"

I patted her hand calmly, pulling her attention back into focus. "Pickles is fine. He and I slept in Aunt Patty's bed last night."

"But…but…that's Aunt Patty's bed."

"I know, and I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about it first. I was so very tired, and Pickles demanded to sleep on that afghan—you know the one."

Paget beamed at me with pride. The green and purple afghan was the crooked one that Paget had helped Aunt Patty knit. It was uneven and oddly colored, and it was Aunt Patty's favorite thing in the world.

Now Pickles never wanted to get off it. Now it was
his
favorite thing in the world. Well, besides Paget.

"Paget, I'm going to work for a little while, but I'll be back after lunch to pick you up. Will that be okay?"

A small coughing sound from the doorway caught our attention. Paget peered around me as Ty walked in. Paget gripped my hand tighter at first, but then she relaxed as she seemed to recognize him.

"Oh, you…you're my hero." She looked at him sheepishly.

Ty smiled back and winked at her.

"Do you know the Tall Winking Stranger, Mand?"

Tall Winking Stranger? Ugh.
I nearly gave myself a headache with the large mental eye roll that ensued. "Uh, yes. I know him. Is it okay if he says hello?"

Paget's face turned red. She looked down at her hand, still clasped inside mine. "Yes. He's nice."

I murmured, "That's debatable," under my breath, but neither of them paid me any attention. Paget seemed infatuated with Ty as he walked over and touched her shoulder.

There was silence for a moment, and then Paget's shrill voice set both me and Ty on high alert.

"A gun…he's got a gun!" Paget screamed, and I tried to calm her.

Ty, seeming to understand, backed out of the room slowly, and I tried to hold Paget in a reassuring embrace until the nurse came and slipped something into the IV.

After Paget returned to bliss-filled sleep, I eased out of the room and returned to the parking lot. Ty had slipped a note on Stella's windshield. Apparently, there was no need to stop by the station this morning—Ty wanted me to come by during my lunch break to fill out an official report. Lunch with Penny yesterday and lunch with her brother today.

Huh. So now he wanted to hear what I had to say. What a difference a day makes.

*  *  *

"Have you seen this?"

I stood in the Flicks Vision office. Barry's eyes bored into me as he held a newspaper in one hand. I scratched the back of my neck while thinking of diagnosing myself with coverall-itis.
Wonder if I can add it to the
Physician's Desk Reference
?

I shrugged. This couldn't be good. "No, I just got in."

Barry's face was a red color, kind of like the shade of a bad summer sunburn. A thick vein in his neck throbbed under the fluorescent lighting. He tossed the paper in my general direction

The headline read, "Local Girl Returns Home, Accuses Mayor of Murder." I looked back up at Barry, who was now wiping his forehead with the back of his hand, a nervous gesture.

"Do you know anything about this?" he asked.

I shrugged again and then scanned the article quickly. I needed a plan and needed one quickly, or I wouldn't have a job by the end of the day.

I looked up at Barry. "You know how this town is, Barry. This is nothing new. The gossipmongers know about everything. You can hardly kiss someone goodnight without it making the headlines around here."

His bulging vein seemed to expand another quarter-inch. I began to worry that it might explode from his neck at any moment like an alien invader who'd inhabited his body.

"You told someone besides the police and myself? Is that what I'm hearing?"

Despite my calm outward demeanor, my pulse raced at Barry's accusation. I knew I'd spilled the beans directly to Henny Penny at the café. I was totally to blame here.

Well, partially to blame. The police hadn't exactly jumped on this at record speed. And I hadn't really accused anyone of anything. The headline was a bit premature.

"Uh, well…what should I do? Do you not want me to finish the job at the mayor's house now?" I asked. Weirdly enough, I wanted to go back to that attic now. After all, you had to see all the clues to solve the mystery, didn't you?

"You bet your bottom dollar I don't want you back over there. You are to stay as far away from Mayor Mills and his family as possible. I wouldn't be surprised if he pulls our business license by the end of the day as it is."

I bit my lip. "Maybe I could go and apologize?" I had no idea where this idea had come from, but it seemed the right thing to say at the moment. I wondered if I could get in to see the mayor—or maybe his wife. Ms. Lanier had seemed to think that she was the key to everything.

Barry released a pent-up breath and shook his head. "I'm certain this whole thing is a big misunderstanding, but girly, you've got to keep out of it now. I've assigned you to The Country Club for this morning."

And there certainly won't be any Mills there.

My boss could be a nice enough guy, but I wasn't sure what he was thinking. The country club, which was aptly named The Country Club, was where the wealthiest, most hungry gossip hounds lived and breathed.

I thought about reminding him of this, but instead I gave a nod and reached for the clipboard he was extending toward me. Better not push my luck with old Barry. The redness in his face was screaming "potential coronary" already.

I headed out of the building but stopped to read the article before I pushed through the door. There was a quote from me at the bottom, it read:

"I know what I saw, and it was indeed the frozen body of a male subject. I've attended medical school for three years now, and if there's one thing I can recognize—it's a dead body."

Oh, shumbunnies.

*  *  *

As I drove toward The Country Club in the dreaded work van, I thought of Paget and could still hear her scream. It was always like that. You'd have a few good moments with her, and then everything would go to hell. Her brain worked that way, and there was little you could do about it. I'd been away too long. I'd left her care up to Patty for too many years.

Now, I had to learn how to cope with it all over again.

The welcome sign for The Country Club came into view as I crested the hill, and I wondered what was worse…coping with Paget's illness or withstanding the snobbery of Millbrook's elite?