Secrets in the Lowcountry--The River (31 page)

“
DNA isn’t Rod’s.”

She allo
w
ed herself to breath
e
and a sense of relief washed over her
.
He still might be safe.

“
Currently, v
ictim
’s
unkno
w
n
. L
ocal and state sources turned up negative.
S
ent the info to the Feds. Can’t tell
w
hen
w
e’ll hear from them.”

Sheriff Trotz clipped sentences always surprised peopl
e and fooled many. The man held a B.S in Criminal Justice and a Master’s in Law Enforcement.
He once told Taylor he saw no need to draw out the bad news.
She believed he played
‘B
ubba’ to keep folks off guard.
“Sheriff
?
”

He stared at Taylor
, his countenance betraying nothing
.

“
Rod’s parents
, t
hey should be contacted and told about…their son. I don’t have their phone number or address.
W
ith everything that’s happened, I’m embarrassed to say, I’d forgotten
them.
” She felt her cheeks redden.

Mary broke in. “As soon as
w
e
learned about his…
accident, I tried to find their phone number or their address.” She peeked at Taylor. “You and your dad
had enough on your plates. I
made a fe
w
calls to people in the
Beaufort area, but no one had any information
. I
even
did an internet search, still nothing. Perhaps, Sheriff, your office
will
handle this?”

“
W
e’ll check
.
G
ot a search
w
arrant for his house.
Searched
it. Didn’t f
ind his cell. Found an
addr
ess book and a computer that l
ooks old.
Don’t recall if his parents’ names
w
ere listed.
Seems
strange
not to have
that
.”
He shook his head, but his
short
buzz cut prevented any hair from moving.

“Rod’s estranged from his parents. They left Beaufort t
w
elve years ago.
I’m not sure if he’s heard from
them since they moved
.” Taylor stopped, before adding, “He never mentions them.
In fact, won’t discuss them.
”

Sheriff Trotz
scrunched his lips. “Interesting.” He
glanced from one to the other.
“Need t
o ask questions about Rod’s
business.” He
w
avered
. “Doc, Taylor, if time allo
w
ed I’d do this another day, but
w
e’ve received
phone calls from Rod’s investors.
Be
ing local folks, they heard
gossip.
They’re c
oncerned about the money they
lent
or invested
w
ith
him.
Told y’all
w
e
didn’t find much. Even on his computer. Peers like his pass
w
ords are encrypted. Sent the laptop to the State.
Taylor,
w
ho’s his la
w
yer? And his
partner?”

She released her hold on her father.
“No partner that I
’m
a
w
are of.
” Her voice sounded steadier tha
n moments before. “Rod maintained sole
control
of his company
.
I believe his la
w
yers are Thomson and Thomson.
That’s all I really kno
w
.
He didn’t talk
w
ith me
about the legal side of the project, j
ust the designs and the buildings.
”
She took a deep breath.

“
Thanks.
W
e’ll call. S
ee if they can help.
It’s early days. M
ight
claim client privilege
.
” Sheriff Trotz shifted his attention from Taylor
and gazed at each one for a moment or two
.

A
n
uncomfortable
, blanket of
silence settled over
the room.

“Sheriff,” Martin said, “Please keep us in the loop.”

Sheriff Trotz tipped his hat. “
Will
do.”

After he left, Taylor spoke, “
W
hat do
w
e do next?”

Her dad and Mary
sadly
shook their heads.

“
W
ait,” replied Jeff.

*~*

Taylor blinked her eyes, as the sunshine awakened her. She stretched languidly in her bed enjoying the beautiful blue sky and bright sun-filled sky. Then reality stuck
her
. A week ago, she’d been getting ready for her wedding. Instead of happiness, her entire life
vomited
on her. N
othing resolved itself. Her life remained in limbo and full of unanswered
questions.
Forcing herself to rise, she washed, threw on old jeans and
a
faded
shirt. In the deserted kitchen
she grabbed a peach and a power bar before heading to the barn.

The sound of laughter greeted her as she approached the riding ring. For a moment, she watched Jean and another volunteer
, who
m
Taylor did not recognize,
as they
help
ed
Amanda, a cerebral
,
palsy child
,
settle on a Canadian-style saddle.
T
he giggles came from the girl and her assistants
.
A smile started and soon encompassed
Taylor’s face.
This is my life.

The two women, one on each side, walked beside the rider, keeping her safe.
They entered the ring and started their slow promenade around the circle. The titters of joy
continued to
flow
from the
trio
.

“There you are!”
A
woman shouted in her loudest voice.

Taylor turned.
Oh, no.
Her attention flipped back to the child, her two guides, and the horse. Gratefully, Windy,
the twenty
year-old Appaloosa, continued her gentle stroll
, ignoring everything except her job
. With a sigh of relief
, Taylor faced her next
hurdle. 

A badly streaked blonde, with garish makeup, heavy black eyeliner, a very revealing sundress and white platform shoes
,
stopped right beside Taylor.
“I checked the internet and dis
covered the Horseback Heroes
program occurred every Saturday morning, plus some afternoons. So, here we are.” Ella Mae pointed to her daughter
, who stood behind her. “
Hannah can’t wait to start.” Her mother grabbed the girl’s arm and pulled her
forward
. “See
we purchased jodhpurs. Now spin around and show Miss Taylor…”

A girl, less
than five feet
tall
, with straight black hair, almost black eyes, and beautiful translucent skin slowly started a turn.
Seeing the boot
-
cast on her foot, Taylor quickly grabbed Hannah’s shoulders
to stop the child.
“Mrs. Lee, we book our schedule a month in advance. Each child has a specific time to arrive. We sit down with the parents
or care-givers
and lay out the day an
d hour they should come. M
any of our riders attend school, whether regular classes or
special, and most of the parents
work Monday through Friday
which
means
Saturday classes fill almost immediately. You and Hannah are welcome to sit on the benches and watch
, but she can’t ride
.”

Placing her hands on her hips
, Ella Mae shot arrows of anger at Taylor. “My daughter’s career in gymnastic
s
ended the day your mother hit her
. Your family owes us big time.” Swinging her arms around and pointing here and there with her fingers, she continued, “This place reeks of money. You
will
take my daughter on as a student. She
will
stay with you until she’s a champion rider. My child
will
have a successful career. Y
ou and your father
will
make that happen.”
With each sentence Ella Mae Lee’s volume increased.

Observing other people watching the scene, Taylor
recognized she must maintain her temper and get the cause
of the scene
away
quickly
.
“Ms. Lee, Hannah, please come with me to the barn’s office
, where we can discuss this
.”

The woman hesitated then agreed.

As they strolled slowly toward her small
workplace, going at a pace that Hannah could handle, guilt filled Taylor
. Her mother had caused the
girl’s problem.
Am I
responsibl
e to fix the situation she
had created?

Why hadn’t the Muellers called to tell her Ms. Lee would come? Had Ella Mae
’s lawyers suggested she
just
arrive
,
unannounced?
Once they started talking
,
Taylor would discover the whole story.

Taylor
switched her attention to the woman and her child, noting
the relationship between
them
.
The teenager appeared embarrassed by the fuss
her mother
had
made
and sought to distance hersel
f from the source
.
Every time the child edged away, her mother d
ragged her closer, refusing to allow the girl to escape.

Hannah limped but her foot appeared to be able to hold her weight. Dozens of ideas flowed through and around Taylor’s brain.
The boot-cast would prevent the girl from using a stirrup for that foot. Although slender, her upper body showed muscles. Her balance, even with the cast, appeared good.

Gratefully, they reached the cramped space that resembled a small walk-in closet rather than an office. Two windows, one facing the ring and the other a washing area for the horse
s
, gave the cubby hole light. A wooden desk of unknown origins sat shoved under the front window. An equally old swivel chair pushed into the open knee hole. Two folding chairs rested again
st
the back wall. “
Just give me a minute to set up the seats.
”

The two Lees stood
while Taylor unfo
lded the chairs, placing them on
the side of the desk
nearest the door
. She gestured for them to
come in and
sit.
They did.

Ms. Lee wrinkled her nose in a dissatisfied way and waved her hand in front of her face. “The smell is appalling. Can’t you
disinfect the barn and eliminate
th
e
horrible
odor
?”

Anger welled inside Taylor, but she gritted her teeth before saying, “Barns tend to smell of hay, horses, and manure. While we rake out and change the straw in the stalls, no one has discovered a way to house train a horse. For those of us who love the animal, it’s perfume.”

“Disgusting!” Ms. Lee placed her index finger beneath her nose, obviously
in an effort to block the aroma
.

Taylor refused to
cater to the woman.
“If we’re all comfortable, p
lease hear me out before you say anything.” She looked directly at Ella Mae Lee.
“Did your lawyer send you here?”